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These episodes make up the first ("Tokyo") story arc of the popular comedy-adventure set in 1878, 10 years after the Meiji Restoration ended the Tokugawa Shogunate and reordered feudal Japanese society. Although they provide plenty of flashy battle scenes and belly laughs, the filmmakers use these adventures to introduce their cast of engaging misfits, each of whom is haunted by an unhappy past. "Miss Kaoru" inherited the impoverished Kamiya Dojo when her father was murdered; Yahiko had to work as a pickpocket after he was orphaned; mighty Sanosuke saw his comrades betrayed by Imperial agents. During the revolution, Kenshin Himura was Battousai the Manslayer, a deadly assassin working for the Imperialists. Although he's vowed never to kill again, Kenshin remains a swordsman of unmatched ability. He's also an agreeable klutz, the butt of much of the slapstick humor, and his character owes a great deal of its charm to the nuanced performance of voice actor Richard Hayworth. Viewers may find that Kenshin reminds them of Vash in Trigun. But Vash neither controls nor understands his destructive powers; Kenshin's murderous skill is the result of rigorous training, and an icy discipline underlies his happy-go-lucky demeanor. The unconventional quartet battles counter-revolutionaries, gangsters, and opium smugglers, although the tone is considerably lighter than the later Samurai X feature and four-part OVA. The Rurouni Kenshin broadcast series remains one of the most popular anime continuities of all time--with good reason. (Rated 13 and older: violence, minor profanity, brief nudity, alcohol and tobacco use) --Charles Solomon
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