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Yasuke - First Thoughts

Yasuke - First Thoughts

Posted on 11 May 2021

Arriving with a fanfare, the Netflix original anime produced by MAPPA and conceived by Tokyo-based artist LeSean Thomas has the weight of the current racial zeitgeist behind it.

Perhaps inspired by the historical Yasuke, strong black African Samurai have featured in popular anime before - the Emmy-winning anime adaptation of Takashi Okazaki's doujin series  Afro Samurai was aired in 2007 and starred Samuel L. Jackson in the title role. With high production values it was a fan favourite that even now has a live-action film in development. Samurai 7 also mixed technology and history, and featured a black character to represent the powerful Second Samurai Katayama Gorobei

Now we have an anime based on the inspiration, I confess I would have liked to have seen a more grounded take on the story, without falling back on technology and magic. His story is fascinating enough that he needs no enhancements, but LeSean Thomas has seen fit to exaggerate the tale regardless.

The first episode skips around the timeline somwhat, starting with the fateful attack on Lord Nobunaga, the feudal ruler who took an interest in Yasuke at a local market and made him a servant in the royal court. True to history, this battle is lost, and Yasuke is next seen as the "Black Boatman" some years later, living a life of peace and exile, regretful of his Lord's downfall. While the opening battle was impressive, especially the mechanical design, I much preferred the more traditional elements that make up the majority of the episode.

The series certainly looks impressive- the dappled trees in lush forests, the textures on boats and rocks, it all lends a great deal of depth to the visuals, right down to representation of village life. In fact the only elements I didn't care much for were the fantastical ones toward the end of the episode; having taken on the duty of escorting a sick girl and her mother to a doctor upstream, the trio are attacked by a robot, a werewolf, a shaman and a lady with a big scythe. We've seen this before in the Ninja Scroll TV series, though admittedly that never looked this good. 

Voice acting is fine in the English dub, with no jarring performances to take you out of the episode, and the music by Flyng Locus is suitably punchy.

There are a few oddities though. The biggest of these is why the soldiers in the opening battle look caucasion? Especially when the villager shown laters are drawn to look distinctly Japanese? If you're highlighting the unusual situation of a stranger in Japanese society, you really need to highlight that difference and not dilute it by making the cast look international (perhaps this is explained later). 

Will I be watching episode 2? Honestly I'm in no rush.

Despite the current climate, if we needed representation in anime, yet another Black Samurai in a tech/historical mash-up really wasn't it.  The series lacks the style of Afro Samurai and incorporating tired tropes from similar series from 20 years ago really hurts it. For those who haven't seen the aforementioned shows, this will absolutely capture the imagination, and has a good chance to go on and pick up some awards itself. Production values are slick, direction strong and the central character charismatic (in no small part down to a strong and reserved central performance courtesy of LaKeith Stanfield). It just doesn't feel like a story that needed all the flashy window dressing, especially not a robot that talks like a modern person and fires ice. It just makes the series seem a bit silly.

While I accept that my preference for a more down-to-Earth setting won't be shared by everyone (and to those of you who like fantastic silliness, more power to you), I feel Yasuke suffers a disservice by emulating the very best in this specific genre and inviting unfavourable comparison. 

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