Every decade has its handful of big series that dominates the discourse, though where you lived would have something to do with that. The Rurouni Kenshin series arrived in Japan in 1996 on Fuji Television and it had a solid nearly two year run on the network before it came to a close after 95 episodes. The show was responded to well in Japan overall as it had some OVAs produced, an anime feature version and over the years some live action material as well. But when you got outside of Japan, the late 90’s and early 2000’s were all about Rurouni Kenshin. The series was one that hit at the right point in time that also built on the buzz that was there by the tastemakers of the day that delved into fansubs and scanlations of the manga. The original work definitely captured a lot of attention and the anticipation for the anime over the years translated into a lot of popularity for those that knew what was coming.
The show was based on the manga by Nobuhiro Watsuki which ran in Weekly Shonen Jump between 1994 and 1999. It ran for an impressive 28 volumes and found a license with Viz Media in North America and Madman Entertainment in Australia where it got a complete run and some omnibus editions as well. Watsuki crafted a property that clicked in a lot of ways because it gave us the solid action side that a lot of people craved while also providing for some good humor along the way with the various character interactions. But where it truly succeeded is in giving us a character that really made us feel for him with Kenshin, a tragic figure through and through. Looking at it today, twenty years after the anime was first produced, we’re in such a state once again where so few characters have a real story or history to them that looking at someone like Kenshin reminds us of just how much more interesting they can be in this way.
Where this series won me over early on is in that it worked a classic approach, the wandering but tragic and fallen hero that’s just looking to find some way to atone for what’s come before. Often these are done in episodic form where they move from location to location, meeting new people and helping along the way. But Kenshin finds himself a place to call home after some time of travel and contemplation with Kaoru Kamiya, a young woman who runs her family dojo. Kaoru’s not exactly thrilled with Kenshin when they first meet yet she can sense there’s something very different about him. It speaks not only of her and how she can view him but also the kind of presence that Kenshin can exude to those attuned to such things. Kenshin often wears such a bright and outgoing personality – and it’s an honest one as he attempts to live a good life and do good things – but it’s a layer built on top of such tragedy and anguish and oh so much blood that it cannot be wiped away from those that can see such things.
What struck me the most at the time when I first watched this was that it was one of the first shows that really ushered in the numerous releases of series revolving around the Shinsengumi. While anime and manga covered the group before that, there were very few shows that came over that had anything to do with it. And Japan doubled down on the era and the group after Kenshin as well with all sorts of interpretations and re-imaginings getting underway to try and capitalize on it. But it worked well here because it largely played to a realistic tone for a lot of it, focusing on some of the core aspects of the historical characters and blending the nature of Kenshin and those in his life such as Yahiko, Sanosuke and Kaoru into it. The Shinsengumi gave it weight and a larger, more connected feeling to what was going on at the time and a real variable in the mix.
Additionally, the show delved into the Bakumatsu aspect in some good ways, though more of that came from the OVAs than the TV series. But those elements were very much present because of Kenshin’s past and how it impacted a lot of what he does in the present, with his reverse blade and then the coming of Shishio, the one who succeeded him when he abandoned his life as an assassin. There’s such a sense of ownership of not only what Kenshin did but Shishio as well that the weight of it is overpowering as Kenshin decides his course in life to deal with it, even knowing that it could be his end. The internal struggle he has is there in that he wants to keep living with Kaoru and the others, but the pull of his past is so strong that it makes it so tragic to watch unfold.
Considering the importance of the series to Media Blasters at the time, we reached out and got a comment from John Sirabella about it now that we’re so many years removed from it.
It feels like yesterday we had a party at this fairly swanky bar where we rented an entire floor and watch the first episode of the series air on Cartoon Network. It was a big deal for us at Media Blasters since we never thought we would be lucky enough to have a show air on Cartoon Network let alone the toonami hour.
Rurouni Kenshin really put Media Blasters into a whole new league and was probably the high point for Media Blasters including Invader Zim. It did not come without its internal controversy as some did not want to do a new dub of the program since it was already done as Samurai X and there were actually a few employees that felt it was not that good cause they did not like Samurai Shows.
But in the end Kenshin delivered and delivered in buckets for Media Blasters. I can honestly say that Media Blasters may never see another show with the popularity and sales levels of Kenshin ever again.
It is sorely missed.
–John Sirabella, Media Blasters
Media Blasters releases at the time were definitely highlight sought after and we’ve seen numerous configurations over the years before the rights ended up with Aniplex. The show was also a little convoluted during its release period as ADV Films picked up the rights to the OVAs and the film that was produced and used the alternate English dub cast and title that was available to them with Samurai X, something that lead to months and months of arguments among fans for a wide variety of reasons. Thankfully, the TV series was always kept to its original title throughout its releases and does so to this day with Aniplex (currently) streaming it through Hulu.
But looking at it all now years later, it’s something that you just have to smile about because in the end it doesn’t mean too much. Most fans won’t remember any of that – if they knew of it at all! – and will simply remember the excellent material that they viewed and the stories that were told. And that’s what stands out the most. It’s been twenty years since the series first aired in Japan and over fifteen years since I first laid on it. I may not remember every nuance of it, but the beats, the characters, the emotion… the love. It’s all there. The stories of Rurouni Kenshin resonate and continue to do so years after it’s all said and done. While aspects of the show, mostly in terms of animation and some of the original episodes in the back half, may not have aged well, the core of it has and is very much worth revisiting for older fans and for the first time for newer fans.
