X
- 2021
- TV-MA
- Netflix
- 2021
- TV-MA
- Netflix
- 2021
- TV-MA
- Netflix
- 2021
- TV-MA
- Netflix
Yasuke
Season 1 Premiere: Apr 29, 2021
72
7.2
Where to Watch
Where to Watch
All Seasons
Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 9 Critic Reviews
72
67% Positive
6 Reviews
6 Reviews
33% Mixed
3 Reviews
3 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 9 Critic Reviews
72
67% Positive
6 Reviews
6 Reviews
33% Mixed
3 Reviews
3 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
At once familiar and novel, it remixes disparate parts into a coherent whole, providing a new twist on the archetypal samurai hero. Not to mention that, when it gets down to fighting business, it downright slays.
There are far worse critiques a show can sustain than the observation that there's not enough of it, or that it stuffs too many attention-grabbing elements in too small of a space. It simply means "Yasuke" would be better if there were more of it, and either by accident or intentionally Thomas and his collaborators leave enough about this hero shrouded to make room for that to occur.
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 60 User Ratings
7.2
72% Positive
43 Ratings
43 Ratings
10% Mixed
6 Ratings
6 Ratings
18% Negative
11 Ratings
11 Ratings
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 60 User Ratings
7.2
72% Positive
43 Ratings
43 Ratings
10% Mixed
6 Ratings
6 Ratings
18% Negative
11 Ratings
11 Ratings
Yasuke is not only providing the historical context but also artistic images in the fiction world, which made the show a unique masterpiece. I never knew there was a black Samurai in Japan until I watch Yasuke! Beautiful art and music also entertain the whole story. I enjoyed watching it. Super creative and amazing show. Must watch!
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This show is stunning…the visuals, the characters, the music. It all combines perfectly! It takes you on a thrilling journey through an unconventional fantasy/historical world. Only thing missing is season 2…
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“Yasuke” hits the spot for any anime lover while offering new subversions to the samurai genre. It raises questions regarding racism and sexism. And it never shies away from real ruthlessness. While the story features a few too many dots that need connecting, “Yasuke” connects in every other way for maximum bloody impact.
For all its gore, Yasuke is, at its core, a comforting fairy tale about good versus evil. Though unconcerned with the motivations of megalomaniacs, it conveys the true function of institutional power: to engorge and exert itself.
While liberal with its influences (Dororo and Samurai Champloo come to mind), the show sometimes struggles to find its own individual identity. Fans of the Castlevania anime will notice Yasuke follows a similar formula, jampacking its short-form season with gradually bigger (leading to gargantuan) enemies until an explosive final battle. Nevertheless, the show is certainly worth watching if just for its sumptuous animation and impeccable score.
“Yasuke” is too preoccupied with its wacky video game escort mission story and action to dig into what Yasuke’s boundary-breaking work actually means to him and the people he coexists with. There’s also a noticeable lack of attention for the show’s supporting female characters, many of whom have exciting superpowers but otherwise lack characterization.
It’s tempting to try and look for something else going on in Yasuke, because everything else about it feels somewhat slight. The action scenes are fun to watch—because how could they not be when they involve a samurai and robots and magic—but there are diminishing returns when every fight has a bigger robot or a more foreboding monster.
Amid the mind-blowing smorgasbord of a heart-thumping soundtrack, superb animation, well-developed characters and explosive fight scenes, it's easy to miss LeSean Thomas's deft satirization of institutional power and systemic bias. But therein lies the genius of this narrative. Art truly imitates life in Thomas's titular character. A fantastic piece of work; well done!
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Amazing innovation for the anime world! Fictional indeed because Yasuke’s story is not fully know. I’m glad they did not try to invent facts
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So, Let’s get the positives out of the way first, cause honestly there are not that many. The animation of this show is outstanding, I honestly still can’t believe that animation is still getting better and better with new shows like this, Castlevania and you can tell Netflix is now considering dedicating a lot more into animated shows. The background drawings are gorgeous. There is a minimal amount of 3D animation but its used sparingly and at moments where it makes sense like large army movements but it is hardly noticeable. And that’s all I really have to say in terms of the good. The bad, first off, the characters are just so damn flat. They are boring and play to their archetypal parts like Yasuke, the old and jaded samurai who no longer wishes to take up the sword but has a strong moral compass. The young companion with mysterious powers that she is completely oblivious to at first and is a constant damsel in distress. That’s essentially the depth to our leads. I love Lekeith stanfield and I love how he acts and his ability to show expression in his eyes but none of that translates well to voice over which comes off very flat as well. And that goes for almost the entire cast for a show that was animated for their English voices. You never understand any character’s motivations. The most interesting part of Yasuke is his backstory, a black man once a servant who rises in the ranks to become a top rank Samurai in an army. But all of that is told in backstory. And just in clips that choose to focus on action over character development so that does nothing for understanding Yasuke or his motivations, we don’t even understand how he gained such a unwavering moral compass. He just has it in the first flash back we see of him. Overall this show was so disappointing. I was really hoping this would be a great start to a Netflix original animated series but it turned out to be another generic action fluff that will absolutely be forgotten a day after you finish it.
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Las peleas y la animacion estan bien.
La historia es donde todo se va para abajo, en resumen, como que a la mitad de la serie se acordaron que solo tenian presupuesto para 6 capitulos y habia que acabar la horrible historia de samurais, mechas y magia de alguna forma.
no vale la pena ni para hacer ruido de fondo mientras estas en el movil.
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Production Company:
- Mappa
- Netflix
Initial Release Date: Apr 29, 2021
Number of seasons: 1 Season
Rating: TV-MA
Awards
Hollywood Music In Media Awards (HMMA)
• 1 Nomination
Image Awards (NAACP)
• 1 Nomination
