Rurouni Kenshin: Meiji Kenkaku Romantan - Kyoto Douran

Since no one else has written a review yet, I figured that I should share my thoughts to anyone who was on the fence about this show. To be completely honest, I wouldn't have known that this anime was even airing if I didn't receive a notification on MAL. With shows like Dandadan and Ao no Hako premiering this season, it is somewhat understandable why this is being released with such little fanfare. However, this is the best part of Kenshin, AND there's no filler. There's not much else you can really ask for. New viewers and old viewers alike should enjoy this show. The ... voice actors are all great, and the pacing is solid. The animation and music are about the same quality as last season. I don't want to get too excited just yet because the climax of the arc is still in store. However, I have high expectations for the rest of the season.

This series is not getting the hype it needs.
Although it's a great series. Season 1 was great and season 2 is also going fine as Kenshin travels to kyoto, along the way he meets new character. Season 2 is going to be a action banger. Animation is great as season 1. According to me season 2 great. Opening Play is also great i really loved it. It's a 8/10 for me but I m giving 9/10 because it's not getting the hype it needs. It's a hidden gem.
Great animes such as this don't get the spotlight because of hyped new anime such as dandadan, blue ... box and some popular sequels like danmachi, re: zero, blue exorcist, blue lock and much more. The series which i mention are great as well. Hope rurouni kenshin gets more attention.

Like the original, the Kyoto arc is fire. It's so full of action and new characters, that this season was going to make or break the entire reboot. I am happy to report that it's been a success.

Same crisp artwork from last season, and the animation has taken a step up. Some of Kenshin's moves, and other fight animation, were better than the OG. All the animation was high level. Even 3D renditions like the Rengoku were blended in smoothly and didn't seem obnoxious at all. Fine work by the animators.

The character designs didn't change from season 1, and the buttload of new characters ... introduced were well done. I think there was sttill a minor issue that also plagued season 1. They seem to really tone down the OG characters. Misao was nowhere near as adorably flakey. Cho didn't seem as brash. Even Shishio didn't seem as menacing. But if you'd never seen seen the OG, you'd never notice, as these characters are still portrayed brilliantly. It's only a minor shift in the tone of the entire franchise. It's not bad, only different.

The narrative mostly followed the OG, but seems to have gotten a little more world-building flesh put on its bones. The writers do it in a way that doesn't drag the flow of the story down. And they did a nice job of wrapping the season up without some horrible cliffhanger at the end. Well done indeed.

The VA work continues to be mostly skillfully done. With so many new characters, there are a couple 'mehs' tossed in there, but they aren't terrible. For the most part, the direction uses the cast well. Along with decent animation and fair use of the soundtrack, their work was acceptible.

Still, a masterful revisioning of the franchise. This is about the same level as the first season, and I'd grade it at 95/100 for a full A, even with my minor personal quibbles. Definitely worth continuing the journey with our wandering ronin.

Probably the worst Rurouni Kenshin to date. The changes to the source material are all completely unnecessary and only detract from the story, it seems to gloss over scenes that deserve time and attention while extending scenes that don't need it. The original anime had a lot of filler but was certainly more impactful than this current version. Might be okay if this is your introduction to Rurouni Kenshin but I would recommend googling a list of non-filler episodes and watching the original series instead of this lackluster entry.

One day they'll just animate the manga like FMA: Brotherhood did but for some reason, again, they ... decided to go their own route. The swordplay is a little better but it overall this show seems watered down and nothing special. Something to watch if you have nothing else to watch but if anyone ever asked me (as if such things come up in casual conversation) they were interested in Rurouni Kenshin, I would tell them to watch the original series and Trust and Betrayal and pretend this never existed.

I had a great deal to say about S1 of this reboot that was rather negative. It just didn’t evoke a lot of what I loved about the original series, and a large part of that is the all-too-clean animation style that just can’t evoke the gritty nature of so many of its fights. So I strode into this second season trepidatious.

Luckily, my concerns proved largely unwarranted. The series uses that smooth animation to detail some striking gore this time around, which certainly seems warranted given that the Kyoto Arc is the best in the series and features the best fight scenes in the series, ... and some of the fights in this season go hard, so it lives up to that portion of the hype. I no longer doubt that this can pull off a similar feel to the original series in a cleaner package.

However, this season is nonetheless held back by a different problem: it’s almost a little too adherent to the original series, particularly that series’ pacing. After 23 episodes, we’ve set up the arc’s main bouts with Shishio and his lieutenants, but there have been scant few real clashes in this season. Most of the real bouts were either one-sided affairs or were interrupted before they could reach their zeniths, so unfortunately this loses some steam along its run. That’s not to say that there’s nothing of note here: Kenshin vs. Chou is visually spectacular, even if the latter is not much of a character; Aoshi vs. Nenji hits hard and leaves a lasting impression; Kenshin vs. Seijurou is another spectacle with some narrative weight; and Sanosuke’s training arc has some teeth to it as you watch him break and rebuild himself under the pressure. But these stand-out moments are diluted a bit in the broader swath of the plot, which is well-explained, but stands a lot on exposition and extended conversation, something I’m normally game for that feels very much out of place in this narrative.

So yes, the pacing of the series holds it back. Could that have been resolved by just adding a few episodes to round out the arc with the major fights yet to come? It certainly would have helped. Maybe the goal is to really put in the time on those fights to make them pop, in which case I’ll be eager to see the end result. For now, though, with another two cours out of the way, I’m a little underwhelmed even as I find myself praising the series more. So I end up giving it roughly the same score I would have given the original series at this point, both recognizing that my feelings up to this point just weren't that strong for the series in this arc, but that I'll be hungry for the next entry. Let it come soon, please and thank you. For now, worth recommending the lead-up.

Ruroken Kyoto Disturbance arc was amazing. To me it was a significant upgrade production and writing-wise over the first season. The stakes, drama, fights, Kenshin’s development as a swordsman and of course the threat of the incredibly menacing Shishio, made this season a joy to watch. It is an absolute shame that Ruroken has to have the author it does, because in any other circumstance this remake would be a lot more popular. It’s got the classic charm of the 90s series with modern production values and a really cool cast of characters who you can’t help but love. If you’re even considering watching this, ... it’s likely because you saw the original or the first season of the remake, so it goes without saying you need to check this out!

This season of Ruroken really resonated with me because of the focus on side characters and how much Kenshin had to develop as swordsman. The new additions to the story like Misao were great and the build up to and gradual unraveling of the Kyoto fire conspiracy was awesome. My one big complaint with this season is how we had so much build up to the Kyoto fire and then it ended up being like 3 episodes and we didn’t even get a real big fight out of it other than Aoshi being in his edgy depressed e boy arc. This season sort of functions as a proper introduction to Shishio and the ten swords and as a segue to a new portion of the story. BUT, the build up was so good that I can’t complain. Particularly enjoyed how we got to see Kenshin evolve as a fighter. Shishio is the most difficult opponent he has had to fight yet and it became clear early on that there’s no way Kenshin at his current level could beat him. So we see a sort of return to the basics/mini training arc with Kenshin and his former master and those 2-3 episodes were some of the best storytelling in the show thus far. For as bad ass as Kenshin is, he was to that point, still a boy in many ways. Seeing him unlock his full potential and master his sword fighting school’s ultimate technique was great.

As I said before, the side characters really got to shine this season. Whether it was my goat Sano, Saitou, Misao or even Kaoru and the usual gang, everyone had a role to play in stopping Shishio from destroying Kyoto and it was dope seeing everyone come together to do so. The 10 swords were a bit underwhelming for me. They were really hyped up, but other than the one that Kenshin fought earlier in the season, they looked pretty mediocre. I do think they’ll have some cool moments next season, but they were more of a background threat in this one. Conversely, the Oniwabanshu group had a lot of focus in this arc and got fleshed out a lot more than their brief introduction in the first season which was cool. I felt like before they were just sort of this interesting group of mercs who happened to take on the wrong job. But I came out of this season with a deep appreciation for them and their ethos. It will be really interesting to see how they factor into the next season.

The few big fights we had this season looked really good. I have high hopes for the real big fights sure to come later in the season if this is how they handled these. The art has always been solid in the remake and this is no different, PLUS we have the best OP of the remake so far with Yama’s Burn.

This was an improvement over season 1 because of how the character development was done, everyone got some time to shine, the higher stakes, Kenshin being pushed to the limits and frankly how cool and intimidating a villain Shishio is. Much better than the smaller arcs with weaker villains in season 1. It might not have as much action as I wanted, but the drama and tension were awesome and it sets up a highly anticipated showdown between Kenshin and shishio. Ruroken Kyoto Disturbance arc gets 9 out of 10.

S2 is fantastic!!
I had mixed feelings on some of the execution of S1, but S2 has it all together. The animation is much better!

S2 sees my favourite character arrive as well xD Makimachi Misao <3 <3 <3
I love her, ahha.

S1 is dominated by the pre-overarching drama stories. The early days of writing the series. And S2, gets to the drama. Every episode and story builds nicely upon the last, with many twists and turns that will leave you on one end or the other of a katana.

Sound design is on point!

Visual Quality is great! The first season was eye ... catching, but the second season has not only the animation perfected against the first, but the use of all the right framing and angles.

There are two OP and EDs, there's a touch of modernity,.with a lot of 90s nostalgia I must say, these are the perfect choices, especially that first closing! Wow! Heartstrings!

Anyways, this story really heats up. You'll definitely enjoy!!

Well the second season is here and I’m sure that what most people would want to know about it is if the visuals improved from the previous part, and the answer is…a little bit, but ever so slightly it’s not even that noticeable. The artwork, storyboard, character figures are all practically the same. The actual animation and the special effects are a bit better, particularly during fight scenes, and partially thanks to not try to mimic 90s special effects as regularly as the previous entry did. The backgrounds improved a little as well. The downside is the directing, which is still rather uninspired and doesn’t ... add much, particularly to the action. Some of the key moments like Kenshin training with Hiko Seijuro were done justice, but others, like his fight with Cho, could have been better. In all, the visuals improved a little compared to the first season, but are still below the ones from the 90s.

Even the audio aspect improved a little thanks to the sound effects not sounding like stock material, they are louder, more impactful and plain better than the ones used before, for sure. Unfortunately everything else feels about the same, the music is still just ok and doesn’t add anything to the scenes to make them memorable. There are two new openings and they both suck, like Kenshin’s openings always did, and two new endings, which although they are typical romantic jpop stuff, they reflect the perspectives of the girls from the series fine, and are not bad on their own, definitely an improvement over the ones from the previous season. The voice acting is still fine, but like I said a year ago, the tendency to have the characters sounding younger (and hotter) to match the younger looking designs from this remake keeps being the same. The cast did an appropriate job, and is full of recognizable names in it, of whom you can usually expect good results of, but it is definitely not as iconic nor as crazy sounding as the one from thirty years ago.

Since the major arc of the show started, the writing definitely improved by having less mini arcs against minor opponents, and having a long ongoing arc full of important events instead. There is kind of a lot of character immersion, flashbacks of Kenshin’s previous life from bonus manga chapters that are better than the ones from the first season, clashing ideological and political views discussed with some more details, and the protagonist actually struggling against his opponents for a change. Add to that the main cast trying to find out about the schemes of the main villain, who keeps stuff secret even from most of his strongest underlings, and the whole of Kyoto at stake for a sense of pressure.

With all that said, the anime is still a rather typical fighting shounen, so minor villains are changed after just a speech from the protagonist, major ones keep going after the main character one on one as they have some quite unrealistic fights; there is lots of downtime and training, and comical moments thanks to the newly introduced support cast. At the very least the training doesn’t last for long, and it’s a nice change of pace of main characters becoming far stronger practically out of nowhere or out of screen, as the genre tends to do these days. The downtime serves to show the thoughts and feelings of the characters, and the comedy, as silly as it is, is not overdone nor thrown in during dramatic or serious scenes. The major issue is of course the lack of a proper ending, but that is preferable over rushing through the whole content just to get to the major events, that was done before in this franchise and nobody liked it. Filler was added to make a specific plot point last longer than it did time ago, but resolution aside, I didn’t find it to be bad.

I don’t have a lot to say as far as characterization goes, but Kenshin keeps being great and looked into, Kaoru keeps going after him, Sanosuke comes across against an enemy and learns a technique from him on his quest to become stronger and help Kenshin and everyone else, Aoshi keeps spiraling down, and Saito appears as someone to figure out Shishio’s schemes and challenge Kenshin’s pacifist ideas.

For newly introduced characters, minor side characters appear to remind Kenshin of his wish of a peaceful era, Hiko Seijuro hits him with the idea that trying to achieve that dream and refusing to kill a dangerous and strong enemy like Shishio aren’t compatible, just like Saito. Misao appears as just a funny fangirl but gets a growth after learning a hurtful truth and realizing she has to become a leader (or so it seems). Shishio Makoto is strong, deranged, scheming, imposing and manipulative, even to his own men, so he is great as a villain. From his henchmen, the only ones that get fleshed out a little are Cho, appearing as just an evil asshole but with a sense of loyalty, and Hoji, willing to do the dirty work needed, sacrifice himself, or even defy Shishio himself, all for the cause.

So the season as a whole was a slight improvement over the first one, but it still quite can’t reach the levels of the previous adaptation. Nevertheless, all things considered, it leaves me somewhat hopeful to see it getting better on the next one, as it will be the most important part of the series with most of the key moments.

I am really glad I gave the second season a shot after I had mixed feelings on the first. Not only is this season better storywise than the first by a very large margin, it made the buildup leading to it from season 1 kind of worth it.

I say "kind of" because I still think the problems I first had with season 1 being outdated are still true: 24 episodes is way too long to set up your protagonists in what feel sometimes like inconsequential arcs. Not only that as much as I lenjoyed season 2 more than 1, some of those outdated elements are ... still present in this season: stereotypichal anime characters, neglected female characters, repetitive "friendship" speeches that have characters talk a lot but say very little". That's just the beginning of some of the issues I have but its nothing I wasn't expecting. Such is the fate of adapting an old manga like this.

This season is when the plot starts moving forward and the actual antagonists are introduced, Shishio is by far the best villain of the series so far, being this evil, charming and sharp presence that haunts every scene he's in. He always controls the room and its not because of his strength alone, he commands respect from the people around him and they give it to him because they know he is deserving.

The animation is another thing that went up this season, not by a large margin or anything, but its noticibly better and I hope it keeps getting better and better

So, I've already watched the second season of the new Kenshin, so it's time to sum up this remake of the cult anime about a samurai with a scar on his cheek in the shape of the letter **"X"**, a comparison with the 1996 anime, the 2023/2024 remake focuses more on dynamic pacing, unlike the older version of Kenshin (which had slower + also contained fillers that we won't see in the newer version of this anime, focusing on the season format), giving action right away, etc., which in my opinion is a plus, being more consistent with the events of the manga.

Moving on ... to the technical layer itself, i.e. we're talking about the art itself, animation and music, starting with the art itself and animation, they look very good, you can see that **"LIDENFILMS"** put a lot of effort into making this remake pleasant to the eye, I only have a strong objection to the color palette that the new Kenshin uses, which in my opinion doesn't really fit this series, compared to The older version has dirty or subdued colors, building a dark aura of the series. Some characters in the remake have also lost their original aura a bit, instilling fear or anxiety. For me, the **"Shishio"** himself (i.e. the main antagonist in Rurouni Kenshin) looks much better in the 1996 anime than in the remake. This one here has made him clean. For people who have never watched the older version of Kenshin, it won't be a disadvantage, but for people who watched the original anime first (like me), it will be a big minus. However, I don't mind the modern visual effects, which give a completely different experience of watching this series (if you added the colors from the 1996 anime, it would be an almost perfect remake). The music in the remake is quite good, I could even risk saying it's as good as in the older version of this anime, so to sum up, I consider the Rurouni Kenshin remake itself a well-done refreshment of the older series. The anime's 90s, using modern animation techniques, creates a completely different feel, but still somewhat steals the atmosphere of the older series (like the previously mentioned change in color palette to a more pure and intense one).

Ultimately, I give the two seasons of New Kenshin an 8/10, looking forward to the next season, which will continue the events in Kyoto and conclude this arc. It's also the first anime I finished with my anime bingo 2026.

Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Disturbance — Less peace and more conflict for a prized man, now with a bounty on his head.

The 2nd remake outing for Hitokiri Battosai and his gang of friends, proving that the Tokyo Era of Season 1 was a one-and-done thing, is, unfortunately, not the whole narrative of the story...benigning stories of rumours that are swirling of a new evil wanting a resurgence of an era that only produced democracy in the name of bloodshed. This time, however, it opens up a can of worms that not even the distinguished Himura Kenshin can ever hope to avoid: the war in peacetime that ... evokes much of the tragedy of times' past to face a fascist hell-bent on changing the face of Japan forever. This is Rurouni Kenshin's next phase of the story — the Kyoto Arc, being the 2nd arc in the overall story and simultaneously the major of the 3.

The most important distinction is that the Kyoto Arc has 2 segments: the prologue and the battle against the Juppongatana a.k.a Ten Swords, which Season 2 here covers from Volumes 8 to (the midway point of) 13, showcasing the preparation of the battle of Himura Battosai against the supposed successor of the Hiten Mitsurugi-ryu fighting style: Shishio Makoto, with his own group of the feared elite warriors, the Juppongatana a.k.a Ten Swords. And when comparing against the OG and the remake version, I'd say that the remake holds up having modern animation to help boost Shishio's fearmongering of the current Meiji government to revive the Bakumatsu era, where people can just freely have their swords and induce killing people as and when they like it, at least to Shishio's ideology. Obviously, this is an era in which Kenshin has also been through the violence and gore, and as a proclaimed Rurouni samurai who wants peace without bloodshed, Shishio's ideology is a cardinal sin against the way of the Samurai. And so it begins: the fight for peace throughout Japan, to bring the country into prosperity or let it fall into ruins and endless massacre.

Let's address the only elephant in the room: arguably, as is in the 1996 OG version, clearly the adaptation of the Kyoto Arc is not up to snuff when you consider anime of the modern day vs. anime back in the 90s, where quality triumphs in the modern day and quantity likewise back in the day. So, with this rather long arc spanning at least 2 seasons' worth, there is a break in-between, which forces the new director of Liden Films' in-house director Yuki Komada, replacing Hideyo Yamamoto, to make critical decisions as to make a seamless transition between Season 2 and 3 (which will come soon enough). With that change, out goes content, and in comes filler (you thought that even in a remake, the escape from filler was a possibility, yeah?) to help subsidize for the lack of content to fill in precious minutes to find sweet and suitable stopping points that, at the same time, don't detract from the experience. This is a known problem if you've watched the OG version and continues to be the issue here, as I've experienced enough filler to deem some parts of the follow-up season a slog to suffer through.

Otherwise, it's the same Rurouni Kenshin remake that you know and love since its inception in Fall 2023, with pretty much the same core staff from Season 1 reprising their roles, albeit the only change being only the director role, which holds the key to a successful adaptation, and making key sacrifices along the way that still give the show its modern allure to the now 3 decades' old story that, to this day, holds up so well to become the classic that it is in AniManga history.

With the new OST to accompany Season 2, there's actually a lot to like here. For the OP songs, be it the collabs of Tatsuya Kitani and natori, or yama and WurtS, they have their audience and are good, high-octane songs at that. The ED songs going the mellow route with Nomelon Nolemon and Zarame are also a good contrast to the OP songs themselves. Sadly, I find that when it comes to OP/EDs, Season 1 has this follow-up sequel season beat by a mile, if only just a bit forgettable.

Still, you can't go wrong with a well-respected work that, even with the infamy of its rather "privileged" author, Rurouni Kenshin (at least for the anime remake) will continue to tap into the source material's untapped potential. Onwards to Season 3 for the actual confrontation of the Ten Swords…whenever it arrives.

The Rurouni Kenshin remake is visually stunning, with amazing fight animation, a faithful adaptation of the manga, and an epic Kyoto Arc. Honestly, if you’re a Kenshin fan, this is a must-watch. But let’s talk about the biggest problem—Kaoru.

I was hoping, praying, that the remake would fix Kaoru’s personality, but nope, she’s still the same immature, overly emotional, reckless, self-righteous mess. She has zero strategic thinking, rushes into danger with no plan, and somehow expects Kenshin to magically handle everything. Instead of actually understanding him, she just follows him around like a lost puppy, yelling his name every five seconds. Kaoru is, hands down, the ... most frustrating part of this series.

Now, you know who should have been the real female lead? Megumi.
Megumi is smart, mature, emotionally strong, and actually supports Kenshin on a deeper level. She sees his struggles, gives him real advice, and doesn’t just cry or act entitled to his attention. She’s got class, wit, and let’s be real—she’d be a way better match for Kenshin than Kaoru. If this anime had the guts to swap Kaoru for Megumi, it would have been an instant 9 or even 10/10 for me. Hell, I’d take a whole "Rurouni Kenshin: Megumi Route" remake at this point.

And yeah, I know people would get mad if they changed the romance to Kenshin x Megumi, but come on—at least if Kaoru had a better personality in the remake, it wouldn’t lose fans. It would actually make things more interesting, right? Haha lol. Not gonna lie, whenever Kaoru is on screen, I just fast-forward—I get so irritated lol.

That being said, the anime is still a solid 8/10 for me. The animation, action, and storytelling are great, so I’d still recommend it to anyone. But let’s be real—if they had just replaced Kaoru with Megumi, or at least given her a complete personality upgrade (maybe a software patch? 😂), this would be an easy 9 or 10/10. Just saying.