Rurouni Kenshin ~ the Kyoto Arc

It took me a little while to learn to like Rurouni Kenshin, so this is definitely not an impulsive "Gee I love this... for now" decision. When I was introduced to it, I was just getting into anime, and the juxtaposition of history, violence, and all-out anime goofiness was a bit of an head-messer. However, RK has a lot going for it, and it's become my second favorite series (after Cowboy Bebop). There are a few episodes where quality lapses, but on the whole the animation, plots and scripts are excellent. More than those, however, and what really sucked me into it, were the characters. Watch it long enough, and you begin to care about them as if they were your own family and friends. Each character, even the minor ones, is lovingly drawn, and the dynamics amongst "the Kenshingumi" (as Kenshin and his closest friends are affectionately called) are fascinating. Kenshin changes all of them, and they in turn change Kenshin, all for the better.

I settled on the Kyoto Arc in particular for special recognition for three reasons ~

First of all, it is a terrific story, pivotal in Kenshin's life. In this arc, he is tested to his limits, both physically and morally, and he emerges victorious. He doesn't do it alone, either, but with the help of all his friends, and the fact that he both needed and accepted that help is part of the beauty of the episodes. Nor is he the only one whose limits are pushed and who rises to the occasion. All his friends grow stronger and better in this arc, particularly Yahiko. This arc also ties up a lot of loose ends in Kenshin's own story. It also brings out the concept which I think is best described by the Who ~ "Meet the new boss, same as the old boss." That the Meiji government for which Kenshin fought is little better than the shoguns they deposed is a theme throughout RK, but in this arc, both sides are compared to tyranny, and no easy answers are given except that tyranny is worse than any other form of government. Not a bad moral.

Second, the violence. Until this arc, the fights in RK are a thinly-veiled anti-violence message. In the Kyoto Arc, using violence to achieve one's aims is viewed from many sides, from Kenshin's (where it is never right except in self-defense) to Saitoh's (where it is a means to a noble end) to Shishio's (where it is the tool of choice). Again, no easy answers are given. It is simply examined, sometimes truly shockingly, through the eyes of every character.

Third, the characters themselves. This arc introduces two of the most fascinating characters in animation, Seijuro Hiko and Hajime Saitoh. Both of these play pivotal roles in the arc and in Kenshin's life. If the characterization stood on the Kenshingumi and those two alone, the arc would have been terrific, but that was only the beginning. An old character, Aoshi Shinomori, is brought back and drastically changed, and a charming new good-guy, Misao Makimachi, is introduced, along with her "family", the Oniwaban Group. Nor are the villains stinted. Shishio begins by being creepy but a little silly, but that changes (man, does that change!). Each of the Juppongatana has a story, which gets told, the most notable of which is Seta Soujiro's. All these characters are not only developed by the action as the story progresses, but by their interaction with each other. No character ends up unchanged at the end of the arc. Pretty incredible, I'd say, and definitely the best I've seen this year.