Afro Samurai was created as a manga, but its claim to fame here on the western side of the pond is for a few reasons.  Firstly, the anime aired here before it aired in Japan.  Secondly, the voice of Samuel L. Jackson as “Afro” and “ninja ninja”, and Ron Pearlman as “Justice”, plus the sound track by RZA of Wu-Tang Clan -  made it ultra hip, cool and frankly just bad ass.  And thirdly the animation, the story, and the characters were dope.  Yeah, I said it… DOPE.

The main character, Afro, becomes the “Number Two” swordsman in order to avenge his father who was murdered by “Number One”. The problem is that someone becomes “Number One” by killing the current Number One, donning the headband that denotes you are the most skilled, the One to be most feared, and truthfully, the baddest mofo around (yes, I said mofo).

The trick is this: only the "Number Two" can challenge the "Number One." It doesn’t stop there; anyone and everyone can try to kill the “Number Two” claiming his headband, and gaining the right to challenge Number One.

Read more: Heeey Afroooo: Interview with Takashi Okazaki