Audience reviews
20 · Sample from the first available page, separate from the total number of ratings.
romeokaien
Afro Samurai is honestly a 10/10 for me.
I really enjoyed how short and straight to the point the anime is. It doesn’t waste time and gets right into the action. The animation, fights, music, and overall atmosphere all work together really well. Afro himself is such a cold and memorable character, and I liked how his personality is shown more through his actions than him constantly talking.
The fight scenes are definitely one of the best parts. They are brutal, stylish, and satisfying to watch, and the animation still holds up really well. The soundtrack also fits the anime perfectly and gives it an even better vibe.
I also really liked the revenge story. It’s simple, but it works because the anime focuses more on the journey and the characters instead of trying to make the story overly…
Read at the sourcemitsuohara
I like it. That said, I really believe this is for people with very specific taste.
It is, overall, a case of style over substance. Most things are a bit ridiculously over the top and make little to no sense, but heck, they look cool. It is a violent and gory and hypersexualized story about revenge and that's basically everything there's to it. Even the humor is a bit too much, sometimes it feels forced, but I did laugh at times.
There is some (weak) attempt to put up some moral and philosophical debate over how corrupting the thirst for power and revenge are, but is very shallow and it only serves to give characters a little more depth.
Sometimes I wished there was more to it about the world building and lore, but you'll be good if you don't take it too seriously and don't try to think…
Read at the source_Bubassotto_
An anime with incredible visuals and premise, but which unfortunately loses momentum as it progresses.
Afro Samurai is one of those works that immediately grabs your attention. Whether it's the visual style, the exaggerated violence, the soundtrack, or the very concept of the universe, everything about it seems extremely different from the norm. And honestly, the beginning of the anime really gives you the feeling that you're about to watch something memorable.
The premise is very good. In a world where there are Number 1 and Number 2 headbands, only the warrior who carries the title of Number 2 can challenge Number 1. However, anyone can challenge Number 2 to take their place. This creates an extremely interesting dynamic, because it transforms the bearer of the Number 2 headband into s…
Read at the sourceUfb7gn6_u08
Unbelievable boring and slow, if you want to engage with it just watch the fights on YouTube.
This anime has a nice aesthetic with the hip hop influences, and very clean fluid animation especially for the time but that doesn’t negate how dull it is. The pacing is genuinely so egregious in all aspects, horrendous during backstories, horrendous during the “normal” scenes, and ok during fights. And while the main glaring issue is the pacing that isn’t the only issue.
Another are the characters, with 5 episodes and the reputation that this show carries the expectation set for the characters were never high, however it felt like they didn’t try at all. Afro is an unbelievably boring character and somehow an even worse character during flashbacks talking about how he needs to get the number tw…
Read at the sourceSoxlarp
I think it has a bit slow pacing-wise, but pretty okay considering it only has 5 ep
Animation: very fluid and oustanding Music: its fine, nothing special. Characters: aside from Afro, the main character who is interesting the rest of the characters are really okay-ish, but not really interesting. Story: its pretty decent, again with the pacing, it gets kinda boring, but still its interesting.
This is definitely a niche anime, not that many mainstream anime watchers will like it, also it's an american-japanese production, so that's another reason why people might not like it, as the Eng Dub version is the mainly availible version
Read at the sourceHypn0s_X
Afro Samurai (2007) – Revenge Never Looked This Good
Afro Samurai is one of those shows that walks into the room and doesn’t ask for your attention, it demands it. From the first strike of the blade to the final blood-drenched frame, it understands exactly what kind of experience it wants to deliver: cool as hell, violent as sin, and stylish to a fault. And honestly? It’s a damn good time.
What surprised me most, though, is how Afro Samurai quietly weaves meaning beneath the spectacle. Beneath the swagger and Tarantino-esque blood fountains lies a story about the crushing weight of vengeance, how violence fuels only more violence, trapping a person inside their own suffering. Afro himself is a walking trauma scar: stoic, hardened, and stripped of anything resembling a childhood. The worl…
Read at the sourceAshParth
Afro Samurai, an anime that I remember growing up through the end of my high school years as this was on Toonami. Five short episodes of a black samurai, which is like a portrayal of Yasuke himself, on a path of revenge against his father's killer. All for the sake of a handband that could grant godlike powers for anyone who wears them. Afro, the main character himself, wears the Number Two Headband, traveling to the place where his father was killed, and the new bearer of the Number One Headband, Justaice, resides. Behind him, the Empty Seven Clan sends their legion of robot ninjas and mechanical creations to kill Afro and take the Number Two Headband for their own purpose. As the story goes on, we see Afro's backstory as well as running across a few other individuals alongside his compan…
Read at the sourcetreklof
STORY
Afro, after seeing his father get beheaded by the #2 headband holder, goes on a lifetime quest to avenge his father by killing the new #1.
ANIMATION
Incredible choice of artstyle and direction, where the animation matches the dark, deranged, and gritty world the anime takes place in. The fight scenes do feel "American" in the sense that certain scenes consist of incredibly quick cuts from one place to the other, being very zoomed in on the fighting. I personally find this incredibly annoying as it makes it near impossible to keep track of a fight choreo, of which they paid enough attention to in order to have them stand on its own.
WRITING
Not great. Afro is one-dimensional x1000: we only see a 1-minute clip of his father dying, and that's supposed to make us understand his actions…
Read at the sourceSekizoYagai
First ever dubbed series I watched. Ngl it seemed to me very cartoonish, not only the language used, but the content of the dialogues was so surfacial as well as the story which made it look indifferent and difficult to emotionally connect to anything at all (and it's not because it's only 5 episodes). Can't deny that it passed me the vibe of the mix of japanese traditional samurais and afro culture, their slang and their ways of expression.
Music gets 8.5/10. Even if you aren't a huge fan of rap or fast paced rythms, that thing was on fire.
Animation 9/10
Art style - Aesthetic 8/10. It's simply beautiful, triple shadows and a dark tone that perfectly repsresents the vibe of the series. Really hard to adapt to it as a viewer though.
Story - Lore 3/10. I'll say it once again, I didn't li…
Read at the sourceGiratinaswrath
It's a 4.
Ok, look. The action scenes are pretty great! I can see why this gained a cult following. Everything is snappy and nice to look at. It's just cool. The art has some decent style!
However.
Every other aspect of this show is lacking. The writing, the characters, the worldbuilding. All of it is very bad. At first I thought it was a parody and it does seem to poke fun at the concept in noncommittal, unintelligent, transient ways. All of the ways in which it is a parody is played off as "Haha look this helmet is kinda funny right? LOL" and then it ends. BUT EVERY OTHER PLOT ELEMENT IS GENERIC AND PLAYED STRAIGHT. Nothing seems to follow logically in the story and random story beats pop up out of ALMOST nowhere, having been set up the scene before in the same episode. The character…
Read at the sourcedrnavarrio
Definitely the worst anime I have watched yet. The story is basic, and also super rushed. I feel like it did too much of a time skip. Sure, toward the end we got some backstory, but it still wasn't much. The animation is pretty decent and the voice acting too. The plot is just not that interesting and I think that the anime should be 12 episodes and not 5. I am giving it a 3/10, although the scene of Afro fighting the robot in the sky was sick as hell and made me consider giving it a 4. But I just couldn't. I really did not enjoy it at all. Might just be my preference, but I did not like it. I feel like the anime is super rushed and just not enjoyable to watch.
Read at the sourceAdnash
Interesting and unique premise that mixes two different cultures, and totally awesome visuals with stunning animation encoated with a good-looking art style. One would think that a show with these two elements couldn't be bad. Well, Afro Samurai is a model example that they're not enough to make an anime good or even mediocre. Not when all other elements are significantly underwhelming.
All characters, no matter whether we are talking about the main character, Afro, or any other side-characater, were one-dimensional and dull. Those who weren't dull were annoying enough to make a regular viewer cringe and wish they'd just shut up. Going back to the characters in general, they felt more like background noise in a pretty much empty story. Their designs were good, but everything else felt sha…
Read at the sourceChrisDC
Afro Samurai is an interesting blend of Black and Japanese cultures combined into an action-packed short anime.
The story behind its inception is quite touching, and how it came to be is equally fascinating, considering Samuel L. Jackson played a significant role in the project.
However, the result and quality of the anime are mixed.
On one side, we can clearly see inspiration from Ninja Scroll's fixation on fast-paced action. On the other hand, we can see Samurai Champloo's inspiration when it comes to the "free flow" of battle, with hip-hop playing in the background to add to the coolness of the character's mindset.
These are great ingredients for a fast-paced battle anime; however, that's the issue, as Afro Samurai focuses only on action and less on story. The problem is that a lot…
Read at the sourceXOArama
Have heard people speak of this anime a lot, finally got around to it and its about what I'd expect from a 5 episode action based anime. The animation and the fight scenes are pretty good, has a lot of its own style and atheistic and its really enjoyable to watch. The story itself is serviceable, it really does nothing special, its a classic revenge story with not twists or anything unique but its good enough to keep things moving. I think the shortness of this series is its only downfall, if it had more time to cook and develop its characters and the world they reside in I think it could've been amazing but as it stands it just a cool one off.
Read at the sourceNo-LifeKing_26
A gritty picturesque anime that has a style that sets it apart from most anime styles I gravitate to like Kino's Journey, Bleach, Naturo, FMAB, Date, Jojo's, and the rest. A style I very much liked. Very gritty and flashy, especially the fight scenes that are bloody and somewhat straight forward. A kind of brutality you don't see well done in many anime series.
Ron Perlman and Samuel L. did amazing jobs as voice actors, top tier. RZA did a stellar job on the soundtrack throughout the series and the opening song is tough.
The storyline is really straight forward but the meaning is lost, at least to me, when the you find out the purpose of the headbands.
I wish the the fight scenes better choreography. Some of them were too simple or too flashy and when they fell in-between it was quick a…
Read at the sourceveldora__kun
Considering when it was released the animation is really really good. Most anime this days don’t have animation close to what this has.
Background score is great, fight choreography is great, animation is great. Everything is well balanced.
The story is pretty simple and short considering the eps it has. Story is pretty straightforward our MC wants to take revenge for his father who was number 1 fighter in the world who was killed by number 2 in the world.
This right now might not be unique or something, but Im sure when it was released it must have been.
Read at the sourceCBMiura
Afro Samurai it's a short anime about a guy that seeks revenge.
The animation it's well done, the fights are pretty good. I don't think they've put a lot of effort in the characters besides Afro Samurai, but even him isn't well developed.
It's a nonsense storyline, rushed with weird characters.
From the environment shown in the anime, looks like a sloppy cyberpunk that failed to achiveve it's goals.
In the end Afro Samurai wasn't the worst show that i've watched. I mean, it's just a few episodes so if you have time, you could give it a shot.
Even if it's not that bad, I personally can't think of anything for me to recommend this show.
Read at the sourceTrebor367
I heard of this anime of this anime before but I never took the time to watch it until now. Afro Samurai doesn't have the best plot or characters but the excellent animation and style elevates this anime. Afro Samurai has some of the best animations I've ever seen in a anime. The voice work is also good. The highlight is Samuel L Jackson's voicing both Afro and Ninja Ninja but the other voice actors do a good job. The characters in Afro Samurai aren't excellent but they're not insufferable so it doesn't ruin the experience. The action is pretty fun to watch with all the over-the-top violence. Overall, the fantastic animation and action of Afro Samurai make it an enjoyable watch, and it's easy to binge since there are only five episodes.
Read at the sourceGnomeKZ
Story - 10/10
Overall the story was very engaging and was very interesting through out. I felt like it was
paced just right and 5 episodes was a perfect balance for the story to start and be resolved.
Art - 10/10
I love art that takes a spin on the definition of normal. I felt like Afro Samurai was a very
creative and well drawn anime and it was really well put together especially the fight scenes. Sound - 9/10
Music was very good and i really enjoyed how it worked together with the anime to make it seem much better and well put together.
Character - 10/10
The characters were very well created and well developed. The main character had real goals that would allow you to watch the anime and keep invested in it without loosing interest in my opinion.
Enjoyment - 9/10
I really enjoyed…
Read at the sourceVyaiskaya
meh.
First, the art style and animation are the main draws of this series. The character designs are well done, regardless of anything else. There are some decent stills and a few semi-worthwhile sequences.
The Waterfall scene is memorable, the aesthetic there was calming and the framing and motion worked well. Colour use in some of the scenes is very well done.
The fights will interest those looking for action. One can simply skip to these and not miss anything important.
There are several sex scenes, which are illustrated well with the main one highlighting and romanticising the sensuality, but then soontherafter immediately undercut by falling to a mix of offensive and dehumanising depiction and banality.
There some amusing interaction in the bar scene which is the best the dialogu…
Read at the source