Audience reviews
20 · Sample from the first available page, separate from the total number of ratings.
whiteflame55
This was a fascinating watch.
To get some of the bigger picture stuff out of the way first, this show is pretty uneven. That seems to be purposeful, as the goal is to throw not only the audience off, but the characters as well. There are a lot of meta jokes about episode counts and viewership that work in the show's favor, but even though I can appreciate those elements, it doesn't change the fact that the show is very chaotic and occasionally opaque in its approach. Especially as it gets to the middle of the series, I think most audiences will have a split opinion on whether the direction of the series really works, and as someone who is a big fan of absurd escalation a la Gurren Lagann and absurd twists a la Bang Brave Bang Bravern, my mileage varied. At a certain point, the crazy varie…
Read at the sourcebboy_X
They say that someone who is unassuming is quiet, displaying no desire for attention or admiration. To some, being called such may be taken as an insult. However my intention with saying that phrase is always a compliment. And there is no show more deserving of the title, “Most unassuming anime of all time” than Samurai Flamenco. I heard someone mention this series in passing on a message board as one of their all time favorites. This interested me because this was a series I’d never heard of before. And upon downloading and watching the first episode or so, I thought the characters and their interactions were swell enough and I’d thoroughly enjoyed my viewing. But I’d figured I had the series figured out, “Oh, so this is a Japanese spin on the Kick-Ass story”. And for anyone who's reading…
Read at the sourcelordgaara
Without any specifics, in a way... This is the photo negative of Banana Fish and I am in love with it. This is Great Pretender that sticks the landing. This is real-world Gurren Lagann. Our coming of age with all the 90s Sailor Moon memories. This could end up being my favorite anime of all time.
I feel like maybe watching it a decade later with the lenses I have now might've made me see what so many archaic posts here didn't seem to but wow. I think this is such a daring and whimsical and impressive piece of art. How they were able to lean into every single jump-the-shark curve ignoring any ridicule that could come (and did come) is fascinating. I binged it in a day, and maybe so much was lost in a week by week episode format but flying thru it non-stop, it all comes together. This was b…
Read at the sourceNextUniverse
(TLDR Review at the bottom, as usual, thanks for reading)
"Hero will never give up,
never hide, never be defeated,
never accept evil."
Superhero.
That word, a word which millions of people across the globe have come across before. A superhero, defined as:
>a benevolent fictional character with superhuman powers, such as Superman.
Has taken the hearts of many, in a wide range of different interactions ranging from media consumption, merchandise, or just plain inspiration. The idea has been a thing for a very long time now, with the origins of best selling comics of such heroes dating back as far as the 1930s. The superhero, however, despite its waves of resonance into our subconscious, is of no limits to the idea of deconstruction. Deconstruction is usually considered to be up there wi…
Read at the sourcemouthpiece
One should really be prepared for what this show is all about. Regardless of what the premise and the first episodes make you believe the show is about, is not going to be valid for long. So if you want to get into this series with the proper mindset as means to enjoy it, it is crucial to be spoiled about a few things. So allow me to spare you the trouble and spell it out for you. Samurai Flamenco is a parody reconstruction of a superhero deconstruction, set in a laid back slice of life world, where supernatural stuff exist only if God said so. Sounds confusing, doesn’t it? Well like it or not, that’s what it is.
Set in the Noitamina timeslot, you of course need to expect the characters to feel sort of feminine, since it is aiming at middle aged women who prefer things to be easy going, r…
Read at the sourceSCLFI
"Plot twists are good, so the more we put in our story, the better it is, right?" - M. Night Shamalayan, who was apparently the director of Samurai Flamenco
Viewer expectations are an interesting thing to mess around with, you've got your Dokuro-Chans, which mess around with them and utilise them for comedic purposes, and you've got your Evangelions, which utilise them to enhance an emotionally impactful story, in what is called a deconstruction, a word I really do not like and so I hope I won't have to say it again. Samurai Flamenco clearly intended to do something, but it didn't really manage to do so, it betrayed my expectations as a viewer, but failed to utilise them, in any manner. It's like a joke without a punchline. We've been told that 2 men walked into a bar, or that a chicken c…
Read at the sourceDoki__doki
This is literally the only anime I'm actually going out of my way to leave a negative review on. But, after forcing myself to finish the series due to completionism, it would haunt me if i didn't.
The anime started off as a slightly meta-breaker of an anime, with some One Punch Man tones despite the MC being weak as heck. Essentially what caught my interest was that it was parodying popular shounen genres and I enjoy those.
I enjoyed the anime up until around the 7th or so episode, and then from that point on the anime pretty much did a backflip and dove head-straight into a pile of crap, and turning into one of my greatest regrets in my lifetime of viewing anime.
The anime suddenly goes from parodying the cliches, to actually adopting them, becoming absolutely horrible cheap knock-offs…
Read at the sourceJediNut
As much as I want (and perhaps have every right) to hate on SAMURAI FLAMENCO, I just can't. For all of its many, many problems and missteps, there is one undeniable fact: it's just FUN.
I will always applaud audacity and go-for-broke gusto, and Samumenco has that in spades. The opening story arc was refreshing, deserving of its easy comparisons to Mark Millar's Kick-Ass. When the first big plot twist (and that's putting it mildly) happened, I giggled with glee and couldn't wait to see what happened next. But when the third and fourth twists came, I admittedly got frustrated and considered dropping out. Seemingly throwing away storylines and characters I was invested in really left a bad taste in my mouth.
And then the final story arc kicked in. And this, ladies and gentlemen, is what ele…
Read at the sourcepaperdarkfish
This show is for people who are huge fans of Super Sentai/Power Rangers shows, and absolutely no one else. If you've never seen an episode of Kamen Rider, this show is not only not for you, but it's a little frustrated that you're even watching it at all. I had the misfortune of being that unwanted viewer.
Samurai Flamenco is a pastiche show, though a poorly communicated one. This is not a spoiler. You will enjoy the series SIGNIFICANTLY less if you don't know this. I feel like the show wanted you to pick up on it the moment the genre switches for the first time, but because the writing is clunky and poorly communicated, it just feels like a plot twist. It is not a plot twist. There are no real "plot twists" in the traditional sense in this show at all until the real-world aspect comes ba…
Read at the sourceAgentofSSUSteel
Samurai Flamenco displays an uncommonly blatant disdain for narrative conventions and so little coherence that after the last episode I was left thinking, “That was baffling, even for anime.” I don’t consider my time wasted – in fact, I enjoyed myself for all 22 episodes – though on closer inspection it must be admitted that this show really doesn’t look out for itself.
Blessed with a solid cast and a superb soundtrack that includes blood-pumping hero fight music, adorable idol pop, and a suspiciously Pink Panther-esque sleuthing song, Samurai Flamenco racks up some style points right off the bat. The character designs have a wide range of quality; some, like Joji Kaname, are memorable and perfectly appropriate for the personalities that reside therein. Others, like the Flamengers, seem v…
Read at the sourcekiki-jiji
Story 6/10
FULL DISCLOSURE I did not watch episodes 11-18 for reasons I will elaborate on but please do not think I'm saying anything about those specific episodes - good or bad - because I don't know about their quality and I can only explain why I didn't watch them.
The story was weird in my opinion, like they couldn't quite decide on what they wanted to do. Personally I thought it started out really cute with the idea of him becoming a hero in his own way, even if he does'nt have super powers... and then a few episodes later aliens show up. It took me a little while to adjust to the aliens because I was all geared up for some Slice of Life/Action hybrid that would've been unique. However, after the aliens show up and I got all used to aliens, then like twelve new characters are introd…
Read at the sourceWdaCdaShdaDid
A cute idea that potentially thought it was a parody and then, perhaps growing bored of that (or realizing it was failing), chucked the idea out the window and doubled down on the worst of anime and manga superhero tropes and put the two most important characters through a writing woodchipper. Not to mention that it doesn't seem to ever know what genre it wants to go into. This might have worked, if the writing wasn't completely terrible.
The first several episodes seem fine for what it was trying. It's your generic anime/manga protagonist who wants to be a hero they've always read/watched taking the first opportunity to do so. Except there's no magic powers, no secret societies, no other dimensions, no vast wealth, no mad scientists inventing tech, no supervillains, no years of martial a…
Read at the sourcetennyson119
This one's a clever deconstruction that never really lands. The first few episodes are pretty enjoyable, and the scene where Guillotine Gorilla appears is truly horrifying and gruesome and had me eager for the next arc. But after that moment, which is in episode eight, things just get way less interesting. New characters with zero depth are introduced; the central conflict becomes increasingly ludicrous; and basically so much happens that it feels like nothing happens. If you like super sentai/Power Rangers stuff and enjoy seeing that deconstructed, this is a fine piece of fluff - if you don't expect too much of it. Otherwise it is a disappointment and I would not recommend.
Read at the sourceBakuTakamine
I'm gonna make this quick. Samurai flamenco is meta as fuck. The show goes through three different genres throughout the entirety of the show. Starting off as a realistic if not somewhat parody based drama, then changing into a full force super hero show, and then pulling back and becoming somewhat of a psychological thriller(the final genre being the one to really make me appreciate the show). I think if I could rate the three different genre changes in the show I'd give the drama portion a 7, the super hero portion a 6, and the psychological portion an 8. If you like something that doesn't take itself too seriously but you still want to get something out of it than I think this would be the show for you. I got a lot more out of this show than I was expecting which I why I'm deciding to w…
Read at the sourceRagingDan
Where are the lines between good, badgood, and bad? Where is the line between a deconstruction/parody and the thing the parody is commenting on? Where is the point at which the pretense of irony is dropped and the show just becomes what it is mocking? I can't really say.
Samurai Flamenco seems to be a parody of bad superhero shows and also itself is a bad superhero show. It seems to make fun of forced emotion and drama and follow it up by unironically forcing emotion and drama. It seems to be a show that cares about its characters and has some form of real message to give, but is also completely mindless in the presentation of those messages. At the end of the day all I can say for certain is that it is compelling. Whether it's compelling to see the surprisingly good character growth, or…
Read at the sourceGarlandReese
I'm tired of superheroes. All of them. Every time you turn around there seems to be a new superhero adaptation hitting the big screen or television. The novelty is gone. Asking me to get excited for a new superhero film is like asking me to get excited for a video of a cat doing something cute on YouTube or a new meme. So, when a title comes along that parodies the superhero genre, I'm interested. If you feel the way I do, watch "One Punch Man".
Then if you still want some silly satire, watch "Samurai Flamenco".
Coming from the respectable studio "Manglobe", "Samurai Flamenco" or "Samumenco" gives us a whole parody parade drawing it's influence from many, many famous titles and genres. From "Kick Ass" to "Power Rangers" to "Sailor Moon" to more grown-up titles like Christopher Nolan's…
Read at the sourceElSensei
I loved Samurai Flamenco! If you are a fan of the superhero genre, you should definitely watch this!
SamFlam starts off pretty much as a story about a kid who grew up and never lost his desire to become a super hero. Our MC starts off small, trying to stop petty crimes by petty crooks and juvenile delinquents, and things don't go as well as he hoped. It definitely tries to stay grounded in reality despite its superhero premise.
Then things go absolutely crazy as time goes on, where our superhero story becomes an insane, and insanely fun, over the top superhero adventure.
Story: 9 - The story is amazing, and just when you think you have it figured out it turns things up another notch. You cannot fathom where its going from watching the first 4-5 episodes.
Art: : 8 - Artwork is definit…
Read at the sourceSnowley
If Anime was a family, Samurai Flamenco would be that one cousin living in his parents' basement who's so wierd and awkward you can't decide if you should laugh at him or feel pity, but in the end it turns out he's a guy like us, only a bit insane.
That said it's really difficult to juge SamFlam. Depending how you interpret it, it's either brain-damagingly stupid or refreshingly brilliant.
The story starts simple - a young guy wants to become a superhero in a non-super mundane world. He meets a policeman, who's a little weirded out by the idea but is eager to help the protagonist not get arested/beaten up, and soon some more people sympathetic to the idea of superheroism show up. But as you settle yoursef to watch Kick Ass: The Anime, everything goes full bananas (I made a pun!). Basical…
Read at the sourceCorocis
Samurai Flamenco is a cluster fuck of ideas that subtly asks the question of justice wanting villains even if they were fabricated. It also delves into some human psyches, experiencing the trauma.
The beginning premise was very humane experience of what heroes from TV shows would be in real life. Being ostrisized and ridiculed, while few thanked and supported the gentle hearted Hazama. It was mundane and the problems that occurred wasn't any extraordinary news.
But the story takes a sudden turn with real monsters and psychopathic villain appears out of thin air. Then tops that with a ridiculous bullshit that is Flamenger and the classic superhero sentai trope of previewing monsters before their arrival.
This again gets topped by senator Armstrong from MGS: reveagence propaganda, in orde…
Read at the sourceZephSilver
Some shows jump the shark, while others perform a Samurai Flamenco.
Deconstructions are some of the most demanding and intricate kinds of stories to pull off. It requires the creator to have proper knowledge of the formula they're trying to deviate from by understanding how the tropes and trappings of said formula should be incorporated, in order for it to feel natural. With the right pedigree of writing and proper usage of the commonalities associated with the given formula needed, the creator is expected to build the illusion to the viewer that they're simply following the setup they've already experienced countless of times before. And during this stint of limbo, where the viewer is caught up in the illusion, the creator then proceeds to dismantle and "deconstruct" the formula that the…
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