Samurai Jack Season 5 Review

After 16  years, the saga of Samurai Jack has officially reached its end. It may not be the best ending out there, but an end, nonetheless.

Beginning in 2001, Samurai Jack is the tale of the titular character, who was sent into the future by the shape-shifting demon Aku, where the latter has already conquered the world. Jack wonders in the future for a way to return to the past, defeat Aku, and change history.

Unlike the previous seasons where the series is episodic with some continuities here and there, the fifth season of Samurai Jack is a 10-episode story arc that ends with the final confrontation between Jack and Aku. Fortunately, for new viewers, it is not a requirement to watch the past seasons, as the start of Season 5 marks as an entry point for those said viewers. For Samurai Jack fans, they will be happy seeing connections to past seasons, though relatively minor.

The first 8 episodes deal mostly with Jack's character, as he goes into a downward spiral of guilt. As Jack noted in his opening monologue, he and Aku have been fighitng for 50 years in the future, but continues to end in a stalemate. Aku is just too powerful to be defeated by the Jack's Magic Sword, while Jack is simply too persistent to be killed by Aku or his minions. This stalemate, however, did not stop the indiscriminate attacks by Aku's forces against the rest of the world, turning it into a wasteland along with an incredibly high death count. The grim depiction of the future is a stark reminder that for Jack to truly defeat Aku and save the world from destruction, as the show's description tells it from the very beginning - he must get back to the past.

However, that goal has become complicated when in the first episode of the final season, it was revealed that Jack has long since lost the Magic Sword. Despite this, Jack still shows he's a formidable warrior, defeating many of Aku's minions and even one of his top hitmen, Scaramouche.

As this was going on, we are introduced to a new character who will play a key role that would end the conflict for good - Ashi. She, along with her other siblings, are trained since birth by an all-female cult that worships Aku as their god. Calling themselves the "Daughters of Aku", Ashi and the other girls are given the sole task of hunting and assassinating Jack.

Ashi would eventually end up being the only surviving member of her siblings, and the cult overall. Her relationship with Jack is trope-ish, but well executed. She first sees Jack as an enemy, then eventually her ally, friend, and ultimately lover.

On the part of being Jack's significant other, the negative reactions from the minority within social media outlets is for the most part, very laughable. In defense of this suddent development when it happened, it's true that the final season was only 10 episodes long, so there are points in the narrative, especially coming to the end, that ends up rather rushed. But in the case of Jack and Ashi, it was already clear cut from the visuals in one or two episodes that they have been travelling togehter for quite some time. This was already a foreshadowing that two would eventually become a couple and that relationship turns out to be vital in the final battle with Aku.

We then learn that when Jack lost the only remaining means of returning to the past, it left him in a blind rage, which made him lose his sword, not just literally, but figuratively as well, as he is deemed no longer worthy of being its wielder. Kind of like what happened to Thor Odinson in Marvel when he is no longer worthy of wileding Mjolnir, passing it instead to Jane Foster. Jack's loss of the sword also put him into a downward spiral. He does eventually returns to his old self, thus getting his sword back. And allowing him and Ashi to prepare for their fight against Aku.

At this point, a narrative in the original series was retconned. There was a prophecy in which Jack would never return to the past, but has came to terms with it and become the King of the Future, leading an army of his allies in the fight against Aku. This was explored furhter in the comics, which was deemed canon at the time until the final season of the show was announced, making the comic's canonity moot.

Instead, in the final battle with Aku, it was revealed that Ashi was indeed literally his daughter, having Aku's blood flowing in her. Ashi was turned into Aku's minion and Jack is forced to surrender. Aku then announced to the world of Jack's capture, causing all of his allies to make one last charge against Aku to save Jack.

One of the things I enjoyed in this moment is that for Aku's announcement, Genndy Tartakovsky used pre-recorded clips of the late Mako, who provided the original voice of Aku, as the intro monologue to the series is played. Then it is followed by Aku's present monologue this time by Greg Baldwin, who took over as Mako's replacement for not just as Aku in Samurai Jack, but also Iroh in the Avatar series. The transition from Mako's to Baldwin's in the dialogue is seamless and you virtually could not tell the diference between the two. That's where I praise Baldwin for being able to emulate Mako's voice in playing Aku.

On the other hand, I find it weird that Aku is the only one present in his fortress and none of his own army showed up for the final battle. I get that it's because of the rather rushed production and Aku can easily take out the intruders and has done so in the most brutal way possible. Still, it's just weird Aku doesn't have any minions nearby. 

Jack's love for Ashi allowed the latter to break free of Aku's control, which also meant she too has Aku's powers. This allows her to open a new Time Portal, allowing her and Jack to finally return to the ending of the first episode, moments after Jack was sent to the future, and Jack finally kills Aku for good.

Jack's victory however, was a bittersweet one. By killing Aku in the past, it also meant that his friends from the future are erased from existence, and that also includes Ashi, who dies moments before the two are married. It ends with Jack now standing alone as he watches the fields, no longer touched by Aku's evil. Unfortunately, I didn't get emotional on this as it was done before in the anime series Gurren Lagann. It was good and well executed, no doubt. I was just slightly turned off by its similarities with Gurren Lagann.

Looking back at the season in general, it is indeed one long story arc to end the series on a high note, and it has done quite well, despite a few loose spots and a somewhat rushed ending. Jack's character development is great, as is the animation and smart use of the soundtrack. You do see moments of violence, slightly disturbing imagery, and even nudity, but they serve as more of a garnish than the highlight. Jack and Ashi's progression as characters, along with the main plot, remain the center of attention throughout the season.

16 years is a long wait for a series to finally reach its conclusion. But it ends well and is very satisfactory. I praise Tartakovky, the voice actors, and the staff for doing such great work on this series. Whether you are new to Samurai Jack, or have seen it before in the past, it was an incredible journey to the end and is well worth it. On a scale of 1 to 5, I give the final season of Samurai Jack, a 4 out of 5.

When Yale Students Attack Samurai Jack

Let's get this out of the way. Yes, I am an Anti-Social Justice Warrior or SJW. Yes, I am against the kind of feminism as displayed by the likes of Anita Sarkeesian, Zoe Quinn, and Brianna Wu. Yes, I am well aware that I'm a guy, so SJWs and Feminists would want to have my head cut off, and served on a platter, because "muh-cultural-appropriation-policial-correctness-feminust-justice" or what have you.

And because I have such a scorn view on these types of people, I tend to ignore or laugh off whatever blaring sounds they make, because whatever accusations they have, just makes no common sense. That being said, I am human and eventually I'll have to respond to something. So when I heard the news story of students from Yale University heavily criticizing the current season of Samurai Jack for "Homophobia, Sexism, and Cultural Appropriation", I just laughed at how preposterous those accusations are. However, it has gone viral. So, I said to myself "Ok. You want to play this game? I'll play along."

The so-called "news" comes from The Yale Herald, which reviews the current season of Samurai Jack. As I was reading their article, I couldn't help but snort at their profound stupidity. Not to mention the fact the article is incredibly short and doesn't provide a sound explanation of their claims.

Let's read their first accusation:

"Jack’s first villain, Scaramouche, with his flamboyant dress and mannerisms which include ending every sentence with “babe,” reads as somewhat tone deaf and homophobic."

Nothing in Scaramouche's character makes him homophobic at all. At best, Scaramouche is a flamboyant character with a taste for scat-style jazz. There's nothing wrong with being flamboyant. The late David Bowie has done so throughout his career and he's straight and nobody complained about it. In fact, Scaramouche's persona is what makes him one of the most interesting and popular characters of this season.

2nd accusation:

"The portrayal of samurai seems to be rooted in a Wikipedia level understanding of the historical figure and feels appropriative at times"

What these Yale Students are trying to say is that Jack doesn't in any way resembles how an actual samurai behaves. Furthermore, because the series is written by Genndy Tartakovsky, who happens to be Russian (ergo, white), it's a case of cultural appropriation.

So how come they didn't complain about the Ninja Turtles then? They're created by two white guys. The turtles aren't Japanese, yet they practice their ninja skills or ninjutsu. And theirs isn't even anywhere close to real-life ninjutsu.

Even tha Naruto franchise's use of ninja skills are all fantasy made and very loosely based on the real-life ninjutsu.

What about Gintama, Rurouni Kenshin, or Samurai Champloo? These are anime titles that feature samurai, but are just as loose and more rooted in fantasy than real-life samurai culture. How come they didn't complain about these works?

And implying someone like Tartakovsky shouldn't produce works that have a non-Caucasian protagonist is like saying Shigeru Miyamoto should never have created Super Mario Bros. because Mario is not Japanese, but an Italian. Or the creators of the Avatar franchise can't make the series in the first place because the creators are white and their characters are Asian.

3rd accusation:

"While this season introduces the strong, nuanced female character of Ashi, women’s bodies are often depicted as hyper-sexual, a fact made uncomfortably clear by the daughters of the Scotsman in the latest episode."

So they're body-shaming the Daughters of Aku because they're so slim looking, while also body-shaming the Daughters of the Scotsman because they're hyper muscular. Next thing you know, these Yale students will body-shame a fat character for the same reason. How nit-picky these idiots get?

Don't these people even consider that the body types of the Daughters of Aku and the Daughters of The Scotsman are due in part to their training? Ashi is trained to be an assassin, so a flexible body is more appropriate for the job. The Scotsman's daughters are trained to carry heavy weaponry. Of course they need to be strong to lift those!

I dare these Yale Students to give an example of a well-known fictional character with the body type of their choosing that not only is very good with his/her assassination skills, but is also flexible and can lift a giant sword 20 times its size with relative ease. Protip: they can't!

And what is wrong with "Da Samurai" being someone who enjoys 70's funk or what have you, while still being a samurai himself? If Samuel L Jackson where to star in a film as a Samurai while having the persona of the character Shaft, would there be a problem? No! And by the way, he already did played a samurai in Afro Samurai. So what? Cultural appropriation again? Give me a break.

The Yale Herald ends their short article with the following:

"Samurai Jack is thus flawed in the many ways that most mass entertainment is flawed, and thus deserves the same critical eye. With this in mind, whether the show is still worth experiencing should be left to the discretion of the individual viewer."

I get the impression these Yale Students never liked entertainment, period. I'm assuming they would hate Grave of The Fireflies and calling it one of the worst anime films of all time, despite the fact that it is very much praised by critics and fans alike.

I may be unfair criticizing these students from Yale University, as the article is written by one Sam Kruyer. If anything, HE should be criticized for this and not the student body in general. But as it was published anyway and there is no backlash within the university about it, it appears the students of Yale University are backing this up.

I DO hope I am wrong and it's just this Kruyer guy who is the moron. But as it stands, this article represents The Yale Herald, which represents the students of Yale University, and thus my criticism of their article goes out to ALL of them. They are from a prestigious university. They should be much better than this.

Thankfully, they are in the minority as everyone sans these Yale Students really enjoy Samurai Jack. My final message is that they should take a real hard look upon themselves and crack their heads open rather than being so closed up, if you get what I mean.

Samurai Jack XCVI Screenshots

Samurai Jack 5th Season First Impressions

So this weekend on Adult Swim in the US, we get to see the premiere episode of the much anticipated 5th Season of Samurai Jack. It was the latest entry in the series after it aired its last episode back in 2004. So it's been quite a long 13 years.

While the 5th season of Samurai Jack is intended for those who have seen the original series, those who never saw the show prior to the 5th Season will have no trouble fitting in, as the opening does provide a premise as to what the series is about.

The premise goes like this: Back in Ancient Japan, a demon named Aku was wrecking havoc until he met a Samurai wielding a magic sword. Aku is overwhelmed by the Samurai, but before the latter could land the final blow, Aku sends him to the future, where the demon is now the ruler of the world. The Samurai, given the name "Jack", must seek out a way to return to the past and change history.

I have to give note that knowing the premise of the show in the opening is something that allows newer viewers to get into the show without having to watch previous episodes. This practice is shown throughout the first four seasons of Samurai Jack, and also from the original Powerpuff Girls series. So it's both surprising and a shame that in the recent Powerpuff Girls reboot, this practice is no longer applied and instead the show assumes the viewer knows who the Powerpuff Girls are, even if they never saw the original.

Aside from learning of the series's premise, as told via Jack's own monologue, we also had a bit of the show's lore going on. Turns out it has been 50 years since Jack is trapped in the future, though he has not aged at all. And despite wearing battle armor with lots of weapons and a badass motorbike, Jack grows weary of not being able to return to the past as Aku's dark reign continues.

As if that wasn't enough, Jack lost the Magic Sword, the only weapon needed to defeat Aku. To add that further, the High Priestess of a sect worshipping Aku gave birth to an all-female septuplets. Known as the "Daughters of Aku", they are raised and trained to become top assassins with only one goal - to find and kill Samurai Jack.

Unlike the previous seasons where it's mostly episodic, the 5th season will be very much story driven, as creator Genndy Tartakovsky intends to bring the series's narrative to a proper conclusion. As the 5th season is airing on Adult Swim as opposed to Cartoon Network, the show is given more leeway to take on a more serious tone. This meant the fight scenes being more brutal and quite violent. Even if Jack is fighting robots, the amount of destruction he brings to them is done in such a manner that the show pretends they are flesh and blood.

Thankfully, even with the more graphic depictions of the robots' destruction, and by extension some real life blood spilled, it's not a total gorefest. For the most part, these macabre like depictions blend well with the aesthetics of the show. So I give kudos to Tartakovsky for not making the series a totally Mature-rated show. Nevertheless, the content in this season of Samurai Jack is something that could raise eyebrows if it aired on Cartoon Network instead of Adult Swim.

The 5th Season premiere introduces us to Jack's first villain Scaramouch, one of Aku's assassins, and voiced by Tom Kenny. I'll admit I didn't notice Kenny's voice because he sounds so different here than what we're used to in his previous roles. Scaramouch's design reminds me of the assassin Udo Jin-e from the Rurouni Kenshin anime series. Scaramouch is the first villain Jack faces without his Magic Sword, and although the battle is resolved, Scaramouch was an interesting villain, both by his character and how he fights.

The animation and character design remains true to the original. That being said, one can tell the vast improvements that results in the visuals standing out and being quite stunning, compared to the rest of American animation seen today from other shows.

I will say the 13 year long wait for a new Samurai Jack is pretty much well worth it, as the first episode of the new season is quite amazing from both the animation and the narrative standpoint. Whether you're a fan of the series, or this is your first time, you definitely won't be disappointed. Samurai Jack is airing right now on Adult Swim in the US.