Kaze No Yojimbo Anime Review

Kaze No Yojimbo

Bandai Entertainment
Complete Collection - 25 episodes
625 mins. - 6 discs
$49.98 (2006)
ISBN 669198235061
Japanese/English Audio - English Subtitles
Director - Hayato Date
Studio - Studio Pierrot

Synopsis: George Kodama shows up in Shinijuku looking for a man named Genzo Araki to ask him some questions.  He quickly realizes the town is not quite what it seems and people are hiding something.  Two rival gangs have an uneasy truce in town until George begins stirring things up.  He winds up bodyguard to the daughter of one of the crime bosses.  Keep your friends close and your enemies closer. 

It's slow going for George, but he eventually gathers clues to the whereabouts of his long lost brother and a train full of gold bars which went missing near the town fifteen years ago.  The secret could get him and a lot of other people killed as old secrets bring deadly consequences.  Can George solve the mystery before the people he cares about get hurt?

Another bowl of ramen eaten at Tonbo

Pros: George can kick some ass and eats a lot of ramen, chicks dig him and guys want to be like him, George smokes

Cons: This story is really boring and excruciatingly slow-paced, character designs and animation are bland, CG looks terrible, has these weird scene cuts with static elements which are distracting (probably used to save money on actual animation), soundtrack is awful, dub acting is weak

High school girls love this guy

Mike Tells It Straight: Title literally translates to "bodyguard of the wind" and based on Akira Kurosawa's film Yojimbo.  This show was oppressively slow-paced and I was too bored to care when the 'big reveal' ending finally happened.  I highly recommend avoiding this sucker unless you're specifically looking for a slow-paced, drama/mystery with a terrible soundtrack and weak animation. 

TO BUY and Recommendations: