Anime TV Online - Watch Ninja Scroll Online here

I think this was the first ever anime movie I've watch. Way back in the ninetees I checked my video store for some cool movie that I haven't seen and went to the animated movies section. There was a bunch of Disney movies, the usual suspects, but I noticed something unusual as well... It was called Ninja Scroll and had a cool cover!

That was the first time I've seen the word Manga (as in Manga Entertainment, the company that licensed it). At the time I thought it was just a funny name for a company, because Manga is better known in Portugal as a fruit - in English it's called mango.

Anyway, I rented it. And from that blissful day until now I can say I have seen Ninja Scroll dozens of times. And became an anime enthusiast! And, yes, now I know what Manga means!

Ninja Scroll is a great display of artistry and imagination from the acclaimed Yoshiaki Kawajiri. Created in 1993, Ninja Scroll sets it's stage in feudal japan, and provides a very entertaining story full of political intrigue, machiavelical twists, awesome action scenes and original characters!

In fact, if I have to name the strongest point of Ninja Scroll I have to point my finger to character design. The Eight Devils of Kimon (yes, you guessed it, these are the bad guys all right! ^_^' ) are one of the best group of villains I have ever seen in TV history. Each has a unique power, visual and style that won't make you forget them easily. Oh, and they're also very twisted - but even then you'll see that each and every one has a different kind of nastiness about him / her.

If you match this group with our 'good guys'...

• Jubei Kibagami, the ninja for hire, a typical lone-wolf that has a lot of carisma - not to mention tremendous swordplay;
• Kagero, a sexy female ninja whose tecnique is... let's call it bittersweet; (I hate spoilers!);
• and Dakuan, a kind of Yoda clone only he doesn't use the Force and is way more wicked (actually I'm having trouble placing him in the good guys list; he only joins Jubei to advance his own hidden agenda).

... what you'll get is an action-packed movie full of some of the best fighting sequences I have ever witnessed.

I'm talking about innovative stuff here, full of cool tricks and gimmicks that will make the fights believable even despite the fantastic special powers that are involved. In fact, the most "normal" ninja in the whole show is actually Jubei Kibagami. It's a delight to see how he manages to win against such formidable adversaries, overcoming impossible odds in ways that don't look forced.

Music is very, very good. Some of the tracks will stick in your hears for a long time. They are filled with tension and emotion, befitting this anime genre. I personally have this soundtrack album by Kaoru Wada and after many years it's still makes me remember a lot of scenes from the movie every time I hear it.

The voice acting is also very nice - even the english dubbed version is very good, which isn't that common in animes, especially from this time.

Animation is excellent. With a more realistic kind of drawing that you'll find in most animes, the artwork is stunning and all the scenes are very well made - you won't find cheap cuts in frame rates here, not even on the most intensive fighting scenes.

All in all, Ninja Scroll is a great movie. It doesn't have a deep story, but it's complex enough to avoid being predictable. It has great characters, great animation, sound and battle scenes. So, as far as this genre goes, Ninja Scroll delivers on every aspect.

It's a recommendation by me for sure!

The videos posted on this page concerning the anime show were not uploaded by me on the video servers. They have lower quality than the originals and it's main purpose is for the viewer to have contact with a work not seen previously.

If you liked what you saw PLEASE BUY the original product in the links of Amazon I provided or in another official retailer.