Plot Details: This opinion reveals minor details about the movie's plot.

Samurai Jack is a very unusual cartoon. It’s got a unique style influenced by American animation, Japanese anime, and Kung Fu movies. If you’ve never seen it you’ll have a tough time getting an accurate idea of what it’s really like, but I’ll describe it as best I can. First, you should know that the show had to grow on me. I watched it because of the big deal some of my friends made and wasn’t very impressed. I thought maybe I had just caught a poor episode so I gave it another chance and it was OK. Eventually I became fond of it and would now get the entire series on DVD if I could.

The animation uses a lot of sharp angles. It’s very smooth but uses a lot of different editing techniques you would expect from the influences I’ve already named: partial animation in an otherwise static frame, multiple frames showing simultaneous action or a single action repeated, various frame speeds, some disproportionate (almost impressionistic) characterizations, and alternation between detailed backgrounds and simplistic or stylized ones. The sound design will probably be what makes or breaks this show for many viewers. There is often very little dialogue so for much of a 20 minute episode (once you exclude opening and closing credits) you’re hearing music and sound effects only. The episodes are not always action packed, so though you sometimes get the energetic music there are sometimes long segments that are quiet or soft. Once I got used to that I found it very serene and relaxing (it’s great for watching in bed because it puts me to sleep if I let it), but I can see how some viewers would just get bored.
The characters are sometimes silly which is probably the biggest downfall for me still. The talking dogs in the pilot, for example, are a little too goofy, and some of the characters speaking unintelligibly get annoying. I guess it’s a matter of trying to keep the show from being too grim (the series could easily become that) by throwing in some silliness. While it keeps some of the individual episodes from being as good as they could be, it doesn’t spoil the whole series.

Despite some of the other poor characters, Jack is the fuel that keeps the show moving. He’s the meek, thoughtful, compassionate hero of epic poems. Though his abilities are sometimes a little too unbelievable, he doesn’t come through the tough battles unscathed. His perseverance in the face of being battered and bruised is what makes him admirable.
The episodes are full of sword battles, but Jack shows incredible respect of the preciousness of life. The violence is mostly, maybe even entirely, against robots and specters – not flesh and blood. The theme of the series is largely about courtesy, respect, and the selflessness of helping others. Jack is an excellent role model for kids in my opinion.

Now that you know something about what the show’s style is, let me tell you a little about the story. Aku is a shape-shifting magician. He hungers for power and has aspirations to rule the world. He is so powerful that only a magic sword forged by monks can stop him. Jack’s father stopped him the first time imprisoning him in the wasteland his destruction created. Somehow (I’ve never heard it fully explained, though it may be in an episode I haven’t seen) Aku escapes his imprisonment and captures the emperor. Jack’s mother gets away with him and sends him to study in distant lands. Jack studies the fighting styles of many cultures as well as whatever else he can such as horseback riding and reading. Eventually he is reunited with his mother who turns the magic sword, hidden all this time in a monastery, over to him. Jack takes the sword and faces Aku. After a fierce battle Jack has Aku at his mercy, but the wizard casts a spell that flings the Samurai into the distant future. In this new time Aku has had time to regain his strength, and since no one else has had the power to oppose him he has even been able to reach out into the galaxy to rule other worlds. Planet Earth is now full of all sorts of strange creatures. Jack must find a way to return to his own time to stop Aku’s reign before it can begin. Seeing Aku’s tyranny, Jack cannot ignore the suffering of even the strangest creatures he meets despite his urgency to return. His first allies are a group of talking dogs. Helping them brings him to Aku’s attention in this realm and brings about his first battle with the evil minions. Thus goes the premier movie.
This DVD release also includes an episode that is supposedly “never before seen.” Is there a more annoying phrase in DVD marketing strategies today? Ah, but that’s another topic. Anyway, I have discussed this “never aired episode” with friends that are fans of the show, and we all agree that, yes, we have each seen the episode on Cartoon Network. So much for “never before seen.” Despite that, though, we also all agree that we like the episode. I expected the next episode. It makes sense doesn’t it to go in chronological order? No, it’s episode 11. I don’t think the episodes have official titles (maybe I’m wrong, but the official site lists them by Roman numeral only), but either way the commonly used title is “Jack and the Scotsman.” Jack, while crossing an impossibly long suspended bridge, meets a brash Scotsman coming the other way. They battle until they realize that they’re both being hunted by Aku at which point they team up to defeat an army of bounty hunters.

The DVD…
is a decent package depending on the asking price. You get the pilot (technically and according to the official site this consists of the first 3 episodes, titled I, II, & III) and one episode (officially titled XI) amounting to close to 1:30 of movie time. It’s not much considering the number of episodes in existence, but it’s good if you want to have a sampling of the series. The packaging features some nice cover art but includes the cheap cardboard kind of case. The menus are full of great animation and sounds but can be a tad confusing at first. The first menu branches to the DVD or DVD-ROM menus. The DVD menu is mostly standard, but to find the Scotsman episode you must go into the special features (House of the Samurai) list. The DVD-ROM portion is in a separate menu, so you must close the DVD window to get back to the PC features. Once you get the menu functions figured out it’s all easy enough to navigate. The default sound is 2.0 (listed on tech specs as digital mono, but listed on the DVD sleeve as stereo). There is also a selection for English 5.1 in the audio setup of the DVD, but the actual presence of true 5.1 surround sound is in question since I can find nothing that supports its existence. Just know that it’s listed as an option whether there’s really a difference between it and the 2.0 track or not.
I’m disappointed in the chapter division and selection. The movie chapter divisions aren’t so bad, but with the selection menu you can only jump to every 2nd or 3rd chapter. There are only 14 chapters so it’s really not even worth the time to go to the menu since you will have to manually skip anyway if your desired destination doesn’t happen to be in the list. It’s quicker to just start the show and use your remote to skip ahead. The Scotsman episode, though, doesn’t even have chapter divisions. It’s one long presentation. Even if they didn’t include a chapter selection menu with it, it would have been nice to have a division after the opening theme and maybe in the middle of the episode.

The special features are pretty good. Technically the Scotsman episode is among them and I’ve already given you ample info about it. There is some DVD-ROM content but it’s mostly just Internet links to WB shows and online games. If you like the Cartoon Orbit community, there is an exclusive CToon code revealed. It would be unfair to give it away, but I would like to hear from other DVD owners, should they read this, to compare notes and see if the same code is given with every DVD. I signed up just to get this one (I’m Super Roach Chan if you go there). The CToon I got was a crouching Jack with sword drawn. There are 3 ROM features that don’t require an internet connection: a screensaver (not all that impressive, includes some simple animation and a few sound effects. Be warned, if you click on it you have installed and run it without any other kind of confirmation. I just wanted to get more info and the next thing I knew Jack was popping up on my screen.), some wallpaper (they give you a preview of this one at least. There are 2 although I was not willing to replace my Star Wars wallpaper with either), and an icon set that I have not looked at. There are 3 DVD features that amount to about 20 minutes. There is an enjoyable and informative behind the scenes feature that gives a brief look into every aspect of the creation of a show and includes comments by the creator, composer, writers, primary cast, and others. There is an animated gallery with concept art and storyboards. I usually don’t like the galleries that take away the viewer’s control of moving through the images, but this one is actually pretty good with its pans and close-ups. The last feature is a “Sneak Peek” or short behind the scenes look at the Powerpuff Girls Movie.

Hopefully at this point you’ve made some decision about whether or not you want to give the show a try, or, if you have already taken that step, if you want to spend the money on the DVD. I was lucky enough to find my copy at Wal-Mart for $6, very much worth it. If you like cartoons, especially unusual or artistic ones, or if you like Martial Arts related things, you should at least try to catch a few episodes on Cartoon Network. After that, come read this review again and see if the DVD sounds like it’s worth the cash. If you can find it as cheap as I did, jump on it, but I bet it will be worth full price to many of you.

One final thing. The chapter list included on the inside cover is only partial. For posterity and the furthering of the Samurai way I’ve spent the last 6 months carefully drafting a complete listing of every chapter. Yeah, I’m full of hot air. I jotted down a couple of titles for my own benefit so I thought I’d put them here in case anyone gave a rolling donut about them.
1. The Beginning
2. Aku’s Return
3. Giving Up Her Son
4. The Training
5. Slaves Under Aku
6. Jack Vs Aku
7. The Future
8. Strange Sights & Loud Music
9. Jack Vs Lizor
10. Talking Demon Dogs
11. The Spy’s Report
12. Astounding Canine Discoveries
13. Preparations
14. The War/ Credits


Recommended: Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Better than Watching TV
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children Age 9 - 12