Rurouni Kenshin Jinchuu Hen (Vols 18-28)
Hmm... where do I start? (Yay! My first thread!)
I just re-read the whole manga (vols 1-28) for the nth time and suddenly I had this urge to tell the whole world of its greatness (again!) Wahaha! Am I sounding like a crazy fanatic now?
Anyhow, focus right now is JinchuuHen, also known as Revenge Arc. I believe that it is such a waste that JinchuuHen wasn't animated. If only Shougo and Black Knights and especially Jinpuu didn't show up as fillers, then RuroKen's rating wouldn't have plummeted to an unredeemable fall and Jinchuu would have been more well-known!
I also believe that Jinchuu Hen deserves a discussion. It’s a very deep story and if we dig in to it more, we’ll surely get a lot from it. I’ve actually spent the last 8 years of my life uncovering the many interpretations of RuroKen so I wish like minds would as well. That’s the purpose of this thread. Hehe.
And BTW, it may seem that RuroKen is a pretty old manga. When was it published? 1996? BUT! I just saw in a relatively recent issue of Shounen Jump that its reprint is on the 22nd volume! If I remember correctly, it will be released on October 2007. 22nd! That’s just after the Tsuioku chapters! I also saw that the covers are slightly different. Yay! I’m definitely going to buy them, even if it means having 3 sets of RuroKen manga! Haha!
So What's it all about?
In a very old issue of Questor (the only issue I own; published year 2000), an article tells about JinchuuHen in a nutshell: "[It has] a lot of action, but also a lot of soul-searching, In between, you get some defeats, some victories and also a few heartbreaking moments. All the ingredients of one of the greatest manga stories of all time. (And not mush too)"[1] I so love that line!
I don't really like to spoil those who haven't read it so the best way to do that is to just give a review (instead of a really long summary.) That way, I can also voice out my opinion! Yay!
Moeru's review
When a series of bombings of places where Kenshin has either little or huge association with, the word 'Jinchuu' is their only clue. 'Jinchuu' is a play on the word 'Tenchuu', which means heaven's punishment. During the Bakumatsu [2], major Ishin Shishi [3] assassinations often left paper with "Tenchuu' on it, signifying that their cause was sanctioned by the gods. 'Jinchuu', on the other hand, means man's punishment. 'Jinchuu', then, is Enishi's resolve. He is the man to bring judgment upon his sister's killer whom even the heavens fail to punish.
This "consciousness of crime and punishment" becomes clear when Kenshin and Enishi meet on a bridge. There, Enishi declares war. After 10 days, together with five other people who share his extreme hatred for Kenshin, he will attack the Kamiya dojo.
“Kenshin: Isn't there anything else-- anything but fighting-- Is there no way I can atone for the crime of stealing your sister? What should I do?
Enishi: For someone who can't let go of an idea, you're very slow to catch on... what should you do? If you want an answer... I want you to suffer... in hell.” [4]
As Kenshin warns the Kenshin-gumi of the upcoming battle, he also begins to explain the root of Enishi's hatred, his past as Hitokiri Battousai and the story behind his cross-shaped scar.
In JinchuuHen, Kenshin's most personal battle transpires. Not just with Enishi, but ultimately and probably the greatest battle of all, the battle with himself. Thus, in my opinion, there can never be a more fitting conclusion to the story of a man’s pursuit of an answer to his longed-for atonement.
"You lose what's most precious to you . . . exhaust yourself body and soul. But if you have something you can't bring yourself to throw away, whatever anyone says, that's your only truth." [5]
In the whole Rurouni Kenshin manga, we see a well thought-out character development. If the Kyoto Kessen Hen (Shishio Arc) is about Kenshin’s road to finding how to subdue the killer within him and re-discovering his lost self-worth, then Jinchuu Hen is about Kenshin’s painful realization of what he really is as a human being, “his truth” as Watsuki-sama aptly puts it.
The Jinchuu Hen, and the whole manga for that matter, is a masterful weaving of historical details and the intricacies of human drama. Its romantic view of the world without being blind to the complexity of human life cannot be more appropriate in our time. Surely, this masterpiece can truly be considered a classic.
-Whew!-
That was fun!
And now that dreaded question: has anyone read RuroKen's last arc and conclusion? It would be useless to discuss something nobody really knows about, right?
After scanning the ‘Manga forum’, I’m sure now that Maneki Neko-san, Lady-Rinoa-san, and of course, Spitz-san have all read the RuroKen manga and to my delight, I also know that they appreciate Watsuki-sama’s talent. Hehe
Okay! Before I go on blabbing about how great Jinchuu is, for those who haven't read and are interested in learning about it, either go to: http://www.maigo-chan.org/ruroken.htm and read the translations (all hail maigo-chan!) or if you prefer scanlations, just tell me and I'll send you an email right away! Oh! And I almost forgot. There are, indeed, some parts of Jinchuu Hen that were animated. The Tsuioku Chapters (vols. 19-21) were made into an OVA titled “TsuiokuHen” or Remembrances Arc (it’s more commonly known under the title Samurai X: Trust and Betrayal.) I suggest you see that OVA first to get a feel of Jinchuu. Hehe. The OVA is more serious than the manga, there have been a few alterations from the manga and it has a lot of historical inaccuracies unlike the manga. But aside from those, it’s first rate!
Endnotes:
[1] Guerrero, LB. “Crouching Tiger, Soaring Dragon: Kenshin Himura’s Ultimate Battle”. Questor vol.2 no. 5, 2000.
[2] Lit. Last Shogun or End of the Shogunate. During Keiki’s (Tokugawa Yoshinobu) rule, a civil war (1853-1868) was ensuing between those who want Imperial rule back (e.g. people from Choushu [this is Kenshin’s faction], Satsuma, and Tosa han) and diehard supporters of the Shogunate (e.g Aizu Han). To minimize casualties, Keiki decided to abdicate his title, making him the last Shogun. It resulted in the restoration of the Emperor (Matsuhito, aka Meiji) as ruler of the government.
[3] men of the revolution or revolutionaries. Ishin often translated in history books as ‘restoration’. Thus, Meiji Ishin becomes Meiji Restoration. But Japanese historians prefer ‘revolution’ instead. Shishi literally means ‘men of determination’, supposedly men with a very deep and strong sense of patriotism.
[4] Rurouni Kenshin volume 19, pp 101-102.
[5] From character Oibore, Rurouni Kenshin volume 25, p 124.