Bamboo Blade: Complete Series [DVD] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC]

Bamboo Blade, an anime that you won't typically find remarkable but at the same time you will enjoy every moment when watching, it may not rank as anime of the year but one thing it has above virtually all anime out there in recent years, is that it's simply suitable for any age, there's no fanservice, swearing or anything remotely wrong in this show.

The story is based around Kendo, a teacher with little to no prospects in life finds himself in charge of the schools Kendo team and tasked with recruiting a team of 5 girls to go up against his best friend, and also rivals Kendo team from another school.

Initially focusing on the recruitment of the characters and the building of a team, Bamboo Blade introduces some fairly ordinary characters into the mix, certainly not the kind of people you would expect to play Kendo.

Tama is a Kendo goddess, showing all the remarkable reflex's and skill to become a Kendo champion, when she is introduced to the story she in my eyes becomes the main character of the show. Tama loves anime, she initially doesn't want to get involved with the team as she is a shy, yet quiet girl.

This in my eyes is where Bamboo Blade excels. Although a lot of the focus is on Tama, the story switches between the characters such as Kirino, and the other girls in the team, and goes a little into their personalitys, background and generally tries to get you the viewer to accept them.

Now with this being said, a lot of the story is based around the high school, and the team training for matches, finals, tournaments. Whilst this is going on it delves into Tamas character.

Bamboo Blade has a lot to offer for anyone looking for a more laid back anime. It has a lot of emphasis on character interaction, slice of life elements, and the basic love hate characters that pop up during the story.

I like the series. The dub is alright too, animation is good.

At first I thought that this would just be another filler series for me while I waited for something more significant to come out. Well, I absolutely loved it!! It was a sleeper series for me and I couldn't have been any happier with it. The characters and their personalities are fun to watch and when it was over I wanted more. It is a light hearted series that someone of any age will be able to enjoy.

Bamboo Blade is an anime released in 2007 and is based on the Japanese manga of the same name. Written by Masahiro Totsuka and released under the direction of Hisashi Saitou, Blade tells the story of Kojiro, a comically unlucky high school kendo sensei tasked with the training of five girls.

To begin with, it should be noted that my personal preference concerning series-style anime falls aggressively outside of this particular genre. My favorites are Samurai Champloo, Afro Samurai, and Ergo Proxy, to name a few. The are clearly successful but mainstream titles. Because of this, I thought I'd do well to broaden my horizons and picked up Bamboo Blade on some instinctual whim. This can be blamed partially on the cover art but mostly in an attempt to find something my wife would enjoy with me. She's Japanese and leans a bit more towards the bubbly side of anime.

Neither of us were disappointed.

The show is oddly funny and I like that. Sometimes cheeky but more often sly, the jokes pop up randomly and are finely executed. My wife finds a bit more humor in the show than I do but I often catch myself laughing and looking forward to certain characters because of it. Dan-kun, for example, is voiced expertly by Akira Ishida and an absolute joy to listen to. So much so that I'll be looking for works with his involvement specifically. The man is funny.

The animation is top shelf considering the show's length and it's obvious that great effort was put into making Bamboo Blade look as nice as it does. I think there's a token structure here regarding the character designs but the detail in the clothing and environments leave nil to be desired. It's of some interest to me, also, that the animation style will change within an episode depending on the mood. The majority of the work is of the solid anime-style animation, but when the mood turns goofy, so does the penciling. I imagine the switch is prevalent in anime but it's not something I'm used to and I've found it a refreshing wiggle.

The character development is legitimate regardless of the simple storyline. It all boils down to five girls training in kendo, which is fairly unremarkable, but as the show progresses they become cleverly individualized through their own background stories and nuances. Miya-Miya, for example, moves along at an intriguing pace and I was excited to learn more about her as the show worked towards its climax.

It was also nice to learn a little about kendo. As with any sport, especially in uptight Japan, there are tried practices and procedures to be adhered to and it seems they've exhibited a dedication to these here. They break down the steps, the swings, the pain, and the bouts. You'll learn a little about the gear and a lot about their battle-screams. If you're interested in kendo, this could be worth your time.

Now, if you're a highly conservative parent and are planning on handing this off to your child, you may want to do some online reviewing of the content. Note that I said, "highly conservative", though. There are teenage Japanese girls in their school attire which can be titillating for some, I imagine. The skirts are short and the show tends to showcase that lack of fabric on occasion. You don't see underwear but there are implications. Legs and breasts are zoomed in on here and there but it never gets nasty. Just be warned.

In the end, I think my only complaint would be the flat plot. There's not much flare in the everyday and this show definitely focuses on the everyday. As I said before, however, the characters and humor written in more than make up for this.

Considering the low prices I'm seeing on Amazon, I'd recommend adding this to your library.

Thanks for your time,

- t