Afro Samurai

Everything about it is what I wanted for a anime, a actual good style (unlike boruto), great use of fighting, and not a too long story that will lose it's purpose, I only rated it a 8 though due to the fact that many things are just left out in the open, what about justice (the guy who killed afro's father) legacy and Afro's Father too? They seem like great characters and should have been shown more. I highly recommend it, and it is definitely a anime completely different from other animes, way more mature, unlike those disgusting anime shows that use girls as tools, 8/10, my favourite anime despite not watching anime as much as I used to.

Seeking to avenge his father's death, the Afro Samurai sets out to kill the #1 fighter in all the land, a man called Justice. After earning himself the title of #2, which is required for him to be able to challenge Justice, Afro Samurai sets out on his journey to revenge. His road is a dangerous one as he must first find out the location of Justice from his foes – all of whom would seek to protect Justice and also win the title of #2 for themselves. His task is a lonely and dark one, but like it or not he has a companion in the constantly b1tching Ninja Ninja.

Although it will not be to everyone's taste, Afro Samurai is a perfect example of something being pitched right at the target audience it is intended for. adult swim is the perfect home for it because it is very much targeted at young males who like their hip hop, Anime and traditions of feudal Japan. It mixes these in a great series of animations that some audiences will claim is very high on style at the expense of content. Now I appreciate that most reviews here are gushing in their praise of this series and not keen on anyone criticising it but, the thing is, those saying it lacks substance do have a point. Like I said before though, it is target audience stuff and for those into it, there will be plenty of content to support the style – those looking to be intellectually stimulated by the themes and ideals behind the characters will not get what they are looking for (but why were you looking here for those things). However for target audience the emotional core and the narrative twists will be more than enough to fill the running times of each episode and expand across the season.

What the series delivers in spades though is the cool world of the samurai crossed with the violent and stylish world of Anime with a big dollop of urban culture thrown in there too. It is no surprise to find The Rza involved because again it brings it back to a product that knows what its audience. So those coming to it will be looking for certain things and it delivers it well visually. The Anime animation is slick and cool and moves with all the conventions you will be used to from the genre. The soundtrack compliments it really well because, as other things (eg Boondocks, Wu-Tang etc) have shown, the mix of ninja/samurai (yes, I know they are very different) cultures and modern hip hop seems to be an easy fit. Performance wise you gotta say that Jackson is perfect for the role and again shows that he )or his agent) can pick the roles that bring him heat from his base fans. He is really good in his dual roles and brings the dialogue alive. Of course he is well supported by a famous cast – even if they are not all given roles that are that big. Perlman has a great voice and uses it well, but while I think Hu is again a good example of targeting your audience's tastes, her voice is not her strongest feature. Generally though all voice work is good because they are matching the style of the series rather than giving performances per se.

Overall then, not for everyone's tastes but in targeting its audience it is as ruthlessly efficient as Afro Samurai himself. Stylish, bloody, brooding and with an overall air of effortless cool, it is a fine series that I enjoyed. Put it this way, if you like the sound of it then you will almost certainly like it – it is that good at what it does.

Hip-hop in feudal japan? Guy on a quest to become "number one"? My first impressions of this anime, based on promotional material back in 2007, were not too good. I'm not a big fan of hip-hop for one thing, and neither do I dig the overused plot device of a lone warrior traveling the country to seek vengeance, which was handled so much better by Yoshiaki Kawajiri in Ninja Scroll or Highlander. Dismissed it immediately.

It is 2009 now and I discovered Afro Samurai: Director's Cut in the discount bin at the DVD store. Bought it, watched it, and GOT HOOKED by it.

The first thing that struck me was the whole "attitude" of the show. Science fiction, fantasy, samurai films, blaxploitation, all blended together into one tasty soup. If shows like Ghost in the Shell appeals to the higher reasoning and logical portions of the brain and Grave of the Fireflies appeal to the emotional centers, Afro Samurai would be a show that appeals to the most basic drives of human cognition.

It is pure "Id" given form, striving to do no more than to satisfy the instinctual needs for pleasure. In the same way the ancient Romans loved their gladiatorial combat and their lions vs prisoners shows, this anime digs deep into the dark recesses of the human mind which hides that aggressive streak and answers its denied cravings by delivers non-stop violence with a whole new attitude. The highly stylized art works well for such a show, containing an exceptionally high level of detail more common in feature film animation than in a direct-to-DVD miniseries. The animation is fluid, smooth and conveys a sense of "free flow", like watching a professional break-dancer; everything is constantly in flux. Like the "Id", the action is excessive and illogically over-the-top: A testament to the limitless potential of animation and the illogical and almost random nature of our basic human instincts.

Even the slightly disjointed and simplistic story reflects the properties of the "Id". In keeping with the "style over substance" the creative team did not even try to make an original narrative. The story presented here is an extremely simple one, stocked to the brim with clichés. As a kid, young Afro watched his dad die at the hands of an evil gunman(played by Ron "Hellboy" Perlman), and vowed to spend the rest of his life training in the samurai way to take down his father's killer and become "Number One." Along the way, he meets old friends, new enemies and host of quirky characters in a stylish world where ancient feudal japan meets post-modern science fiction and fantasy.

Clichés also extend to the many characters in this show. Stoic silent wanderer with comic relief sidekick (sounds like Vampire Hunter D and his left hand), femme fatale who falls for our hero, mysterious mafia-like villains, etc. What lends new life to these tired old clichés is the fresh new attitude and style that Afro Samurai brings with it. It is like an all new liquor cocktail which uses existing ingredients, but what sets it apart from other cocktails is how everything is mixed together.

Special mention goes to Samuel L Jackson who plays both the stoic Afro and his loud mouthed trash talking sidekick, Ninja-ninja. His acting, as with every other member of the cast is spot on, and I love how he can play the two characters so differently with the same level of professionalism. Honestly if I never looked at the cast list, I would have never thought he voiced those two characters at the same time.

Afro Samurai is to this new century what Ninja Scroll was to the 90s: A bloody, violent, fresh, unabashed display of excessiveness that delivers what it promises. A highly original concept recommended for fans who are bored with your typical shonen anime and looking for something new, refreshing and just oozing with ATTITUDE.

Afro Samurai came out of left field from me. Totally unexpected, I saw the tile pop up somewhere and sounded cool enough for me to give it a go. And even though I'm not an anime fan, I found lots to appreciate in this mini series of blood and mayhem.

The main appeal for me was the combination of blaxploitation culture and samurai swordfighting (chambara). Samuel Jackson doing the voice-overs for both Afro Samurai (Clint Eastwood style, few words, calm and badass) and his sidekick Ninja Ninja (wisecracking non-stop banter) was another major plus. The third advantage is the simple story that takes its cue from a long line of revenge movies: this is a simple revenge story and that's why it works so well.

In a futuristic world, young kid watches his father get cut down by baddie who is after his father's Headband #1. Headband #1 allows its bearer to be like a god. The only one who can challenge him is the one who wears Headband #2. Anyone can challenge Headband #2. As one could expect, Headband #2's path is littered with corpses as everyone and their dog want their chance to challenge Headband #1. Young kid grows up and becomes Afro Samurai and walks the path of revenge against Headband #1. A colourful ensemble of baddies will stand in his way, from a neo-Buddhist cult of assassin monks, to cyborgs to teddy-bear faced guys with a grudge to common crooks. Through flashbacks we come to find out how Afro Samurai became who he is and how he obtained Headband #2. Simple yet effective.

The main appeal here is the visual aspect. Being a fan of 60's and 70's chambaras and jidai-gekis I find the swordfights a tad too hyperkinetic for my taste, but that's anime for you I guess. However everything has a smoother, more westernized approach perhaps to the rapid, eyesore that often is the genre which I took to with pleasant surprise and relief. The graphics and design tend to be great (especially Afro Samurai's) although they can settle for just good or serviceable at times. The blood geysers and slashing, taking their cue from stuff like Lone Wolf and Cub and Lady Snowblood (copious amounts of glorious arterial sprayings) will please every fan of the red stuff although it's not particularly gruesome. Good, clean, family fun.

The soundtrack is done by usual suspect RZA. I have to say that the whole combo of hip-hop/anime/exploitation works particularly well even though I'm only a fan of the latter third. If you wanna get a picture of what Afro Samurai is, think of the animated sequence in Kill Bill vol. 1.

First things first: If you are a fan of Anime movies, than this one is exactly up your alley. Hopefully, the fact that it is in English, won't disappoint you. It shouldn't, especially with Samuell L. Jackson speaking the main part(s)!

But when I say Anime, than I mean more in the vain of "Ninja Scroll" than let's say something from the Ghibli Studio. This one right here, is pretty intense and aimed at an adult audience. Even if the Blood is animated, it might be too much for some viewers.

I was lucky enough to watch this at local theater, where they showed the whole season back-to-back (5 episodes) ... only thing that was kind of a bummer, was the fact, that you did notice when an episode ended. They still edited it good together, but this might be something, that could put you off a bit. Other than that, I don't see any reason not to watch this (and it's also recently available "Sequel") ... unless you're not adult of course! ;o)