TonyWatchesMovies Anime Review: Samurai Champloo: 9 out of 10
What's better than a show about the Edo era of Japan? How about the Edo era with a splash of Nujabes, and the show is directed by the same guy who created Cowboy Bebop? Such a thing DOES exist, and it's called Samurai Champloo.
TonyWatchesMovies Score: 9 out of 10
The story follows Fuu, a young girl searching for a "samurai who smells of sunflowers", Jin, a ronin who is trying to find a way to regain his honor, and Mugen, a vagrant from an island of criminals who always tries to locate and kill the most powerful warriors he can find. Jin and Mugen join Fuu after she saves them from execution and wins a coin toss to help her find the sunflower samurai, and the show follows their exploits as the travel Japan.
The reason I love this anime so much is because they don't stay static to the time period, and they make it known at the very beginning. They mention things that happen in the future, they parody themselves, and we love it because you are having fun watching the show. They don't make you take the show seriously, because we're just meant to enjoy ourselves watching it.
The use of music in this anime is also very well done. I sometimes will rewatch episodes just because I liked the flow of the music throughout, and the beats are so mellow that you can't help but put on the Samurai Champloo OST in the car while you're driving.
Jin and Mugen are by far my two favorite characters in all of my anime-watching history, because not only are they very different, but they complement each other so well. I feel a very similar comparison between myself and my brother, one of us being brash and impulsive while the other is more contemplative and thoughtful, respectively. Watching the two of them interact with not only the people they run into but also with each other is so entertaining.
I highly recommend Samurai Champloo as your next binge-watching exploit, and then once you're done, binge-watch it again.
Cheers,
-TonyWatchesMovies