Forum - View topicQuestion about Kenshin
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Luminal
 Posts: 179 Location: Montreal, QC, Canada |
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The Trust and Betrayal OVA finishes with a scene where Kenshin spoiler[ confronts Saito and Okita from the Shinsen Gumi. Okita is about to fight Kenshin, but Saito says something like You can't fight him, you don't have enough experience to fight this guy (according to the english dub) and they cross swords, the frame freezes and the OVA ends. ].
In the TV series, when Hajime Saito appears for the first time, it is mentioned (again in the english dub version) that he was #2 in the Shinsen Gumi. Which led me to think that Okita was #1. However in the TV series Okita spoiler[ only appears briefly and is never mentioned again in the series, OVAs or mangas.]. I have read the manga (starting after Shishio) because I wanted to see Kenshin fight spoiler[ Okita ] but it never happens. Am I missing an OVA or manga episode or did I misunderstand when they said that Saito was #2 in the ranks of the Shinsen Gumi? Thanks, Luminal |
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DemonEyesLeo
 Posts: 844 Location: Japan |
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Hmm, it's been a while since I saw the TV series and the OAVs, but I'll see if I can help. First, no you're not missing any manga chapters or OAVs; I don't think Kenshin spoiler[ever fights Okita] in the anime or in the manga at all. And as for Saito being #2; I think you've got that confused with him being the leader of the 3rd unit of the Shinsengumi and Okita being the leader of the 1st. It's not really a rank, just a squad number.
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Stupidman007
 Posts: 394 |
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Much like what the previous poster said, Saito and Okita were leaders of the different squads, but it has nothing to do with the ranks of their skills. However, during the series, it is mentioned that spoiler[most people did believe Okita to be the strongest of the shinsengumi and that only some say that Saito is stronger.] This leads me to believe that spoiler[Okita was more out in the open and Saito was not as well known and acted in the dark more.]
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Nagisa
Moderator
 Posts: 6128 Location: Atlanta-ish, Jawjuh |
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It's all a question of Japanese history, really.
Souji Okita, first captain of the Shinsengumi, is something of a "historical celebrity" within Japan. He's rather well known and celebrated, as well as widely regarded as the strongest and most capable swordsman within the Shinsengumi. Rurouni Kenshin, being a Japanese comic and animation series aimed at a Japanese audience at least somewhat familiar with this point in history, assumed its readers & viewers already knew this much, and thus did not have to go back and explain it all. Hence the lack of any sort of explanation as to his character. |
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AceRyonik
 Posts: 145 |
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Okita is a historical figure that was already dead in the common timeline of Rurouni Kenshin. The dub of the OAV really changed the meanings of certain scenes, Kenshin fighting against the Shinsengumi being one of them. Saito originally said something to the extent of, "You aren't well enough to fight someone like him," not "You aren't good enough to fight on his level."
Okita didn't fight Kenshin because he was in the later stages of tuberculosis, and Saito told him to stand down so that his condition would not be worsened. Okita would later die in the early days of the Boshin wars. Since Sojiro was based largely off of Okita, the fights with him are as close as you'll get to seeing Kenshin vs. Okita. |
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Luminal
Posts: 179 Location: Montreal, QC, Canada |
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Thanks for your answers guys. There was so much I didn't know about this subject.
Well at least I know it wasn't my imagination when I understood that Saito was #2 and Okita was #1. Still, it would have been cool to see more of that cool character. Luminal |
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BoygetsfireD
 Posts: 475 Location: earth |
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another question about Kenshin:
I know that some/many events and people were real historic happnenings, but was Kenshin himself a real person? Is he even a conglomeration of a bunch of similarly-minded and acting people, turned into one hero, or is he totally fictional? |
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Tony K.
 SubscriberModerator  Posts: 11441 Location: Frisco, TX |
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It is said that Kenshin is loosley based on Kawakami Gensai. If you read the manga, Watsuki-sensei has these little commentaries that talk about the designs and influences of his characters throughout each volume. |
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Randall Miyashiro
 Posts: 2451 Location: A block away from Golden Gate Park |
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Shura no Toki is one of my favorite series which features Okita and Sakamoto Ryoma in the second half of the series. The first half has such heroes as the two sworded Musashi and the one eyed Jubei. It's strange to think that my Grandparents were all born during the Meiji era, and there parents lived in Japan durin Kenshin's times. Japan really changed between 1868 and 1912. |
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AceRyonik
Posts: 145 |
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Kenshin is almost completely modeled after Kawakami Gensai, an assassin working for the revolutionaries in the Meiji Revolution. He was noted as having long hair, was short, and looked like a woman at first glance. His style revolved around battoujutsu (after all, an assassin needs to kill in one stroke), and his stance was unique in that he faced halfway away from his opponent and crouched low so that his right knee touched the ground. Again, this is similar to Kenshin.
The biggest influence, however, was the incident for which Kawakami is famous. He was sent to assassinate a member of the Shogun army that was an outspoken member of the Sonno-Joi movement to exclude foreigners (which the revolutionaries and Kawakami himself supported). After killing the man, Kawakami said that he had robbed Japan of one of its most prominent thinkers and quit the assassination ring, vowing never to kill again. Actually, the show probably would have been called Rurouni Gensai if he hadn't been executed around 1871. Last edited by AceRyonik on Thu Mar 16, 2006 11:10 am; edited 1 time in total |
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BoygetsfireD
Posts: 475 Location: earth |
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hey, thats pretty sweet.
Thanks 
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