Samurai chanpurû

Let me begin by saying I am a huge Cowboy Bebop fan. Spike Spiegel is my hero, okay? So as much as I was dying to see this new work from the mind of Shinichiro Watanabe, I was apprehensive from the standpoint that I didn't want to see any subsequent work destroy any luster or afterglow that Bebop left behind in its wake. I was downright scared, I mean, how can you mix samurai action with hip-hop? I know Bebop's atmosphere of 1940's noir and 2071 spaceships didn't seem possible at first, but I was proved wrong by that. Maybe Watanabe-san had stepped too far outside the box this time.

I'll just come right out and say it: Shinichiro Watanabe can make anything he dreams up work. ANYTHING.

Samurai Champloo is one of the absolute coolest series I have ever seen. And by ever I mean live-action, animated, whatever. "Ever" ever. If you like anime, this is required watching, a new classic for the medium. If you don't like anime, watch this and you just might start to.

The story centers around two rogue samurai and the girl they're somewhat assigned to protect. Fuu, the young damsel who always seems to get in and out of distress; Jin, the serious samurai, and Mugen, the samurai who's seriously un-serious. The three travel around Edo-period Japan in search of the mysterious "Sunflower Samurai". And if I told you any more than that, I'd ruin so much of it for you. Just know this - the first episode will hook you like Tyrone Biggums to crack.

If you're a fan of anime or Cowboy Bebop or just really bad-ass shows/movies in general, you owe it to yourself to check this one out. You can pick up the DVDs or just check it out Saturday nights on Adult Swim.

Oh, and if you watch Adult Swim regularly and haven't caught Samurai Champloo yet, shame on you. You should know better.

With 1998's "Cowboy Bebop", one of the most acclaimed anime TV series ever (go read the comments index for it here on IMDb if you don't believe me!), Shinichiro Watanabe became a creative force to watch out for. The innovative energy, drama and beauty of "Bebop" are carried forward in his second original series, "Samurai Champloo". Fans have been quick to look for similarities between "Bebop" and "Champloo" (even the titles have clear parallels), and it's true there are some: the assembly-of-rootless-loners cast of characters, the dramatic and cinematic visual style, and especially the importance and integration of music into the storytelling mix--in SC's case, everything from hip-hop beatboxing to Ainu and Okinawan folksong. But "Champloo"'s differences from "Bebop" are much more interesting than its likenesses. "Bebop" is drenched in melancholy and regret, dreams of the lost past and the future that couldn't be. "Champloo" is all about facing the future, the wave of change, the onrush of history that can't be stopped, and how three kids from widely diverse backgrounds--not even friends when they set out-- find themselves right on the crest of that wave. We're in Edo Period Japan; since 1638 the Tokugawa Shogunate has banned contact with all countries except China and Japan, a ban that lasted two centuries. The outside world can't be kept outside forever. Even the long-respected samurai class is losing its power, and there's restlessness in the land plus accompanying pressure from the Shogunate on all sides. Through this uneasy landscape (rendered in lushly beautiful watercolors that might remind you of Miyazaki) wander our cast of characters: outlaw ronin Jin, a gifted swordsman, stoic, disciplined and heartbreakingly gorgeous, devoted to the bushido code but exiled for killing his sensei; Okinawan wild-boy Mugen, orphan, former pirate and brilliant innovator, whose fighting style mixes everything from Brazilian capoeira to break-dancing, and whose feral-child innocence faces the toughest tests in the series; and teahouse waitress Fuu, spunky, compassionate and packing a lot of secrets, who rescues the two swordsmen from the executioner's block and enlists them on her quest to avenge her mother's death. On their long walk from Edo to Nagasaki they'll see a lot, face a lot of trials, starve, quarrel, save each other's lives, break up, re-bond, and become inseparable. Except that Jin and Mugen still swear they'll fight to the death one day, and no one (not even Fuu) is saying anything about the Sunflower Samurai, the object of Fuu's quest.

Have I made this sound like a straight historical drama? I ought to mention that it can be hysterically funny as well as vividly bloody, contains knockout fight scenes and anachronisms by the carload (the aforementioned break dancing and beatboxing, Jin's Armani glasses, the appearance of landmarks not built till the 1900s...), has made me cry more times than any anime since "Bebop", and has sharp things to say about the heavy hand of authority and tradition on groups as diverse as gay men, married women, foreigners, aboriginal natives and illegal aliens. It's unfailingly beautiful to look at (well, 95% unfailingly) and listen to, delectably well-written, and simply brilliant. When it gets to America, go find it.

This anime tells the obscure story of 2 samurai bound to a girl on a quest for a samurai who smells of sunflowers. She constantly conceals her motiviation for doing so.

The comedy element in this anime is excellent. A deliberate pairing comparable to Spike and Jet in cowboy beebop exists with one vagabond samurai and one honorable samurai. Both samurai have a completely contrasting fighting style which makes for great action scenes and simultaneous plots (where one is fighting on one side of a city and another is fighting on the other).

Similar plot style to cowboy beebop, via meetings with people from their past, both characters pasts are slowly revealed with a clear direction toward finding the samurai who smells of sunflowers. There's a constant struggle to find the basic necessities like food and a real feel to the plot as opposed to anime where you're left wondering if they've gone six months without a shower or a bath.

As i said, best anime i've ever scene, hilarious :D

I was at Best Buy one time checking out the anime section, there I found Samurai Champloo for sale. I am a big fan of samurai anime so I took a look at it. Two things made me want to buy it: the dream team of director Shinchiro Watanabe (Cowboy Bebop & The Animatrix), designers Kazuto Nakazawa (Kill Bill Vol. 1: Chapter 3: The Origin of O-Ren), and Mahiro Maeda (Last Exile & Blue Submarine No. 6), and an awesome, hard-hitting hip hop soundtrack! There aren't many animes that have rap soundtracks, so I had to check this out. Samurai Champloo is one of the best new animes. Brilliant animation, memorable characters, laid-back kinetic atmosphere, great music, and kick-ass Hong Kong, Akira Kurosawa style fight sequences. The story revolves around two highly skilled ronins and a girl: Mugen, a violent, buck wild swordsman whose style emphasizes one hand kendo and Capoeira. Jin, a mysterious, calm gentleman swordsman that masters traditional, straight-forward Japanese Swordsmanship. And Fuu, a young, beautiful ditzy waitress. After Fuu saves them from being executed, Mugen and Jin agree to temporarily set aside their differences and help her in her quest to find the "samurai who smells of sunflowers. Jin and Mugen are the perfect examples of the yin-yang concept. These unstoppable, independent warriors are complete opposites, but their skills are equal to each other. Fuu plays a perfect mediator between the two. This series has strong ties to Watanabe's previous classic, Cowboy Bebop: same style action and atmosphere, but with a hip-hop soundtrack instead of Jazz. And Mugen, Jin, and Fuu could be compared to Spike, Jet, and Faye. But what makes this series original is the hybrid combination of a feudal Japan setting and philosophy with modern fighting, urban street flavor personality, and off-beat comedy, hence the title "Champloo", meaning stir-fry. The verbal exchanges between the three heroes are amusing and great to watch. They series also utilize rap DJ record style scratching to switch between scenes perfectly. Overall, Samurai Champloo is an anime bond to be a classic, and raises the level for anime. If you are a major anime fan, check this out, it will be an excellent addition to a collection.

***** (5 stars) Ryojin20 favorite!

first of all, you have to understand that samurai champloo was done by Shinchiro Watanabe, creator of Cowboy Bebop.

now that it's outta of the way, u can obviously tell this show will have hip-hop fusion along with great animation. Watanabe has done it again. This time, he heads toward the samurai-era with 3 wonderful characters. Jin(the passive, quiet, stern and traditional samurai master), Mugen (the hyperactive(jumps a lot), violent, and agile criminal/samurai), and Fuu(the calculating, crafty, and often persistent girl). Fuu saves Jin and Mugen's life and as a debt, they have to help her find a "samurai who smells like sunflower". it may sound average but believe me, this show is extraordinary. the fights are animated so fluidly(Kill-Bill-animation), the story is funny a s hell, and the music is "interesting"(rap opening). There's even beat-boxing in one ep. WATCH THIS SHOW!!! YOU WILL NEVER REGRET IT