User Reviews

I got hooked on this show as a child growing up in Canada where Toyota for a time decided it would be good PR to import the series from Japan, dub it at their expense and show it to Canadians under the title IRON SAMURAI. As the company did better and better (DUH) they lost interest in PR for its own sake and they stopped importing in mid-stream. Years later I was able to get the entire series in subtitled form and watch it beginning to end. Notes as follows: 1. Brilliant concept. The law-abiding personal executioner to the Shogun gets caught up in inter-clan politics, and, before he knows it, he an outlaw on the run with his infant son, his wife having been killed. 2. As he travels with the boy WHO GROWS UP AS THE SERIES PROGRESSES, the fact that he is the most wanted man in Japan, not merely by the officials, but by assassins working for the rival clan, does not seem to phase him. His ability is almost superhuman. With a sword in his hand, he seems to be able to handle dozens of opponents at a time. 3. As I write this, I realize I am not doing justice to the series. The themes are very Japanese, about honour and code. The action is wonderfully choreographed. The acting is excellent, although the boy really does not become part of the story until the last two seasons. 4. Overall a "must-see," save for the last two episodes in the series. Because of the nature of Japanese philosophy, western viewers are not going to like the way the series ends, and that's all the spoiler you get. One a kind. A pioneer show. Excellent. Timeless