The second you press play, “Playback,” the new opening, instantly fills your senses. The first seconds are a brief recap of things we’ve seen, but soon the gang is back, smiling at the audience by turns as the shadow of Tokiyuki runs. I’m not sure it is quite as iconic as “Plan A” by DISH//, but it has a fun, catchy vibe, and it certainly does the job. But it is the visuals that bat it out of the park. Every second is dynamic and has a lot to unpack, and the fights we get a peek of look as awesome as can be. Once the opening is over, it is recap time. Those moments in anime tend to get perfunctory and not too exciting, but doing it as a live-action rakugo session sure is a way to bring you up to speed while keeping your eyes glued to the screen. Man, this show. We start with a fight, then see a flashback of what happened one day earlier. At breakfast, in casual conversation with his friends and retainers, Tokiyuki revealed that his favorite food is sea bream. He smiles, but his retainers perceive that he’s down. Of course, it is almost impossible to get one now. Kamakura was by the sea, but in the days before trains or cars, only those who lived nearest to the sea could have fish. The so-called Fish-Tail Line was an imaginary measure marking the furthest fish could go inland before they began to spoil. Suwa is beyond that line, so in the heat of the summer, bringing the fish in a good state would require using the shortest possible route and galloping all the way at a crazy speed, and in a time of war to boot. Not that the gang is discouraged by this…

It’s back! One of the most fun, quirky, eccentric, inventive, and visually stunning shows out there is returning in style, and I am here for it! In “Longing for Sea Bream,” we get our secondary characters doing things on their own and showing their various personalities, a touching Proustian moment for Tokiyuki, and fun new enemies as the scene changes from 1333 to 1335. The Elusive Samurai will certainly not be for everyone, though: In a way, the recap done by way of rakugo is the perfect encapsulation of it. It loves throwing you off-balance, surprising you with its style, and sometimes making things jarring. One moment, you get a completely by-the-numbers contemporary anime moment, the next, a surprisingly faithful bit of historical recreation. Art styles, narration, well-animated shonen moments, and sudden changes in scenery are the law of the land. It is more bloody and adult than the visuals suggest, yet goofy and relaxed most of the time. The villains look both cartoony and threatening, as well as quite unique. But if you take it as it is and follow its crazed zig-zagged pace, the show can be as intellectually stimulating as Serial Experiments Lain, treat you to genuinely stunning moments, prove to you that it has a heart, and instill a genuine love for this era in you. That’s worth a lot. I certainly cannot get enough of its themes and its emotional beats, which is why I’m currently writing a series of articles on it. Here’s more Elusive Samurai for me to enjoy, and it remains just as amazing.

The Elusive Samurai can be streamed at Crunchyroll.