FIF#215-Blue Eye Samurai

Japan, the 17^th Century.  Mizu is the offspring of a forbidden union: the product of a Japanese woman and one of four European men still left in Japan after it closed its borders to the outside world.  Shunned by those around her and abandoned long ago, Mizu now seeks revenge against the Man who wrong her mother.  Disguised as a man, she wanders the country.  Her main target is unknown but that will not stop Mizu from her mission and God help whoever dares to raise the sword against this Onna Musha: The Blue Eye Samurai.

 
Anime entirely CGI’d, I just don’t like it.  Even if the story is astounding and groundbreaking, if it doesn’t look appealing, I might touch it but I’ll always complain about the presentation.  It’s something Netflix has been trying to push forever when it comes to their slate of original Anime series and movies.  So why am I all set and ready to walk the path of vengeance with the Blue Eye Samurai?  Well for starters it isnt a Japanese Anime but rather an Animated Series from France that takes great influence from my favorite medium.  And second, it’s just really, really damn good.
 
While a lot of shows take a couple of episodes to get me invested in their characters and plot, Blue Eye Samurai does so in the first few minutes.  The animation from French Studio Blue Spirit is so captivating and it works so well, it could be a silent feature with just music and sound effects and I’d still be unable to take my eyes off of it.  Not only do the snow covered mountains and bustling busy streets of Kyoto look good, but the action is freaking WOW.  Blue Eye Samurai might not be an Anime but my God the people working on it are fans of it, as well as old school Samurai films.  The staging and camera work is reminiscent of the best of Studio Ufotable and while it has that high Anime energy, the fights are still realistic and you feel every cut and punch inflicted in battle.
 
Storywise, Blue Eye Samurai seems to follow in the same vein as Lady Snowblood and Kill Bill: a young woman wronged in some way in her past seeks vengeance against those who did the deed and wont stop until she gets her revenge.  It might seem all too familiar but the visuals and a top notch voice cast do elevate it a step above.  I’m surprised some of the talent gathered for this one including Maya Erskine, who had a breakout performance in Amazon’s Mr. & Mrs. Smith as our beautiful titular Blue Eye Samurai; Shang Tsung himself, Cary Hiroyuki Tagawa as the Blind Swordsmith who raises our heroine, Hereos’ Masai Oka as the loveable Ringo and probably the most surprising, Mr. Shakespeare Kenneth Brannagh as one of the shows main antagonists.  Everyone is bringing their A game, especially Erskine, who based on one episode alone I think I like much more here than I did in Mr. & Mrs. Smith (more to do with how she was written than her acting).  But alongside the stellar artwork and action on display, the voice talents feel integral but more like a nice bonus.
 
I was so taken with Blue Eye Samurai I didn’t even take notice of the fact that the first of this 8 episode debut season has a one hour runtime.  The more I watch, the more I wanna see.  Will Mizu get revenge?  How much more ways can she kick ass?  And how many more ways are Blue Spirit going to blow my mind with the animation?  Is it possible these guys have cracked the code on CG Anime that Japan and Netflix still haven’t been able to do?  Alright, enough rambling, yes I’m gonna keep watching it and now excuse me, it’s time to cue up Episode 2.