RUROUNI KENSHIN - Anime faithful to Manga?
RUROUNI KENSHIN - Anime faithful to Manga?
Greetings all! I have started reading Rurouni Kenshin Manga. Can anyone tell me if the anime is faithful to the manga? Thanks!
The anime follows fairly closely, all the major plot lines anyway. But anime always have fillers, plus some extra characters in the anime that's not in the manga. The TV series only goes to the end of the Kyoto arc, and then it's all made up. Personally I like the manga better. 

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I found it - alike in parts not in others.
you are doing the right thing...reading the manga first, sooooo good !!
One part later on in the manga concerning Kaoru
Then watch the anime and you will enjoy it even more.
you are doing the right thing...reading the manga first, sooooo good !!
One part later on in the manga concerning Kaoru

Then watch the anime and you will enjoy it even more.
A Man Who Views The World The Same At Fifty As He Did At Twenty Has Wasted Thirty Years Of His Life. - Muhammad Ali
Some parts are…
The beginning story arc, set in Tokyo, is altered in several ways. It’s also padded with filler episodes, some of which work better than others.
Once you start on the Kyoto arc there is less deviation from the manga. Some frames of the anime are identical to the manga panels, in fact.
Unfortunately, after this you run into the problem that the manga was not yet finished, so they were vamping until ready, as it were. Some of the episodes are funny (or not
) one or two shot deals, but mostly the anime engages in short non- manga based story arcs. Some, like the “Christian arcâ€
The beginning story arc, set in Tokyo, is altered in several ways. It’s also padded with filler episodes, some of which work better than others.

Once you start on the Kyoto arc there is less deviation from the manga. Some frames of the anime are identical to the manga panels, in fact.

Unfortunately, after this you run into the problem that the manga was not yet finished, so they were vamping until ready, as it were. Some of the episodes are funny (or not

- kizu
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Great series to start MyBaby.
My personal journey on this series has been 1st OVA (Tsuikouhen), TV Series, Movie, 2nd OVA (Seiseouhen) and then the manga. I think because I did it this way I'm more hooked than I would've done it any other way, although there is a risk of dropping the series when you get to the TV season. But because I started with Tsuikouhen, I was really impressed with the animation and story... So you can imagine watching the TV series which is more "anime-like" I was a little deflated as my expectations was already so high. However, I gave the TV series a try anyway because the hero (Kenshin) is so intriguing due to how different he is in the TV. When I got to the second season (kyoto), that was it for me. It became my most favorite series... Every RK "thing" after that I just loved. I"m not an avid manga reader so I put off reading the manga for a long long time. You can imagine what happened after I read the manga... It was like love the second time around.
Of course I had to kick myself for waiting for so long to read it.... Just like I had to kick myself in waiting for so long to watch it. Kenshin had the worst first English dub (yes there was an older dub made that made Saitou sound like your stupid run of the mill villain and they changed the names of the characters slightly, I think Kaoru was Kaori? and Kenshin was Kenchi? Whatever... LOL) I've ever heard and so I dropped it back in 1996 or 97 since there were more anime being dubbed in the local language. I rediscovered it around 2003.
I guess I wouldn't suggest the route I took... I would suggest this
TV Series --> 1st OVA --> Movie --> Manga --> 2nd OVA
I like to keep the 1st OVA second just because after watching the 1st OVA you will definitely have formed expectations on the TV, which I don't think is a good thing... Keep 1st OVA after the TV and you will just be blown away.
I like to put the movie in the middle because it's a movie about former Aizu and soldiers on the losing side of the civil war.... Then definitely manga which builds up everything you've seen so far and then some.
I put 2nd OVA last not because it's the end of the series but because it's only slightly faithful to the manga and there is a big difference in the end but I won't spoil you. Please keep on reading the manga and when you do watch the TV series please watch until at least Kyoto arc (Kyoto arc is very faithful to the manga) 

My personal journey on this series has been 1st OVA (Tsuikouhen), TV Series, Movie, 2nd OVA (Seiseouhen) and then the manga. I think because I did it this way I'm more hooked than I would've done it any other way, although there is a risk of dropping the series when you get to the TV season. But because I started with Tsuikouhen, I was really impressed with the animation and story... So you can imagine watching the TV series which is more "anime-like" I was a little deflated as my expectations was already so high. However, I gave the TV series a try anyway because the hero (Kenshin) is so intriguing due to how different he is in the TV. When I got to the second season (kyoto), that was it for me. It became my most favorite series... Every RK "thing" after that I just loved. I"m not an avid manga reader so I put off reading the manga for a long long time. You can imagine what happened after I read the manga... It was like love the second time around.

Of course I had to kick myself for waiting for so long to read it.... Just like I had to kick myself in waiting for so long to watch it. Kenshin had the worst first English dub (yes there was an older dub made that made Saitou sound like your stupid run of the mill villain and they changed the names of the characters slightly, I think Kaoru was Kaori? and Kenshin was Kenchi? Whatever... LOL) I've ever heard and so I dropped it back in 1996 or 97 since there were more anime being dubbed in the local language. I rediscovered it around 2003.

I guess I wouldn't suggest the route I took... I would suggest this
TV Series --> 1st OVA --> Movie --> Manga --> 2nd OVA
I like to keep the 1st OVA second just because after watching the 1st OVA you will definitely have formed expectations on the TV, which I don't think is a good thing... Keep 1st OVA after the TV and you will just be blown away.



Rurouni Kenshin
Thanks for the insight! I'm more of a manga reader then if I like it enough I'll watch the anime. I'm up to volume 16 of the manga. I'm surprised I like it as much as I do, being a woman. But it really keeps my interest. I'll keep in mind your suggestions on the anime, movie, OVA etc. order to watch. 

- duotrouble
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A friend of mine loaned me his last couple of volumes so I could finish what the anime left out due to what irmgaard was talking about. I'm more an anime watcher so I wouldn't have made it through all of the volumes (even though there aren't that many in comparision to others).
Glad to hear you're enjoying it.
Glad to hear you're enjoying it.

Can you hear this fangirl squee?!

