Blue Eye Samurai [2023]
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IMDB: 89 RT: 100/96 CR: 74
With more than a few scenes I’d describe as “striking”, Michael Green and Amber Noizumi have created an interesting thing with 2023’s Blue Eye Samurai. While its visual flair carries much of its initial draw, it’s micro-storytelling contains the bulk of this action/ adventure’s meaningful soul. Though it often sports a few too many ingredients and devolves into trope or accidental triteness more frequently than I’d like, it is an overall worthwhile [and often very fun] piece of media.
17th century Japan has closed its borders to the outside world — expelling all who are not strictly Japanese — in order to maintain the integrity of the nation. Blue eyes, blond hair, pale skin; all are marks of impurity, of shame. As both a woman and one who bears the eyes of an outsider, Mizu seeks revenge for those who wronged her family.
If that plot synopsis sounds kind of tired, well… that’s because it is. There’s not a lot that’s terribly original about the overall narrative of Blue Eye Samurai, but there also doesn’t need to be. Where the show has a deftly honed edge is in its presentation of themes and concepts… even if its execution of those things is often a little lackluster or cringey. If you’re a fan of anime or things like Star Wars: The Clone Wars, I think that the vast majority of my complaints about this show are things that won’t bother you in the slightest. I mention this to say that I am not a fan of those kinds of things, and much of what bothered me about Samurai is what bothers me about the genre as a whole more than it is particularly egregious here.
Blue Eye Samurai’s visuals are worthy of note, though I think they’ll be largely divisive. The show is elegantly animated, well framed, and often treats its action scenes with a lot of respect. While the exact style of animation isn’t exactly to my tastes, the show is genuinely striking if paused during nearly any set-piece scene. Brilliant colors, great cinematography, and clever use of small visual ticks really make some of the smarts of Samurai stand out. Be it the very original and cool scenes of warriors anticipating their opponent’s moves, or the simplicity of Mizu’s neck-wrap to hide her lack of an Adam’s apple, there’s many intentional moments that show off the thoughtfulness behind much of the show.
The narrative of Blue Eye Samurai, on the other hand, is not quite as impressive. If you’ve seen Kill Bill, you’ve effectively seen 7/8ths of Samurai… even coming down to a particular music choice during a training montage. It’s a fairly uninventive revenge story, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t fun to watch. My description also belies one of the show’s greatest strengths: it’s constant ability to subvert your expectations. Though it certainly doesn’t avoid every trap or obvious conclusion, Samurai does an absolutely excellent job of leading you down mostly familiar paths that drop you at mostly unfamiliar destinations. I found myself constantly rolling my eyes at the beginnings of dusty plotlines, only the be pleasantly surprised when they turned out [mostly] different from where I thought they’d go. While I wouldn’t necessarily call most of Samurai “innovative”, I would call nearly all of it “interesting”… though the show is entirely too long. Eight, hour-long episodes is more padding than this story needed and I think it would have been better served with seven… or even six to keep things moving at a more engaging pace. I ultimately don’t regret my time with Blue Eye Samurai but, had I not suffered a particularly sleepless night, I likely would not have dedicated the time it demanded of me beyond episode four… and I would have regretted that knowing what I know now.
Samurai suffers most when it falls into one of my least favorite genre tropes: comic relief. The constant need shows like this feel to inject comedy into their narratives drives me up the absolute wall… and the character used as a vessel for that in Samurai is particularly grating. While these characters are generally designed to offer a juxtaposition to the bleak outlook of our protagonists, I almost always find them annoying, distracting, and out of place. There’s nothing wrong with clashing personalities or different points of view within a story, but this style of show always seems to land on the same concept… and it’s always entirely meaningless. I’m sure his noodles are great, but every line he delivers makes me want to throw up and die.
This is a difficult show to talk about and spin in an accurate light because, the things I love about it are woven tightly together with the things I don’t. I largely absolutely love the character decisions; they remind me of some of my favorite DnD situations and feel very “real” rather than “written”. I mostly like the visual presentation; it doesn’t fall into the lazy, bad cinematography trap a lot of animated features do. I can’t stand the show’s corny use of licensed songs or the persistence of its comedic relief character, and I loath that the final showdown shakes out like some neutered garbage taken directly from the “Baby’s First Drama” handbook. I think its too long and empty, but I also absolutely adore all of its micro-storytelling and most of its individual arcs — episode 5, “The Tale of the Ronin and the Bride” being a particularly striking standout among not only its episode count, but animated television in general.
So, what it comes down to for me is that Blue Eye Samurai is a little more frustrating at times than I think most of its accolades merit… but those accolades still leave me with a taste for giving it another chance. Will I watch season 2? Likely. If you like anime/ animated shows in general should you watch it? Absolutely. This is a journey that we’ve seen and heard before, but told in an interesting way with mostly interesting characters. There’s a lot of good within these episodes and, for those that aren’t bothered by the tropes of the genre, this may even be something you herald as a new favorite.
