secretary wrote:
>
> Shura No Toki:Age of Chaos
> w/ Okita and Hijikata (official U.S. release)
>
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B0009G3BLU/qid=1121637597/sr=1-2/ref=sr_1_2/103-3652282-5591034?v=glance&s=dvd
There are three story arcs so far in the first five volumes of Shura No
Toki. (Vol 6 is due to be released in September.) It's the third of those
arcs that deals with the Bakumatsu and includes the Shinsengumi. The series
as a whole follows the practitioners of a particular unarmed fighting style
called Mutsu Enmei. Each arc is about a different character and it jumps
generations between the arcs. In fact, it jumps nearly 200 years between
the second and third arcs, so there's no characters in common there, and the
only plot association between them is that the earlier arcs helped establish
the Mutsu Enmei style as legendary. With such a loose association between
arcs, there's no problem with starting at the beginning of any one of them.
If you want to begin with the Bakumatsu arc, you should start at the
beginning of volume 4:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B0008FPIMM/
The link Secretary provided above is actually to Volume 5, which continues
this arc. (Although strangely, the Amazon listing doesn't specify its
volume number).
The third arc is excellent. Aside from including the Shinsengumi (which of
course is what drew me to the series in the first place) it presents the
best view of the history of the period I've seen attempted in an anime. The
lead character, Mutsu Izumi, becomes close friends with Sakamoto Ryoma, and
it follows his endeavors throughout the revolution.
The first two arcs are also fun to watch, but they're not nearly as
impressive as the Bakumatsu arc, probably because they aren't dealing with
such a turbulent historical era. (They take place about 20 years apart,
both in the early years of the Tokugawa shogunate, in order to pit the lead
characters against first Miyamoto Musashi, and then Yagyu Juubei.)
Because the Amazon listings are sort of confusing (such as not consistently
including volume numbers), here's which is which:
Volume 1 (cheaper version):
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B0002ZYE78/
Volume 1 (expensive version):
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B00076OMZG/
It's not clear from the descriptions why there are two different versions of
the first volume. Presumably the more expensive of the two is probably a
special edition or maybe includes a series box or something, but I don't
really know what its extra features are.
Volume 2:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B00068NWI8/
Volume 3:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B00076OMZQ/
Volume 4:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B0008FPIMM/
Volume 5:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B0009G3BLU/
Volume 6:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B000A2XA6O/