Reviews for Afro Samurai Pilot

Don't listen to this girl above me. There are zero spoilers. This is a great pilot. A pilot for an anime should showcase the basic idea of the theme in which the show would like to maintain, and showcase all of the character designs the creator would like to use. The theme being an urban take on what seems like a 15th century "Sengoku jidai" taking place in a more modern world. Where de facto Samurai made names for themselves through their skill. We got to see most of the characters, but none were given any back story... there wasn't even any dialogue ("there are spoilers"LMAO). All we got to see was the art design, interesting development you'd only know if you've already seen the full show (that didn't make it into the show), well done animation, the music, and the brutality that carried over to the finished product.

This is an awesome clip for someone who enjoyed the film to see. I wonder what we could have gotten from Madhouse if they took head of the actual shows production.

[I would not recommend watching this pilot until you have finished the main Afro Samurai media (as it does spoil what villains will be in the show and a few key plot points). That being said, on with the review:] The original 2003 Afro Samurai pilot from Studio Madhouse is only around three minutes....but oh, what a three minutes it is! Before anime studio Gonzo took the production of the anime to final product four years later, Takeshi Koikei directed and animated this promotional under the Madhouse banner. If you have seen the Spike TV miniseries and thought it was extremely stylized, thispilot promo cranks it up even more so.

Plot-wise, this pilot really has none (as to be expected for short promotional created for funding purposes). It is basically a three-minute fight scene of Afro dueling his way through all the major antagonists of the main series and sequel film.

The art of this promo is gorgeous and flowing. The finished project was ultimately very well-done, but this pilot leads me to believe if Madhouse had followed through with the production, it would and could have been even better (in the art department anyways). Unfortunately, Takeshi Koikei became busy with the production of the delayed anime film Redline and Afro Samurai fell by the wayside before changing studio hands and becoming a Gonzo production as it is known as today. Ultimately, the most this pilot does is show what potentially "could have been" if Madhouse had made the show.

In short, enjoy this artifact if you want a few more drops of Afro Samurai before you've exhausted the related media. If you're going through withdrawals at the fact you have ran out of hip-hop samurai goodness, wander on over to Shinichirō Watanabe's Samurai Champloo and get a solid (less gory) extension to soothe your craving a little longer.

Disclaimer: I am NOT a PROFESIONAL reviewer I’m only a anime fan trying to give feed back to other anime fans with that said one to the review. I saw this pilot after watching the movie adaptation of the anime and for a pilot its really bad the point of the pilot is to start off or begin the story but this was sort of a short summary of what happens I DON”T RECOMMEND YOU WATCH THIS BEFORE WATCHING THE ANIME because it shows scene from the ending so this pilot is the only pilot I’ve seen that actually contains spoilers. Other then the fact that ithas spoilers its alright I guess, although I don’t think rap music really goes with the whole samurai theme.

The Afro Samurai Pilot is an interesting little short for a few reasons. Firstly it's a pretty insightful look into the story, concepts and character designs that the main show would end up using or dropping. Second, its a great showcase of Takeshi Koike's animation style and aesthetic sensibilities. As for the short itself, it can be described as a three minute long sakuga filled hip hop music videos involving the titular Afro Samurai tearing through his enemies, with all the slick action and hyper violence one would expect from the franchise. In a sense it captures the essence of Afro Samurai. An artistically excellent actionpiece punctuated by hip hop beats.

I've been raving a lot about the art and animation, so what would one expect. It's a mostly monochrome piece with the main colors being black white and grey. This is complemented by intense bursts of red blood spray and wrapped up in Koike's characteristic dark and one tone shadows and you get a slick looking project. The minimalist color palate and background design also makes things feel pretty abstract at times. The animation throughout is just as smooth. The backgrounds having low detail just helps to emphasize the action, making it stand out quite a bit.

The music is an important aspect of the short as well. There are two tracks used in it, the first being "400 Years" by CYNE. Its a great opener for the short, using a very Japanese sounding guitar sample and punchy percussion accompanied by lyrics about emancipation. The last half is accompanied by "Next Time" by Gang Starr, a jazzier track with a verse about the artist's unmatched skill on the mic, much like Afro's skill in a fight. There isn't any dialogue in the short, but the music helps tell as much of the story as the visuals.

So who is this short for? I would recommend it for three types of people. The first kind of person is the Afro Samurai super fan. If you haven't seen this yet, it's invaluable because you get to see the similarities and differences between the original and final products. The second type of person is for the sakuga and staff list nerd. Its an interesting little footnote in Takeshi Koike's career, and a showcase of some of the best animation he's put to screen. The last sort of person is the lover of both anime and Hip Hop. What it offers to them are cool action scenes, cool character designs and a good selection of tracks to boot. If you are any of these three, I'd strongly recommend checking this short out!

Rate of 4 english dubbed Pro(s) -art: different then what i have seen. -art: animations were smooth. Con(s) -sound: the song did not match the action you were seeing -sound: the animated effects tuned out bits of the song-art: what purpose did black and white have?

-art: why start to lead into color only to kill it off? Was that the breaking point being addressed?

-art: the black and white concept is not only hard on the eyes in some of the scenes but ruins definitive details.

plot-very confusing. Unclear to if the trailer showed the appropriate timeline of events. Unclear to what era this being done in for you have a cellphone, robot and what appears to be an ancient backdrop for a background.

character development: is lacking. What made the person be who he was? Is he even the good guy?

Watch only this if you just want a drop more of Afro Samurai or if you are considering to watch Afro Samurai (duly note that this is very short with no real plot, it just showcase what the anime might bring both with the art, action, music and story line, a little tiny glimpse, therefore there is no real spoilers in this one. ) I really understand why that this pilot without any doubt convinced the producers and studio to make Afro Samurai into an anime. IT MADE ME SO HYPED! even though I have seen the series and the following movie :) It makes me wannacrave for even more! I would love to be a sequel with other characters but in this setting :3 ^^

Afro Samurai – Review The 2003 Afro Samurai pilot is a short but intriguing intro to what would later become a much more fleshed-out anime series. At around 5 minutes, it's more of a concept reel than a full episode but it still manages to pack in a good amount of personality and style. Visually, it’s gritty and sketchy, which actually works in its favor. The rough animation gives it an underground, raw kind of feel, like a visual mixtape mixing feudal Japan with futuristic tech. You get samurais, robots, and that unmistakable hip-hop influence all blended together and somehow, it kind of slaps. There’s not much inthe way of plot or dialogue here, but that’s not really the point. It’s more about the tone and world-building and it does a solid job of introducing you to the strange, violent, and stylish universe Afro inhabits. You can definitely see the seeds of what would later become the full-blown 2007 series.

That said, it’s not something I’d recommend as a standalone experience unless you’re curious about the origins of the show. There’s not enough meat here to really hook you if you’re going in cold. But as a pitch for a wild, genre-blending anime? It does exactly what it needs to do.

If you're a fan of the series or just into experimental anime concepts, it’s worth checking out. For everyone else, maybe just jump straight to the main show.

Before studio Gonzo adapted Afro Samurai in 2007, Madhouse released a pilot film back in 2003 to test the waters. The short does a great job at replicating the manga's art style by having a monochrome color pallete save for the splashes of red blood. There's also no story or dialogue to keep track of. It mostly features Afro cutting down an endless wave of enemies in his usual badass style. The scene that stuck out most to me was when Afro has sex with a woman I assume to be Okiku, his childhood friend and love interest. It's an extremely rare moment of intimacyfrom usually cold-blooded samurai.

The sex didn't feel like it was just there for fanservice. It was done to humanize Afro and show that he's capable of being vulnerable and having normal human emotions.This moment of passion is soon ruined by Ninja holding up a Kunai to Okiku's neck, prompting Afro to slash at him and end up beheading Okiku instead. I saw this as a brilliant metaphor for how Afro's self-destructive obsession with violence prevents him from forming any intimate relationships with anyone. Even moreso than his father's killer, Afro is his own worst enemy.

I have to hand it up to Takeshi Koike for his impeccable animation. Each shot is filled with snappy and frentic energy that takes the actions scenes to the next level. I truly wish he would've returned to direct the TV anime cause nobody can animate the way he can. The soundtrack is the cherry on top since it features 3 amazing hiphop songs by Cyne, Gang Star, and N.E.R.D. Takashi Okazaki was heavily inspired by American hip-hop when creating the manga so the music here perfectly fits the tone of the series. Definitely recommend viewers to check out the songs featured in the pilot.