Review of The Elusive Samurai

The Elusive Samurai - Hello, my dear students, now's the time to get assassinated once again...but this time, embossed in actual history, to experience yet another comedic adventure? I sure hope so that's the case... If you didn't know any better, historical AniManga are now once again on the rise thanks to the major successes of series like Kusuriya no Hitorigoto a.k.a The Apothecary Diaries, and if there is any indication to go by, I wish that this will become a recurring trend for the numerous seasons and years to come. And from the courtesy of mangaka Yusei Matsui, the author of one of AniManga's mostrevered, juggernaut series of the 2010s: Ansatsu Kyoushitsu a.k.a Assassination Classroom, comes his latest Weekly Shonen Jump series of Nige Jouzu no Wakagimi a.k.a The Elusive Samurai, a series that hearkens back to Feudal Japan, and makes it look like a joke as much as possible. But the series winning the Shogakukan Manga Award in its 69th edition alongside Sousou no Frieren, Sūji de Asobo, and Trillion Game (which is getting an anime next season) this year (2024)? It's no joke.

The series being set in the Nanboku-cho North and Southern Courts period, is loosely based on the historical figure of Hojo Tokiyuki, a samurai of the Hojo clan whose father was Takatoki, the de facto ruler of the Kamakura Shogunate in the year 1333. It depicts the real-life battle of the 1333 Siege of Kamakura, being a part of the civil Genko War (also known as the Genko Incident) fought between the country's 96th Emperor Go-Daigo and the de facto military government from 1331 to 1333. Led by the first-generation Ashikaga Shogunate under the Emperor's orders, the elder brother of Takauji leads the charge in overthrowing the Hojo clan, forcing the lead figure, now shrunk down to a young boy, to escape to safety and certainly from beheading from the ursurpers. With his only help being a self-proclaimed, shady, prophetic priest, alongside similarly aged young kids that would prove their loyalty to restore the Kamamura Shogunate to its former glory, Tokiyuki must venture a dangerous path to ensure that his reputation does not warrant the death-defying trait that he's known for: his superhuman ability to flee, hide, and dodge enemy attacks. That's like an elusive person through and through.

Right out of the gate, the anime means business, and if clean, swift, silent, and deadly samurai katana swipes don't mean anything to you, the elusive dropping of human heads, splashes of blood, and endless juxtapositions will. There's a reason why Japan's rich and very dramatic history just makes for some great content, and Yusei Matsui taking real-world events to add his own Assassination Classroom twist, it's just genius. The abstracts of clean settings that contradict the reality of the situations being total gruesome bloodshed with or without tears, shit can get real pretty quick, and the way that this show does its survivability and deaths is so seamless to the point where "don't blink, and you'll miss a beat." All of this, despite being a Shonen series in general, was quite the game-changer when the manga came out as a brand new Shonen Jump work in January 2021, and quoting from CBR's Anthony Gramuglia, the series has become "one of the highlights" of Weekly Shonen Jump (at the time), that it is not only surprisingly emotional but also surprisingly intense, starting with all cylinders at full-throttle and never letting up." If anything, this is an excellent rendition of foretelling the story of the 1333 Siege of Kamakura, in the classic Shonen way that Yuusei Matsui only knows how to do by inserting his sense of humour that, for better or for worse, you could be a total joker in awe for seeing apparitions of Koro-sensei and the Kunugigaoka Middle School's dropout Class 3-E with Nagisa Shiota and his classmates.

And that, brings me to the main meat of the show itself: the characters. With Hojo Tokiyuki and his escapee saviour of military commander Suwa Yorishige, the latter boasting that he could see the future, he's technically not wrong, as it's revealed that he has the spirit of Suwa Myōjin inside him, which makes him a god. Furthermore, history dictates that like the Hojo Clan, the Suwa clan also faces opposition with the fall of the Kamakura Shogunate, facing its own opposition in the Shinano Province, which ultimately forced them to support the already-decimated Hojo Clan with Tokiyuki at the helm, so it's a "tour de force" of near-extinct communities bonding together to face against a formidable common foe that extends all the way up to the Emperor. Speaking of Assassination Classroom then, this show does have its pick of period-accurate "class-sized" students through its aptly-named The Elusive Warriors band of youngsters: Yorishige's adopted daughter of the shrine maiden and logistics expert Shizuku; the swordsman and woman of Nezu Kojiro and Mochizuki Ayano who accompanies Tokiyuki to aid him in their military expertise; the mischievous thief of Kazama Genba who operates by money and fear with his disguise tactic; as well as the dual-sword wielding ronin of Fubuki who joins their rag-tag Kamakura restoration team after a scuffle that leads the former to trust his gut instinct after Tokiyuki has proven himself, this is a retainer group that can easily match up against Feudal Japan's lead figures. And the young-aged brats they are as a group of 5 kids, are just as (if not more) effective as a big-sized army who has to follow instructions to their "sacrificial" deaths, more than suffering through the endless comedic banters of Shizuku's uncle, as well as the colourful display of enemies that range from demeaning to outright crazy.

And as if you NEED any reason to believe all of the insanity that is the anime, its production values will shock you even further. There's no doubt that this is an Aniplex production, made solely because of well-known producer Shouta Umehara, who's done a lot at the Sony-owned studios of A-1 Pictures and (more recently) CloverWorks, the likes of Eromanga-sensei, Sono Bisque Doll wa Koi wo Suru a.k.a My Dress-Up Darling and Bocchi the Rock! to name a few. The fact that this is a CloverWorks production, it's not just calling the A-1 Pictures' sister studio an imitation to begin with, but it's very clear that despite sharing resources within the same animation house, you can always bet on both studios banging out their adaptations like passion projects. From the uncanny but striking animations to flawless and interesting battles (e.g. Episode 9 is a classic Arifumi Imai masterclass) that you just can't help but be in awe of, the show is just crafted masterfully with the intention to surpass the manga in all regards, and it did. Despite the no-name storyboarder that is debut director Yuta Yamazaki, it's very clear that he wants to make a splash for a name recognition, and a recognition that he'll get for an insane job well done along with a capable staff team behind the anime.

Being a historical series, its OST has to be spot-on to reflect the history, and Akiyuki Tateyama (along with GEMBI) nailed the music aspect beautifully. I'd expect nothing less from the Yuru Camp a.k.a Laid-Back Camp series' music composer, and if there's one thing that he's good at, it's the comfy stuff, even if the action (i.e. as is the case for the Genjitsu Shugi Yuusha no Oukoku Saikenki a.k.a. How a Realist Hero Rebuilt the Kingdom series) unfortunately doesn't match up to his strengths. As for the theme songs themselves, this show does a competent job with DISH// and Botchi Boromaru having historically inspired songs that are just a delight to listen to and is worth endless repeats on end, especially the latter with its catchy bop of a Nanboku-cho-inspired rap song.

It's clear that Nige Jouzu no Wakagimi a.k.a The Elusive Samurai didn't quite turn out to be the success story that Yusei Matsui wanted to be, despite its increasing popularity as the years go by with the manga that, while is historically accurate, doesn't dive deep into the rich history that is the Kenmu Restoration period, much less the level of historical knowledge that is required out of the reader to fully understand what's going on in the manga replicating true stories. And if that doesn't get to you, neither will its writing be, that feels superficial at times than what we've come to expect from Assassination Classroom.

Ultimately, whatever your proposition will be, I think that the anime is pretty much necessitated to reinvigorate sales of the manga, and I hope it has done that to a degree that would help even overseas fans appreciate the series even more, even if reception in Japan has been lukewarm at best. I'm a sucker for historical stories, so this naturally comes recommended, but see if it does for you, either in seriousness or banter.