As its title indicates, “Rurouni Kenshin: The Final” brings the action-packed saga of its swordsman hero to a bang-up conclusion, following a 2012-14 trilogy and an origin story in “Rurouni Kenshin: The Beginning.” (Distributor Warner Bros. Japan, however, will release “The Final” first, on April 23, and “The Beginning” second, on June 4.)
The star of all five films is Takeru Satoh, who is less ripped than the average Hollywood superhero but has the agility and athleticism needed for Kenshin’s one-against-many sword fights. Also, he nimbly transitions from the cool, quiet assassin of “The Beginning,” who answers to the moniker “Hitokiri Battosai” (“the man-slaying swordsman”), to the more recognizably human fighter of “The Final,” who goes by Kenshin Himura. Vowing to never kill again, Kenshin goes into battle with his blade reversed so as to batter, not bloody, his opponents.
So why the name change? From the series’ start in the final years of the Edo Period (1603-1868) to its conclusion in the Meiji Era (1868-1912), Japanese men frequently changed their names to indicate a new status, to change their luck — or to hide their past.