Fist of the Rurouni Kenshin

I've been watching Rurouni Kenshin TV lately. For those who don't know, Kenshin was a popular anime TV series that ran for three seasons in the late 1990's, based on a hugely popular manga series. It tells the story of Kenshin Himura, an ex-assassin living in a peaceful age, who has pledged to give up killing but is pursued by many old and new rivals.

I just finished the first season (of three), and the show's in setup mode. The main characters are interacting and growing used to each other. The spunky boy faces some serious consequences and grows up a bit. It's one of the things I like about the show: unlike most shonen series, the characters grow noticeably and quickly.

Villains usually pose one of the biggest problems in any shonen series. Villains usually fall into one of two categories: the Trickster and the Doomsday Villain. The trickster uses some strange trick to fight -- in a recent episode of Kenshin, one used invisibly thin wires to restrain his opponent -- and the hero must figure out the trick. The doomsday villain seems impossibly powerful, swatting away the hero's attacks with ease, until the hero finds that last reserve of strength and overpowers the villain.

Kenshin has its share of these. Fortunately, they're presented in entertaining ways: Either the character itself has a distinctive personality, or the structure of the overall story keeps the episode interesting (such as a mystery story).

[http://www.otakunovideo.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/raijuta_isurugi.jpg|175x175px|Raijuta Isurugi]

Then Kenshiro from Fist of the North Star shows up.

In episode 19, a boy seeks a master to teach him swordsmanship, and stumbles on a rough-and-tumble type named Raijuta who looks suspiciously like Kenshiro.

Now, on the one hand, it's easy to laugh at this. It's easy to assume that Watsuki ran out of character ideas.

But...

For one thing, Raijuta and Ken do not share the same personality. They're both quiet and stoic, but Ken's a tragic, somewhat morbid character (from what little I've seen of him), while Raijuta is more forward-looking, and not nearly as over-the-top as Ken. Raijuta doesn't scream his attacks.

For another, c'mon, it is fun to see a character "cross over" into another anime. What's so wrong with that?

Thirdly, and I think this is the most important thing: Raijuta serves a specific purpose in Kenshin. This isn't like a tournament show, where he'd just be another powerful bad guy for the protagonist to fight. Raijuta is woven into a story about trust, betrayal, and pursuing dark goals. Indeed, when Raijuta and Kenshin first formally meet, Raijuta respectfully asks Kenshin to join him, in deference to Kenshin's experience.

So. Trickster villains and doomsday villains can work in a shonen title, just as long as they further the story.