Thoughts on "Samurai Jack" (Season One)

This morning I sat down and began watching Samurai Jack. I had only seen the show in excerpts and episodes out of context, and had very little prior knowledge aside from hearing about how awesome it was.

I can safely say that Samurai Jack (or at least its first season) is in fact quite awesome. Genndy Tartakovsky, the series's creator, is the uniquest animator working in the Western animation industry, in my view. His artstyle is suited to samurai material, with its bright, contrasting colors, shapes reminiscent of both kabuki and ukiyo-e, and the crispness of animation that he uses to choreograph action scenes.

The story, for those unacquainted, concerns a noble samurai--the son of an Emperor--whose land was besieged by an immense dark force, the wicked Aku (Mako Iwamatsu). This samurai was trained for years by various tutors around the world until he was ready as a young man to face Aku. Before he could triumph, however, Aku opened a portal in time, and flung the young samurai far into a future where Aku reigns supreme over all. Now, accompanied by his magic sword, the samurai--now calling himself Samurai Jack--must fight and overcome all manner of enemies and hardships in order to find and finally destroy Aku. Each episode details Jack overcoming an obstacle of some kind, usually in the form of Aku's minions, and he often helps others out as a result.

This story of a seasoned swordsman cast into an unfamiliar, gloomy future, a future full of hostile enemies and evils, is not a one-trick pony sort of affair. Each episode maintains my interest, because despite how skilled Jack is with the sword, there always exists an antagonist or obstacle that stops him from immediately gaining the upper hand and going on with his quest. His wits are tested, his strengths are stretched, his body and sword are beaten and battered. He is not let off easy. This is a problem I notice with action-oriented protagonists: either they are almighty right off the bat, or they are often made too powerful over time, and power creeps upon them (the most famous example perhaps being Dragon Ball, as well as other shounen series). The former is what I call a Mary Sue/Gary Stu; the latter--the power creep--is rather lazy, (because why write in difficulties and obstacles when you can arbitrarily power up your heroes and the crisis evaporates?). Regardless, to watch Jack struggle and earn success by his wits and his strength (and his sword) is rewarding.

I mentioned earlier that Tartakovsky's style is unique and reminiscent of Japanese art forms. The sharp, crisp animation and character designs really do remind me of both kabuki characters and the fantastic landscapes and monsters found in ukiyo-e woodblock prints. Jack's stern demeanor and Aku's malevolent grin seem to have leapt out of a kabuki performance or an Edo-period print by Kunisada. The choreography in the action scenes is also praiseworthy: it flows quick and smooth, giving the viewer multiple angles of the same action for solid effect, enhancing the intensity of the scene and pumping up the stakes.

I wholeheartedly recommend Samurai Jack so far. This season was a 10/10 broadly speaking, and I hope Season Two delivers consistent quality!