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While Cowboy Bebop often tops discussions about the top anime in history, its artistic counterpart, Samurai Champloo, merits similar recognition. The influence of this historical epic continues to echo today, most recently in Sony's major Ghost series.

Enhanced Tributes

This latest Ghost of Yotei, the follow-up to the original PlayStation 5 game, deepens its tribute to Japanese period dramas with the inclusion of the classic film mode. This option offers black-and-white visuals, vintage film look, and old-school sound. Fresh features include the intense director mode, which sharpens the camera and heightens violence and filth; and the anime-inspired mode, featuring a chill beat soundtrack shaped by the filmmaker's guidance.

For those curious about the second one, Watanabe is the mastermind who created the jazz-infused the space opera and the hip-hop-driven Samurai Champloo, among other celebrated anime.

The Blend of Eras

Watanabe’s classic 2004 anime the groundbreaking series blends Edo-period Japan with hip-hop culture and contemporary attitudes. It follows the unexpected group of the wild swordsman, a reckless and spontaneous warrior; the calm ronin, a calm and disciplined masterless samurai; and the brave waitress, a brave teenager who hires them on her quest to find “the warrior with a floral scent.”

While the audio landscape is fundamentally his creation, much of the series' music was shaped by renowned musician Nujabes, who passed away in 2010 at the young age of 36. Nujabes deserves his flowers next to Watanabe when it comes to the sound the anime is known for and pays homage to in the new game.

Style Mixing

Much of what made the series shine on the cable schedule was its perfect fusion of urban music and Japanese heritage. That combination has been a mainstay in the music scene since Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) in 1993, which itself was inspired by an whole cohort being raised on action cinema with Bruce Lee and Sonny Chiba.

For many, the programming block and Samurai Champloo served as an introduction to chill beats, with producers like Nujabes, the rapper, and Flying Lotus, the last one of whom went on to compose for the Netflix anime Yasuke.

Artistic Narration

Stylized and symbolic, Champloo’s opening introduces the leads through kindred animals in the scene — the wild one struts like a rooster, while Jin moves with the composed, fluid style of a koi. Although Champloo’s protagonists are the star of the series, its side players are where the true heart of the anime can be found.

There’s thief Shinsuke, who has a heartbreaking background of perseverance in a specific installment, and another character named Yamane, whose encounters with Mugen affect him so deeply that Yamane ends up in his memoirs years later. In the specific installment, “the episode title,” the ronin becomes enamored with a wedded lady trafficked named the female character and assists her departure from a establishment.

A Cohesive Journey

At first glance, the full season appears to tell a episodic adventure of the group's travels to encountering the elusive figure, but as the series unfolds, events from past chapters begin to interconnect to form a unified story. Every experience our main characters experience along the way has an effect on both the characters and the broader story.

Era References

The series also incorporates historical happenings (the same time period as the game), interpreted by Watanabe’s creative revisions. Events like the feudal conflict and places such as the Hakone Checkpoint (which Yamane watches over) are woven into the story.

In the beginning, ukiyo-e artist Hishikawa Moronobu appears and temporarily obsesses on Fuu as his inspiration. After she turns him down, his work later ends up with the hands of Vincent van Gogh, who, in Champloo’s fictional history, is motivated to create his famous sunflower paintings.

Continuing Legacy

All of these aspects tie closely into the anime's soundtrack, giving this warrior tale the kind of distinct identity that other works have long tried to achieve. Series like the urban samurai series (featuring Wu-Tang’s RZA), the hip-hop anime, and Yasuke all tried to capture its blend of style and sound, but with mixed results.

Ghost of Yotei has the potential to pick up where the classic anime ended, triggering a fresh surge of influence much like the anime once did. If you’re playing the game, it’s valuable revisiting Champloo, because without it, there’d be no “Watanabe mode,” no trend of hip-hop-infused anime, and no continuing impact of Nujabes, from which the influence comes.