Review of The Elusive Samurai

Following a treason and the massacre of the Shogun, Tokiyuki is the only survivor of his clan and his sole skill is...fleeing. Not the most useful competence when you want to avenge your family, right? But under the guidance of Priest Suwa, who helped him escape and whose daughter seems more responsible than him, Tokiyuki will be able to fine-tune his evasion skill and use it to his advantage when facing his foes. Who would have thought it would indeed be incorporated into their strategy? Give it to Suwa's craziness and weirdness. Tokiyuki, along the journey, will meet other kids, each with a special skill thatwill benefit him and help him on his quest to avenge his family. And of course, since they are kids and need an army, the young survivor and his partisans will have to make allies if they ever want to achieve their goal. Thanks to Suwa's tendency to send Tokiyuki and his friends right into danger, and Tokiyuki's big heart, the little group will slowly rally people to their cause following their success in battles.

Although not the most original story, this anime was really enjoyable. I liked seeing how Tokiyuki was rallying his partisans and how each of them was entirely devoting themselves to him. They are all complementary to each other, and I liked seeing how Tokiyuki's fleeing skill was used to turn the tables and win against his foes.

Even if this anime is supposed to be dark (I mean, his entire clan was massacred, that's not a very funny topic), the animation was very colourful with fun and psychedelic effects. They really did something eccentric, matching Suwa's character. Some bits of humor were added here and there and it did not bother me at all. Although the animation is colourful, don't let it fool you, this anime still is relatively violent, with lots of blood.

Overall, it was a great 12-episode season with incredible animation and character design, each character being special in their own (sometimes weird) way. The protagonists are rallying people to their cause by helping them, in view of the bigger battle ahead.

I'll definitely be watching season 2!