August 2018

Posted: 23 August 2018

I decided to integrate the posts for seasons 3 and 4 because they are essentially the same quality. Season 5 in its entirety, a whole other story, has been watched. A review will be posted as soon as its written.

Seasons 3 (watched from 26 July to 3 August) and 4 (6 August to 14 August) retain the show’s superb condition as Jack continues to chase down Aku and a portal to the past. The series shows its seriousness through darker-themed episodes. Despite this darken-ness there are still some light parts that make me smile because this show makes me happy. No matter how badly Jack gets beaten up and and scratched, oftentimes the bruises and scratches disappear by the next scene. Another thing I really like about Jack is that never gives up. He can’t when he has a big quest to accomplish.

Is it just me or starting in late season 3, Jack looks a bit older? The accumulating lines on his face must be a result of a long journey spanning several years but they make him look wiser.

In a season 3 episode’s credits (Episode XXXI), we see more relatives temporarily join the crew. “Randy Mters” and “James Tin Walker” do a fine job at sheet timing. They are let go as soon as they hire a better person to type out the ending credits without typos.

Notable Episodes in Season 3 (asterisk notates the names I made up):

Episodes XXXVII and XXXVIII (Birth of Evil, Parts 1 and 2)-This episode shines light on how Aku came into existence and how Jack received his sword. This is a very important episode for reference in later episodes, namely in the season 5 episodes.

Episode XXXV (Jack and the Haunted House*)- When you watch this episode, try to watch in surround sound or with really good headphones. Bonus points if you watch at night. I say this episode was made for such devices as there are effects that were made to startle and to put you in suspense.

Bonus: Episode XXXIX (Secret Agent Jack*)- Not spoiling much but this is another episode where Jack “jumps good.”

Notable Episodes in Season 4

Episode XLIX (The Four Seasons and Jack*)- I swear that there are some instances when it looks like Jack gets hurt and needs to go to the hospital. There’s are no modern hospitals to be found on this show; even in the future! Also we never see Jack injured to the point he can’t continue with his mission but we did see him sick in another episode. This is the episode that showcases the extremes of each season and the how he deals with them.

Episode LII (Jack Finds a Baby*)- This episodes shows a fatherly side to Jack not shown in any other episode. Jack must have had a pretty good father and father figures to have inherited the parenting skills he demonstrated. All that while still on his quest.

Common Voices/Characters

More excellent work from the voice actors as well. I have to say at times when I hear Jack speak, I think of Wilt from Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends (Yes, same voice actor). At times throughout these seasons, Grey DeLisle (now “Grey Griffin”) voices a minor character or villain. Oftentimes DeLisle’s character interacts with Jack such as in the season 3 train episode (Episode XXIX). I understand Grey DeLisle and Phil LaMarr have lent their voices to other shows but when I see their characters together, I can’t help but think about Fluffernutter and Jackie Khones (voices by DeLisle and LaMarr, respectively) also of Foster’s Home. They were also on Evil con Carne as Hector con Carne and Major Doctor Ghastly, to name another example.

Seasons 3 and 4 are just as good as seasons 1 and 2 but with more characters introduced, there are more opportunities for story ideas. Season 4 was the last season in the show’s initial run. The last episode wasn’t an ending to the series at all. If you’ve come this far watching all of seasons 1-4, you must watch all of season 5 for an ending (more on that later). Yes, all 4 seasons were fine but it just left fans hanging when it ended in 2004.

Posted:  2 August 2018

Jack’s quest for a portal to the past continues in season 2. This time the storylines had more depth, fight scenes were less boring compared to season 1, and more stories took place outside the futuristic city.  Also in season 2, we saw a wider variety of villains other than Aku, such as robots and monsters, antagonize these 13 episodes. 

Notable Episodes

In Season 2 (watched from July 17th to July 26th), there was a variety of different story types. These range from the noble stories of the rescue of the Scottsman’s wife and Jack finding his childhood home in ruins (thanks to Aku). There were also some silly stories, namely the flatulent dragon episode and the theft of Jack’s clothes and sword (must have been a fun ep to make *wink*). One of my favorite eps was when Jack was searching for a new pair of shoes.

Voice acting and Phil’s Twin Brother

The voice acting continues to intrigue. One of the notable mentions include the talented Kevin Michael Richardson’s many character voices on this show. I like how he used his trademark deep voice and added variation by adding different accents to the wide array of characters. It also seems that in the later copyright 2001 episodes, Phil LaMarr stepped down from voicing Jack and his twin brother “Pill” LaMarr stepped in and did quite a fine job. It was like Phil never left. Phil returned in the early copyright 2002 episodes. How do I know about this? It’s this (highlight to read): “There was a typo in the credits in the ‘voices’ section. Heehee!“

Another fine season

The cast and crew of Samurai Jack continue to bat 1000 in season 2. Season 2 is just as good as season 1 but the surprises keep on coming. If I can have likings to Genndy Tartakovsky’s other works such as the comedic Dexter’s Laboratory and the sci-fi of Sym-bionic Titan, I just had to give the fantasy adventure Samurai Jack the light of day and I’m glad I did. Finishing season 2 made me excited for more adventures in season 3 and for what’s to come in season 4 and 5.

I should finish watching season 3 by Friday. I will have a review posted as soon as I finish writing it.