True to its essence, the characters remain on the same line and manage to entertain the viewer, each highlighting their own distinctive qualities or touches.

It is interesting even when nothing much happens, which is for most of its 3-hour running time. Read full review

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

The anime is about a wandering samurai in the 11th year of the Meiji era (around 1878)who stumbles upon a dojo in Tokyo and decides to stay there, helping in and around it. He protects the weak against the strong with his sword (even when they are banned) and in the process, runs into some friends and enemies from the past. The series also has some characters who really existed in the history of Japan which makes it all the more interesting. The best episodes to watch are 28 through 62, but you will need to go through the earlier ones which are sometimes silly to really understand them. The soundtrack alone is exceptional and is worth listening to. In my opinion it is better than most animes in its class.

Without any doubt this is one of the best animated series ever done and my favored of all times.The way they combine fiction and real facts of Japanese history occurred during the Mei Ji era make it more interesting.What make it different from other Japanese series is that in this case the main character, Kenshin Himura, has a real purpose to fight for in order to mend all those terrible things he did in the past. Another point about it is the way they combine drama, action, romance and comedy. The backgrounds and the music are just brilliant and exquisite. There's no doubt these series has one of the best soundtracks.

I greatly enjoyed Kenshin, possibly even loved it. But having seen all of it, I must warn you, don't watch the final season. It degenerates from a moral filled story into a Dragon Ball Z clone, which just happens to take place in the Meiji era of Japanese history. Around 25-35 episodes that have no strong plot, and do very little to develop the characters.To start, this show has wonderful characters. They are all introduced cleverly, and develop wonderfully. While there are several "good" characters, they are not just clones of each other with different voices and looks. Each one has his/her own problems, and their own past. Fortunately for the viewer not well versed in the history of the Meiji Restoration, the character's do more than just state their story and reason for fighting. Each main character typically gets one episode dedicated to fleshing out their back stories. By the end of the series, you feel that you know the characters a great deal.The episodes are also well written, and must closely follow the manga (Japanese comic) upon which they were based. It is here we encounter our problem however. You see, the original manga remains an ongoing series in Japan. This presented a problem to the animators, who still needed to finish up the show, and not just leave viewers with the message,"Go buy the books when they come out." across the TV screen. So they started to write new material. For the last season, they completely abandon the show's concepts that made it popular to begin with.So for the remainder of the show, you must endure mind numbingly unimaginative fight scenes. The character's only develop in a physical sense, with Sanosuke gaining some new moves, along with Kenshin. By the end, the conclusion of Kenshin and Kaoru's romance seems to be no more than an after thought. I would recommend skipping the "Kyoto Story Arc," as it's called, and either reading the manga as it comes out, or purchasing the Samurai X DVDs.

Rurouni Kenshin (the OAVs and Movie are known as Samurai X) tells the story of a wanderer named Kenshin, who used to be called Hitokiri Battousai (Hitokiri means Assassin) during the Japanese civil war, and is now trying to make up for his past and all his murders by helping those in trouble with his reverse-blade sword and by using his powerful technique called Hiten-Mitsurugi Ryu to battle oppressors of freedom and justice, yet struggling with himself and his own murdering self. During the series Kenshin joins others in his quest: Kaoru Kamiya, a young orphan girl who became tutor of the Kamiya-Kashin Ryu Kendo style; Sanosuke Sagara, a mercenary who used to bear the name Zanza and fights just with his incredibly powerful fists; Yahiko Myojin, a young boy who was rescued by Kenshin from a band of thieves and now a pupil on Kaoru's dojo; and Megumi Takani, a female doctor who was rescued by Kenshin from a band which forced her to make a lethal drug. Together they all fight those who oppress the weak while they seek their destiny as well happiness and redemption.My rating: 9/10 the Meji era of Japan may not be for everyone, or maybe some people just don't like the face Kenshin acts like a idiot in this.Rating PG 13: Nothing to bad except a little blood.