Rurouni Kenshin: Reflection Anime Review

Second Opinion

• Reviewer: Brere Marer
• Review Date: 2003-10-01 (updated 2003-10-01)
• 4.5 stars out of 5 (?)
• Main Review: 5 stars according to Jeremy Barnes

HARD FACTS

(all rated on a 0.5-10.0 basis)

Visuals - 9.6
Continuity - 7.5
Sound FX - 8.7
Voices - 7.0
Characters - 9.6
Extras - 7.0
Personal Opinion - 9.84

OVERALL AVERAGE - 8.4

Visuals

As usual, the OVA looks great. The color contrast is done well, the lighting really catches the mood of the scene.

Continuity

If you've never watched Rurouni Kenshin, you could easily get lost with all the flashback sequences, but if you've never seen the show you really shouldn't be watching this, should you? There are also some questions that go unanswered if you haven't watched the Trust/Betrayal OVAs, but otherwise, fairly solid.

Sound FX

Once again, great as usual. From the soft sounds of the wind chimes to the blunt sound of sword-to-flesh contact, this video sounds great.

Voices

This is a toss up. The dubbed voices of Karou and Megumi are painfully out of place if you were weaned on the TV show, though you get used to them quickly. Yahiko's new voice is perfect. His voice actor can sound both mature and youthful at different times. Sano and Kenshin sound fine. Sub is superb, also as usual.

Characters

Once again, matters. The redesigned characters are different, but well done. Sanosuke looks real enough to be human, yet animated enough to look like the old Sano. Yahiko, once again, looks great. I found his redesign the most enjoyable.

The Review

You come at this film knowing it will be big. This is the FINAL chapter in the Rurouni Kenshin legacy. There is no easy way to end a TV series, especially an anime, yet somehow, these things happen. And even though you may wish for it to go on forever, nothing does. Rurouni Kenshin is no exception.

The majority of the film (about 65%) is told through beautifully animated flashbacks to the series. Though some of the dialogue is changed, the ideas remain intact, and through the eyes of Karou, the story is retold.

Of course this was all great fun, but the real beef of the film is the new content, of course. There is a whole sequence with Enishi (remember Enishi? No? Tomoe's little brother who saw his sister murdered in front of him? All coming back to you, eh?) that is quite brilliant. The character of Enishi, who (don't deny it) most people ignored during the first OVAs, really surfaces here, and in about 5 minutes, he seems all but human.

The real story of the film, though is good in its own right. It pushes Kenshin and Karou love for each other to the limit, and yet still manages to be believable. From the first frame to the bittersweet end, you can almost feel their compassion reach out and touch you.

Of course, this IS an ending film, isn't it? We will say goodbye, one by one, to all the characters we love, as they exit from the film. Will we ever see them again? Only time will tell.