# Samurai Jack (2001)

> A displaced samurai fights his way across a bleak, robot-ruled future in search of a time portal home.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/2587

## Facts

- Seasons: 5
- Episodes: 60
- Episode runtime: 24 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: animation, action, science fiction, fantasy
- Created by: Genndy Tartakovsky
- Network: Cartoon Network, Adult Swim
- Cast: Phil LaMarr, Mako, Greg Baldwin, Tara Strong, John DiMaggio, Grey DeLisle, Dee Bradley Baker, Joe Alaskey
- TMDB rating: 8.5/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0278238/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: brisk
- Intensity: strong
- Complexity: accessible
- Violence: moderate
- Tone: stoic, mythic, wistful, harrowing, stylized, sparse

## What critics say

Acclaimed as a stylish, action-driven animated series with striking visual design and a sincere, mythic take on a lone warrior's quest, with audiences rating it highly across all five seasons.

## Synopsis

Samurai Jack (2001-2017) is an American animated action adventure series created by Genndy Tartakovsky for Cartoon Network and Adult Swim. The protagonist, a samurai known only as Jack (voiced by Phil LaMarr), is hurled into a distant future by the shape-shifting wizard Aku (voiced by Mako). Jack's drive is simple and unwavering: he wants to find a time portal that will return him to his own era and undo the future Aku has made. Standing in his way are Aku's robot warlords and hunters, along with the fantastic tribes he must cross, and most episodes are built around a self-contained battle or chase across a bleak, desaturated landscape. The series runs five seasons over sixty episodes, unfolding as one continuing quest rather than isolated case-of-the-week stories. Dialogue is sparse and the action is choreographed like silent cinema, with dramatic framing, a clean stylized look, and a solemn mythic tone. Its mood is stoic, wistful and sometimes harrowing, with flashes of dark humor. Fans of Avatar: The Last Airbender, Gargoyles and Castlevania will find resonance in its blend of animated action, lone-hero mythology and adult-leaning dark stakes, and its dystopian future setting gives it a feel closer to a samurai epic than a standard cartoon.

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