Ten years after the beginning of the Meiji Era, a wandering samurai came to Tokyo. This man, known as Himura Kenshin later on, ends up living in a Kamiya Kasshin dojo and teach kendo for a living.
However, his life is not as simple, as turmoils arise from time to time, unfolding his true nature as the famous Hitokiri Battousai, the greatest killer of the Bakumatsu. However, vowing never to kill again, he tries as hard as he can not to draw his sword until the critical moment comes, and so far, manages to escape his bloody past.
Until the day when an old menace, in the form of Shishio Makoto, the successor to the Hitokiri Battousai, threatens the peace of the new Meiji Era. Shishio and his Juppon Gatana are ready to start a new revolution to correct the evils of Western influence, and forced Himura Kenshin, along with his new friends, once again raise his sword to protect their loved ones.
Credits: niomea
Story & Characters
<i>Rurouni Kenshin</i> is a well-known favorite among fans of historical fiction/fighting anime, for good
reason. Not only is there really awesome (and sometimes unrealistic) sword fights, but the characters, especially
Himura Kenshin and his nemisis/questionable ally, Saitou Hajime, are surprisingly multi-faceted. Not to mention there
is actual character development in pretty much every regular character!
The historical fiction aspect was what really hooked me, though; I wound up doing a bit of research on the Meiji Era,
and rereading James Clavell's <i>Gai-jin</i> to get some real-world and other literary interpretations
of the time period.
As much as I enjoyed the enime, though, I am finding that the manga is ever so much better, both in keeping up a
consistent plotline and not wasting time on otherwise silly filler-episodes. The story quickly becomes darker than in
the anime, and Watsuki, an unabashed fan of the Shinsen-gumi, is more than willing to bring up little tidbits of
Bakumatsu history that impacted the later Meiji era.
Of course, one should not think of <i>RK</i> as a history lesson, but more as a fun point to start exploring
history.
Rating: 8
Art
RK was produced back in the early 1990's, so that art is not quite on par with the digital stuff nowadays. The
first season especially had rather simplistic and sometimes sub-standard animation (especially in the filler episodes).
By the Kyoto arc, however, it seems like the animators had got their stuff together - not only was the style striking,
but the fight sequences (I'm thinking mostly of the Saitou-Kenshin dojo fight here) were just plain kick-ass. But
even then, there were times where the style changed markedly, in some instances from one episode to the next!
I know it sounds like I'm putting the animation down a lot, but that's because I can't help but compare
it to the manga, which once again, outshines the anime.
And not just because the manga Kenshin DOES NOT wear pink!
Rating: 7
Sound
I must state here and now that I HATE DUBS and will never watch an anime in English if I can help it. That said, I have
not the time, words, space, or patience to lambast the dub of RK to the degree it deserves. suffice it to say, the dub
stank - it seemed that the voice actors had not bothered to learn how to pronounce any of the NAMES let alone the
attacks. Kenshin wasn't so bad, but several characters suffered greatly. The best (or worst, as it may be)
example is Misao, who's Japanese voice was so cute (especially in her image song!) I instantly liked her - her dub
voice was harsh, grating, and just downright obnoxious!
Thankfully, the music can't be ruined by evil dubbers - the OST, especially the instrumentals, were thoroughly
enjoyable. I can listen to the "Departure Suite" and "Kimi wa Dare wo Mammotte Iru" all day! My
favorite OP/End songs, in no order are: "Heart of Sword," "Namida wa Shitte Iru,"
"Tactics," and "It's Gonna Rain!"
Rating: 8
Presentation
As I said in the plot review, I loved the historical fiction aspect. I also loved the physical comedy that came into
play, especially in the first epsiodes. I remember how in the first episode, Kenshin ran into Kaoru's bath because
she thought she was trying to kill herself, and....yeah, you get the idea! Kenshin is a goof-ball on par with Vash the
Stampede when he's rurouni, and his "oro!" is now an official part of my vocabulary. Of course, I
mention Kenshin as rurouni only to bring up his "Battousai" aspect - talk about split-personality issues! The
whole angst about his Bakumatsu past was what made RK that much more memorable, especially after I watched the OVAs
(which I will review seperately, in case you were wondering). Also, I thought it was incredibly appealing when he went
all golden-eyed and murderous. Buuuuuut that just the fangirl in me.
I've watched RK several times through, and I intend to hang onto my DVDs for a long time - <i>Rurouni
Kenshin</i> is a definite keeper!
Rating: 8
Final Verdict
7.8333 (good)
Reviewed by sylvacoer, Oct 18, 2004
