Hip Hop Samurai


From the makers of Cowboy Bebop.

Cowboy Bebop, the funky series about bouny hunters in outer space, may not be my favorite anime, but I recognize the quality. Director Shinichiro Watanabe is known for many acclaimed series like Bebop, and his latest work, Samurai Champloo hits the right chords with me.
Samurai Champloo is an action anime set in ancient, feudal Japan, yet rendered and often set to modern sensibilities and hip-hop music. It's probably the closest I've seen yet to Blade of the Immortal in anime form.

Two exceptionally deadly ronin- Mugen and Jin clash swords after separate altercations with the corrupt town prefect, and end up being imprisoned and sentenced to die. They eventually escape in a storm of blades and blood with the help of Fuu, a young girl who enlists their aid to find 'a samurai who smells of sunflowers'. And so, the story begins...

Champloo boasts quite fluid and impressive animation during fight scenes, depicting Mugen's quick, fast-on-his-feet fighting style and Jin's more refined techniques. The character designs are also excellent and expressive, and the overall quality is very high. The series so far seems to be very close as well to other Watanabe series- there's an underlying sense of humor and lightness, though the show doesn't hold back when it comes to action and death-dealing. Baddies get cut down quick and hard here, like in real samurai cinema.
I've watched two episodes, and I can say that I am sold on this cool new series. Anyone looking for tough, action-packed, sexy and high quality anime may want to check this out.