Ready for The Elusive Samurai Season 2? Full S1 Recap & Review

For those who have watched The Elusive Samurai Season 1, I'm sure you're thrilled that Season 2 is coming and will begin airing in July 2026. Meanwhile, for those who haven't, now is the perfect time to binge-watch the entirety of Season 1 to get ready for Season 2. The Elusive Samurai, also known as Nige Jouzu no Wakagimi, is a truly interesting title and well worth your time.

Source: TVアニメ「逃げ上手の若君」 Official X account

First of all, for those who haven't really heard of this title before, let me give a brief introduction. The Elusive Samurai is the latest work of Yusei Matsui. You may wonder who he is, but the chances that you have read or watched his work are quite high. Yusei Matsui is actually the author of the super famous title, Assassination Classroom.

Assassination Classroom is a legendary title that has high scores across a lot of platforms, and The Elusive Samurai is the latest work from the same author. Of course, sharing the same author doesn't guarantee anything, a lot of "second" or "latest" works don't really do well. But after watching The Elusive Samurai myself, I was quite surprised, because this "latest" work is actually really good.

Source: TVアニメ「逃げ上手の若君」 Official X account

While the English name doesn't really reveal the story, the Japanese title, Nige Jouzu no Wakagimi (逃げ上手の若君), already hints at it. Since I don't want to ruin anyone's watching experience, I won't spoil too much in this post. Essentially, The Elusive Samurai is all about the main character, Hojo Tokiyuki, who keeps running away from his enemies while aiming to defeat them one day.

Based on that description alone, you might think this title isn't that amazing, but it's actually a hidden gem that has earned high scores across different platforms. On MyAnimeList, it holds a strong 7.78, while on AnimeOshi, a platform I've been using recently, it holds an incredible 9.3 rating. For those who are still wondering whether they should give this title a try, these scores speak for themselves.

Source: TVアニメ「逃げ上手の若君」 Official X account

After watching it myself, I figured that besides my review, there might be some questions you're curious about regarding this anime, so I've listed them below. I hope these FAQs help you along your own journey with The Elusive Samurai.

Is the animation good? Yes, but not all the time. The animation studio, CloverWorks, front-loads its budget into the battle episodes, while the setup and political episodes look a bit flatter. Since this phenomenon happens in a lot of anime, I don't think it's a big issue. Aside from the battle episodes, the killing scenes (and there are many) are remarkably well executed. Although I was disgusted by some of the scenes, I do think they make the anime better.

(Review from user homotron3799 on AnimeOshi, about how good the animation is)

Which episodes matter before S2? In terms of the plot, the first half of the anime is quite important, as it explains the story, backgrounds, and settings. After the setup, around episode 5, the show focuses much more on the action. So, if you are looking forward to an amazing historical story, focus on the first half; if you want to see the action, focus on the second half.

Here’s a great YouTube video worth checking out.

Watch S1 first if: You want to watch an amazing historical anime. Although I am not that familiar with Japanese history, I still find this part quite interesting.

Maybe wait if: You want to watch everything altogether. Since Season 2 is just around the corner, waiting to binge both seasons back-to-back is definitely a valid option.

Here’s a great YouTube video worth checking out.

Do I need the manga? Currently, no, since Season 2 will expand the story further.

Thank you for reading this post! I hope that my review and FAQs are useful to everyone. Although The Elusive Samurai isn't that famous compared to other major titles, it is still a hidden gem that I really wanted to introduce to everyone.