Jûbê ninpûchô: Ryûhôgyoku-hen

Alright, I did read a few comments at the IMDb boards before I decided to watch the TV-series of Ninja Scroll. And I have to admit that it weren't that lame as I have seen some people ranting around in the forums claiming it to be. I actually enjoyed it quite well, and I do think I captured at least some sort of vibration being radiated from the series that reminded me of the masterpiece (yes I'm speaking about the movie). The story develops.. well it does in some way throughout the series, but as some other users mentioned, there are a set of duels that are not as good as those from the movie and the majority of duels are according to me taking up too much space throughout the shows (and will get quite repetitive). But I wouldn't deny that I would recommend this to all those who liked the movie - and of course anyone who's into ninja-style anime. The series are quite braindead in general though (which might be a good think depending on what you're looking for) and it doesn't require much attention from the viewers side nor concentration. I would probably give this one a 6 or a 7 out of 10, but if you yet haven't seen the movie I'd suggest you do that before you'll hook yourself up with the TV-series...

Ninja Scroll Is an animated, action, adventure that has raised the bar for animation. Directed by Jack Fletcher and Tatsuo Sato, and written by Toshiki Inoue it is one of the greatest animated series to ever hit the market.

Ninja Scroll follows the exploits of Jubei Kibagami as he attempts to fulfill a promise he made to a dieing man; however something always gets in the way and prevents him from fulfilling the promise.

This series was drawn out very well the action scenes didn't miss a beat everything was done excellently, the plot was outstanding, and the theme music for the series was excellent as well.

I liked this series a lot it has an awesome plot great writers and amazing artists. This series was outstanding even if you haven't watched the movie I recommend watching the series.

This series is set in a feudal Japan where demonic beings are common; in this land Jubei Kibagami, a mercenary ninja is given the task of delivering something called The Dragon Stone to a woman known as The Light Maiden. Meanwhile a village is attacked and the sole survivor is Shigure, who many believe is The Light Maiden. The two of them meet up fairly soon and travel together along with elderly monk Dakuan and a young thief named Tsubute. As they travel together they meet numerous Ninja clans who are desperate to get their hands on the Dragon Stone and the Light Maiden so they can get their hands on the treasure they are rumoured to be able to access.

Having not seen the Ninja Scroll movie I can't say how this compares but as a stand-alone series I found it surprisingly enjoyable. There is a decent plot arc along with monster of the week side plots. This means that there is a fair amount of action in every episode; this is well animated and rather violent… expect to see plenty of blood. Away from the action there are some laughs; mostly provided by sidekicks Dakuan and Tsubute, there are also a few poignant moments as some of the bad guys aren't entirely unsympathetic. There are of course some clichés and we never for a moment believe Jubei could lose a fight; still these scenes are handled well so it doesn't really matter. The characters were pretty good for the most part although the main antagonist was a bit over the top.

These Comments are based on watching the series in Japanese with English subtitles.

The animation is good, but the music (an instrumental combination of techno and traditional Japanese) made it feel like a video game. The ideas are original, but then again, completely bogus: electric ninjas, mutant ninjas, surgeon ninjas, undead ninjas, huge ninjas, parasitic ninjas... you get the idea.

The movie was a great thing, not only as animation is concerned, but also as the plot unraveled. This one is mostly "Jubei is cool". True enough, he kills just about everything that moves, and strong and weird opponents they are: electric ninjas, mutant ninjas... :)

The end is just as pointless as the rest of the series, but you feel good looking at it. It has the feel of Might and Magic (1 to 5) and you half expect to find out in the end that the entire land magic has the source in an extraterrestrial spaceship. Fun.

Despite a run of extremely good newer anime series (such as Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex and Samurai Champloo), the vast run of anime still seems to be stuck in plot less limbo. Ninja Scroll: the Series is no exception.

Despite being based on a fantastic anime feature film filled with intrigue, fascinating characters, and amazing artwork, Ninja Scroll falls astoundingly flat as a continuing series. Considering the writing and directing are done by entirely different people, this is no surprise; it is, however, vastly disappointing. Jubei devolves from a witty, sarcastic character to a poorly-written shadow of his former self, complete with bad dialogue. Where the Eight Devils of Kimon were fresh, original villains with an interesting theme, the villains in the ongoing series are just an endless list of "I have this power, and I die by the end of the episode" throwaway thugs. The plot (or lack thereof) is not at all engaging, the heroic characters aren't worth watching, and you find yourself wishing the episode was already over five minutes in.

Do yourself a favor and watch the original film, and don't bother with the pale imitation that is this series.