The man surely knows how to get into character. Rurouni Kenshin is such a warm, ambitious and wholesome character which has kept me on board with the movies; Takeru seeps his paws into Battosai’s character and doesn’t let go. It’s mind blowing to watch.

As much as I love him, I was not a very big fan of this plot line. For example, the movie prior to this ends on some sort of a cliffhanger where Kenshin forgets his mission and stalks his way into the ship to get to his woman. It’s heartfelt, powerful and captivating. His feelings for her overwhelm his thought process and he hurries to her rescue. This movie starts off with Kenshin washing away at an island and he thinks Kaoru is dead. It’s shocking and depressing as he falls to his knees in disbelief.

I loved it. However, when it is revealed that Kaoru is alive, his reaction is… underwhelming. It’s out of the blue and he simply smiles and that’s the end of it. There’s no relief washing over him or uncontrollable happiness which seemed very odd since the loss really seemed to impact him in the beginning. He wants to learn the heaven’s technique for her after all!

Though, I liked how the villain ended up burning to death on his own. It was satisfying. His side kick, agile swordsman’s insane breakdown was also incredibly captivating and satisfying to watch.

Overall, I loved it but it could have been better with more plot.