When you think of Rurouni Kenshin, what comes to mind? Is it the characters, the cool action scenes that you watched nearly 30 years ago, or is it those awesome Linkin Park AMVs that came out around that time?
With the first season of this reboot getting some success, it was no surprise that they were going to keep it going with the Kyoto Disturbance Arc and another season getting announced as it finished airing. But how does it compare to the original?
For the old-school fans, you know it's about Kenshin traveling to Kyoto to track down Shishio to stop him from overthrowing the Meiji government. We also get an introduction to new characters such as Misao and the Ten Swords.
While it was nice to see the Ten Swords again, they didn't get as much screen time outside of Anji and Chou. Shishio has always been an interesting character, and I always thought he was such a badass with his design. I am glad to see he's still this intimidating yet charismatic figure we all know and love.
Sojiro is still that creepy psychopath that you can tell he's dead inside, despite the emotionless smile and rather cheerful tone he expresses when speaking.
Misao definitely shines in this show as a supporting as she was very useful when it comes to stepping up when she needed to. Whether it was assisting on the battlefield and helping out civilians or stepping up as the leader of the Oniwanban clan, she fit her role perfectly.
Most of the focus for this arc was on Kenshin and his dilemma on whether he really needs to go back to his old Himura Battousai, the Manslayer, to defeat Shishio or if he can go with how he is now.
We also get to see his old master, Seijuro as he finally completes his training to learn the ultimate Hiten Mitsurugi-Ryuu technique needed to defeat Shishio whenever their paths cross. Those sets of episodes between the former master and student were honestly one of the highlights for this season.
Unfortunately, outside of the fight between Aoshi and Okina, the rest of the battles in this show were subpar. They all seemed like standard anime fights that you see in other shows to just keep the story moving and not have a big impact on anything to make them stand out. It was as if they were just coasting with these and playing it safe without doing anything spectacular. They're not bad fights, just a little underwhelming, and I'm hoping that changes in the next arc.
Overall, while it is not the perfect season, there's still plenty to enjoy for both new viewers and fans who've seen it when it originally aired. Reboots lately have been hits more than misses, and it's nice to see these classic shows make a comeback and not completely butcher it. If you haven't seen it yet and are a fan of the original, check it out on Crunchyroll. The first two seasons are on there now.
Will the new series go further than the original? You never know, as long as the show keeps going well despite the controversy about the mangaka, it might. I'm along for the ride and I'm looking forward to the next set of battles in the next arc coming up.
Score: 7.25/10
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