Forum - View topicHow the Film Influenced Anime: The Seven Samurai vs. Samurai 7
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One-Eye
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From the banner:
Obscurity? Maybe if you were a pup when it first came out or are new to the fandom. It was on tv (IFC, Adult Swim, the Funimation Channel), I think it streamed on Hulu and Funimation (Crunchyroll too?). It had its chance, if it languishes (and there seems to be a fair number of people who have seen it so I'm not sure it does) maybe its because it really doesn't stand out in comparison to other shows of the time? I certainly wouldn't put it in my top ten of the 2000s. What I recall from when I saw it was that the flaws cancelled out many of its strengths. I could almost like it, or I only liked some of its parts, but as a whole it wasn't satisfying enough to warrant a later purchase when it came out on Blu-ray. |
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CrownKlown
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Great article and I pretty agree across the board. The anime really reminded me of gankutsuou, which managed to share the DNA of the original but build upon it and do it'd own thing as well. Like author said there are flaws but these are two examples of what a remake should actually be. It's not just a scene for scene retread like any of these us remakes, it has the spirit but does its own thing.
For me the strongest aspect of samurai 7 in particular is the characterization. I love kurosawa but honestly outside of mifune, the other six samurai were pretty interchangeable and I couldn't view them as unique characters . But whether it's design the scifi mech setting , each character in the anime feels unique . Also to the poster above the fact that it was shown on all those channels not to mention it got about three DVD release including really nice limited edition plus at least two Blu Ray releases suggests to me it did quite well. I think what author means by under the radar is being in the shadow of the original film. Also shout out to seven samurai 2020, a ps2 game also based on seven samurai . |
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enurtsol
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Sanae is worst character, while Magnificent Seven does better justice
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SHD
Posts: 1752 |
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I watched it when it aired on TV in Japan, and I don't remember any significant discussion about it. Frankly, to me the show was a huge disappointment as a Seven Samurai pastiche, and overall a middling mess, just like Romeo x Juliet that came after it and had very similar issues. (The only positive I can say about the show overall is that it wasn't as terrible a mess as Glass Fleet.) Not all anime that are forgotten today are buried treasure, there are many, such as this one, that deserve to languish in obscurity. Gonzo had much better shows that aren't remembered today. (Gankutsuou. Yukikaze. Blue Sub 6. Or hell, Red Garden, anyone? That was a great show, until the point where it wasn't, but fortunately that point came rather late.) Frankly I think the show suffered from trying to integrate Seven Samurai into the story it actually wanted to tell. It makes many deviations from the Kurosawa movie but then keeps many moments and beats, which however don't make sense in the anime due to all the differences. The battles are boring because you never feel like there's any actual danger, the samurai being basically superhumans. The characters are one-note (yes, they're expanded from their movie originals but it's all just random things that are never explored or developed) except for the one Ukyo who completely steals every scene he's in, and yet feels like he's wasted on the show. Also, the animation was surprisingly crude, considering how much noise they made about the stellar budget. I also wouldn't say it's in any way similar to Gankutsuou, other than the mechs I guess. Gankutsuou had a concept and an artistic vision that I've yet to see any anime match. |
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Maidenoftheredhand
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Is it really surprising that Samurai Seven has fallen into obscurity. It’s really not that good. Seven Samurai on the other hand is one of the best films ever made. And as someone mentioned of the many movies that played homage to it for me Magnificent Seven was the best (even Kurosawa liked that one) but nothing compares to the original. I am sure we will see more adaptions of the film in the future.
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Animegomaniac
Posts: 4074 |
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Samurai 7 is fine, as evidenced by enough people to come out of the shadow to rag on it. People don't talk about it today because there's too many shows to talk about with more coming out every season. But people don't talk about it because it's not a top ten show from the 2000s? Hundreds of shows aren't top ten material, only ten can be part of the ten and the fact that 7 isn't part of that ten isn't an indictment of the show itself.
I wouldn't even put Samurai 7 in my top ten Gonzo shows ... Ok, looking at my shelf, it's more a top 5 but when those other shows are Last Exile, Desert Punk, Vandread, Solty Rei... oh, I actively hate Gankutsuou, a show I described back in the 2000s as "someone found the unmoving plaid botton on their CG animation colorization process and weaponized it", a process so innovative that it's been used ever since... scratch that, it is in fact "used never again". Unmoving plaid still pops up now and then but nothing as offensive as that show. I love the Three Musketeers series so I should be fine with Dumas' Count of Monte Cristo but one's a tale of epic revenge, the other is an epic tale that includes a revenge plot; Three Musketeers to the Man in the Iron Mask, now THAT's a 26 episode series. "All for one and one for all 26 episodes!" But I digress. A fifth show.... OK, maybe I would put Samurai 7 exactly at 5 but that's out of Gonzo. But what about the notion that it should be excellent? I like Samurai movies, I don't like Samurai anime. An actor standing still for a minute is filled with tension and power, an animated character standing still for a minute is a still frame/ a cost cutting technique. It just doesn't translate. |
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