Samurai 7 Part 1 Episodes 1-4

In a land still recovering from a long war, the village of Kanna is besieged by Mechanical Samurai Giants known as the Nobuseri.  Desperate for salvation, a small band of villagers set out for the big city with one mission: Find hungry Samurai.  But no astounding swordsman would ever take a job for the simple promise of food…save for a small band of seven warriors, both tested and untested in battle.  Slowly, the paths of these seven wayward souls come together for a mission that holds little chance of success.

 
Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai is a work of art and widely considered one of the greatest movies ever made.  It’s timeless tale of seven warriors banding together for a noble cause in the face of overwhelming odds has been the basis for many remakes and adaptations throughout the years: the two most prevalent are the equally amazing western: The Magnificent Seven (which I actually like a bit better) and the space adventure Battle Beyond the Stars.  Boggles the mind to know that there haven’t been any true attempts at making a Seven Samurai Anime.  Well, here is the main attempt, the chance to spin a different yarn on a classic but with a very scifi/Anime edge.  This is Samurai 7.
 
Off the bat, I have a couple of concerns about this one.  The first is Studio Gonzo.  Ive covered a few of their works over the years and they’ve been more hit than miss with me.  Hellsing might’ve been stylish artistically but lacked a compelling story.  Peacemaker Kurogane had great Samurai action but focused on a less than compelling lead instead of the Shinsengumi.  I think theyre best work ive seen was the the Anime adaptation of the first Bayonetta game, aka Bayonetta: Bloody Fate.  So are they up to the daunting task of trying to adapt one of Japanese Cinemas most definitive legends?  The second concern is the length of the series.  Seven Samurai clocks in at just under 4 hours and tells a very straightforward story though it is much deeper throughout.  If you were just gonna run through the basic events of that film, you could pull that off in 13 episodes for sure.  Samurai 7 is set to run at 26 episodes and is already introducing extended world building elements and other story hurdles not seen in the Kurosawa film.  Could the show get bogged down by this and overstay its welcome?  Maybe I’m being pessimistic but they are concerns nonetheless.
 
But how about getting into the beginning proper yeah?  While it’s been a long time since I’ve seen Seven Samurai, I know the premise well enough to know how it kicks off and Samurai 7 sticks to that formula fairly well.  We get to know the village of Kanna and the away team sent to gather Samurai defenders to strike back against the Metal Gear sized Bandits terrorizing them.  Ok, that last bit alone should inspire some enthusiasm in this project: Samurai vs. Giant Robots.  It’s Anime so the concept is sound and it sounds freaking awesome too.  Back to the story, we then see the beautiful Kiara, the adorable Komachi and the worriesme Rikichi travel to the city to gather their would be heroes.  It’s here where my concerns kind of gain validity.  At the end of 4 episodes, we’ve met 5 maybe 6 of the possible 7 (if we’re going by the OG story then the guy we see fighting alongside Kambei in the opening battle sequence will be back) and it doesn’t look like we’re even close to assembling the full crew.  Kambei may be wise in the ways of the warrior and a bad ass in the truest sense…but beggars cant be choosers sometimes and his pushing off Katsushiro and Kukuchiyo from joining his seven man team seems kind of petty…unless of course he’s testing them which is always a possibility.  My main point it, by the time these episodes end, we should have had the team assembled and been on our way back to Kanna Village.
 
Ok so the story is gonna take its sweet time with pacing.  What about the characters?  Well I’ve covered Kambei and there isn’t much to say about the Villager Trio right now besies Komachi isn’t the most annoying kid character, much to my surprise.  That just leaves the other four Samurai we spend some time with.  Katsushiro is a kid who wants to be a warrior but is inexperienced and way too uptight.  I’m with Kambei and being annoyed with the kid calling him Sensei when he didn’t agree to be his teacher.  Gorobei is a ex-Samurai turned street performer who brings a lot of theatricality to the way he speaks and how he handles himself in battle, he’s fun.  Kyuzo is the silent bad ass who technically isn’t part of the team…yet.  He does have an amazing Samurai duel with Kambei and the promise of a rematch after the Bandits are taken care of no doubt ensues he’ll tag along.  Last but not least is scene stealer Kikuchiyo.  He may be Alphonse Elric with a sword but Kikuchiyo is just as entertaining as his Seven Samurai counterpart (who was played to perfection by legendary Japanese actor and Kurosawa favorite Toshiro Mifune).  He’s a bumbling oaf who causes more damage than intended but has a good heart and a point of view that I think Kambei could see as valuable.  Like Katsushiro, Kambei’s definitely testing Kikuchiyo’s resolve and hoping he looks at the bigger picture before running around and swinging his sword wildly in a fight.
 
Then there’s the matter of the Magistrate and his son, Ukyo.  Here’s another problem area: trouble with the local seat of power isn’t something that happened in Seven Samurai and it didn’t have to happen at all.  Again, defending a village from Bandits is plenty plot enough.  To take an extra step and add these two and their personal army of Samurai assassins just seems like too much.  Is it possible the Magistrate or Ukyo could lead the Nobuseri themselves and become the true big bads of the series?  Perhaps…but it just feels unnecessary and just another reason to pad out the shows run to a standard 26 episodes.  It doesn’t help that both characters, especially Ukyo, have very little depth or menace behind them, though Ukyo is lecherously obsessed with Kirara to the point where he could be the bigger problem of the two.
 
One part of Samurai 7 that exceeds all expectations is the musical score by Kaoru Wada.  The musical composer channels the calm and quieter beats of a classic Kurosawa movie with her expert use of string and wood wind instruments.  These sounds compliment the more bombastic and rousing action pieces Wada provides that she’s done so well for the Inuyasha franchise.  And when there is battle, Samurai 7 lives up to its name.  It’s definitely a lot more fast paced and a lot more Anime but the action is still well choreographed and filled with Kurosawa spirit.  Samurai 7 might not be the best looking Anime out there but when the action is happening, it doesn’t really matter.
 
As an opening, Samurai 7 is fine, even if its taking its sweet time bringing together the titular Seven.  While I am worried about the series runtime and the extra plotlines that come with it, I do wanna see where this story goes and the eclectic Samurai are all memorable in their own way.  Just hope we get back to Kanna Village soon so we can see them slice up some giant robots.  See ya next time for more Samurai 7 right here at the Gundam Anime Corner.