「津南と錦絵」 (Tsunan to Nishiki-e)
“Tsunan & Nishiki Paintings”
I don’t think even the fiercest partisans of the 1996 anime would deny that this version is more faithful to the manga (though they might argue the merits of that). But this reboot of Rurouni Kenshin is by no means a panel-to-panel adaptation. It inserts a few original scenes here and there, and I mostly think it works well. One such example is the post-credits scene here, which quite appropriately leaves Meiji officials wondering what caused all the commotion on their lawn. It’s the first mention of one of Ruroken’s truly legendary characters, and although we’re still a long way from seeing him, I think this reference is further proof that the anime has perhaps there are plans to go beyond these two initial stages.
This and the Raijuuta arc aren’t Furuhashi’s best works with Rurouni Kenshin in my favor (Oniwabanshu on the other hand, he adapted excellently). I think it’s because both of them mainly take themes from Watsuki’s manga so Furuhashi doesn’t care much. In a sense, both Raijuuta and Katsu are paper tigers and living in a vacuum makes them less dynamic opponents. I think the 1996 series was more concerned with the fighting aspect of RK, largely ignoring the socio-political elements necessary for the manga.