- —Tagline
Samurai Jack VS Afro Samurai is the 96th episode of Death Battle, featuring Samurai Jack from the Samurai Jack series and Afro Samurai from the Afro Samurai series in a battle between nameless modern samurai. Jack was voiced by Kaiji Tang and Afro was voiced by Devante' Johnson.
Interlude
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Wiz & Boomstick by Brandon Yates  
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Wiz: Among the soldiers of history, the samurai is one of the most prestigious and dangerous.
Boomstick: So let's pit two of the best of 'em in a fight to the death.
Wiz: Samurai Jack, the warrior prince lost in time.
Boomstick: And Afro Samurai, who's one cold-blooded mother-f'er. He's Wiz and I'm Boomstick.
Wiz: And it's our job to analyze their weapons, armor, and skills to find out who would win... a Death Battle.
Samurai Jack
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Wu Du by Christopher Slaski 
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Wiz: Long ago in a distant land, Aku, the shapeshifting master of darkness, unleashed an unspeakable evil.
Boomstick: But a foolish samurai warrior wielding a magic sword stepped forth to oppose me... I-I mean him.
Wiz: And that nameless samurai became known as... Jack.
Street Punks: - Jack. - Jack was all - Jack. Jack. - Yo, Jack. - Jack, was - Jack!
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Yakuza by David O'Brien
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Boomstick: Doesn't really strike fear into your enemies.
Wiz: Young Jack was the son of a Japanese emperor, who had imprisoned Aku years before. However, upon Aku's return, the Emperor and his army were quickly defeated. The last of all hope remained in the hands of his son.
Boomstick: Aww, look how small he is! Ahem, well, uh, to prep for beating the snot out of Aku, little Jack traveled the world, training with the best of the best.
Wiz: Most notably, he learned horseback riding from a Sheikh, staff-fighting in Africa, wrestling from gladiators, ax-throwing from a Russian boyar, mounted combat from the Mongols, martial arts from Shaolin Monks, and...
Boomstick: And archery from freaking Robin Hood! You know, everyone's favorite talking fox! Oo-de-lally!
Wiz: Wrong Robin Hood.
Boomstick: That's your opinion.
Wiz: Jack's progress was exceptional; at just eight years old, he defended a whole village from a band of marauders.
Boomstick: All before he could even legally drink the good stuff. 17 years later, he was ready for the final boss. He just needed one more thing: his pajamas.
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Shamisen Chikara by Pete Masitti & John Andrew Barrow 
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Wiz: No no no, his katana.
Boomstick: Katana, pajama, tomato, alfredo, it's all the same. But before Jack could put his training to good use, Aku pulled a bitch move and zapped him hundreds of years into the future.
Wiz: What a waste, just like when you spend four sleepless years struggling through college, and then find out too late that nobody cares about your English major!
Boomstick: I thought you graduated from the School of Evil Science or something.
Wiz: Well, still had to pick a major...
Boomstick's Poultry Science degree is shown on-screen.
Boomstick: Should've chose a more practical one, Wiz, like mine. Anyway, even though he was trapped in the future, Jack stuck to his mission: to get back to the past and take down Aku, and he had the right weapon for the job.
Wiz: See, Aku cannot be harmed by conventional means. Thus, a special blade was forged by gods from Norse, Egyptian, and Hindu pantheons. This mystic sword is nearly unbreakable and absolutely incorruptible.
Boomstick: And boy, is Jack's katana an extremely effective weapon.
Wiz: It can absorb and redirect energy, including fire, vaporize beings of evil, and slice through nearly any substance, even adamantium.
Boomstick: The Wolverine super-metal? Why is that there?
Wiz: Eh, probably just coincidental naming, but it is shown to be stronger than steel.
Boomstick: Of course it is. So, the sword's pretty awesome, but so is Jack; he's strong enough to push over this giant pillar, tough enough to survive a fall from orbit, and fast enough to defeat six bounty hunters in the time it took for one drop of water to hit the ground. By timing the drop, all of this had to have taken place in about a third of a second. He's like a ninja-samurai, "ninjamurai".
Wiz: Actually, he is trained in ninjutsu, which probably helped when he was forced to dodge beams of sunlight. For this one, in particular, it's clear Jack began dodging after the beam was fired. By examining both Jack and the beam's movement frame by frame, we've concluded his highest reaction speeds must be nearly 70% the speed of light.
Boomstick: Damn, that's fast. What can't he do? Next thing you'll tell me he has the power to fly or something.
Wiz: Well, Jack can't fly, but he did learn how to...
Monkey Man: Jump good.
He leaps high into the air.
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Modern Geisha by Christophe Goze
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Wiz: Uh, yes, that. By strapping a giant boulder on his back, which, compared to his height, we can determine to weigh 39 tons, Jack learned how to leap high enough to clear these trees.
Boomstick: Crouching tiger, hidden samurai! These trees are pretty big, and this jungle has a bunch of these ugly baboons running around. And if I were a betting man, which I am, I'd say that this is the African Rainforest, where the average tree is about 130 feet tall. Dibs on Jack for my basketball team; guy's got hops.
Wiz: We haven't even mentioned the time he survived several exploding missiles with his friend, the Scotsman.
Boomstick: Hmm, why does he look so familiar? Well, I like him!
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Chopsticks by Bob Bradley & Paul Clarvis
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Wiz: With so much talent, it was only a matter of time until Jack found his way home and defeated Aku once and for all, but it took a lot longer than it probably should have. 50 years, in fact.
Boomstick: Yeah, good thing time travel makes you stop aging for some reason. But Jack's a good-hearted soul, like a boy scout who hasn't discovered Twitter yet.
Wiz: He can be pretty gullible when it comes to more devious opponents. Also, he continues to prolong his lonely journey over and over, just because he frequently puts the needs of others before his own. Still, the forces of evil should watch out for Samurai Jack.
Jack screams in rage and slices through several large worm robots.
Jack: (echoing) WHO ELSE WANTS SOME?!
Afro Samurai
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Forbidden Spice by Dave James, David O'Brien & Sean Allen
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Wiz: The stories that surround the two sacred headbands are as many as the men who died in their pursuit.
Boomstick: What's so special about some strips of headcloth?
Wiz: Legend says they were created by the gods, or they can grant the wearer supernatural powers. But in truth, the headbands only bring pain and loss. Such was the case with Afro Samurai.
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Counterblow by Terry Devine-King & Adam Drake
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Boomstick: Wait, did his parents really call him "Afro"? Talk about setting big expectations!
Wiz: Well, no, it's a nickname, but even if they did, have you seen his dad? I think they knew what to expect.
Boomstick: Damn, just look at it! Oh, and hey, look, he's got the Number One Headband!
Wiz: Here's how this works: The person who wears the Number One Headband is said to rule the world, and the only person who can challenge the Number One is whoever possesses the Number Two; in contrast, anybody can challenge the owner of the Number Two for the right to wear that headband, and thus, gain the right to challenge the Number One.
Boomstick: So, like, you just work your way up so that only one guy in the world can challenge you? So, where do I get one of these headbands? Then no one will mess with me.
Wiz: Actually, the opposite would probably happen, which young Afro witnessed first hand when some freak named Justice showed up with the Number Two and killed his father right in front of him.
Boomstick: Why does this always happen? You know, I always thought parenting was the hardest thing about being a dad, but at this point, I think it's just actually staying alive if your kid's ever gonna do anything great, or just sticking around for them.
Wiz: Despite knowing that he was effectively creating a future challenger, Justice left Afro alone to mourn his loss.
Boomstick: So, of course, Afro swore revenge, and started learning swordsmanship under a swordmaster named... Sword Master! Who the hell is naming these people?
Wiz: Through Sword Master's training of sword mastery, Afro learned the traditional samurai fighting styles of kenjutsu and kendo.
Boomstick: Kenjutsu is all about how to kill an opponent as fast as possible, while kendo is more about discipline and being zen and stuff.
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Horns of War by James Seymour Brett
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Boomstick: Naturally, Afro preferred the more kickass one.
Wiz: Right, Sword Master's goal was to refine Afro's body and mind, instilling upon him a sense of honor, or Bushido, but that didn't quite mesh with Afro's thirst for vengeance.
Boomstick: So, when he found out that Sword Master had the Number Two Headband all along, he knew what he had to do.
We see Afro decapitate Sword Master in a geyser of blood before he claims the latter's headband for himself.
Boomstick: And now, he could take down the guy who killed his dad.
Wiz: Alongside his new friend/burden, Ninja Ninja.
Boomstick: Oh, come the f**k on! Where'd this guy come from?
Ninja Ninja: Now don't we look like shit! How you been, man?
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Collective by Matthew Todd Naylor & Oliver Spencer 
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Wiz: Well, it's not entirely clear. He's there, but at the same time, not there; Ninja Ninja is believed to be the guardian of the Number Two Headband, but all he ever really does is talk, talk, and talk some more.
Ninja Ninja: He got arrows and grenades and shit! You ain't got no chance, dude!
Wiz: Though, it's also possible Ninja Ninja is simply a figment of Afro's mind, brought about by psychological stress.
Boomstick: Y'know, I have an imaginary friend.
Wiz: Aren't you a little old for that?
Boomstick: Not for Al Gundy! He's a gun, who also talks to me; he tells me to do stuff.
Wiz: Okay...
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Vaporizer by Adam Drake & Tom Jenkins
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Wiz: Anyway, to be honest, calling Afro a "samurai" is a bit misleading; he's actually more akin to a Rōnin, a samurai with no master. And so, with his swordsmanship perfected, Afro wandered the world, searching for Justice, carrying an arsenal fit for revenge.
Boomstick: Including his father's sword. This super-long blade has lasted through decades of battle without much issue, perfect for kicking some ass.
Wiz: He also has a steel comb, which can be a surprisingly effective offensive and defensive tool.
Boomstick: And since he doesn't care about that honor BS, he's not afraid to play dirty by attacking with his sandals.
Wiz: But while on the road to Justice, Afro's Number Two Headband attracted all manner of dangerous enemies. Luckily, he's more than capable of dealing with each and every one of them.
Boomstick: He's strong enough to cut other swords in half, throw his sheath through another guy's throat, and even tear off metal arms.
Wiz: Pretty impressive, as many modern metals have tensile strength as high as 80,000 pounds per square inch.
Boomstick: Afro is fast enough to cut bullets out of thin air, and even a laser beam!
Wiz: I should note that it's not a plasma-based beam; it bounces off of reflective surfaces, doesn't explode upon contact, and it's literally labeled a laser. This means Afro blocked a beam that moved as fast as light; more than 670 million miles per hour.
Boomstick: Get this: that laser beam came from a robot version of Afro. Talk about metal! This Afro Droid could easily smash up a car, and our boy Afro just tore it apart. He's survived getting hit by rockets, including this RPG that fragmented a giant cliff face.
Ninja Ninja: An RPG in a motherfucking backpack?
Afro knocks the rocket away, sending it into a cliff, where it explodes.
Boomstick: Ha, I think I smell math coming.
Wiz: This tree nearby is most likely a Japanese mountain ash, which can sometimes grow as high as 30 feet. With that in mind, we compared its height to the fragmentation created by the explosion, and compared the resulting surface area to the sheer force for granite. With this, we deduced the RPG's highest possible explosive yield must be around 72 tons of TNT.
Boomstick: Damn! What kind of mega-rocket launcher are these guys packing? And where do I get it?
Wiz: Many stood in his way, and Afro didn't get through them all unscathed.
Boomstick: But by the end, he cut down Justice, took his revenge in hand, and proved to the world that Afro Samurai is Number One.
Assassin Leader: Why you gotta kill all my men? Why you gotta kill me?
Afro: Nothing personal. It's just revenge.
Prelude
Wiz: Alright, the combatants are set. Let's end this debate once and for all!
Boomstick: But first, lookin' at these swords makes me wanna sharpen my knives for my Blue Apron meal tonight.
Wiz and Boomstick read out an advertisement for Blue Apron.
Boomstick: But right now, IT'S TIME FOR A DEATH BATTLEEE!!!
Wiz: Alright, the combatants are set. Let's end this debate once and for all!
Boomstick: IT'S TIME FOR A DEATH BATTLEEE!!!(The transcript below is exclusive to the YouTube version of the episode.)
Wiz: Alright, the combatants are set. Let's end this debate once and for all!
Boomstick: But first, lookin' at these swords makes me wanna sharpen my knives for my Blue Apron meal tonight.
Wiz and Boomstick read out an advertisement for Blue Apron.
Boomstick: But right now, IT'S TIME FOR A DEATH BATTLEEE!!!
(The transcript below is exclusive to the Rooster Teeth version of the episode.)
Wiz: Alright, the combatants are set. Let's end this debate once and for all!
Boomstick: IT'S TIME FOR A DEATH BATTLEEE!!!Death Battle
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Watch Out, Samurai! by Therewolf Media
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Samurai Jack approaches a wooden bridge hanging next to a waterfall. He tilts his straw hat up and sees that the bridge is enveloped in a thick fog. He proceeds forward into the unknown.
Halfway on the bridge, Jack sees the shadow of a man with large hair and a blowing headband. He tilts his head up and sees that the man is Afro Samurai, and the two warriors slow down as they cross each other on the bridge and eventually stop in their tracks.
Jack: Your sword smells of blood.
Afro begins to draw his blade out.
Afro: So does yours.
The two samurais bring their blades out and clash with each other. Afro goes on the offensive as Jack counters his every move. Jack then tries stabbing forward as Afro blocks his blade from multiple angles before slashing forward, which Jack leaps backward to dodge. Their clash results in part of the bridge's rope getting cut.
Afro dashes forward and slashes vertically. Jack blocks the attack, which splits apart his straw hat and causes it to fall off the bridge. He pushes Afro forward with his katana. Afro leaps in the air and manages to blind his opponent by tossing his cigarette into Jack's eyes. He lands behind Jack and lunges forward, but Jack dodges the attack thanks to his ability to fight blind.
Afro is surprised as Jack prepares his battle stance. He runs forward and slashes in different directions as Jack dodges the blade and blocks it with his katana. Jack then goes after Afro and slashes in diagonal patterns, unwittingly cutting more of the bridge's ropes. Jack regains his eyesight and is shocked when he sees the bridge's condition before turning around and seeing Afro purposefully cut the last of the bridge's support.
The bridge tilts downward causing Jack to fall off as Afro holds onto the supporting rope. He leaps up and stands on the rope as Jack manages to perform a high jump from the bottom ground back in front of Afro, surprising the samurai.
Afro: Huh, you jump good.
Jack bashfully scratches his head.
Jack: Oh, uh... thank you?—
Suddenly, Afro tries to stab his opponent again and goes on the offensive on the ropes, slashing Jack in different directions. The wounded Jack throws off the top half of his kimono and angrily stares down Afro as his chonmage comes undone, letting his hair flow freely. With one slash he places a deep cut in Afro, who takes off his shirt after grunting in pain. Afro manages to disarm Jack, causing the time-displaced warrior to drop his sword down the cliff. Jack avoids Afro's next attack and kicks his opponent's blade upward.
When Afro's sword comes down, it slices the remaining support of the bridge, causing Jack to fall down yelling as Afro grabs his blade and holds onto the end of the severed rope to swing backward.
Jack painfully awakens at the bottom of the waterfall and sees Afro's reflection. Afro (now wearing the headband again) plummets downward to deliver the final blow. Jack grabs his katana and carefully prepares to counter. Both samurais engage in one final slice to determine the victor.
Jack's right arm is cut off and falls into the lake, causing him to scream. Despite this, Afro is in even more pain, as both of his arms have been sliced off and he falls to his knees, screaming in agony. Jack turns around and uses his one remaining arm to cut Afro into multiple pieces. He walks away as Afro's body disassembles when Jack sheathes his katana. Afro's severed head falls into the water as Jack leaves wearing Afro's Number One headband.
The screen cuts to the end title card of the Samurai Jack cartoon and plays a part of the iconic theme song.
Results
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Watch Out, Samurai! by Therewolf Media
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Boomstick: So, like, is he gonna get his arm back, or...?
Wiz: Afro was an exceptional warrior, and his skills would absolutely dominate most swordfights. However, Jack has had a lot of experience with opponents who fight dirty, and Afro could not stand up to his physical superiority.
Boomstick: Yeah, Afro never showed strength like how Jack lifted that 39-ton boulder.
Wiz: Jack could react as fast as 70% the speed of light. Afro did block that lightspeed laser beam, but based on the distance between him and the Afro Droid, he only needed to react around 21% the speed of light to do this. Still putting him at impressive relativistic speeds, but not even half as quick as Jack.
Boomstick: Also, while Afro survived that mega-sized RPG explosion, don't forget how Jack survived a fall from orbit!
Wiz: While it does seem the spacesuit was responsible for Jack surviving re-entry, it certainly can't be held solely accountable for the final impact; starting his descent from the Kármán line, or the boundary between Earth's atmosphere and space, Jack covered a distance of 62 miles in just under seven seconds, moving well over terminal velocity.
Boomstick: Thanks to being propelled by exploding space bees!
Wiz: Which means his top velocity was approximately 37,000 miles per hour. Adding the space suit's weight to his own, this means his impact force must've equaled about 19 megatons of force, way more than anything Afro's survived.
Boomstick: And then he just got up and walked away! Badass. In the end, Jack was just too fast, too strong, too tough, and too well-trained for Afro to, ahem, "hand-le".
We cut to the "Winner" card.
Wiz: The winner is Samurai Jack.
Original Track
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Watch Out, Samurai! by Therewolf Media
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Composition
The track for this fight is "Watch Out, Samurai!" by Therewolf Media. It is a mix between the Japanese shamisen and modern hip-hop, as both series have utilized these styles within their respective soundtracks. The ending is a remix of the Samurai Jack theme in homage to the ending title card of each episode.
Title
"Watch Out" is a reference to a lyric in the Samurai Jack theme song (with said lyric being at the end of this track), while "Samurai" refers to both combatants.
Cover Art
The cover art depicts Afro's sword stabbing through Jack's straw hat, which also has Afro's Number One Headband wrapped around it. The hat itself is seen on top of a blood splatter on the floor.
Trivia
Production
- The connections between Samurai Jack and Afro Samurai are that they are both eponymous samurai protagonists living in technologically advanced time periods on a quest to defeat a great evil ruler (Aku and Justice, respectively) who killed their fathers when they were younger, eventually succeeding in doing so many years later. Both are widely known by their nicknames (Jack and Afro, respectively) while their real names remain unknown. Both also tend to be loners, with their main ally being a loud and boisterous foil to their quiet, stoic personalities (the Scotsman and Ninja Ninja, respectively). Both have survived massive amounts of pain and have struggled with their mental stability due to a traumatic event in their life (Jack lost his sword and aimlessly wandered in a time loop for decades, which caused him to spiral into insanity and have hallucinations about his father, while Afro witnessed his father's death as a child, which transformed him into a cold-blooded killer who copes with the trauma of losing his father with Ninja Ninja, who is a figment of his imagination).
- Both also eventually got their revenge and achieved their goals in later adaptations (Samurai Jack was canceled before receiving a revival to finish the show, whilst Justice was already dead when Afro found him in the manga, but he was alive and got killed by Afro in the anime adaptation).
- Both have also been voiced by Phil LaMarr (LaMarr voiced a teenage Afro Samurai) and have had their shows aired on Toonami and Adult Swim.
- This episode was not initially planned for Season 5; rather, it came about because Luis Cruz stated he wanted to animate a hand-drawn Samurai Jack episode while drunk at a party and stuck to it the day after.[1]
- This episode makes a cameo appearance in Gojo VS Makima, as the climax of the fight is seen playing as a movie Satoru Gojo and Makima are watching before their own fight starts proper.
- Its inclusion in the episode also served as a hint toward the episode that followed it, as it would be the first episode since this one to be a fully hand-drawn episode animated by Luis Cruz.[2]
Easter Eggs
- The start of Jack's analysis directly references Aku's opening narration at the start of Samurai Jack.
- Boomstick's degree in Poultry Science, which was brought up in Darth Vader VS Doctor Doom and Ken VS Terry, makes a return in this episode in Jack's analysis.
- The bridge where both Jack and Afro begin their fight is likely a reference to where Jack first encountered the Scotsman in the Samurai Jack episode "Jack and the Scotsman".
- Ironically, Afro's death is very similar to how he killed his mortal enemy Justice, as both were fatally cut into many pieces.
- The ending card seen at the end of nearly all Samurai Jack episodes is seen at the end of the fight.
Errors
- Afro's best durability feat was calculated in tons of TNT, whereas Jack's best durability feat was calculated in megatons of force, which is a different and much weaker metric. Whether this was simply a typo in the script or Jack was given the durability advantage based on a feat that's technically weaker than Afro's is unclear.
Other
- This is the second episode to be animated in a hand-drawn style, after Smokey Bear VS McGruff the Crime Dog, and with the next eight being Mario VS Sonic (2018), Deadpool VS Mask, Genos VS War Machine, Macho Man VS Kool-Aid Man, Saitama VS Popeye, Omni-Man VS Homelander, Scooby-Doo VS Courage the Cowardly Dog, and Rick Sanchez VS The Doctor.
- This is the first hand-drawn episode by Luis Cruz, with the next one being Scooby-Doo VS Courage the Cowardly Dog.
- This is the second Cartoon VS Anime/Manga-themed episode, after Gaara VS Toph, and with the next five being Optimus Prime VS Gundam, Aang VS Edward Elric, Zuko VS Shoto Todoroki, Saitama VS Popeye, and Frieza VS Megatron.