Talk:Samurai Jack

Samurai Jack was NOT the first cartoon with a flat visual style!

I took out the bit about how Samurai Jack has influenced the Incredibles credits and the X's. Really, guys, that's just silly. Does Ward Kimball or Mary Blair sound familiar to any of you? Little Leota 22:01, 27 February 2007 (UTC)

No. Robot Chicken (talk) 00:52, 14 April 2008 (UTC)

thats not nice Robot Chicken LOL but its true samurai jack is not the first flat disigned cartoon series, the reason why they choosed a flat styled is most likely (OR IS) because of japanese styled art design.Grimmjow E6 (talk) 23:53, 29 June 2008 (UTC)

"Highly detailed"? HIGHLY DETAILED?? It's hardly the original Johnny Quest, or better still, Tom And Jerry is it? 82.153.230.147 (talk) 17:55, 22 January 2009 (UTC)

Fan service

This fan service link is bsolutly rediculous. He is in his underwear becuase the three arches would hear his clothes otherwise, not becuase fans get their jollies at seeing jack in his underwear.

You mean the three archers? Have you seen any other episodes of Jack? He loses his clothing in 75% of them. Heck, there's one episode where he's pretty much naked for the duration of it, constantly hidden behind strategically-placed objects. That's why even I, who is normally skeptical of such fan blather, think there had to have been some fanservice going on there. Garrett Albright 10:09, 19 August 2005 (UTC)

Totally. Jack's gradual stripping is so common in the series it's something you can even watch for in each new episode (or episode you haven't before seen). And there was a fan site (now either moved or broken link) called "Crazy Drooling Fans", aimed at Samurai Jack fangirls and gay fanboys, that had sections rating each episode one by one on several factors, including "yumminess". Face it, Jack is a dish. And though it may not be encyclopedic to state that in those words in a Wikipedia article (and I've tried :D), it is at least worth mentioning the periodic fan service that appears in the series, and how it is received by fans. - Gilgamesh 02:02, 20 August 2005 (UTC)

Ahh. Found it. I don't think it's an adult site, but it certainly celebrates Jack without his shirt. [1] - Gilgamesh 02:08, 20 August 2005 (UTC)

Air date, or at least year? Anybody know?

The fan service mention is ridiculous. Fan service (as defined in Wikipedia) is mainly there to titillate. Semi-nudity in Samurai Jack doesn't seem like that. Besides, is there anything to support the assertion that it is "widely regarded as fan service"? Widely regarded by who? There is erotic fan-fiction about any subject on the internet, so that in itself seems like poor support. It seems it's mostly user Gilgamesh that's fixated on this issue. I say we merely state that Jack appears semi-naked in many episodes, and remove any unwarranted connotations from that fact.201.235.225.31 08:04, 6 December 2005 (UTC)

I did a major edit to this article on 26-Dec-05. I was tempted to remove the "fan service" nonsense -- it seems obvious to me that the he is shown without his kimono only so that you can see that he is a muscular heroic man underneath, and not to titilate anyone. I resisted the urge however, and just toned it down a little and moved the photo to appear with it under Trivia. (P.S. who was it that thought the Emmy Award should go under Trivia? lol!) -- Mecandes 18:13, 26 December 2005 (UTC)

Good call.201.235.51.167 06:01, 3 January 2006 (UTC)

Oh, for the love of... After reviewing your edits, I think they are well-suited. I am not "obsessed" with this issue—I just know that Samurai Jack is fairly popular among women and the gay audience, and even my straight friends acknowledge that the show is full of homoerotic moments (I myself hadn't before called it "homoerotic" though—I tend to use more worksafe language in my everyday discussions). I mean, come on—a half-naked guy tickling another half-naked guy in an arena? Whether or not the show is full of fan service, it is, at the very least, constantly full of very attractive (occasionally even gaydar-tripping) masculine moments, and they're there in every single episode. I walked away the first time thinking that Samurai Jack seemed more like a beefcake show than a children's cartoon, and that impression has never left since. And it's not like I push a gay POV on Wikipedia—maybe you just have to a woman or a gay man to understand. - Gilgamesh 13:29, 3 January 2006 (UTC)

I believe the reference to fan service should be left as it is. Many fans do regard Jack's disrobing as "fan service" as many sites will state. Jack 23:09, 26 February 2006 (UTC)

Agreed with all who said it's fanservice. You don't need a pair of DD breasts to do fanservice ~_~. Oh, and he doesn't wear a Kimono, he wears a Keikogi, and refers to it as a "Gi" (I think it's in the episode "Jack is Naked" that he comments that the clothes 'lack the comfort and utility of my gi') This is a relatively minor point that I'm gonna edit in. (Darien Shields 23:54, 17 May 2006 (UTC))

Fanservice does not solely mean titillation, though that is the most common usage. For example, a "versus episode," a stand-alone episode of a show which has no apparent reason for existance but to pit two popular characters in the series against each other in battle would be considered fan service, or a holiday episode or a series crossover. Fan service could literally mean parts of the show which are added simply for the enjoyment of the fans and do nothing to advance the plot. Like it or not, Jack's constant loss of clothing and corrosponding self-healing hat and robe are as much a part of the show as the 20 second background pans. Another factor that may be present besides just showing off Jack's physique is that Jack's robe being slashed is often used as a way of implying wounds without having to show blood. For example, in Jack vs. Mad Jack both acted as if they were injured when their robes were cut. Mad Jack even said "it hurts, doesn't it?" when we could clearly see that he had merely torn apart Jack's sleeve. From that view, it's a part of the suspension of disbelief that goes along with the censorship. Jack's robe being slashed = Jack being cut, and yes all those aliens and animals really are robots, even though they have no visible joints or metallic parts. --Tjstrf 08:01, 23 May 2006 (UTC)

good call on removing the fan service link. I called for that years ago 70.181.116.247

This is just the thing i've been trying to battle on WikiPedia. Yes i have noticed that his shirts go off very often... BUT people need to keep any SPECULATIONS OUT OF WIKIPEDIA! for pitys sake... Thunderlad 15:20, 18 June 2007 (UTC)Thunderlad

Ending

Why did the show end abruptly? And, will there be a defining ending?

Because Cartoon Network decided to. Reasons have not been disclosed --malber 12:40, 6 February 2006 (UTC)

How did the show end? Did jack defeat evil and everything endup being all good and great??24.66.94.140 22:30, 14 July 2006 (UTC)hope.

"I know, I didn't like the way the show was stopped so suddenly. But I'm sure there will be a countinuation to the series next year of 2007. For now, just be patient and wait, for I know the next season, will return, and be better than ever. I wanna see how Jack is gonna defeat Aku! --Natldsbluedelta353 10:09, 25 December 2006 (UTC)

I believe a conclusion to the series has been confirmed by Tartakovsky (see the article), but with the recent death of Aku's voice actor Mako, that may be more uncertain. Kelvingreen 17:00, 25 December 2006 (UTC)

Verify

Could someone verify this statement made on the main page.

"Samurai Jack refers to his attire as gi, not kimono."

Thanks Jack 23:09, 26 February 2006 (UTC)

I can't honestly find evidence of that comment, so it was good to remove. It really doesn't matter towards the encyclopedic entry, but Jack's outfit seems to represent a variant of an aikidogi, consisting of a gi shirt, and a white hakama. Cybertooth85 16:55, 14 April 2006 (UTC)

Actually his clothes are a single piece kimono as seen in some episodes, he doesn't wear a hakama. 213.186.224.253 11:01, 16 February 2007 (UTC)

I HAVE weard him call it a Gi at some point(s), but I cannot remember when.

Season 2. Episode 24 to be precise. Jack says that the clothes which he has stolen from the burglar lack the comfort of his Gi. That's the only reference to his outfit i could find though. --76.25.53.185 (talk) 18:46, 15 July 2008 (UTC)

Question

Is this sentence really true?

"Aku's face resembles green ghost The Flying Dutchman in SpongeBob Squarepants."

I've never seen this and hardly see it now. The only thing that I can see that may be the same is their mouth. I'm not sure if that's meant to be, or coincidence. Sir John Sack-and-Sugar 21:15, 2 May 2006 (UTC)

Either someone was valdalizing the article, or they just decided that it looked like that on their own and added it in. It shouldn't be there any longer. Hewinsj 17:06, 19 March 2007 (UTC)

hahahahahaha who did that? that is two different programs represented by two different series/makers and tv channels.Grimmjow E6 (talk) 23:59, 29 June 2008 (UTC)BTW can someone give me the correct term for a tv channel? what is it called? i think the correct term is a tv station but i could be wrong.

Editing

Cleaned up many spelling typos and a few grammatical errors in abilities section.-- WkpdTed (talk · contribs) 16:32, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

I just went through and added a bunch of missing commas -_- Lovok 14:14, 12 July 2006 (UTC)

Comment on audio track

I'd like to add the following somewhere in the article, but (a) can't find the proper place to add it, and (b) not sure whether it's appropriately NPOV (I obviously feel it's accurate, but that could be my POV speaking):

Although all episodes deliver an overall cinematic and solid visual experience, many scenes are quite minimalistic and cluttered in appearance; the audio track however is consistently powerful, well tuned and professionally produced, with very few exceptions.

What do you think? --Gutza ^{T T+} 00:18, 11 June 2006 (UTC)

Honestly, it's PoV, and unless it's cited, it doesn't matter if it's accurate or not. "The threshold for inclusion in Wikipedia is verifiability, not truth." (see Wikipedia:Verifiability). Cheers --Pak21 10:25, 11 June 2006 (UTC)

Fair enough; as stated in the introductory paragraph above, that's one of the reasons why I asked before adding. Ok, can we find a NPOV way of delivering a "weaker" version of that idea? It is verifiable after all that the music includes a good deal for low-frequency sounds, that the voices are humorously well-chosen (I'm talking mostly about the accents), that the environmental sounds are well-engineered (footsteps, etc), and that the acting is good, no? --Gutza ^{T T+} 11:00, 11 June 2006 (UTC)

Movie

It says that no movie has been produced but I have the movie on VHS right now (2006) and I have had it for a while now. But it seems that it is more of a prequel. Is this the movie that they are refering to???? 65.60.164.62 18:55, 27 August 2006 (UTC)(Jtervin just not signed in)

Here is the Amazon.com listing: [2]

The movie is made up from the first 3 episodes (afaik) -- Po0ky 18:19, 6 October 2006 (UTC)

The real movie is still being made, despite no word for nearly 2 years now from Frederator studios. Fred Seibert, one of the company's founders, said in his blog in Dec. 2008 or Jan. 2009 that it was still in production and it's still in 'behind-the-scenes story work.' [3]

Artwork (copyright?)

Does anybody know what license I should select if I wanted to upload a Aku.svg image I created?
Preview: Aku (PoweredUp).png (Added some fancy-ness)

Japanese reception

• "Does anyone know about the reception in Japan? I.E, take offence, find humors, so on." Roxanne Edits 02:30, 11 November 2006 (UTC)

Code of the Samurai

Does anyone know any of the codes for the "Code of the Samurai" game? I know that two of them are courage and honor. -- Tahu418

I believe what you are looking for is 'Bushido'. Do a search for it. Croft465 01:44, 11 March 2007 (UTC)

1. Justice (dual shields for immobile invulnerability)

2. Purity (large claymore sword)

3. Compassion (large robotic arm)

4. Courage (shurikens)

5. Valor (spiked ball-and-chain)

6. Honor (flaming arrows)

these are from me firemonkey2

Reception

Samurai Jack was included (somewhere in the 20's) on Channel Four's 100 Greatest Cartoons show. This should probably be included in the "Reception" subsection. Kelvingreen 19:55, 15 February 2007 (UTC)

Channels are differant for each state, city and provider you should be more specific...also I agree. rgoodermote 13:32, April 30, 2007 (UTC)

Channel Four, the British broadcaster. I think it's been added now anyway. Kelvingreen 20:28, 5 May 2007 (UTC)

Toonami Jetstream

I edited the line "The show can be viewed at Toonami Jetstream Website" to include "North American viewers". Simply because there is bound to be confusion for people outside of NA hastily checking the site out and finding that it can only be viewed by North American viewers. --Captain Capatilism 16:58, 19 February 2007 (UTC)

The Toonami Jetstream article says it's US only, rather than all North America, implying that Canadians can't see it - which is correct? 86.132.136.239 14:31, 19 March 2007 (UTC)

Unless we can get some editors from outside the US (Canada or Otherwise) here to refute it, I'm going to assume that this is US only, but that's a discussion for the Jetstream talk page. Hewinsj 02:55, 28 March 2007 (UTC)

Jack and Sparta

I've removed some comments in the section about an episode where Jack interacts with Spartan warriors. A previous user had added reference to the Miller comics on the topic of Battle of Thermopylae (and the movie 300) in a way that noted the similar topic that the cartoon and comic focused on, but did not demonstrate that there was in fact any influence by Miller's work on the SJ show. Subsequent edits had tried to refine these comments a bit, but I'm afraid the effect is worse: "perhaps coincidentally" is exceedingly weasel-wordy. While the article does demonstrate that Tartakovsky has mentioned being influenced by Miller's "Ronin," no evidence of a connection between Miller's 300 and Samurai Jack is shown. Let's, then, leave this bit out until some source comes up that can demonstrate an influence. The Spartans have entered into foundational myth and legend in western culture, and are referenced frequently on many fronts - we should be warry of trying to crowbar a specific connection between two instances of this unless we can find a clear source for it.Dxco 17:58, 9 March 2007 (UTC)

I attempted to work with this in the Cultural References section because it felt better here than in Trivia. The episode description inside the DVD packaging states that Jack does run into 300 Spartans, so I listed that and maintained the info about the historical battle that was already given in the article. I was careful not reference Frank Miller, his book, or the movie for the reasons you gave about foundational myth. I also posted a screen cap of a Spartan from the episode. Hewinsj 14:50, 15 March 2007 (UTC)

That would be my fault. I found that section to be quite scrappy, so I tidied it up and expanded it with some information on the Battle of Thermopylae. I also added the bit about Miller, as I thought it worth mentioning given the Ronin connection. I do think it's a bit strong to call it "weasel-wordy", but I accept that it is probably conjecture, so yeah, leave it out. Apologies if I caused any offence; sometimes enthusiasm gets in the way. :) Kelvingreen 21:49, 15 March 2007 (UTC)

Well, the creators acknowledge the direct influence of Miller's 300 in the dvd commentary, so I'll work on putting the information back in, citing the sources appropriately, of course. I may have to move the section to somewhere else in the article though, as Tartakovsky fingers 300 as the influence, rather than the historical battle itself. And any pointers on how to cite it would be handy. Kelvingreen 22:18, 15 March 2007 (UTC)

First off, let me say no offense taken. Your initial stance was cautious in the face of uncited facts and not that far off from what I would have stated. Now we know and can update with details so the system works.

For what it is I like this section where it's at because even if it was learned through Frank Miller it is a myth, but that's just my opinion. It helps the cultural references section not look so sparse, but it could also go in the Trivia section. If you do update it to include the 300 info don't take out the details about the historical battle itself, which is a great link.

As for citing, I've been updating with episode citations, and once I figured out how to use them started including as many detail fields as I felt were useful. One of those is called minutes, which shows where in the episode the information being cited falls. I'll update the ref-tag under this paragraph to include that and once you have a quote from the DVD make a new citation and include the time that the quote occurred. Once all that's done we can decide where to put it. Hewinsj 04:35, 16 March 2007 (UTC)

Here's the quote (from Tartakovsky). As it's from a commentary, it's a bit rambling.

I always loved epic stories and epic period pieces like Spartacus and Ben Hur, all that kind of stuff, and I definitely wanted to do something with that for one of the Jack episodes. And then, I don't know how many years before we did this, Frank Miller released this comic book called The 300 [sic], which told the tale of the old Greek, the realistic story of the Battle of the 300, where they fought like ten thousand of Persians at the gates of (I forget the real...) Thermopolis [sic]. So I wanted to do a story based on that which the comic book was based on, and in the comic book he did this very stylised treatment of it, for some of it, where he did a lot of loose watercolour painting and a lot of graphic images over that watercolour. So I wanted to do it, and the best guys fit for action....

After that it moves on to other subjects. This is right at the beginning, over the opening credits, but I'll get a more precise time a bit later.

As for where to put it, I thought I'd leave the section on the historical event as is, and put the information relating to 300 specifically in the same paragraph (under Style) that mentions Miller's Ronin, to tie the Miller influences together. Kelvingreen 08:46, 16 March 2007 (UTC)

Sounds fine. The existing info can stay where it is as he wanted to write a story about that event, and the details on style can be used to expand on the Miller paragraph as his design was influenced by Miller's art in 300. If your going to use a long quote, separate the quote itself from the paragraph and use the block quote formatting (from the Plot section of this article). Some of that could be trimmed down, but I'll leave it up to you. Hewinsj 14:42, 16 March 2007 (UTC)

Well, the quote is a rambling mess, and I wasn't going to use it at all, instead just citing the part of the dvd where he says it (21 seconds into the commentary on that episode, incidentally). There doesn't appear to be a satisfying way of including the information, but I do think it should be included. I'll think more on it. Kelvingreen 17:23, 16 March 2007 (UTC)

Okay, I added a small amount of information on the influence of 300 into the Style section, but I haven't included any of Tartakovsky's quote, as it's too unwieldy to put in (I did consider putting the whole quote in as a footnote, but it would look terrible). I have created a footnote including the point in the commentary at which they talk about 300, however. Kelvingreen 21:16, 17 March 2007 (UTC)

It looks great. I switched the image that's there to make the text lime up, but you got the point across without going into too much detail. That should take care of it. The citation looks good too. Hewinsj 00:52, 18 March 2007 (UTC)

I'm glad we got that sorted out! It was a bit like pulling teeth, for which I apologise. Kelvingreen 10:54, 18 March 2007 (UTC)

Not a problem. I don't mind working with people as long as they don't mind working with me. In this case things sound better since you've at least heard the quote and have a source to put with it. Again, nice job. Hewinsj 01:51, 19 March 2007 (UTC)

Awards & Recognition

I added info on the shows Emmy history in the form of a Wiki table. I based it on the details at the IMDB's award page for this show, and cross referenced with the Award Search tool at the emmy Website, so while I can't find too many sources to easily cite yet everything lines up. I just kind of made it on the fly, so any ideas for improvements? Also, should we also add details on it's performance at the Annie Awards? It's supposed to be a big deal to people in the animation field, but I personally haven't heard of them before. Hewinsj 01:12, 18 March 2007 (UTC)

Thanks for cleaning that up. The DVD box and commentary imply that the show won its only Emmy for Jack and the Spartans (which is why I put that bit in), but it seems a bit more complex than that. So thanks again for clearing that up. Kelvingreen 10:52, 18 March 2007 (UTC)

I didn't want you to think I was stepping on your toes but everything I could find beyond IMDB seemed to indicate that it was Birth of Evil that year.. Jack & the Spartans did win, but the year was off. I remembered that Birth of Evil won because I happened to have the awards show on at the right time back then, I just couldn't remember which year it happened. If I can I'll try to find references that I can link to, or if all else fails I'll just reference that search page.Hewinsj 01:51, 19 March 2007 (UTC)

No worries. I was just going by the DVD packaging and I don't have Season Three yet! Kelvingreen 22:40, 24 March 2007 (UTC)

Article assessment

I've rated this article as B class - most of the important information is present but there are a few tags that need to be resolved. Good job on the referencing, however, I'd like to see more secondary sources also. "Legacy" is perhaps an overstatement as a header - influence might be more appropriate. A critical response section is missing - are there any reviews of the show the article could discuss?

I've rated it as mid on the importance scale because of the awards recognition the show has received.--Opark 77 09:32, 31 March 2007 (UTC)

Secondary Sources

A couple related articles and interviews that I've been able to find. Could be put to use in the article.

• RevolutionSF Q&A with Genndy Tartakovsky
• Animation Insider Q&A with Genndy Tartakovsky
• Animation Insider Critique of Season 3
• 31st Annie award results
• Variety on Annie Awards
• Samurai Jack goes to Newline Cinema
• Bam Entertainment to make Cartoon Network related games

DVD Covers

I see these are on the To Do list. What do we need to get, exactly? I have the first two seasons on DVD, and would be happy to scan them. PNG format, I'd guess, but what size? Kelvingreen 20:32, 5 May 2007 (UTC)

I'm looking, but I can't find any good examples to use. I would say keep them around 110px (smaller if it distorts the box). Hewinsj 02:58, 11 May 2007 (UTC)

Cameo appearence

I was looking back at episodes of Samurai Jack and came across an episode in which an animal like hunter is attacking Jack... I believe his name was "Huntor." I didn't think about it much until I recently saw an episode of Dexter's Lab. This same lion like hunter in the Samurai Jack previously appeared in the short Dial M for Monkey. I was just wondering why this was not in the article... —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 75.43.212.51 (talk) 12:43, August 21, 2007 (UTC)

Wikipedia has a "avoid trivia sections" policy, the reference you refer to can be found in it's episode page -- Jack versus Mad Jack. Jack 21:01, 21 August 2007 (UTC)

"Genndy's New Project"

What is "Genndy's New Project" on the Season 4 DVD? Hotdoglives 02:40, 17 September 2007 (UTC)

Auntie Momo external link

I always see people talking about how external links have to meet certain qualifications. What qualifications does that site have, especially since the Big Cartoon Database is already there as an external link? I'm have nothing against the site but it's one of many sites that really have no business being named on Wikipedia. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Megagents (talk • contribs) 21:10, 20 October 2007 (UTC)

Agreed and removed as per WP:EL. Collectonian 02:03, 9 November 2007 (UTC)

Cartoon Network link

Why is the UK version of the Cartoon Network minisite listed in the external links, and not the US version? Samurai Jack is an American cartoon. Unless this was the best English-language "official" site at the time this link was added (Cartoon Network does seem to reconfigure their sites quite often), I don't see why this link was not included. Having said that, if we do add the American version to the links section, should the other link be removed? As of the time I write this, the .com site has more informative content than the .co.uk site. B7T (talk) 19:36, 26 November 2007 (UTC)

Feel free to remove it, all to do with one user who went around many CN shows and added links to the UK site (which is incredibly poor) and the VOD and games content site supercartoonnetwork.co.uk for no reason as they're not really all that signifigant in content or application. Some of these links are around but nobody has removed them yet, like this one. Switch it to the main CN site, it should be the US version linked from here. --treelo _talk 20:03, 26 November 2007 (UTC)

Misleading link: Bonus Stage

The article mentions an homage to Samurai Jack in a defunct internet cartoon called Bonus Stage, but the hyperlink for this term leads to the article for the video game concept with the same name. Is there an article on Wikipedia about the cartoon? If not, perhaps the brackets should be removed from the term. B7T (talk) 19:43, 26 November 2007 (UTC)

A search for any articles on the internet cartoon yields nothing. I'd cut the reference personally if the episode in question can't be referred to on another site. -treelo _talk 20:16, 26 November 2007 (UTC)

Popular Culture

The 'popular culture in Samurai Jack' section is junk - just trivia & POV analogies. Since the only citations are to the show itself, I'm assuming that these statements of what something is a reference too are just observations by whoever wrote this (I.E. original research / POV). Unless they can be verified with a third-party source drawing these comparisons, they should be deleted. Weasel Fetlocks (talk) 17:04, 2 July 2008 (UTC)

Generally, "in popular culture" sections in articles don't consist of much more than trivia, POV and OR and don't do much for the article. You can cut them out when you like, doubt anyone will care too much. treelo _radda 17:42, 2 July 2008 (UTC)