It's been 20 years since Matsue Yasuri rose to defeat Takahito Hida, the Lord of Oshuu and his rebellious followers at Hida Castle. Since then, the succeeding Shogun had decided to exile the hero and his family to the remote island of Fushou afterwards, fearing his powers of being able to slash his enemies without a blade.

Matsue had now passed away leaving his children behind. Shichika Yusuri (literally 7th head...) continues his father's legacy by continuing to practice the blade-less art "Kotouryuu" and chooses not to leave the island as his older sister Nanami Yusuri (literally 7th beauty...) is too ill to survive the trip back to the main land.

One day, the shogun's strategician Togame arrives at the island informing them he wanted to collect the lone swordsmith Kiki Shikizaki's famous Katanas that were distributed throughout Japan. It is said that amongst them 12 were the rarest and most powerful among them as a result of practicing and producing the sheer number of blades that preceded them. Unfortunately, ninjas and swordsmen who were hired to retrieve the Katanas gave in to the temptation of owning such a powerful and valuable blade so now Togame decides to rely on the former hero instead. As the one to inherit the art of Kotouryuu, Shichika is requested to face those who possess the Katanas and retrieve them before the former rebells collect them and rise again.

However, Shichika had no interest in the outside world but he soon learns Togame was the daughter of the rebel leader who his father had killed. Despite witnessing the massacre she was determined to build up her status for revenge even if it meant asking her enemies for help and for that, he "falls for her." Nanami too agrees as she never wanted to see her younger brother stuck on a lone island. And so, together Togame and Shichika set off on their journey to seek the 12 Deviant Blades.

Watched this because a Japanese (non-Anime fan) I was chatting to recommended it and since I just finished a show I thought why not. Opening reminded me of the time I went to Hida to get to Shirakawa Village.

So based on a light novel series, each episode is longer than your average Anime at 50 minutes so it's more like two episodes rolled into one or, your usual live action drama length. So it might appear to be a 12 episode short series at first but it's more like your common 24 episode show. Maybe that's why it was one episode per month when it aired but funnily enough, it also aired at the same pace our protagonists journeyed at and the light novel series was also 12 volumes. Not only that, the month in each episode matches the month they were aired too such as when it was April, that particular episode was also aired on April too. Pretty cool.

Initially it feels quite boring to the point where I thought, "I might have to just drop this..." Jokes start off quite dull, relying heavily on the "tsukomi" (interrupt with a silly comment) style comedy. Even the silly comic relief character Togame doesn't do much that's worth laughing at. Dialogue's not witty despite being extremely lengthy. Most of the time it's not worth paying attention to because it hardly gives any story either and, feels more like an attempt to build character which it doesn't. There's just nothing in the lines that really makes an impression.

However, it doesn't take long to get better. Just about an episode afterwards there's less talking and more meaningful direction. It's still quite enjoyable watching the two travel around old Japan showing different environments unique to each prefecture. Each swordsman they face are more interesting than the protagonists for much of the show until we start to see Shichika and Togame grow through each new enemy they meet.

Since Shichika has never seen civilisation he's almost as silly as Togame so creates a bit of a strange mix. It's kind of like a woman trying to help an honest, innocent child adapt to the civilised world or maybe it's more like Tarzan... "Himbo trope" apparently. I guess that appeals to a certain demographic. Kind of like keeping a pet who does everything told?

There's quite a lot of shows that feature a woman controlling a strong powerful man who has the innocent mind of a child... I guess the appeal is they're attractive and won't cheat? Then again I guess there's also guys that want to be controlled but whatever rocks your boat, haha.

You've also got Shichika walking around bare chested which is supposedly better than his previous "naked" getup when he actually had a kind of tank top on at least so, I'm guessing this is fan service for the ladies but without the "boys love" element like in Banana Fish.

Music is quite suited to the era and features some nice compositions. Background art is also pretty good that resembled traditional Japanese art but, character art on the other hand is fairly average choosing vector like flat colours so not much detail to admire. Katanas seem to get rendered in much more detail. Quite strange how they choose to make Togame's eye a cross sign whenever her hatred wells up or when she's after something. I thought it was some special power or something...

As it's set in feudal Japan featuring samurais and ninjas you'd think theres some great fight scenes but they don't deliver either. Don't expect the highly dynamic and well choreographed kind from Attack on Titan or Kimetsu Yaiba. There's more chatter than action.

But don't let the simplistic art work and silly character designs fool you. Even though the fights aren't along the same violent gore filled style of Attack on Titan, there's still blood and torture. It also has fan service with hot springs and awkward camera angles too. It starts off quite rare but becomes more blatant; just when the show gets better too.

I guess you could say there's something for everyone in this romcom action show. It may look silly and be a bit chatty at first but it's got mystery and fun moments as our heroes travel around Edo Japan. If you do decide to watch it, notice how the pose between Togame and Shichika changes in the ending theme animation along with the song.

Enjoy the journey.