| Shinichiro Watanabe's film noir-ish sci-fi adventure Cowboy Bebop set a new standard for cool in anime in 1998, and Samurai Champloo, an edgy mix of Edo-era martial arts and hip-hop irreverence, is a worthy follow-up. A string of coincidences brings together three misfits in a two-bit tea house: Mugen, a rebellious vagabond; Jin, a taciturn ronin; and Fuu, a nutty waitress. The sardonic Mugen lacks the polish that distinguishes a classic martial artist--he uses break dance spins and flips against his foes. Jin moves with a polish that approaches iciness: When he unsheathes his sword, he becomes a lethal work of art in motion. Fuu forces Jin and Mugen to help her find a mysterious samurai "who smells of sun flowers." As the ill-assorted trio wanders towards Nagasaki, Watanabe treats the audiences to a string of outrageous, anachronistic adventures. In Episode 18, Mugen belatedly learns to read at a smackdown elementary school, while Jin tries to settle the rivalry between the heirs to the dojo of his former sensei. The seemingly unrelated storylines collide in a no-holds-barred graffiti contest featuring Tokugawa rap lyrics, ink-brush tagging, Hiroshima homeboys, and a caricature of Andy Warhol. But Watanabe reveals the hidden significance of these nutty interludes when he brings his picaresque adventure-comedy to a close. Like Cowboy Bebop, Samurai Champloo leaves the viewer wanting more. (Rated 16 and older: violence, violence against women, profanity, brief nudity, sexual situations, alcohol and tobacco use) --Charles Solomon |
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 DVD or Blu-ray? |
| Review Date: December 16, 2009 |
| Reviewer: TeamReveal, California |
This show has been reviewed in detailed lots of times so if you want a review of the content then you should look at the various reviews for the dvd version as the content of the 26 episodes is in fact the same. I'll concentrate on the blu-ray vs. dvd debate that is brewing up.
Now, I've been told that this show will never actually be in true hd because of the various CG(computer graphic) elements that were done in SD. In order for us to see this show in true hd they would have to go back and redo all of the CG elements that were originally done in SD. A lot of earlier shows have this problem, such as Cowboy Bebop which when this comes out in blu-ray will probably be an upscale as well. Thus, this is probably the best we will ever get. Older animation that was hand drawn was done completely on film which in fact has an infinite resolution. Computer graphics are limited to the actual resolution at which they were created at, but they can be upscaled such as in this tv show. Since this was a tv show that aired on SD originally, the computer graphics were done in SD, hence the need to redo the CG for a true HD resolution.
I've seen pictures from an upscaled DVD and from this Blu-ray and overall the Blu-ray looks better in my opinion. If you look carefully at still shots you will notice that the dnr filter used removes some of the detail in the picture. So looking closely, the DVD has just a tad more detail in certain parts. You have to remember though, that the animation style does not have a ton of detail to begin with so you will have to look really hard to see the difference in detail. The ONLY time I could really tell that the DVD had more detail was on scenes were there were large pieces of wood paneling. On the DVD you see that there is more detail on the wood where the blu-ray version slightly blurs this out because of the dnr filter used. Again, in the still shots I saw, I could only tell on the wood paneling of certain scenes. On the characters, backgrounds, etc. I could tell no difference in detail.
A lot of people REALLY miss the benefit of blu-ray in these instances though. DVD's are much more compressed than Blu-ray's in both picture and sound. That is one of the reasons why the DVD version has colors that are not as vibrant and a picture that has a lot more noise and macroblocking. So while the DVD has just a smidge more detail in certain parts, this is negated by the fact that the DVD version is highly compressed, introducing artifacts into the picture and in the process giving you a picture that is not as good as it could be.
Overall, in my opinion, this makes the much higher bitrate sound and picture in blu-ray the winner. We can complain that the show isn't in true HD, but we have to remember that unless they redo the CG parts, it probably never will be in true HD. People can cling to their DVD's and say they are the best, but they will miss the fact that the higher bitrate of blu-ray in both picture and sound give a better overall experience.
The difference between the DVD and Blu-ray isn't night and day but it is definitely noticeable. If you have neither, then the blu-ray version is the one to pick up, but if you have the DVD set already then this isn't worth picking up unless Samurai Champloo is one of your all-time great favorites, or you just have money to burn. |
LOVE IT
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| Review Date: March 11, 2010 |
| Reviewer: E. Mercado, NJ |
I dunno what ppl say about the blueray version lookin crappy, It looked fine on a 40in screen connected with hdmi on my ps3 soooooo...
This series is a must have, and the price is great....do pick it up |
Samurai Champloo Complete Series=Awesome
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| Review Date: March 16, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Corey L. Mccormick, Portsmouth, VA USA |
| This series looks great on blu-ray and is a great one to follow the whole way through. It came in perfect condition and in a timely manner. I would recommend this for anyone that enjoys a fun plot and at least one good fight per episode. Check this series out if you haven't already! |
ONE OF MY FAVORITE ANIMES
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| Review Date: March 21, 2010 |
| Reviewer: T MONEY, CA |
| I saw a couple of episodes on cartoon network a while ago and was hooked. I liked the art style and the hip hop beats mixed in. Been meaning to pick it up for a while, i'm always on the look out for good anime. Priced it at best buy and some other stores and found the prices to high . Amazon has some of the best prices, so I picked it up. A Good story, a few laughs made it an easy buy. I just wish it were longer. |
Great Show in HD
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| Review Date: May 4, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Paul W. Brixius, |
| This is one of the best anime's ever made. It is eclipsed only by Cowboy Bebop. I had been wanting to get it on DVD for a while, and recently got a Blue Ray player. Saw this for a great price and could not pass it up. If you are a fan you know this show is worth getting on Blue Ray. If you have never seen it before, do yourself a favor and pick it up and join the search for the samurai that smells of sunflowers. |
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