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Background Story
In the eleventh year of the Meiji Era (1878), a vagabond swordsman is found wandering the streets of Tokyo. A strange man, he carries a reverse-bladed sword and has an x-shaped scar on his cheek. He wants only to be left alone.
However, a girl named Kamiya Kaoru accuses him of being the man claiming the identity of the legendary Hitokiri Battousai. This man is murdering people in the name of her family's doujo. When he saves her from the real killer, she invites him to come stay at her doujo, since he obviously has no other place to go. This is the beginning of the story of Himura Kenshin.
Before the Meiji Restoration, Himura Kenshin was known as Hitokiri (Murderer) Battousai. He was the top assassin for the reformist group Ishin Shishi. However, when the old government was overthrown and the fighting had drawn to an end, Hitokiri Battousai had disappeared. Kenshin wandered the countryside for nearly eleven years; the world presumed him dead or lost.
When Kenshin meets Kaoru, he is no longer Hitokiri Battousai, for he has sworn never to take another life again. His sword is not a regular sword, but a reverse-bladed sword, meaning that he cannot kill anyone with his sword, but he can defend himself. Kenshin is a man who is trying to escape his past, and create a future for himself. With the help of Kaoru and the others that he meets, he may just have a chance.
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The Kamiya Dojo
Kaoru's doujo becomes a haven for the series regulars. After Kenshin's arrival, he and Kaoru find themselves helping a boy named Myojin Yahiko. Yahiko has been pressed into the service of a band of local thieves in order to repay a debt. Kaoru goes to rescue him but finds herself outnumbered. Kenshin shows up and rescues them both, gaining the admiration of the boy. When he says he wants to be just like Kenshin, Kenshin replies he's not interested in teaching anyone how to kill and tells him Kaoru should be his teacher. Reluctantly, he agrees.
Sanosuke's introduction to the doujo is somewhat less peaceful. Incredibly strong, Sanosuke uses the giant Zanba sword, which was originally designed to be used by horsemen. The sword proved too unwieldy to be used, but Sanosuke's strength enables him to use it as a normal sword. When he beats up some drunks at the local restaurant, he catches the attention of several people. Sanosuke challenges Kenshin, but he declines. Meanwhile, one of the other men from the bar hires him to kill Kenshin. After several rounds of fighting, Kenshin wins, and Sanosuke tells him that he'll be keeping an eye on him to see if he will really protect those he cares about. Over time, the two gradually become friends.
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The final member of the "family" is Megumi. A promising young doctor, she is unknowningly working for another doctor who is providing opium to the local crime lord. When the doctor is killed, the crime lord takes Megumi prisoner, as she also knows how to make the drug. Ultimately, Kenshin frees her from her forced employment and she becomes the neighborhood doctor, providing medical assistance for not only Kenshin and the others but all the people who live in the area.
Over time, the relationships of the characters develop and deepen. There are several subtle and not-so-subtle romantic relationships about to bloom. But the relationships between the characters who come to call the Kamiya doujo home make them seem very much like a family. They are a group of lost souls who find their place in a very troubled world.
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The Anime
The television series can be divided into two parts. The Tokyo Chapter introduces Kenshin and the rest of the main characters who will come to call the Kamiya doujo home. After these characters become established, the show tells a variety of individual stories; there is not a unifying plot thread throughout the episodes. Many of these stories are not found in the manga.
The Kyoto Chapter begins when Kenshin departs for Kyoto to prevent Shishio from overthrowing the Meiji government. A marked change in the series occurs as Kenshin leaves behind his friends and adopted family in Kyoto. He refuses their help and their company, partly because they will only be a hindrance to him, but also because he does not want them involved in what he knows he must do. A somber Kenshin makes his way to Kyoto, dreading what he knows in his heart he must do. He must become the Hitokiri again. Of course, Kaoru and the others don't sit idly by and eventually they join him in Kyoto. The Kyoto chapter is much more faithful to the manga.
The television series ran 94 episodes (95, if counting the "unaired last episode"), a remarkable run when considering that the average length of an anime television series is currently 26 episodes and shrinking. For Kenshin to have run three times the length of the normal animated series is certainly proof of its popularity in Japan.
Info Contributed By Hitokiris Anonymous
In This Case, "X" Means "No"
Over a year and a half ago, there was talk of Sony releasing the KENSHIN anime here in the United States under the name of SAMURAI X. Those familiar with KENSHIN bristled at the title change. However, the plans to bring KENSHIN to American shores seem to have crumbled like the Tokugawa government at the beginning of the Meiji Restoration. No further plans have been announced for this series in America by Sony, and no one else has bought the rights.
Hitokiris Anonymous
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The movie REQUIEM FOR THE ISHIN SHISHI was released in theaters in 1997 and borrows again from the historical events. After the establishment of the Meiji government, some people began to see that the new government was as corrupt as the old one. There were several revolts in an attempt to oust the Meiji officials. In REQUIEM, Shigure is one of those who believes the government to be corrupt. He organizes a revolt, but it is put down. Once again, betrayal from within the Meiji government leads to the downfall of a character in RUROUNI KENSHIN.
The OVAs have just begun, and will continue the story from the end of the television series. The OVAs are being called the "Reminiscence Chapter," and the first volume should be released by the time this article is published. There are four volumes in the OVA series.
The anime, like the manga, manages to be both serious and funny. At times, the anime is very serious, usually when Kenshin is fighting or trying to avoid a fight. But humor presents itself during the more mundane events of everyday life. One such area is of course when Kenshin and Kaoru get into an argument. The anime manages to show a humorous side to the characters and their life in the Meiji era. Without such periods away from the overwhelming seriousness of the story, the series would surely become tired. The humorous moments always provide a laugh and keep the series from becoming stale.
Since the manga is still being serialized in JUMP, it is doubtful that the OVAs will be the finale of the series. While the "Reminiscence Chapter" may be the last animated KENSHIN, the story will no doubt continue on to its true end in the manga.
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Meiji and Beyond
Yet, despite the fact that the plans for American release by Sony have faltered, and the fact that the manga has not been released commercially in the United States, the fans of KENSHIN remain strong. In fact, if the series keeps running, in a few years Kenshin may find himself facing the problems of the Taisho era.
The rich political and historical tapestry of the Meiji period can provide many additional stories of everyone's favorite samurai. Like any underdog, whatever the odds, Kenshin will keep fighting. And Kaoru will keep worrying.
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