Episode XCII

I was skeptical when it was announced that samurai jack will be coming back after my nightmares of watching reboots of beloved shows such as powerpuff girls and teen titans going horribly wrong. But Genndy Tartakovsky's idea to bring back samurai jack with season 5 not only evokes the nostalgia of the 2000s with its stunning action set pieces and visual storytelling, but it ups the game by improvising the animation to the nth degree while keeping its spirit intact. True, Adult Swim producing the show has made it the more dark and grim by delving deep into Jack's psyche as shown in the trailer. But that's how Samurai Jack was always meant to be--To showcase the undying spirit of a true warrior. Jack might not be home yet, but the show truly is! Kudos Tartakovsky and his team!

Samurai Jack is finally back after long and awaited years! The drawing stays true to the original, the music has been improved and the cartoon has been upgraded to a more mature approach of events, while still having the same style of animation.

If you loved this cartoon when you were little, be prepared because you will love it again. Let's hope the producers continue this way as this is a great start.

You have no idea how much I wanted to see this!! Even though I don't watch TV as much as I used to, this episode made me go back to watching TV. Samurai Jack is back and looks better than ever!

This episode does take a more serious tone unlike the other episodes. Yes, there have been serious episodes in the past but not like this. Jack is still struggling with the past and fighting to save his loved ones! There was one thing missing though. Where is the humor?! Oh wait, the first bad guy he fought was a laughable character but in a good way though.

Humor - Check Action - Check Storyline - Check Emotional Depth - Check

I NEED MORE SAMURAI JACK!!!!

This review will not contain any spoilers or story elements. Why is that? Because in my opinion, it was never the overall story that made Samurai Jack really great. It was good and provided the show a nice tone, but still, what made this series become one of the most well known animated shows was its unique execution.

The art is still glorious, with clever ideas here and there. It's not the most well drawn animated series and it never was (although it is quality work). What makes the art really enjoyable is its style. And this goes for almost everything else too. The sounds and music are good and very stylish, making Samurai Jack stand out among other series. They tell you many things about the world without using any words. They all fit perfectly in every scene. But what do I mean by "perfectly"? I mean that after so many years, I felt like I was watching Samurai Jack. Not a reboot, not a remake, but the continuation of the last episode (of course not necessarily story wise). Although there is a difference in tone (this seems to be darker than the old episodes), it wasn't too different from the overall tone of the series, and certainly didn't feel forced, or like it was changed simply because they could finally add some bloody scenes. Every time you try to continue (or finish) one of your older works, there is a chance that it will feel outdated, or just too different from the original unfinished work, simply because you and the world have changed. This is why it's really hard to continue something you left in your drawer for years, and this is why I gave this episode a 10. I honestly never saw a "reboot" executed this well.

Genndy Tartakovsky and the crew seem to know what they are doing so far. I expect the tone to slowly get even darker, but that shouldn't be a problem, if the transition is handled as well as this episode. All in all if you expect a totally different take on Jack's story, or if you expect it to be exactly like the older episodes, you probably won't like it - although it will certainly become more different with time. But if you expect to see the newest episode of Samurai Jack, you won't be disappointed.

I might be a little biased here, since I have watched Samurai Jack so much on CN when I was a kid, but this 1st episode really took off to a great start. In some ways its even better than the old seasons, because the theme its a little bit more mature (Adult Swim, duh), and I love that the style of animation is the same. If you were a fan of Samurai Jack as a kid, you will def like this very much. I personally cant wait for the new episodes.