If you watched any of GoHS or JJK, you’ll notice some similarities in the higher end action sequences in those productions to those sequences in Ninja Kamui.

Seemingly endless hordes of literally faceless ninjas hurl needles and themselves at our nigh-invincible protagonist, and there is delight in dispatching them in artful ways for the camera.

Also similar, unfortunately, is the nice action sequences at the expense of a better written plot to make us care about the characters.

Not to say they don’t try. There’s a lot of sequences showing the protagonist at home with his family, and it’s well animated, but the foreshadowing is laid on thick, and they might as well have stuck “dead meat” labels on… well you don’t really need to guess.

You know what the direction reminds me of? Rintaro, who directed stylistically notable shows and movies in the 70s and 80s such as Harmageddon movie, Dagger Of Kamui movie, and Space Captain Harlock TV.

Rintaro was also a noted stylist, whose stories tended to fall flat, but that didn’t really hurt his career.