Afro Samurai is the perfect example of why you should never let an American company handle an anime. I should have known when I started to watch this. They’ll start to see this as some kind of Hollywood Action-movie, instead of an engrossing tale about likable characters. This anime makes the same mistakes as your typical big-budgeted Hollywood action movie: it thinks that action and pretty graphics instantly make it good. Obviously, just that won’t get you far.
Okay, as a defence, this anime does give our main character a bit of a history and background. It’s just too bad that not too soon, these start to delve into the absurd when the other villains of this show start to use this background, turning something that could have been interesting into a one-sided boring piece of garbage. Any attempts to draw sympathy out of the viewer fails, seeing that the creators seemed to thing that the more horrible your childhood was, the more you can sympathise with your character. Fleshed-out characters don’t even come to their minds for a second.
The second episode could be considered the best of the show. Why? Because an actual human gets placed in the role of antagonist. Apart from that, all Afro Samurai has to face are androids, robots and people who manage to heal themselves without any proper reason. All of this, only to make sure that these opponents don’t just die after one hit from a sword, and keep fighting Afro-samurai, who seems to have a limitless amount of stamina. The creators really couldn’t find an interesting antagonist at all, and instead of that, they keep resurrecting old characters who have already died once, just because they ran out of creativity.
The premise, if you can speak of that, revolves around two headbands. A number one and number two-headband. The one who possesses the number one can live as a god. The number two is the only one who can challenge the number one. Afro Samurai is the son of a former number one, who got killed. Because of this, he wants revenge. It’s a good premise, if the focus is put in the right place. Unfortunately, it’s an American company we’re dealing with here. The only two words of that premise that really return in the anime are “challenge” and “revenge”. We never see how the number-one lives. For as far as we know, he just keeps sitting on his lazy ass doing nothing. He also seems to be the only one who gets the god-like powers, strangely enough.
Oh, and yes, Samuel L. Jackson does the voice of the main character in this OVA, but really, don’t expect too much of it. All he does is moan and groan a bit. If this guy really is one of the best actors America has to offer, then I’m glad I don’t live there. This definitely is a good example of a good premise, ruined by Hollywood-influence. I fell in love with anime not just because of the pretty graphics. The things that also drew me to it is the focus, the stories, characters and themes. All of these, I fail to see in Afro Samurai.]]>
Afro Samurai Review – 47/100
I haven’t seen past episode 01, but I was wondering if it would be anything more than lots of graphic violence. The production quality is really good – it’s just too bad this ends up being another forgettable anime.
I wonder if this is being setup as a full-length series? If so, I imagine it would get really, really boring – kinda like I thought the Ninja Scroll anime series was. I couldn’t make it past volume one, because every episode was pretty much like how you described Afro Samurai!
Thank goodness. I thought I was the only one who felt that this show was overrated.
David: Afro-Samurai had five episodes, though it’s just an OVA, much like FLCL. The ending was left open (you do not want to know how, by the way), but I certainly do not hope that they’re planning to continue this anime into a second season.
I agree with you on the show, but perhaps you and I are in the minority among American audiences. Also, if an American anime is to copy the Japanese style, then there’s no point in making it at all. We can just import it directly from Japan. I give them points for trying an American interpretation on anime.
i think its royally fucked up to assume that americans cant handle an anime… funny i used to think the same thing until i saw avatar the last air bender which pwns naruto and bleach in every possible aspect of action, romance and characters. Afro samurai just wasnt executed well, dont place the blame on its american production.
Afro Samurai is good for what it is. Of course, you can’t (and shouldn’t) expect much, considering who commissioned it and for what purpose. Yes, I like it, but that’s because it gave me exactly what I was expecting: lots and lots of slickly animated ultra-violence. When you have an anime series being done for a late-night slot in an American cable network, catering strictly to the hormone-drenched male 18-to-34-year-old demographic, what were you expecting? Ghost in the Shell?
Your expectations were just misplaced, that’s all. But because of this, you instantly assume that whenever America/Americans/American companies decide to dabble their hands in anime, the result is an instant fail. If that was the case, then Tekkon Kinkreet and Avatar: The Last Airbender would’ve never been made.
did the voice acting ever get any better? i never watched passed episode 1. the voice acting was just too painfully retarded for me.
lol my friend told me about this series, Samuel L Jackson does the voice for the main guy I think. The graphics actually look quite good but I can imagine how bad the voice acting would be lmao.
Im not sure if I would call this an American Made Anime, given that it was made by GONZO, and was directed by Fuminori Kizaki who did animation direction and character design for blue gender and galaxy railways. If anything its more like an American funded project. And also I wouldnt call Samuel L Jackson one of the best actors…
you are justa wanna be satirist, states hater. stfu and get an original thought. afro samurai was decent. btw dont be mad at USA because we are better off than wherever you live.
After all this, I did a bit of research, and indeed, Afro Samurai appears to be directed by Japanese. It seems to be an Japanese-American co-production. It seems that I jumped the gun a bit on this one. What we have here is just a very bad anime, that’s all.
Still, the fact remains that Afro Samurai does have a lot of american influences, which, in my opinion, rather ruined it. It took the concept of a hollywood-action movie a bit too serious, in comparison to Catblue Dynamite, which became its downfall.
I haven’t watched Avatar, the last Airbender, by the way, so I can’t judge on that. But I can say that I’ve watched many American cartoons in the past, and just none of them matched up to the things I experienced in anime. This is based on my own experience, though.
You should give Avatar a try, seriously. I know exactly what you abt american cartoons being unable to deliver the same experience anime gave us.
It seems the american-side wants to get in on the whole anime deal. Avatar is a good example of this, seeing that they learned and incorporated a lot of things that would normally appear in any japanese anime show.
i did have some expectations for afro, since i was told that it was directed and animated by the japanese, but somehow the theme just didn’t fit.
It’s like you poured bolognese sauce and meatballs in a bowl of soba, so to speak.
I agree that Afro Samurai fell short of the hype surrounding it. It’s not nearly as deep a story as it had the chance to be. I am grateful however at the chance to see a strong african american character star in his own series. We do not have nearly enough minorities in strong leading roles….even if it is just an anime. As far as Samuel L Jackson being a great actor….his films have grossed more money at the box office than the work of any other actor in cinematic history.
i do agree that the show was not truly that deep and the action wasn’t truly creative it was more decent than a lot of shows i’ve seen. i think ppl need to remember that anime is just another media for telling a story and i bet you guys can imagine how awesome it would be if certain live-action movies and TV series would be if they were anime.
me and my brother have been anime fans since we were little just because we are black and american doesn’t mean we can’t create a story that may seem simple at first glance but have a deeper meaning hidden behind it.
i take that back some of the was creative… of course it’s not really that hard to think of creative ways to kill ppl unless your screamish
as for my expectations.. it was pretty much what i expected…which is not a good thing
nothing unexpected happened which is what ill have to do when writing my novel
note to self: create unexpected events
hopefully you guys will be seeing my brother’s work on the shelves in a couple of years though.
animation = kickass
story = ass
For all its flaws, I feel it did more good than bad. The animation was incredible and the voice acting was tops (the dialogue could have been better). I wish it had been a couple episodes longer, to give more room for character development. Blends Eastern and Western cultures fairly well.
The only shame is how much money they spent on this thing. : /
all of you stfu it is what it is which is not a japanese anything, it was made for and american audience and the shit was cool, thats all it was supposed to be, cool, cable level show that would hopefully do better on dvd or podcasts, all you japanamation pansies grow up its F@#@$ING cartoons for crying out loud and as for the voice acting its was good and samuel L jackson plays 2 parts (main character and partner) which shows the talent level he has to do that and maybe, just maybe you all have a problem with the main character being black cuz airbender sucks ass and your all loving that sH!t
You know, many voice-actors can do two different voices. Samuel L Jackson just two voices in the same show, and judging by the end-result, it would have been better if he didn’t. There indeed wasn’t a problem with the partner, though you can’t really call Afro-Samurai’s grunting voice-acting.
I’ve got nothing wrong with a black protagonist, by the way. I like myself a mingled cast. The reason I dislike Afro Samurai is because of its horrible plot and predictable characters.
i think u guys are losing the big picture here, it was a 5 episode OVA not a long running series, it did terrific for 5 episodes in any way, shape or form, just look at fullmetal alchemest, they didnt have half the plot, animation or action of afro samurai and they had 51 friggin episodes and a movie, and lets not forget inuyasha, one of the most loved anime’s was horrible ompared to afro samurai and they had 4 movies, 156 episodes and an ever expanding manga.
Well for people defending Afro Samurai well you can kiss my ass! If the demographic is for ages 18 and above then it would be safe to assume that a deep plot will be involved but in this case it didn’t. I watched cartoons that are targeted for younger viewers yet pulled off an incredibly good storyline. This is just disappointing. Kill Bill comes to mind because it has a similar revenge story and gratuitous violence. But what set that apart is the deep character development. The verdict: This show is half-ass. As for the gratuitous violence, I’ve seen way better animated violence than this crap. You can obviously see that Afro used shortcuts in animated violence compared to incredibly detailed violence in animes like Elfen Lied. Afro slices through his opponents but you never see the meat and bones of the enemies. The artists hide it by filling it with a dark color, this is just lame.
Little useless comment : Samuel L. Jackson didn’t only do Afro’s voice. He also did Ninja Ninja’s voice, and we all know that he speaks a freaking lot. So… all he did in this anime wasn’t just “groaning” and “mumbling crap”. 🙂
Afro Samurai ? Great battles, fluid animation (as expected from Gonzo), great sound ; crappy storyline, useless flashbacks, stereotyped and cliché taste-less villains, no explanations about this “futuristic, yet Feodal Japan”, about the society, how it became like that, etc.
Watch this if you like nonsense action. You prefer shows like Monster, Higurashi no Naku Koro ni or Cowboy Bebop ? Stay far, VEEEERY far from this show.
Star Crossed Anime Blog? More like Star Crossed Weeabo Blog. Afro Samurai >>>>>>>> you.
I think the show was just a parody of all the revenge cliches, with some mindless violence thrown in for good measure. It was good, but yeah, more character and plot development would have made it remarkable.
Well, Well, Well, I think it’s ok. though as I’ve read already there was to much cliche’ involved and was too short to really take seriously. Interesting fact though, it cost 1 Million an episode, Gonzo allegedly had never spent that much before. I think it’s good to see them use a black lead character it just seemed a little stereotypical in some parts. To over the top for most true blue Anime fans. I’ve always preferred more light-hearted content when it comes to the relationships of the characters. Most of the Anime I like is more based on adventure, love, virtue,Etc. you know things that get me out of this world, this one just seemed to grim. Tsubasa Chronicle is a prime example of the type of stuff I like, or Inu Yasha one of my all time Tv favorites as well as the movies or pop in a Miyazaki masterpiece like Spirited Away or Howl’s Moving Castle. In all fairness I didn’t even like Samurai Champloo but I like Samurai Jack better than both of these even though it’s not Japanese made. I mean I don’t mean to sound soft but if your watching a Series and in the midst of watching at some point two things should happen laughter and tears rolling down your cheeks, if not it doesn’t seem worth it to me at least. My hats off to Samuel L Jackson as he himself loves anime and I hope in the future he might work with Gonzo or others in voice acting or otherwise. As of now I commemorate three names: Tara Strong, Phil LaMarr and John Dimaggio, great job as always!! You’ve all breathed soul into so many lovable characters!! I hope to hear you more and more, So Rikku, Sig, and Bender until next time!!
I actually enjoyed this quite a bit. I like the style and the mixture elements from 70’s Blaxplotation and anime. I think you completely missed the point in your review. Afro was not meant to be a paragon of virtue, he was very selfish and amoral. Also, the series was about style over substance.
I also enjoyed the grim world which, to me at least, felt refreshing when the majority of anime are very far into idealism side of the sliding scale of realism vs. idealism.
Still, a lot of the things I liked about this series are the same things that turn off hardcore weeaboos, and some of the things that hardcore weeaboos like are the same things that set off my cynicism alarm.
I dont know what the fuck youre thinking but im not going to lie ok when you think about it americans only get kiddy version of anime ok so what the hell is wrong with this anime so what its kind of like hollywood but what the fuck are the English population of the world are going to watch violent anime it may look very predictable but so is most anime very unrealistic but so is most anime its a mini series so if they had to explain more than they wanted to it would take about 15 eps i am going to say afro samurai is good maby the storyline isnt great so what at least it keeps the viewer entertained
I’m a huge fan of anime and I have to say Afro Samurai was one of the most enjoyable OVAs i have seen in suuuuuuuuuuuuuch a long time. The action scenes were the best i have seen since ninja scroll and the comic relief was terrific. The mistake here is people not taking it on face value, i mean come on… do you want evangelion character delevopment and whiny bitchy angsty characters in every single anime you watch? Afro Samurai is pulp samurai action in a fantasy setting! Which is a great thing to see in this era of whingy bitch anime where all the chars are big eyed and spend 20 minutes talking during a fight. This OVA is a great homage to all of the early pulp anime that came out in the late eighties early ninetys. The soundtrack, voice acting, animation, action and editing were fantastic.
YOU GUYS ARE CRAZY! afro samurai is the shit! sure it dosnt compare to some of the greatest but what is more entertaining then watching a black samurai with a big afro smokin doobies and cutting peoples heads off! not only that but who better to do the voice then samual L jackson. “He pulled an RPG out a motha fuckin backpack” too funny!
“Oh, and yes, Samuel L. Jackson does the voice of the main character in this OVA, but really, don’t expect too much of it. All he does is moan and groan a bit. If this guy really is one of the best actors America has to offer, then I’m glad I don’t live there. This definitely is a good example of a good premise, ruined by Hollywood-influence. I fell in love with anime not just because of the pretty graphics. The things that also drew me to it is the focus, the stories, characters and themes. All of these, I fail to see in Afro Samurai.”
Too bad you failed to notice Samuel L. does the voice for Ninja Ninja too.
I actually liked this, a lot. I just thought the frighting was cool and the story had it’s good moments, as well as having some of the coolest characters ever. I for one am glad that they’re making another season.
I agree, this is a perfect example as to how an anime can be ruined.
To me, this is a cartoon that incorperates anime-style animation with violence and cussing, simply a much more Japanese-oriented version than The Boondocks (where they take the African American/gangsta premise in its development).
One of the worst anime ever! The story was terrible. Spoiler(The main character to me actually was the villain: He lets his friends die, kills his already half dead master, he is filled with revenge and vengeance, he is totally selfish.)
Spoiler(The cowboy enemy, number one, had better ideal; to own both the bands and bring peace.) The graphics was good, but the whole animations was created in a darkish background and it was not fun to watch.
While I agree afro samurai is crap but to think that because its an american company is the reason is rather stupid let alone that 95% of anime are some of the most generic crap ever weither it be giant robots, tentacle rape, super powers…ect and a combination of that an some prepubecent kid nose bleeding cause he saw nudity…and tear drops in the back of the head..ect surfice to say most anime is crap regardless of where its made and its true japan has been a source of 78% of the worlds weird shit since 1952. so in no way is it american studios that messed this up its that most anime sucks.
I dont know why all of you people thought this anime sucked. It was actually one of the few animes i liked and i would prefer it over most even though it was somewhat short. To say that this show is just mindless violence is totally wrong. I know most of the show is violence but the violence most of the time has a story behind it. And the few of you commenting on this being like a hollywood action movie… Isnt every anime like a hollywood movie. From naruto and bleach to animes that are quite as well known like samurai champloo or gun. They all center around one main thing, from violence and love to comedy and drama. I can compare almost any anime to hollywood movies. And one more thing, there is a second season
!
When keep saying this is an american done animation when it simply isn’t. The production studio is Japanese. Anyways, I thikn people are just looking for things to rip on here but I am also biased towards swords so it may just be me.
Afro is the sh*t. Great music, blood and action. So/So story.
The main character is an enemy in a way as he cares about nothing besides revenge.
Was the show overrated?
I don’t remember it getting much airtime or props from the industry….so I have no clue why people say that.
I think the people in this blog are people that are into what I call Crapanime. Wussy Anime.
AFRO-SAMURAI
Coming from a brother who been on an anime kick for over 13 yrs now, I feel everyone here has a valid point, with the exception of those who thinks that blood, gore and graphics with little or no real baseline is a good thing or makes up true anime. The majority of us love Lupin the 3rd (first view in 1997) but the graphics look 1970ish.
Afro – Samurai in my opinion is not and will never be the best or a good anime to say the least, until they (the writers and producers) put up a true premise and work around it. When we speak on the good anime exposed publicly (bi-weekly) too an American Audience between 1998 – 2009; I would have to say is and was Full Metal Alchemist, Ghost in a shell, Cowboy Bebop, Death Note, and Inuyasha to name a few Japanese anime and The Boon Docks which to date; is still the best “African American” anime production.
In respect to the RZA of the Wu-Tang clan, Afro – Samurai is a nice try but it doesn’t have enough to capture it audience like the ones I spoke about above, it just doesn’t make it. I’ve seen Avatar (only in passing) and it was good for what I saw, but I have watched Naruto with my daughters and got into it. So I don’t think it has anything to do with who made the anime, it’s rather or not if they are trying to bring a good quality story to the audience.
I’m a true supporter of Wu-Tang, and the Wu-Tang clan, I own and manage a crew called the “Southern Killah Bees” (not affiliated with the group Wu-Tang Clan) but if something isn’t the best and it can be better than I’ll veto it, but if they take my advice or not is strictly up to them.
In my opinion “once again”, Samuel L. Jackson’s voice over in Afro-Samurai is not his best work (this is not due to Mr. Jackson; he’s following script) His best voice over work in a cartoon/ anime would be as the bored rich white guy “Ed Wuncler III” who along with Charlie Murphy (brother of Eddie Murphy) keeps you laughing from the time they stepped on the scene until the end of the show.
I strong suggest that “they” (the writers and producers) come to threads like this one; listen and take notes from you/us, because after all it’s our money and time that supports their productions, moreover keep them in the anime business.
Thank You for reading
You may see this writing repeated on our home base site titemic.com or datsawrap.com
Writer and Producer Tycazie Wu
well it certainly the best anime on all time with only 5 episode and a shitloadof characters to remember i cannot wait for part o wait i just watched that now i can offically say it sucked balls ass cunt dick rich bitch snitch wtf fuck u all avater sucks fucking dick bastards o and anime in general sucks fuckers and lastely best animeever is outlaw star nuff said fuckers.
AHAHAHAHAHA. I’ve seen some really bad anime over the years, but this one is just bad. I mean really bad. To the point that I want to write the word bad, then to the left of it, put an “s” and hold down the “o” button on my keyboard until it breaks. Lets pick this anime apart.
CGI and Animation
For something made by gonzo I had fairly high expectations. They are known for their great animation, but this was laughable. I mean the fighting was so rushed and yet the budget was huge!!! Very much dissapointing. The character’s faces looked well drawn out, other than the hair. The blood spewed like Kill Bill but even that wasn’t done effectively. The explosions were good yet odd since they would occur well after being chopped in half (laughable). Plus they look like empty shells. The carcasses don’t seem to have bone and the colours didn’t exactly help. I understand the symbolism with the dark atmosphere but they still could have done a better job.
Story and Characters
He wanted to get revenge? I’m just kidding but it doesn’t seem like there was much else other than that. Did we expect to have sex with that woman? Of course we did. Did we expect to see the childhood friend who doesn’t die? Yup. Who got more airtime, childhood friend or our main antagonist that was the main purpose of the story? Of course the friend. I mean who cares about the villain? Is Afro indestructable? HELL YAH. At least the imaginary friend was entertaining. Gotta love, um, Ninja ninja? Obviously some kind of joke. And what a name for that main antagonist, Justice…whatever comes out of Okazaki’s ass huh? I mean not one character was likeable. Was that by design? I thought one is supposed to draw the audience in. Guess not. These characters are less likeable than the ones in PULP FICTION (I wonder who was in it?). Yo, Samuel L. Jackson is so bad ass…did you catch the sarcasm. At least the flashbacks were well timed. Woohoo, something good to write about. But really, no plotline. And what kind of look did Afro give Otsuru before the big love scene? The funniest pre-makeout scene I’ll ever see. That was definitely something to remember.
Voice Acting
Wow, Samuel L. Jackson is so pro. Those grunts by Afro…really brought me into the story. I mean Afro even got to say full words near the end. No one like him. I mean he made the show. Now to Ninja Ninja, catchy isn’t it? I think he was more sarcastic than I am in this rant. He was by far my favourite character (in full honesty). He actually fit the role very well. With regard to everyone else other than “sensei”, they too were laughable. Were they trying to be intimidating or scary? I just know that I was constantly at the edge of my seat, waiting to burst out laughing. I think that’s enough.
Maybe I was extra harsh in this review. I mean frankly, this deserved less than a 47. And what’s this Avatar? I have seen that show. It was surely better than “AFRO”, but it just can’t be compared with the deep symbolism and plotlines of some Japanese anime. Simply look at the audience Avatar is targeting, children…saturday morning cartoons!!! Obviously my outlook might be biased, having just seen Mushishi, arguably one of the best animes of all time. Regardless, Afro samurai and Avatar are on a much lower level then some of the anime from Japan. Still if you like blood, fighting, swords, a plotline centered around killing until you get to the top, you’ll love this show.
P.S. I’m north of the border my American friends and I do get my heavy dosage of Hollywood. Crazy xenophobes.
In voice acting, second line, *there’s no one like Samuel*.
From avatar, aang is so cute and loveable. Katara is so effective at healing at such a complete character. Let’s not forge Sokka, because that’s always what tends to happen. AHAHA
Sorry for the double post.
I couldn’t watch it past the trsiler, so I came here to get some feedback. I caught a glimpse of the main villian; he was albino? hmm… w/e, anyway, the only time I remember liking Samuel Jackson is when he played Mace Windu in star wars. Not because of his acting or anything, but because he was A: the only black Jedi, B: his light-saber was unique and was my favorite color, and because he has the best ground attack in Star Wars: Battlefront I&II… the main reason I can’t watch past the trailer was because of what he said at the ending. I don’t care how black you are, that was the cheesiest f*****g thing I’ve ever heard from a 40yr old.
Or how ever old he is; may as well be the albino villian saying that last line.
P.S. I think best anime should go to Cowboy Bebop, Death Note, and Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex. They were the Blue, Red, and Yellow key required to open the door that allowed anime to become mainstream. Afro Samurai may not have existed without one or more of those. sorry about the triple post.
i liked it and if you didnt your a fag pussy bitch. avitar fuckin sucks so does naruto. they take way too long to start a fight and mostly half the episodes are fillers that have nothing to do with the plot. afro had like a houndred fights in 5 episodes. but bleach and dbz are good too. not gt that shit was boring p.s. afro was on spike and not on gay ass nick or cartoon network witch most crappy anime is on like the cowboy show and one piece
afro samurai is the best anime ever
Afro’s and sengoku basara’s graphics are pretty similar…and they are both pretty GAR too…
if you are gonna review a masterpiece of work ……you have to understand it’s purpose. you have to understand it’s direction. you have to sit there and wonder if certain things are not explained…it is called story telling. you dont have to have everything explained to you ok.
1 million an episode and some people are still asking for ten or fifteen episodes…. damn!those five episode detail a lot if you bother to think about it. oh and yh ninja ninja who is voiced by samuel (just hoping you would know by now) he is the result of afro’s trauma. so dont blame the big fro if he cant talk much. he has been hurting for a long time . with no one but his imaginary friend. oh yh…
stuff like justice healing himself in the last fight with afro…that will probably be explained in the third season.to me for some odd reason i like the name justice i think it is just unique.
oh yh before i forget! I want you to think about this. why is there no original story nowadays? this is because every single possible story avenue has been thoroughly raped over the years so come on….
plz buddy….plz try and make something better before you so harshly critisize ok..if you can i will write a better review than the piece of bulll shit you wrote up there…cya
WTH GUYS STOP FREAKIN CRITIZICING HIM IT’S HIS OPINION NOT YOURS, GO MAKE A BLOG YOURSELVES IF YOU WANT YOUR OPINIONS TO BE HEARD!!!
Afro Samurai is just trash. Yea, it looks cool and all, but the storyline is just pitiful. I’m sorry, but the number 1 and 2 headband premise is not creative and it’s not interesting. After watching the series I was put under the impression that the plot was thought up by one of the directors at age 8. “zomg wouldn’t it be kewl if leik 1 gai had diz headbayndz and iz leik numba 1, but den leik derz numba 2 who challengez himz. lol dat w00d b3 s0 awesome.” Oh and stop criticizing Americans on the whole. I’ve traveled the world and met plenty of ignorant twats in numerous countries who love to eat up garbage media. It’s not *only* Hollywood that sucks. Besides, doesn’t generalizing just make you as stupid as you claim Americans are? 😉
Afro Samurai is just trash. Yea, it looks cool and all, but the storyline is just pitiful. I’m sorry, but the number 1 and 2 headband premise is not creative and it’s not interesting. After watching the series I was put under the impression that the plot was thought up by one of the directors at age 8. “zomg wouldn’t it be kewl if leik 1 gai had diz headbayndz and iz leik numba 1, but den leik derz numba 2 who challengez himz. lol dat w00d b3 s0 awesome.” Oh and stop criticizing Americans on the whole. I’ve traveled the world and met plenty of ignorant people in numerous countries who love to eat up garbage media. It’s not *only* Hollywood that sucks. Besides, doesn’t generalizing just make you as stupid as you claim Americans are? 😉
fifty post for defense and offense? guys, it just joy, or no joy. Don’t stand in the middle, you’ll get sliced and diced.
I gotta send this out to the OP. Going by your poor grammar and spelling, like “defence” for example, I have to question your intelligence. You are obviously bigoted and uneducated if you are honestly making these blanket statements about hollywood. Last time I checked, Americans had very little to do with this show, for starters it was written, directed and animated by japanese people. The creator is a big fan of the underground hip hop culture which by the way is uniquely American in nature. We already know you are prejudiced against America, it’s not a giant leap to think you are racist against black people too. I can’t stand reading these self-righteous, anti-american posts that are so ridiculously poorly thought out. You are a disgrace to reviewers everywhere. You don’t even have your facts straight! Samuel L. Jackson for starters isn’t “one of the best actors America has to offer” He takes almost every role given to him and if anything he is considered a B actor. That being said he is an amazing actor and has grossed more money that most actors combined. Maybe you are so uneducated that you don’t even realize that Sammy played Afro AND Ninja Ninja. Even though its not completely or explicitly clear what Ninja Ninja is, we do know that he is a metaphor for emotion, regret, or some sort of conscience. This does show that there is more to Afro than meets the eye. His constantly telling ninja ninja to shut up tells us something about him as well. Ok, all that being said, I liked the anime, visually stunning piece! Definitely had room for improvement. My biggest problem was that Afro, despite having the Ninja Ninja metaphor, is a very 1 dimensional character. He never illustrates that he is feeling any sort of inner-conflict. You constantly root for him to do the right thing and he never does. He gives everyone reason to seek the same revenge on him that he seeks himself. I also think that Gino is poorly conceived as well. He if anything is the true hero of the series, but he puts everyones death on Afro. Last I checked, the sword master invited Afro and only Afro to the meeting at the tree, the fact that everyone else came to the meeting is their fault, especially as they were all killed by others that sought the number 2 headband, not Afro. The only death that can be blamed on Afro is the sword master, and he antagonized Afro. All in all, the anime was entertaining, but needed to be longer to truly flesh out the characters. Oh, wait, one last thing, I know from interviews (as I have already said) that the writer is really into hip hop and what not, and I see alot of peoples reviews saying things like “I really love the influence of hip hop in the show”. I really wish i could see the hip hop in the show. Other than the music, and the fact that Afro is black, I see no hip hop culture in the show. Shame on you OP!