Samurai Champloo, Volume 7 (Episodes 24-26)
Director Shinichiro Watanabe brings his picaresque adventure-comedySamurai Champlooto its conclusion as Fuu, Mugen, and Jin reach Nagasaki. The final episodes showcase Watanabe's skill as a storyteller: earlier moments that seemed to be digressions turn out to hold more significance than viewers suspected. The mystery of the "samurai who smells of sunflowers" is revealed, although Americans may not understand the significance of his ties to the Shimabara Rebellion, an uprising of Christians and peasants in the 17th century. But Watanabe doesn't resort to Morris-the-explainer scenes: the revelations and back stories of the main characters are integrated into the narrative. Mugen and Jin battle foes in duels that recall the confrontation between Spike Spiegel and Vicious inCowboy Bebop. Watanabe said, "I actually like to travel, but, now that I'm finished with his project, I feel like I do when I come to the end of a really long trip." Fans ofSamurai Champloocan only hope that after a rest, he'll create new adventures for his outrageously mismatched trio. (Rated 16 and older: violence, violence against women, profanity, alcohol and tobacco use)--Charles Solomon