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Rurouni Kenshin
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Animation - 8.4 |
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Sound - 8.6 |
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Story - 8.5 |
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Character - 9.1 |
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Value - 8.6 |
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Enjoyment - 8.9 |
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Average - 8.7 |
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| Average |
1.0 |
| Animation |
1 |
| Sound |
0 |
| Story |
1 |
| Character |
1 |
| Value |
1 |
| Enjoyment |
1 |
| Truly awful.
The action sequences are dull, they show no imagination or realism.
The comedy falls flat, the jokes are too predictable to be funny.
It is clearly aimed at children so I amn't it's target market but I still can't think of anything positive to say about this anime.
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1 of 4 people found this review helpful.
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| Average |
9.5 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
9 |
| Story |
9 |
| Character |
9 |
| Value |
10 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| One of the most enjoyable Animes I have seen. Though for fans of the manga, the last two story arcs are made for the show and not the last manga arc. Some might find disinterest as the Shishio arc ends and the anime continues but I found the last 30 or so episodes interesting.
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0 of 2 people found this review helpful.
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| Average |
9.5 |
| Animation |
9 |
| Sound |
9 |
| Story |
10 |
| Character |
9 |
| Value |
10 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| I suggest it to see it and colleting it.
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1 of 3 people found this review helpful.
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| Average |
9.0 |
| Animation |
8 |
| Sound |
8 |
| Story |
10 |
| Character |
10 |
| Value |
9 |
| Enjoyment |
9 |
| Well writing a review for Kenshin now seems like jumping on a bandwagon since nearly everybody universally agrees it has an exceptional story, never-the-less let me drop my two pence on this series
Animation
Taking into consideration that this was done in 1996 I would say it’s pretty decent. The animation gives me the same feel as flame of recca series, good battle scnes (not great) nice “standard” character designs with exceptions of some of the Villans. Opening and Endings were EXCELLENT (imo of course), I was just very fond of some of the designs used for the intros and outros, the soundtrack definitely complemented the animation.
Sound
Kenshin was actually one of my first downloaded anime series back in 2002 so I was only able to get the Jap dub w/ eng subs – well I loved it. I mean everything about this was good (to my recollection). As stated before the soundtrack for the opening and endings where particularly good.
Unfortunately as soon as the US DVD’s where available I purchased the whole series (expensive at the time!) and was disappointed to find the English dub was lacking in several places that I can’t remember lol anywayz altogether the dub wasn’t that terrible just off in many respects.
Story
It’s universally agreed that the story of Kenshin is one of greatness but this does not mean it hasn’t got its up’s and down’s. As many other reviewers have stated it’s pretty hard not to compare this series to its prequel which had a more serious and focused setting, unlike this “series” which has periods of slapstick comedy & filler episodes.
The thing is even thought at times it got boring in retrospect it was all relevant to me. I mean you can’t hack n slash all the time can ya. Sadly i do have to admit some of the arcs after the Kyoto arc ranged from weird to dumb-fantasy stories which just felt like they didn’t fit the storyline at all. Unfortunately this kind of arc deployment is now standard from 50+ anime series ESPICALLY TODAY e.g. Naruto.
Kenshin often felt like a period piece anime of sorts and explores many fictional historical events in Japan which none-the-less feels a bit “educational” in the sense that I felt I was getting a bit of insight on the past Japanese culture/events.
I know that sounded korny but hey that’s how I felt.
Character
Kenshin has some GREAT characters/character storylines and imo this is what makes the “Kenshin series” shine the most. The Kyoto story arc is significant with tons of character development and even some interesting background information and action which would make fans of the OVA’s feel more at home.
Most of the characters had different fighting styles which lead to some great battles which again ranged from interesting to lame depending on the arc/filler you are watching but they where mostly interesting.
Enjoyment
Overall I thoroughly enjoyed the Kenshin series, personally I just klump the OVA’s and series together and remember Kenshin as one great and sad story of a wondering samurai just looking for redemption in a every-changing Japan.
Value
Kenshin has VERY HIGH value in my opinion but I would recommend having the ENTIRE collection (including both OVA’s) a bit of patience and just enjoy a great overall story.
The Good: Great Overall Story, Good Range Of Characters, Nice DVD Art Boxes for anime collectors like myself.
The Bad: Some Unnecessary Fillers, Lackluster English Dub, Mis-match Story Arc Arrangements, Can seem long winded at times.
Personal Score: 9/10
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1 of 2 people found this review helpful.
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ranma |
2008-07-07 23:30:45 |
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| Average |
9.0 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
8 |
| Story |
9 |
| Character |
9 |
| Value |
8 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| Samurai X is not as good as Trust and Betrayal but its still a solid one. I still enjoy watching it even though I have seen it so many times. I like the way how Kenshin became totally different from the OVA and yet so deadly/skillful as ever. The story is also good, I like how nicely they combined action and drama. The characters are well-developed and even the extras contribute to the main story. The fight scenes are simply amazing.
The anime is definitely a must see. Surely will become one of the classics that will be enjoyed by many.
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0 of 2 people found this review helpful.
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| Average |
9.8 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
9 |
| Story |
10 |
| Character |
10 |
| Value |
10 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| I was back then revolving in a world of nothing but Sailormoon, Ranma 1/2, and Magic Knight Rayearth. Then, one day, Studio 23 in the Philippines aired this story of a young man who is a samurai with red hair and a cross-shaped scar and with a reverse-edged sword. That was the beginning of my "romance" with the classic known as Rurouni Kenshin.
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0 of 1 people found this review helpful.
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| Average |
7.3 |
| Animation |
3 |
| Sound |
5 |
| Story |
8 |
| Character |
10 |
| Value |
10 |
| Enjoyment |
8 |
| A classic swordplay anime. A must watch for the otaku.
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0 of 0 people found this review helpful.
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| Average |
8.8 |
| Animation |
8 |
| Sound |
8 |
| Story |
9 |
| Character |
10 |
| Value |
9 |
| Enjoyment |
9 |
| So Reminiscence is "better", and maybe they should have stopped the series at around eps. 62, and yes it got fillers too.... and who the hell cares, when something is this good. I must have watched eps 50 to 60 ten or more times, over the years and it's always fun to return to Kenshin and his friends. This isn't something that happens often with a series, which is why I consider Rurouni Kenshin tv something very special. Other anime's may have better animation, less fillers...whatever, but the total package highlighted by a great story and outstanding characters is very hard to beat.
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0 of 1 people found this review helpful.
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| Average |
6.2 |
| Animation |
6 |
| Sound |
6 |
| Story |
6 |
| Character |
7 |
| Value |
5 |
| Enjoyment |
7 |
| Ok, let me get my opinions out of the way first-
I think Rurouni Kenshin, Samurai X to english viewers, is a decent Anime, not the best, and
often highly scripted, and has a huge fanbase due to the hugely popular Trust and Betrayal
movie, which is in a different league to the entire series.
Alright.
Ruroken is a show based in the period of turmoil in japan after the overthrow of the shoguns
and the establishment of a unified monarchy to help Japan industrialize.
This is ample material to work with as Kenshin, the lead character, used to be a loyalist of
the shoguns but now supports the emperor as a citizen.
The storyline is mainly about Kenshin having to fight people after having retired after a
young life as the brutal Battousai the Slasher (Which is why Trust and Betrayal is so
awesome.)
Needless to say, the good guys always win and somehow the really evil manage to die, or
inexplicably change for the better, even though Kenshin has sworn never to kill a human.
Also, no matter how brutally they've been struck by the sword of a master swordsman, they
never bleed, since a reverse edge seems to make a sword no better than a club.
Read on...
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1 of 2 people found this review helpful.
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| Average |
8.8 |
| Animation |
8 |
| Sound |
7 |
| Story |
9 |
| Character |
9 |
| Value |
10 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| The animation was fairly ordinary but the action was very well done as it fluid. The sound was a bit below average - the choice of OP/ED wasn't good at all but the music inside the anime rather fits the anime. The story is one of the strong points of the anime, the first half of the anime was definitely very good and interesting but the second half (after the Kyoto arc) it became rather boring and lacks depth and drama. This is mostly due to the fact that the second half didn't follow the manga but nevertheless it's still part of the "anime" which drags it down as a whole. The characters were done quite good - with a good blend of different characters and past histories behind them, and their interaction makes humurous and different perspectives which adds well to the story. Overall, the anime was both enjoyable and engaging - pity the second half didn't hold up on its own otherwise this would be a real masterpiece.
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0 of 0 people found this review helpful.
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| Average |
9.7 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
9 |
| Story |
9 |
| Character |
10 |
| Value |
10 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| Can't believe how long it took me to finally check out the Kenshin TV series, but I'm so glad I did. I found another anime to add to my top ten of all time and another couple of bishounen to add to my ever growing list of "eye-candy" in anime ^__^
I found a new best friend and someone new to fall in love with (and that hasn't happened for a long long time). I really connected with Kenshin himself and think this helped to add greatly to my enjoyment of this anime.
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0 of 0 people found this review helpful.
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Saya77 |
(2006-06-09 14:50:09) 2006-06-09 14:47:15 |
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| Average |
6.8 |
| Animation |
8 |
| Sound |
6 |
| Story |
6 |
| Character |
6 |
| Value |
7 |
| Enjoyment |
8 |
| A tad overrated due to the fact that the OVAs (especially Trust and Betrayal) are so amazing, Rurouni Kenshin is nonetheless a good anime. What prevents it from becoming a great anime, however, is the fact that it is about 30 episodes too long.
The animation is great, it stands up even today, though obviously is not as detailed or well done as the animation of today.
The story is terrific through the 60th episode or so, the end of the "Shishio Arc." However, even within these episodes there are fillers and the story is pretty repetetive until episode 30 or so when Shishio is first brought into play as a plot figure and the story becomes more overarching. The reason I say it is repetitive is because, after all the main characters are introduced by about episode 10, there are merely 10-20 episodes of "monster of the week" type fighting, and there is little to no character development at all during that time.
Finally, after the Shishio Arc the story is just boring and to be honest, it got kind of old. The lack of any character devlopment shone through, and if you watched episode 1 and episode 81 you would probably find no difference between the way the characters act.
Kenshin himself is an ok main character, though I must confess that it is a lot easier to like him if you have watched the Trust and Betrayal OVAs. Kauru and Yahihoko are both a bit annoying and stereotypical anime characters. Megumi is interesting, and has the most depth of the side characters, though she is not utilized as much as the others. Overall, the character interaction is enjoyable and the characters themselves are interesting. The villians after the Shishio Arc, however, leave a bit to be desired.
This anime, however, is rated highly by many people for a reason: it is a very enjoyable anime, despite the fact that during fights there are lengthy pauses for diplomatic exchanges and preaching by Kenshin the fight scenes are exciting.
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1 of 1 people found this review helpful.
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| Average |
9.3 |
| Animation |
8 |
| Sound |
9 |
| Story |
9 |
| Character |
10 |
| Value |
10 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| I first discovered Rurouni Kenshin in 1997 while living in Japan for a year as part of my college major. I found it back then, and even still now, to be one of the best stories to ever come out of Japan. Watsuki Nobuhiro weaved a tale of drama, action, philosophy and romance that is held by manga fans everywhere as a must read, and its translation to the small screen is likewise required viewing for anime fans.
Typical of many series, the animation is spotty in parts but overall is still quite good. The soundtrack is fantastic, including opening and ending themes that held top spots on the J-pop charts for weeks at a time at the height of their popularity. The story suffers in parts from filler-itis, especially after the completion of the Kyoto arc, but fans of the series will still find some things enjoyable to watch.
Overall, Rurouni Kenshin is a classic series in both printed and animated forms and I do not hesitate to recommend it to anyone I know.
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MACHO |
2006-04-10 00:04:31 |
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| Average |
6.8 |
| Animation |
7 |
| Sound |
7 |
| Story |
8 |
| Character |
6 |
| Value |
6 |
| Enjoyment |
7 |
| A lot of people told me to watch Rurouni Kenshin and I was expecting something really amazing. Unfortunately, I was wrong. By no means is this anime horrible, but I think it's a tad bit over-rated. The series drags on for 95 episodes and for the most part the "filler" episodes (episodes with a story that ended in one episode) were really boring.
I liked how there were several main sub-characters (Kaoru, Sanosuke, Yahiko, Aioshi, and Weasel Girl), but I feel as if they were all under-developed. More development to these characters would have made this a better anime.
The best saga in the whole anime was the Makoto Shishio one and in my opinion the rest failed in comparison.
There's no way I can go through and rewatch this whole series. However, I did enjoy the comedic aspect of it. If it wasn't for that then this really would have been hard to watch.
Overall I'd recommend watching Rurouni Kenshin if you're the type that's into samurai stories because it delivers a decent one, but don't expect too much from it.
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1 of 1 people found this review helpful.
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|
steree |
(2006-02-03 17:12:58) 2006-02-03 17:07:49 |
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| Average |
6.8 |
| Animation |
9 |
| Sound |
7 |
| Story |
6 |
| Character |
6 |
| Value |
7 |
| Enjoyment |
6 |
| I thought Rurouni Kenshin was a good anime. I really did. But then I actually took time to watch it. Boy was I wrong.
I've watched 18 episodes of it, and I'd have quit if not for the fact that good anime seem to be a rare commodity nowadays... at least Rurouni Kenshin is at times somewhat watchable.
Now a summary of what's wrong with Rurouni Kenshin:
1. Severe "monster of the week" (at least the first 18 episodes of it)
2. No character development at *all* for the two main (gasp) characters after ep 7 or so.
3. Neither the op nor the ed appeals to me.
More then 10 episodes have passed without any character development happening to the girl and Kenshin. Nor would we have the slightest suspicion that the girl is in love with Kenshin had we not watched the first 7 episodes. This represents a major storyline-wise and character portrayal failure, and it gets more and more boring as the number of filler episodes pile up.
I don't mind repetitive "monster of the week" anime if it is done well (ex. Mushishi). But Rurouni Kenshin's "monster of the week" is the Sailor Moon type. Absolutely mindless and dull repetitive motion. Some people might say that it is not "monster of the week" because it is not as formulaic as Sailor Moon's "monster of the week". But it is just simply "monster of the week" that's half concealed. The plot basically goes: bad guys try to bully weaker people, Kenshin and the gang punish bad guys.
However, despite all the flaws that Rurouni Kenshin has, it is at times watchable (more than can be said for many other anime I know).
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0 of 0 people found this review helpful.
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| Average |
7.8 |
| Animation |
8 |
| Sound |
8 |
| Story |
8 |
| Character |
8 |
| Value |
7 |
| Enjoyment |
8 |
| Rurouni Kenshin has everything you could possibly want from a swashbuckling, sword fighting, sentimental, action packed, philosophical, anime, and more. It is unrealistic and somewhat silly at times, but on the other hand, it can take some very deep and serious turns, and that only adds to the richness of the plot and the characters. It is well worth the 94 episodes to watch it.
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0 of 0 people found this review helpful.
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| Average |
8.8 |
| Animation |
9 |
| Sound |
9 |
| Story |
9 |
| Character |
9 |
| Value |
8 |
| Enjoyment |
9 |
| Swords unleashing magic attacks; swords that are used to cut through dimensions; swords that are capable of destroying planets. This easily recognizable instrument has been used for war. But now, it's literally used as a central object in controlling humanity! At least in anime. There's nothing wrong with these concepts, because as long as the anime makes good use of them, it's all cool. Usually, being different is what makes something good, and that's why Rurouni Kenshin is good. This historical anime is not only educational, but intriguing in how deep Samurai swordsmanship really is. Some things might be made up, but it's still awesome nonetheless!
While Rurouni Kenshin is different, some of its filler episodes proves inferior to other supernatural action animes. In fact, the first twenty seven episodes are pretty mediocre! It follows the story of a wandering Samurai named Kenshin Himura; an Imperialist who experienced the horrors of the Meiji Revolution. His nickname during those times was battousai the manslayer, the person known to slice the way for the Meiji. But in the current times, he wields a reverse blade sword that doesn't know how to kill men. With this, he can still save people using his sword, while ceasing to commit anymore sins. Kenshin now resides within a dojo in Tokyo that is owned by the assisant master of the Kamiya Kasshin style, Kaoru. Living with them are Yahiko, the only student to that school, and another former Imperialist who bears a grudge against the current government, Sano. Together, they simply live their life out, while acting as vigilantes to any leftover samurai that refuse to give up the way of the sword.
The same process occurs for the first twenty seven episodes with only a couple that are worth watching. But then you'll eventually hit the Shishio arc, regarded by many as the best arc ever. After Kenshin retired from being an assassin, another man equal to his skill emerged. His name was Shishio. Ten years after the revolution, he forges a plan to overthrow the government, snatching all of Japan away from them. Kenshin, who left early from his training of the Hiten Mitsurugi style in favour of fighting for the Imperialists, continues where he had left off ten years earlier to defeat Shishio. However, with his oath not to kill, along with his reverse blade sword that doesn't know how to kill, is it even possible?
Then you know what happens after the arc concludes? More filler. Well, this time the filler is better done than the first season's, but you wish there were more stuff like the Shishio arc. There are a couple arcs that are pretty interesting that involves a deep believer in God, and knights from Germany, but still nothing compared to the previous awesome arc. So unless you're that person that needs to watch everything within a series, just skip the last thirty or so episodes. But if you ever come by an episode about a dog Narutaru (think that's what his name was), watch it, it's actually awesome.
The characters are pretty unique both in personality and fighting styles. In almost every shounen anime, the fighters possess unique abilities and weapons that make them who they are. But what makes the fighters distinguishable from each other are their techniques and styles. Saitou, a former rival of Kenshin's in the revolution, uses a sword probably of equal length to Kenshin's. But his Gatotsu, his fighting style, makes him a completely different person than to anyone else on the battlefield. Aoshi uses a kodachi (a blade between the lengths of a dagger and sword) for defense, and martial arts for offense. A man whose name escapes me this moment, is blind, but uses the hearts of his opponents to detect their movements. There are just too many other characters to list, so if you're a person that just goes crazy over set-up fights, Rurouni Kenshin is definitely the anime for you.
In terms of personality, the cast in Rurouni Kenshin is excellent at best. Kenshin is a strong hearted man that carries around with him strong ideals he uses to inspire his defeated enemies that have no other hope in life. Sano is your normal badass fighter that is good friends with the protagonist. Yahiko is the little brat that acts older than his age, and can be quite amusing sometimes. Kaoru is the tyannical owner of the dojo that takes advantage of her power. Megumi likes to joke around sometimes, but also knows when to take matters seriously. The characters are great, but there's much more room for improvement. The character development episodes could have been done much better and more efficiently.
Rurouni Kenshin is definitely one of the finest animes out there in the industry. While the filler kind of kills it, especially at the end--by the way, you'll have to watch Reflections in order to get a more appropriate ending--the Shishio arc is one of the best arcs in any anime. Pure brilliance. Also, it's amazing to know that this anime was animated nine years ago, because this is some damn fine animation. The music isn't bad too. Voice acting could use some work. Though overall, Rurouni Kenshin is just one awesome show. When you're done with the TV series, make sure you watch Trust and Betrayal; two prequels that many consider the best anime ever.
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0 of 0 people found this review helpful.
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| Average |
7.0 |
| Animation |
7 |
| Sound |
4 |
| Story |
8 |
| Character |
8 |
| Value |
7 |
| Enjoyment |
8 |
| *On a scale of 1-10 I rate 5 as average, please note this when reading my review*
I watched Rurouni Kenshin again just to do this review as I have not seen it for quite a few years, and I am glad I did.
As expected in a 95 episode TV series Rurouni Kenshin has a good story and character development. The characters are all likeable however at times I felt that Yahiko was annoying. As for story the character development, action and drama were all placed in the right places making this seem fairly well placed. However during the later episodes in the series the amount of filler episodes were overdone but this is occasionally done. The theme songs for this anime I greatly disliked however some of the background music was ok, overall I did not like the music. Rurouni Kenshin, unlike the OVAs which have a more serious tone, has a lot of comedy in it, which I think was placed quite well in the series.
Overall, Rurouni Kenshin does remain enjoyable to watch throughout and will remain one of the classics that I like to watch. It is a fun show that should appeal to quite a wide audience.
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| Average |
7.2 |
| Animation |
9 |
| Sound |
8 |
| Story |
7 |
| Character |
6 |
| Value |
6 |
| Enjoyment |
7 |
| This anime got my attention right away. However, I think the anime should not have continued to the 95th episode because it just seemed more like repitition and everyone knows Kenshin will win out in the end. Everything else seemed extraneous and I quickly lost interest halfway. I only put up with the other half was because I kept hoping for a more interesting story to develop, but... it never did.
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|
cain |
(2006-11-10 17:54:51) 2005-09-18 05:15:22 |
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| Average |
8.8 |
| Animation |
9 |
| Sound |
8 |
| Story |
10 |
| Character |
8 |
| Value |
9 |
| Enjoyment |
9 |
| Rurouni Kenshin was the first anime I ever watched, and it left quite an impression on me about how good Japanese animations could get. Rurouni Kenshin was a first rate anime back then, and I don't imagine this classic should be any different even right now.
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