# Ninja Scroll: The Series (2003)

> Fourteen years after defeating an immortal warrior, a masterless swordsman named Kibagami Jubei wanders feudal Japan and meets Shigure, a priestess who has never left her village.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/24982

## Facts

- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 13
- Episode runtime: 24 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: animation, action, fantasy
- Created by: Tatsuo Sato
- Network: WOWOW Prime
- Cast: Rikiya Koyama, Seizo Kato, Hideyuki Tanaka, Romi Park, Yuzuru Fujimoto, Houko Kuwashima, Norio Wakamoto, Mami Koyama
- TMDB rating: 6.8/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0400690/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: brisk
- Intensity: strong
- Complexity: accessible
- Violence: graphic
- Tone: brooding, hard boiled, sardonic, violent, melancholic

## What critics say

Audience reception is mixed, with viewers appreciating the action and animation of this sequel-style samurai OVA-era series while finding its uneven tone and fan-service elements divisive.

## Synopsis

Ninja Scroll: The Series (2003) is a Japanese adult animated action series created by Tatsuo Sato and produced by Madhouse. Fourteen years after defeating the immortal warrior Himuro Genma, the masterless swordsman Kibagami Jubei (voiced by Rikiya Koyama) roams the roads of feudal Japan with no lord and no home. His journey takes a turn when he meets Shigure (voiced by Houko Kuwashima), a priestess who has never seen the world beyond her village and who is drawn into his dangerous path. Along the way the pair face supernatural rivals, hired blades and the schemes of the Shogun of the Dark, with each episode built around a new confrontation. The thirteen-episode run is a single continuing story, with action-driven set pieces and hard boiled, sardonic exchanges between Jubei and his companions. Its tone mixes brooding melancholy with bloody swordplay and sudden flashes of erotic indulgence. Set in an Edo-inspired Japan of mountain passes, villages and ruined temples, the series will appeal to fans of Ninja Scroll (1993), Blade of the Immortal and Samurai 7, who want dark samurai adventure with supernatural menace.

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