Rurouni Kenshin: Meiji Swordsman Romantic Story (Japanese: -

- Hepburn: Rurni Kenshin Meiji Kenkaku Romantan?),[2] also known as Rurouni

Kenshin and Samurai X, is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated byNobuhiro
Watsuki. The story begins during the 11th year of the Meiji period in Japan and follows a
former assassin from theBakumatsu, named Himura Kenshin. After his work against
the bakufu, Hitokiri Battosai disappears to become Himura Kenshin: a wandering samurai who
protects the people of Japan with a vow of never to take another life. Watsuki wrote this series
upon his desire of making a shnen manga different from the other ones that were published
at the time, with Kenshin being a former assassin and the story taking a more serious tone as
it continued. The manga revolves around themes of atonement, peace, andromance.
The manga initially appeared in Shueisha's Weekly Shnen Jump from April 11, 1994, to
November 4, 1999. The complete work consists of 28 tankbon volumes, while years later it
was reprinted into twenty-two kanzenban volumes. Studio Gallop, Studio Deenand SPE Visual
Works adapted the manga into an anime series which aired in Japan from January 10, 1996 to
September 8, 1998. Besides an animated feature film, two series of original video
animations (OVAs) were also produced. The first adapted stories from the manga that were
not featured in the anime, while the second was a sequel to the manga. Several art and
guidebooks for Rurouni Kenshin have been published and writer Kaoru Shizuka has authored
three official light novels which were published by Shueisha. Many video games have also
been released for the PlayStation, PlayStation 2, and PlayStation Portable consoles. A
successful live-action theatrical film adaptation was released in 2012, with limited
international screenings.
The manga, as well as the first light novel and first guidebook, has received a complete North
American release by Viz Media.Rurouni Kenshin is subtitled "Wandering Samurai" in some
English releases. The TV series was later licensed in North America and released on DVD
by Media Blasters. The first two seasons aired on the United States Cartoon Network as part
of the Toonami block, while the third season was only featured on DVD. The Englishlanguage versions of the OVAs, as well as the film, were originally released as Samurai X in
North America, although the original name was included on the later DVD and Blu-ray
Disc releases.
The Rurouni Kenshin manga has over 70 million copies in circulation as of 2014, while its
anime has ranked among the 100 most watched series in Japan multiple times. The series has
received praise and criticism from various publications for manga, anime and other media,
with both having received good response on the characters' designs and historical setting.