Review: Samurai X

The samurai teaches him swordsmanship and encourages his love for justice while discouraging him from going out into the world to enforce justice with his sword - for ultimately all a swordsman can do is kill, and distinguishing between the just and unjust is not always an easy thing to do. Kenshin winds up as an assassin, killing for a master he believes to seek justice for the people.

But the constant killing leaves its mark on Kenshin. He is joined by Tomoe, a woman with a shrouded past who seeks to bring balance to Kenshin's life and return to him his humanity.

Samurai X: Betrayal: Concerns events while Kenshin and Tomoe live as husband and wife; it seems that the killing has been left behind. But their enemies - including an unsuspected traitor - reach out to ensnare them again, and Tomoe's past plays a tragic part.

(For further plot details, see the spoilers.)

The Samurai X (Ruruoni Kenshin) OVAs are much bloodier and more dramatic than the TV series. There is no real comedic content at all. What we have is a dark and moody drama about the progression of a young man from idealism, through inhuman cruelty, through to realisation that violence as a tool must be targeted very carefully and used as infrequently as possible to avoid miscarriages of the justice he seeks.

Sorry about that last sentence.

The Samurai X DVDs are set in a world where the right thing to do isn't always obvious, and placing one's trust in someone to use you as a tool is a dangerous thing to do. Characterisation is subtle and realistic; nobody is caricatured, everybody is fully human, with flaws and heroism in equal parts.

The OVAs also use symbolism extensively, from the discussion of lilies which thrive in the rain to Kenshin's scar which starts bleeding again whenever his conscience would be poking at him if he weren't so busy shutting it out... Even the taste of sake is used to reflect the characters' joy (or lack of same) in life.

Animation quality is quite good - you can see the frames flickering from time to time, but the movement of the characters is highly realistic and if you aren't looking for it you may not notice. The colour scheme is generally quite dark and dreary, save for the red of blood. Generally colours are chosen to reflect the mood - most of the darker scenes, emotionally speaking, occur at night. Thos that don't typically happen in the rain.

Sound is high quality throughout, with both Japanese and English dubs being exceptional. Background sound is also used to good effect, conveying seasonal variations and the almost-constant hiss of rain. The quality of the Japanese soundtrack seems to be just a bit better in terms of its use of the surround channels, however.

Packaging is pretty much standard DVD cases, with alternative cover designs on the flip side of the insert, and a fairly decent central clip design. Artwork is dark and moody, conveying the atmosphere of the series well. Menu design also fits the dark & bloody theme.