After 10+ years of an incomplete story, the much beloved Samurai Jack returns in a brand new, mature, and story closing season. Originally announced in 2015 and scheduled for 2016, Samurai Jack returns next Saturday night on Adult Swim’s Toonami block. Taking place 50 years after the events of the pilot, Jack wonders aimlessly without purpose in life as Aku bleeds the past, present, and future dry of hope under his psychotic reign. In a dark, dangerous, and bleek future, Jack faces Aku cult worshippers, robots, and much more in the closing to his epic journey.

Samurai Jack is an 2001 animated series, it is produced by Cartoon Network Studios and Williams Street, it is distributed by WB Television.

Editor’s Note: This review for Samurai Jack Season 5’s premiere and second episode contains minor to major spoilers ahead of it’s March 11th premiere.

Jack’s trademark sword is no more (for now), he uses weapons found throughout the world and previously carried by defeated enemies to protect himself.

Starting in 1998 Cartoon Network began experimenting with action focused cartoons, this would culminate with the launch of The Powerpuff Girls, and eventually lead to the creation of Samurai Jack, both of which would become cult favorites a decade after their original debuts, as well as reboots for modern TV. In Samurai Jack’s case its reboot would be far more mature in content with a looser focus on alien and robot enemies, opting instead to focus on human antagonist, which means there will be blood, lots, and lots of blood, not all of which will be coming from Jack himself.

Jack’s evasion of his quest will haunt him mentally.

THE GOOD: In the revisioned fifth season of Samurai Jack, Jack’s personality has greatly changed. The calm, collected, kind hearted warrior we knew four seasons ago is gone, now we have a much older (though unaged), tough hardened, battle worn shell of his former self. Jack is mentally damaged due to his failure and the loss of the one weapon which could defeat his enemy Aku. Now he wanders while making tough choices in an effort to simply survive this harsh new world he resides. The first episode acts as a bit of an homage to the former direction of the series, it isn’t until episode two when the new direction kicks into overdrive.

Lands in ruin, burning to ash by the hands of Aku.

Jack up until the start of the season had been on the run from/fighting armies of robots, but in episode two he faces his first human enemies “The Children of Aku”, a cult that worships its titular master aiming to rid him of any and all who cause him harm. Originally believing them to be more robots, Jack is stunned and nearly broken when he sees human blood for the first time after killing one of the seven sisters from the cult tasked with hunting him and ending his life. Before the series debut of blood, the sisters beat Jack mercilessly, destroying and taking his weapons, they even break his armor into pieces effortlessly.

The Children of Aku pray to their master.

THE BAD: Episode XCII doesn’t really add much to the story until the last ten or so minutes.

Not the Jack you’re used to.

OVERALL THOUGHTS: Samurai Jack makes an excellent return with classic humor and action, but a much darker and grittier tone than before. Jack’s unstable psyche & personality change will be a huge part of the new direction, both of which drive the story well. While it could be said that the addition of blood and uber violence is nothing but a gimmick, that’s really not the case as Genndy Tartakovsky really aids the feel of Jack’s new character with it. The closing arc to Jack’s journey is off to a fantastic start and I can’t wait to see how it all ends. Otaku Dome gives Samurai Jack XCII a 80 out of 100 and XCIII a 92 out of 100.