Introduction
Fuu Kasumi is a young and clumsy waitress who spends her days peacefully working in a small teahouse. That is, until she accidentally spills a drink all over one of her customers! With a group of samurai now incessantly harassing her, Fuu desperately calls upon another samurai in the shop, Mugen, who quickly defeats them with his wild fighting technique, utilizing movements reminiscent to that of breakdancing. Unfortunately, Mugen decides to pick a fight with the unwilling ronin Jin, who wields a more precise and traditional style of swordfighting, and the latter proves to be a formidable opponent. The only problem is, they end up destroying the entire shop as well as accidentally killing the local magistrate's son.
For their crime, the two samurai are captured and set to be executed. However, they are rescued by Fuu, who hires the duo as her bodyguards. Though she no longer has a place to return to, the former waitress wishes to find a certain samurai who smells of sunflowers and enlists the help of the now exonerated pair to do so. Despite initially disapproving of this idea, the two eventually agree to assist the girl in her quest; thus, the trio embark upon an adventure to find this mysterious warrior—that is, if Fuu can keep Mugen and Jin from killing each other.
Set in an alternate Edo Period of Japan, Samurai Champloo follows the journey of these three eccentric individuals in an epic quest full of action, comedy, and dynamic sword fighting, all set to the beat of a unique hip-hop infused soundtrack.
[Written by MAL Rewrite]
Audience reviews
20 · Sample from the first available page, separate from the total number of ratings.
ogstunes
Alright this is the first review I've ever written so sorry if it's not the best quality.
Hope this helps you if you're planning on watching this show.
Story: 5
Now honestly i was pretty disappointed by Champloo's story, you see I'm a massive fan of Watanabes most popular work 'Cowboy Bebop' and I expected this story to be of similiar quality as it is held in the same high regard but considered 'heavily underrated' compared to Bebop but that is completely false. Firstly this show is mainly episodic which could have worked in it's favour as Cowboy Bebop was mainly episodic and amazing but Champloo's attemp just falls flat with boring predictable plots and when there is a story that overlaps across episodes it just feels long and dull. The pacing isn't terrible but can feel awkward as we…
Read at the sourceKrunchyman
Future’ meets ‘Past’ in a collision of precise swordplay and erratic breakdancing.
It is a conglomeration that sounds weird, but for the man that mixed Hong Kong action films, 1940’s film noir and jazz music into a futuristic ‘cowboy’ space adventure, this is par for the course. Shinciro Watanabe, director of Cowboy Bebop (the aforementioned ‘cowboy’ space adventure), decided to mix cultural elements of past and future, once again, in a samurai anime that defines rule-of-cool, that being: Samurai Champloo. The method in which Mr. Watanabe clashes the past and future together is unique. As he juxtaposes the ferocious, off-beat Mugen with the rigid, ‘by-the-book’ Jin. Each character’s personality emanates to their fighting style, giving further insight into their ‘being’ than words cou…
Read at the sourceJohnny386
-GODAMNIT ITS BORING-
[review by a non fanboy] [contains early game of thrones spoilers]
Samurai Champloo, the alleged little brother of the classic anime Cowboy Bebop. Both works rely heavily on music, are episodic and have a very similar feel to them but, if you ask me, Champloo is just Shinichiro Watanabe's bastard and not the good - Jon Snow type but the Tommen Baratheon overly-calm-and-boring type.
I generally really like episodic shows; (1)they aren't addictive so you can do things between episodes besides biological functions, (2)the characters' personalitites are well-explored so you get to see many dimensions of their personality, (3)the interactions between the protagonists can be lovingly repetitive without getting annoying and (4)the anime may span many many episodes, i like th…
Read at the sourceRich_anime
I cannot rate this show highly enough. Unlike many I found it more enjoyable than Cowboy Bebop. Although I think Cowboy Bepop is overall a better story this just had a great feel to it, something which is not tangible or easy to describe.
First of all the music is brilliant throughout. It shouldn't work yet Old School Hip Hop blends seamlessly into Edo Japanese culture, it's extremely well delivered.
I think this is a rare anime. Each episode, whilst technically linked, is almost independent from the rest. The plot of each episode has no real purpose in the grand scheme of the story but brilliantly allows us to see the characteristics, personalities, motives and history of the three main protagonists. Other than cowboy Bebop I have not seen another anime like this, it is exceptional.
I…
Read at the sourcewutdahek
I'll try not to make this too long so you can go watch Samurai Champloo asap.
Samurai Champloo is a beautifully made anime that shows us the power of fate and will also make you laugh your ass off at times. Fuu, an accident prone waitress, Jin, a mysterious ronin and a badass Mugen all cross paths in the first episode, and after a series of comical mishaps, they begin their adventure together to find the Samurai "who smells of flowers" that Fuu is looking for. The journey that comes ahead will truly grip you and cause you to become attached to the characters and the story, i highly recommend you give it a try, especially if you like Hip-Hop and Samurai themes both in the SAME anime. Feel free to read the rest, overall this is one of my favourite animes, beautifully done, and i hope you en…
Read at the sourcePlay2X
I promised to some friends that some day I would do a review on Samurai Champloo.
And well, since the dough for the Nikuman is still rising, I might as well do this now. So, where to start?
First of all, if you visit my profile you'll find out rather quickly that I'm not a big fan of Watanabe Shinichiro. Or his works. Still, I try to rate it as objective as possible. So, lets get started already.
The first point on my list would be the story aspect, which I split up in three sections (something I'll do for every category, be prepared): The actual story, the setting used, as well as the execution of said story.
Story 2/3: As you know from the synopsis, Fuu is searching for a 'samurai that smells like sunflowers'. Why she does that is left in the dark at first, but is a pretty promising st…
Read at the sourcefurdlegurdle
I am probably one of the very few people that have watched Samurai Champloo before Cowboy Bebop. I find this great as I don't end up comparing the two as they are directed by the same person, Shinchiro Watanabe. Because Cowboy Bebop is highly acclaimed as one of the best Anime out there, it would not help out Champloo's case as it would be frowned upon for not being as good as Cowboy Bebop. Anyways, onto the Review!
Samurai Champloo is a 2004 anime directed by Shinchiro Watanabe and produced by studio Manglobe, which follows the story of 3 main protagonists; Mugen, Jin, and Fuu as they "coincidentally" run into each other and set off on Fuu's goal of reaching the "Samurai that smells of Sunflowers." This anime is set in a Fictional Edo period of Japan, with many hip hop elements mixed in…
Read at the sourceBeatnik
I caught Samurai Champloo as it aired back in 2004, and though I liked it enough, it didn’t impact me as much as I hoped it would. Though maybe that’s not entirely true, as the soundtrack did indirectly change my life, thanks to the composer Nujabes introducing me to instrumental hip hop and providing a soundtrack to my life for the next few years.
I recently re-watched the show and felt compelled to write a retrospective/review of the series. While watching Jin, Mugen and Fuu traipse around 19th century Japan getting into ridiculous adventures, I realised Shinichirô Watanabe’s follow up to Cowboy Bebop is one of the most subversive animes ever made. Taking a staple genre, dressing it up in anachronism, but continually tackling subjects often avoided by the medium.
It takes 25 episodes u…
Read at the sourceRambeaux
I just finished watching Samurai Champloo, and a few things come to mind. One, I originally watched the series because of a profound enjoyment of Shinichiro Watanabe's other directorial effort, Cowboy Bebop. On the surface, Champloo seems a lot like Bebop - a stylized fantasy view of a typical genre mixed with a contemporary and unique soundtrack.
For Watanabe's shows, music plays a vital role in expressing the atmosphere and character of the setting, and is very much a character in and of itself. Such was the case in Cowboy Bebop, and Samurai Champloo attempts to do the same. Only, this time, Champloo comes short of Bebop's example, and fails in a few ways.
Story: This is the story of three wanderers who meet up and join forces to search for a "samurai who smells of sunflowers". I won't…
Read at the sourceHowToWatchAnime
A compilation review by the HTWA
"Can't really think too much of anything right now because I'm still reeling from Nujabes news...I'll try though.
Don't bother comparing it to Cowboy Bebop - it's inferior to CB. It's a nice series but nonessential. Fu is not Faye (don't even think about it) - fufufu. The ending was meh. If you try to compare it to CB; I'd say "Bang!"
No problem with beginners taking on this one. It's peopled by colorful characters and even more colorful palette. Being Manglobe, it's an eye candy. Some are saying the dubs are very good but I've only seen the subs." - TsukikageRan
"I really liked Samurai champloo because it had great animation a good storyline and some really good back n forth fights which a couple of times were like oh Sh**" - Redhydoken7
"what i have…
Read at the sourcezenoslime
"Samurai Champloo" may not have the same ring to it as "Cowboy Bebop," yet it is a title that has a similar function: to illustrate a combination of multicultural pulp fiction sensibility. Where Cowboy Bebop was a past + future fusion of jazz, rock, and blues, spaghetti western, kung fu, and noir cinema genres, and a setting equating outer space to the great frontier, Samurai Champloo is a more wildly anachronistic mélange of Edo-period history and contemporary hip-hop and bohemian culture. "Champloo" itself comes from the word "chanpurū," Okinawan for "something mixed," and a source of Okinawa's pride in multicultural acceptance. Cowboy Bebop was a trend-setting marriage of anime traditions and Tarantino-inspired cultural hodgepodge — it could be said that Pulp Fiction influenced Cowboy B…
Read at the sourceYoungVagabond
For anyone who has watched Cowboy Bebop, they know that director Shinichiro Watanabe loves blending completely disparate elements together, be it science fiction, physical comedy, spaghetti Western, bebop jazz, or space epic, all into the same story.
As diverse as "Cowboy Bebop" was, it has nothing on the sheer schizophrenia of "Samurai Champloo", Watanabe's most recent effort. On the surface, it's a mixture of comedy and samurai epic about Japan in the mid 1600s. However, that doesn't do the series any more justice than calling "Cowboy Bebop" a space western.
One episode is a Shaolin Soccer-esque comedy about a baseball game. Another is a zombie horror story which doubles as an allegory for World War 2. The series presents historically accurate facts about the spread of Christianity in…
Read at the sourcedarkmac
Samurai Champloo is frequently compared to Cowboy Bebop, but there's one thing that really sets it apart: the action. There wasn't anything bad about Bebop's action, but Champloo's action is among the best of any anime out there, especially among TV series. Though the main characters both use swords, they fight with wildly different styles (Mugen's use of shoes is particularly brilliant), and the fights against enemies with various weapons throughout the series all manage to make themselves interesting and different. Even if the rest of the series were terrible, it would be worth watching simply for the action.
But the rest of the series manages to be entertaining as well. The main story's not anything special, but the stories told in individual episodes range from hilarious to heartbreak…
Read at the sourceFarewellToWords
The premise is simple, three complete strangers drawn together by fate to embark on a long, very parlous journey across unfamiliar territory. However, it's not the plot which makes Samurai Champloo note worthy, but rather the characters themselves. There is a very strong relate-ability present in the main characters Jin, Mugen and Fuu; no matter who the viewer happens to be it's a more than safe bet they will instantly find common ground with at least one if not all three. This element within it's self is the very one which drives the series forward, it offers added interest and added suspense as each of our three travailing companions find themselves in some rather tense situations quite regularly. The true paradox in Samurai Champloo is that it's actually the main characters' normality w…
Read at the sourcekiriska
Historical anime don't usually interest me, but when it's as tongue-in-cheek and as full of anachronisms as this, I'm not sure it really counts as a historical anime anymore.
STORY - Like its predecessor Cowboy Bebop, Samurai Champloo is a very episodic series, and it's perfectly safe to miss a few episodes here or there. Even the overarching story remains incredibly vague for almost the entirety of the series and the audience is sometimes left to wonder if there really is a point to all of that searching when they knew virtually nothing to begin with. There's something about the lack of details that makes this story appealing though -- it never seems that important, so you just continue along, but deep in the back of your head, you remain curious about it. So it's the perfect situation;…
Read at the sourceMonkey_D_Luffy
Story:
The story has a main central plot. Two samurai (although I think Mugen shouldn't really be considered a traditional samurai) and a teahouse waitress meet and the swordsmen end up accompanying her on a journey to seek out the samurai who smells of sunflowers. However, each episode, or occasionally every two episodes, really has its own story, but still falls into the main storyline perfectly because these episode stories are really the stories of their travels.
In the beginning the whole sunflower samurai thing was somewhat vague and unexplained, but the truth of it becomes revealed throughout the series. I think it was a great story that was well developed and the ending was actually pretty good in my opinion. It really didn't leave you hanging at all because the main storyline was…
Read at the sourceHuntsman
This show could have been something special on the same page as such classics like Ninja Scroll(NOT THE TV SERIES), Samurai X OVAs, Rurouni Kenshin, or Basilisk.
Samurai Champloo could have been great like the classics above, but it ended up like Samurai Deeper Kyo. Just average, nothing special. There was nothing really special about the show. The characters were interesting, but not compelling. By the end I didn't really care that much about anyone of them. The mix of comedy was the one pretty good part of the show. The music was just bad, no make that terrible. The action never got me excited. The animation was very good I'll give it that everything about that was great.
Now for the worst part the story throughout the 26 episodes were a big let down. The story had no real drama or dri…
Read at the sourcedaimira
Fuu is a young orphaned girl doing her best to survive while working in a teashop. But her world as she knows it begins to unravel the minute a wandering Okinawan swordsman by the name of Mugen slouches into the shop while the daikon's abusive son and his rude cronies are also having some fun. When Fuu becomes the victim of their nasty games, she immediately offers Mugen fifty dango if he saves her from them. At the same time, a masterless samurai named Jin bears witness to the daikon's cruelty and quickly intervenes, easily dispatching the daikon's "best of the best" guards. Mugen also beats everyone in the teashop up, starting with cutting off the arm of the man threatening Fuu, and demands better opponents from the daikon's son.
Jin wanders in after the lordling threatens Mugen with hi…
Read at the sourceLance20000
Story: Well the fact that the whole thing starts off with them looking for a Samurai that smells like Sunflowers is kinda weak, but what it grows into is something that only happens in a couple of shows. One thing about this story is it kept me guessing until the end of the series at what would happen.
Animation: Personally I loved this style of animation it was very original and I have never seen a style like this again. But some people wont like this style so if you dont like it oh well.
Sound: Although I am not a big fan of hip hop music I do love this hip hop style. I don\'t know why. I think it is because they mix the action and sound together so well.
Character: The two main characters are just great. They are both pretty funny and and girl that they are traveling with just adds…
Read at the sourceJin--
Samurai Champloo is the latest work from Writer/Director Shinichiro Watanabe, who is most recognized for his work on Cowboy Bebop. One of the very few things Champloo and Bebop have in common is their great scores. Champloo mixes two subjects which would never be put in one sentence together, western hip-hop and eastern samurai swordplay. Yet the mixture comes out with a brilliant result. The fights scenes are hyped up with the speed and flow from the music and come out magnificent. But Champloo isn't all about fighting. Many things happen along the road for the three main characters: Mugen, a rough mouth vagrant with a fighting style similar to capoeira with a sword. Jin, a quite and intelligent ronin who fights with deadly lightning speeds. And Fuu, the ditsy waitress that brings these t…
Read at the source