Afro Samurai: Season One - Director's Cut [Blu-ray] | ![Afro Samurai: Season One - Director's Cut [Blu-ray]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51xvfJscIaL._SL500_.jpg)
| Actors: Samuel L. Jackson, Ron Perlman, Kelly Hu, Yuri Lowenthal
Studio: Funimation Prod
Category: DVD
List Price: $29.98
Buy New: $15.33
You Save: $14.65 (49%)
New (24) Used (6) from $13.79
Rating:  80 reviews
Sales Rank: 9561
Format: Animated, Color, Dolby, Subtitled, Widescreen
Language: English (Original Language)
Rating: Unrated
Media: Blu-ray
Region: 1
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
Number Of Discs: 1
Running Time: 125 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 5
Dimensions (in): 6.7 x 5.3 x 0.5
MPN: 0
UPC: 704400079870
EAN: 0704400079870
ASIN: B001AII4WM
Release Date: August 26, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
AFRO SAMURAI - DIRECTOR'S CUT - BLURAY (DVD)
Amazon.com
The violent five-part adventure Afro Samurai marks both the increasing confluence of American and Japanese pop culture and the shift in Japanese depictions of African-Americans. The popularity of hip-hop in Japan has led to more positive images of blacks, including Takashi Okazaki's original manga. The "Director's Cut" contains an additional 15 minutes of footage, and is even gorier than the broadcast version on Spike TV. As a boy, Afro Samurai saw his father beheaded by the maniacal Justice. The murderer sought an ancient headband that marks the wearer as the #1 warrior in the world. As an adult, Afro seeks only revenge, cutting down anyone who blocks his path to Justice. Afro Samurai depicts a oddly anachronistic world that infuses cell phones, cigarette lighters, and cyber technology into traditional Japanese culture. The elongated character designs recall Peter Chung's Aeon Flux, and much of the series is rendered in moody grays, accented by gobbets of scarlet blood. Afro is such a taciturn figure, most of the dialogue goes to his motor-mouth comrade Ninja Ninja. This big budget production features an eclectic score by Wu-Tang Clan co-founder RZA and an A-list vocal cast that includes Samuel L. Jackson and Ron Perlman. But for all its elaborate production values and over-the-top fights, Afro Samurai suffers from a weakness at its core: Afro is so monosyllabic and cold-blooded, he's not very interesting. His inevitable duel-to-the-death with Justice lacks the emotional punch of Spike's face-off against Vicious in Cowboy Bebop or Kenshin's one-on-one with Shishio in Rurouni Kenshin. This extremely violent series is not for the faint of stomach. (Rated TV MA, suitable for ages 17 and older: graphic violence, profanity, sexual activity, grotesque imagery, nudity, risque humor, alcohol and tobacco use) --Charles Solomon More from Studio Gonzo 
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Solty Rei | Stills from Afro Samurai (click for larger image) More Samuel L. Jackson 
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| Customer Reviews: Read 75 more reviews...
 A recycled samurai champloo June 25, 2009
Maria L. Granfield (NY)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Right off the bat I was disappointed in this because when I buy a dvd collection that says "SEASON ONE" i expect a season, not 5 episodes! (thats false advertising!) I did not realize this until the last episode and it was by far one of the most over-rated animes ever.
Visually speaking this is great work. the characters appearance and their mannerisms were unique. I especialy liked samuel jackson's contribution as ninja ninja and I like that it opened animes to a crowd of people that may not like anime. This gets it the two stars I gae but thats all i can say good about it.
The plot was, for lack of a better word, bad. The story was rushed, every fight scene had a well animated more or two but the rest of the fight would be a "been there, done that" kind of fight. The only unique battle I can recall was the fight against afrobot, it was entertaining, but not that good. Afro was a totally uninteresting character who was not likeable, I actually thought Justice was the good guy by the end of the anime because Afro was so bland and cliche (a jimi hendrix lookin guy with an afro smoking a joint. . . wooow original) And why did they make such a big deal about the soundtrack? Not that monumental, definatley thought Rza would contribute more to a major anime soundtrack than those bootleg mixtape level beats.
All in all this was, as the title says, a recycled Samurai Champloo. This was another "been there, done that" moment for me becuase Samurai Champloo already conquered the Hip-Hop/Samurai Anime idea and did so in epic proportions. If you are a fan of anime then you will treat this like a mediocre painting, you'll look at it, say thats nice, and never want to look at it again.
P.S. I couldnt even sell it to FYE for 1/2 of wat i paid 4 it!
 An entertaining, violent, and a different kind of anime. June 10, 2009
Adam Sims (Kentucky)
What do you get when you combine bloody action, feudal Japan, modern technology, anime, hip-hop, and a big actor? Why, none other than Afro Samurai, which is not your average anime. Starring Samuel L Jackson as the voice of Afro and Ninja Ninja and featuring music from people such as RZA from Wu-Tang Clan, it adds fresh skin to old bones, and maybe more.
The plot to this anime is pretty simple, actually. It takes place in a sort of modern feudal Japan, where things like cell-phones and cyborgs are placed together in an archaic setting. There are two headbands, Number One and Number Two, which represent the two strongest warriors. If you have the Number One, you have the powers of a god. Rokutaro wields the number one, but is killed in front of his own son's, Afro's, eyes by a gruesome-looking gunslinger named Justice. Now, as an adult and wielding the number two, Afro is seeking revenge as his past is unraveled. Also following him is Ninja Ninja, a profanity-laced man who is Afro's rock, in a way.
Anyway, the anime itself, while lacking in the plot department, is beautiful to watch and has some pretty epic and bloody fighting in it, as well as a good pace and some intriguing characters. The voice acting is great as well; I mean, what anime has a well-known actor voicing the main character? It's pretty much unlike anything you've watched before.
So if you're looking for something to watch, you should check this out.
Great Stuff May 1, 2009
BG Rastafari (HI)
Very enjoyable to watch. Lots of eye candy and some nice twists, actions scenes and funny dialogue. The music and action are a beautiful mix despite the contrasting themes.
Actions scenes are fast and sam l jackson's character can be overwhelming at times.
but overall a great watch!
A solid, gory, action anime April 27, 2009
Tomorrowjoe (USA)
This anime was different from other series I have watched in its overall selling point and focus. Despite the common claim that the show is lacking in plot, I believe that something like that should be expected from only a five part series. It's obvious it's not going to be as profound as the oftenly compared works of Shinchiro Watanabe (i.e. Cowboy bebop, Samurai Champloo). The story is about revenge and that is the main push for the series. Having only that as the main part of the series should point towards obvious shallowness in plot and story because revenge is shallow. Animation was fantastic and top of the line. Voice acting was good but not amazing. Its better than a lot of american dubs like the Kenshin series (the 80+ ep. Tv one) which had a lot of problems. If you are looking for a series with character development and relationship growth, don't try Afro Samurai and look for something that you would like. This show is totally bare bones but if you are looking for pure action, sex, profanity, and gore. Afro Samurai might be for you.
Brilliant Idea, Art, Actors, Horrid execution April 19, 2009
J. Scully (A desert, USA)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I own this DVD set. And though I like it, that doesn't change the fact that it sucks lead bricks. Why do you watch action movies? For action. Why do you watch ... well you get the idea.
This is an action series. The beautiful graphics always deliver, and so do the fight scenes. The characters, histories, items, and weapons are all very creative and original (although the plot devices are anything but original -- oh wait, did I say plot? What plot?).
And I know other reviewers got sick of Samuel Jackson's voice after a while, but I didn't at all, and was glad to continue watching the series (Of course, I often fast-forwarded with subtitles turned-on during the fast-forwarding, to get to those action scenes or those scenes that seem important without slowing the pace). I still have faith in Samuel L. Jackson's acting abilities, despite his part in the new SW trilogy.
That being said, the dialog, motivations, character interaction, etc. are all sub-par. It's really stupid. And I mean really stupid.
If you like great martial arts, then rent this and keep the fast-forward button handy. If you love great graphics, martial arts movies, and Samuel L. Jackson, buy it anyway, and keep the fast-forward button handy. Just keep in mind, you'll be using the fast-forward button often.
If you love good anime (I'm not talking animation quality here) or can't stand to watch sub-par stories and horrid film execution, just move along. There's nothing to see here.
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