This is the biggest piece of garbage I've seen that's attached to the name Rurouni Kenshin. I never saw the third season of the anime, but I could probably tolerate that better than this train-wreck.
A lot of people like the animation and character design. I despised it. The characters all look ugly, with these glazed-over eyes and depressive faces. They look nothing at all as they do in the manga, or even the anime.
The Jinchuu Arc has all the important plot-points (the three-front attack, the corpse doll, Rakuninmura and Kenshin putting his demons to rest) stripped out. In this version, all that happens is Enishi kidnaps Kaoru (who doesn't even try to fight him) and leaves a note saying, "Jinchuu". Kenshin goes to the island alone (instead of with all the others as he did in the manga), fights Enishi, beats him and then offers his life in exchange for Koaru's. *flips through her manga volumes and can't find one instance of kenshin offering his life to an enemy* Since Kenshin never went through the life-altering experience of Rakuninmura, he really couldn't form a close bond with Kaoru in this OVA as he did in the manga. That is why five years into their marriage, his attitude was, "Screw my family. Saving the world is more important", and he went to China to help the Meiji government invade a sovereign nation. I'm 100% sure this is something manga-Kenshin would never do.
The idea of Kenshin sleeping with Kaoru when he has a communicable disease and condemning her to death is laughable. Hello, no-kill vow anyone! Or perhaps this doesn't include the woman he's supposed to love.
Kaoru is changed from a strong, fiery-tempered shihondai who would beat the crap out of her husband for even thinking of such a thing in the manga to this weak-willed and spineless woman who just sits there crying as Kenshin goes off. Then she welcomes him back with open arms and sleeps with him in order to "share his pain".
This is reminiscent of Hindu women, who would throw themselves on their husbands' funeral pyres because apparently in those cultures, a wife's life is meaningless if her husband dies. The director was portraying Kenshin and Kaoru as a traditional Japanese couple rather than as Kenshin and Kaoru.
I have no problem with being historically and culturally accurate, but not at the price of butchering Watsuki's characters and storyline. Either follow the manga, or don't animate the stupid thing!
A lot of people like the animation and character design. I despised it. The characters all look ugly, with these glazed-over eyes and depressive faces. They look nothing at all as they do in the manga, or even the anime.
The Jinchuu Arc has all the important plot-points (the three-front attack, the corpse doll, Rakuninmura and Kenshin putting his demons to rest) stripped out. In this version, all that happens is Enishi kidnaps Kaoru (who doesn't even try to fight him) and leaves a note saying, "Jinchuu". Kenshin goes to the island alone (instead of with all the others as he did in the manga), fights Enishi, beats him and then offers his life in exchange for Koaru's. *flips through her manga volumes and can't find one instance of kenshin offering his life to an enemy* Since Kenshin never went through the life-altering experience of Rakuninmura, he really couldn't form a close bond with Kaoru in this OVA as he did in the manga. That is why five years into their marriage, his attitude was, "Screw my family. Saving the world is more important", and he went to China to help the Meiji government invade a sovereign nation. I'm 100% sure this is something manga-Kenshin would never do.
The idea of Kenshin sleeping with Kaoru when he has a communicable disease and condemning her to death is laughable. Hello, no-kill vow anyone! Or perhaps this doesn't include the woman he's supposed to love.
Kaoru is changed from a strong, fiery-tempered shihondai who would beat the crap out of her husband for even thinking of such a thing in the manga to this weak-willed and spineless woman who just sits there crying as Kenshin goes off. Then she welcomes him back with open arms and sleeps with him in order to "share his pain".
This is reminiscent of Hindu women, who would throw themselves on their husbands' funeral pyres because apparently in those cultures, a wife's life is meaningless if her husband dies. The director was portraying Kenshin and Kaoru as a traditional Japanese couple rather than as Kenshin and Kaoru.
I have no problem with being historically and culturally accurate, but not at the price of butchering Watsuki's characters and storyline. Either follow the manga, or don't animate the stupid thing!