Samurai Champloo

So on Sunday I finished Samurai Champloo, and now that it's been absorbed, I would like to make a post for it.

The story for Samurai Champloo was written by Shinichiro Watanabe, the same person who wrote Cowboy Bebop, so I automatically had high expectations for this series. I was not let down in the least. In fact, Samurai Champloo has now become my favorite anime of all time. Any anime fan should at least watch one of Shinichiro Watanabe's shows. Once you do almost no anime can measure up. He sets the bar extremely high.

So the plot for Samurai Champloo is for the three main characters to find a samurai that smells like sunflowers. That's it. That's the goal for the whole series. Sounds pretty boring doesn't it? Only it isn't. From the first episode this series will grab you and demand your attention till the very end. There are three main characters in this series and they're all complete opposites in every way. The characters are Fuu, a cute 15 year old girl who has no family and was working in a tea house when Mugen, a loud-mouthed, crude, idiot who lives for the thrill of a fight, and Jin a proper, quiet, serious samurai get into a fight and destroy the place. A series of events then follow, and Mugen and Jin end up owing a favor to Fuu. So that's where their journey begins, Fuu demands that they not fight until after they find the 'sunflower samurai' to prevent them from killing each other till their journey is complete.

As you go through this series you barely learn anything about the Sunflower Samurai. It's not really until the very end that you find out why they're looking for him. Only it doesn't matter. As you follow them on this journey you watch the characters relationship grow and develop. You get to know the characters bit by bit in a very natural way that doesn't feel like they're just announcing things so the audience watching knows. You start to feel like you know them personally, and in other ways it feels like they're a mystery. The characters don't even like each other, especially Jin and Mugen, yet they manage to have this odd bond that is just so interesting to watch.

Samurai Champloo is heavily influenced by hip-hop. Both by music, and dance. How does that work? I wasn't sure either, but oddly enough, it fits right with the show. The animation is so fluid and real. You can tell that they based it off of real human movement. Even with Mugen's outrageous way of fighting the movements are just so realistic. Mugen's fighting style is completely based off hip-hop dancing. His feet are rarely on the ground, and he's spinning and flying all over the place. His fighting style is offensive, and in your face. It fits his character perfectly, and if you like fight scenes you'll love watching him. Jin's fighting style is based more off of traditional martial arts and sword fighting. More defensive, and strategic, but just as fun to watch. The art is just as great as the animation with the grafitti type style suiting the whole hip- hop theme perfectly.

The character designs are all so fun. It's based in the Edo era, so the clothing is very traditional. There's a wide range in how the characters look as well. You will never find yourself confusing someone for someone else which is nice. Mugen being the more rugged type has stubble on his face, his hair is bushy and untamed, and even his teeth look a little nasty. Jin is clean cut, he has long limbs, and a long face, he keeps his hair in a ponytail like most traditional Samurai do. Honestly, it's just fun to watch the show to see the art in it. It really is a masterpiece in it's own way.

Some episodes will make you laugh hysterically, others will make you start to tear up and want to burst out crying. By the end of the series you will be so attached to the characters you will want to cry just because the series is over and you don't get to spend anymore time with them. This is another series where you feel like you're getting a glimpse into their lives when they're together. That's a mark of a truly great series. At least, that's what I think.

Now, the only complaint I have is the horrible HORRIBLE opening song it has. It is the worst opening I have ever heard. I muted it almost every time the opening came on. LOL.

I think that's all I can say on Samurai Champloo. If you haven't figured it out by now, I loved it. Loved it. I'd give it a 10/10. To me it couldn't have been any better than what it was.

Unless they changed that opening.

Till next time.