Miniseries · Spike
Afro Samurai
Death isn't the end...it's only the beginning.
Who's in it
Cast
The principal ensemble across the run of the series.
Samuel L. Jackson
Afro Samurai / Ninja Ninja (voice)
5 eps
Phil LaMarr
Brother 1 / Brother 3 / Brother 5 / Kuro / Teen Afro Samurai (voice)
5 eps
Kelly Hu
Okiku (voice)
1 eps
Yuri Lowenthal
Kuma / Jinno (voice)
5 eps
Ron Perlman
Justice (voice)
2 eps
Grey DeLisle
Oyuki (voice)
1 eps
John DiMaggio
Brother 2 (voice)
3 eps
Terrence 'T.C.' Carson
Sword Master (voice)
3 eps
Fred Tatasciore
Shuzo (voice)
2 eps
James Arnold Taylor
Yashichi (voice)
1 eps
Tara Strong
Otsuru (voice)
2 eps
Jeff Bennett
Foo (voice)
1 eps
Steve Blum
Assassin (voice)
1 eps
The Nutevio profile
TV DNA
How Afro Samurai actually feels to watch, measured on the traits our editors track across every series.
Signature profile
Afro Samurai reads strongest on Spectacle, Bingeability and World Building.
Visual ambition — scale, craft and set-piece filmmaking.
How hard it is to stop after one episode.
The scale, internal logic and texture of the world.
How fully written and psychologically layered the ensemble is.
How much each hour depends on the one before it.
How much the series is designed to affect you.
How often an episode ends on a hook you can't ignore.
The sustained pressure the series keeps you under.
How often the series is genuinely funny, by design.
The story
What it's about
In a futuristic Japan where conflicts are settled by the sword, Afro Samurai must avenge his father's murder by challenging a powerful warrior.
Where the series peaks
Best Episodes
The hours that define the show, ranked by audience response and editorial signal.
S01E02
The Dream Reader
Afro wakes from dreams of lost youth to find himself in the care of beautiful Okiku. Even as her tender touch soothes the wounded warrior, a violent plan is in motion that will replace pleasure with pain.
S01E01
Revenge
Afro Samurai is out for revenge. With cold-blooded determination, he sets out on the hunt for Justice, the gunman who killed his father and claimed the Number One Headband.
- Directed by Yasuhiro Geshi
S01E04
Duel
On Mt. Shumi’s snowy peak, Afro faces the vicious two-sword technique of Kuma, a bizarre enemy keenly aware of the horrors of Afro’s past.
S01E05
Justice
Afro Samurai draws his blade on the reclusive gunfighter Justice. One fights for vengeance, the other for supreme power. When the vicious battle ends, Number One will stand above the dead.
S01E03
The Empty Seven Clan
Afro’s climb of Mt. Shumi is blocked by the fanatical Empty Seven. After attacking with every weapon in their immense arsenal, they unleash Afro’s most lethal opponent yet - himself.
Behind the series
Created by
Showrunners, creators, executive producers and the writers who set the voice of the series.
The craft
Key Crew
Directing, writing, production, camera, music and editing.
Executive production
- Taito OkiuraProducer
- Chihiro KameyamaExecutive Producer
- Koji KajitaProducer
- Arthur SmithProducer
Writing
- Derek DraperWriter
Direction
- Yasuhiro GeshiDirector
- Fuminori KizakiDirector
Music
- RZAOriginal Music Composer
Where to watch
Streaming
Availability verified against regional listings.
- CrunchyrollStreaming
- Crunchyroll Amazon ChannelStreaming
- Fandango At HomeBuy
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Where to go from here
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Never stop watching
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