STORY: 9 (Great)
Samurai 7 is loosely based on an old movie, but also possesses an original story of its own. Basically, the story takes place in a world where samurai, merchants, and bandits rule the era. The samurai fight for honour, the merchants seek riches, and the bandits, who were once samurai, have abandoned their bushido and are used as pawns of the merchants.
Our story revolves around a small village, one of many where the bandits allow the farmers to grow their rice, and take it back for the merchants to profit from. The people of this village have had enough, and a small party is sent out (voluntarily) to hire samurai to aid them in defeating the bandits and taking back their fields. Along the way, they encounter a diverse cast of characters who eventually form the final rescue party, and they meet with a variety of obstacles on the way to meeting their final objective: the save the village. These obstacles help in developing the story in greater depth, as well as give us a chance to see the real soul of each samurai, and even the courage of the supporting characters (who themselves are not samurai).
From start to end, the story keeps things interesting. The samurai are not only out to protect the village as they were hired to do, their honour compels them to help almost anyone they come across who is in need. It really gives you a proud feeling to know that they're not just in it for the money (or in this case, all the rice they can eat), but that they are downright heroes in their own right.
Not the deepest story ever told, but certainly the kind that will keep you wondering what will happen next. And that's admirable, considering the length of 26 episodes. It doesn't feel dragged out or too long, but just right.
ART: 9 (Great)
The art from time to time changes. The opening is among one of the best I've ever seen, and the fast-paced fighting scenes are extremely well choreographed, with not a lot of cut-away shots. The fluidity of these scenes is just spectacular. I gave it a 9/10 though, because sometimes when things have settled down, the animation style is adjusted to a more "relaxed", yet sometimes marginally "shabby" look. Mind you, it's not bad, I found myself to adjust to it rather quickly, and it never really bothered me all that much.
Overall, the animation was top-notch.
SOUND: 10 (Outstanding)
There isn't much to say here. The music is excellent, with a diverse number of tracks to be able to fit just about every scene when needed. Sad scenes, adrenaline-pumping action scenes, and even "WTF?" scenes have their own music suited properly to the moment. And the opening kicks ass.
CHARACTER: 9 (Great)
NOTE: I'm not going to cover other main characters like Kirara, Komachi, etc. I'm going to focus mainly on the samurai, because while these characters are indeed important, it's the samurai who develop the most, and are what really make this series what it is. Rest assured though, the above characters don't really suffer from any major flaws, as they develop well in their own ways.
I would have given this section 10/10, if not for the fact that there was one samurai, Gorobe, that I didn't find all that interesting. So it's because of him that I gave it a 9/10. It's not because he was bad or anything, but I thought he was too underdeveloped before he met his demise. Kyuzo, Katsushiro, Heihachi, and Kikuchiyo stole the spotlight of this series for me. Kikuchiyo especially. I didn't find Shichiroji or Kanbe all that interesting, but I have no real complaints with them, they do have their place.
Kyuzo - The "lone-wolf" of the group. He has vowed to be the one to kill Kanbe someday due to a sort of rivalry, but until that time, assists them in saving the village. He fights with honour to accomplish his mission, but is rather quiet and tends to keep to himself. You could almost say because of this he doesn't develop much, but if you think about it after following him through the story, he really does. He is extremely skilled, wielding two katana at once, and can take down a large gathering of enemies single-handedly.
Kikuchiyo - The comic-relief, over-the-top, hot-headed "let's kick some ass!" samurai, and my personal favourite character. He used to be a farmer, but had his soul infused into a mechanical body so that he could be not a farmer, yet not a samurai, but a composite of the two. Since his body is not flesh and blood, he can withstand a barrage of bullets, summon great strength, and piece himself back together if a limb is severed (with some help at times). He wields a katana with similarities to a saw, and is able to use it as such, but also as a regular sword. He is definitely one of the most interesting characters for his comedic relief, but also is frequently the character to bring the others back to being level-headed in a tight situation. At first introduction, he comes off more hot-headed than anything, but we soon learn he does have some wisdom kicking around in that metal head of his. He is the last of the others to be acknowledged by Kanbe as a true samurai, but in my opinion, he proves himself so on more than one occasion before that time comes.
Katsushiro - The novice samurai in training. He soon becomes Kanbe's apprentice, and learns to value of life and death through his first real battles. There are hints of him having a mutual affection for Kirara, but at times it's not all that well developed. This, however, does get developed closer to the end of the story. There's nothing truly spectacular about his character alone, but along with Kikuchiyo, he is considered to be one of the "tag-along" samurai, who usually ends up getting saved by Kanbe or one of the others due to his lack of experience. He does eventually become able to hold his own in battle, and his skills greatly improve over time.
Heihachi - He remains to be somewhat of a mysterious character, right up until the end. He excels in building and repairing machinery, and possesses great skill with the sword. For the most part, he uses his sword skills to cut wood or other materials for use in building some sort of gadget, but when he needs to cut someone down, he is able to perform well. It's revealed that he wants to help Kanbe's group so that he can atone for his past, in which he betrayed his comrades and sold them out to the enemy by leaking information. Until the end, he proves to be a resourceful and vital part of the group.
Gorobe - After the war, he puts his skills to use as a street performer, making bets as to whether or not he can survive various perils. His skill primarily consists of dodging kunai, bullets, or other obstacles. He comes across almost as a magician of sorts, without any sort of magic power, but more like a trickster. Unfortunately, he doesn't seem to develop very much, and dies about half-way through the show. Fine with me though, as I didn't find him all that interesting. For the time he is there though, he does play a significant role in the party, bailing them out of tight spots here and there with his tricks.
Shichiroji - During the war, he fought alongside Kanbe. He is a most experienced samurai who wields a spear as his primary weapon. His fighting skills become more apparent towards the end of the show, as near the beginning and middle he spends most of his time building strategies with Kanbe, or hooking them up with accomodations from acquaintances. He is a necessary character, acting as a foundation along with Kanbe for the rest of the party, as his wealth of experience makes up for the lack thereof of some of the other characters.
Kanbe - The leader of this rag-tag group of samurai. Shichiroji is his former comrade and best friend. His skill with the sword is unmatched, save for Kyuzo. He has a reputation for losing every battle he has ever fought, although I don't think that's meant to be taken literally, as he has obviously won and survived previous his previous battles, and the war. For him, losing means having comrades die, even if the objective is accomplished. He is portrayed as the wisest of the group, always thinking one set ahead, and training the others as a sort of mentor for each coming battle. He is the last person to acknowledge Kikuchiyo as a true samurai, but eventually does so when Kikuchiyo shows his true wisdom after returning to the village and persuading the elders to let them fight the bandits.
So overall, the characters were extremely well developed for the scope of this series. I think they were all pretty deep, except for Gorobe, but some might disagree with that. When you're given this much to write about just 7 of the main characters (and I could have done much, much more), you can tell that they were really well thought out.
ENJOYMENT: 10 (Outstanding)
I rate a show 10/10 for enjoyment when I finish an episode and have nothing compelling me to stop: I don't feel bored in the least, and I'm waiting on the edge of my seat for more. This show kept me wanting more, right from episode one, which some shows don't achieve until a few more episodes in.
OVERALL: 10 (Outstanding)
This show was truly great, and as the Blu-Ray boxset case states, "a must have for every anime collection". I agree.
Some people have said in other reviews that they didn't think the ending was all that good. I beg to differ, as I thought it was perfect. Without spoiling it, I'll say that certain likeable characters die, and I believe that is the reason others don't feel as good about it as I do. I was extremely sad when one character in particular died (if you read my review you know who I mean), but I was proud of the way he went out. In my opinion, his was one of the most kick-ass deaths in all of anime. Yes, probably even more epic than Kittan from Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann (which was in itself pretty epic).
So to end this off, if you haven't seen this series, go out and buy it. Don't even bother renting it, because I know that once you finish it, you'll just wish you owned it in the first place.
"A must have for any anime collection."
