History YMMV / RurouniKenshin

** Shishio. He wants what he thinks is best for his country, and has a complex but apparently genuine loving relationship with his girlfriend, and inspires genuine loyalty in his most devoted followers. On the other hand, [[spoiler: this doesn't stop him from killing her, even if she was willing]]; he is clearly TheSociopath and a straight-up CardCarryingVillain who fully expects to go (''back'') to Hell when he dies, and his vision of a "better" Japan is a SocialDarwinist [[DystopiaJustifiesTheMeans war-mongering tyranny]] and marks him as a precursor to the horrors of Showa-era Japan, and he commits numerous atrocities throughout the story as well. So, a (very, very dark) AntiVillain and WellIntentionedExtremist working on BlueAndOrangeMorality, or a sadistic megalomaniac? Or an unholy mixture of ALL OF THE ABOVE?

* LoveToHate: Shishio Makoto is a brutal SocialDarwinist who causes many atrocities in the series, yet his odd sense of honor makes him the perfect adversary to Kenshin due to his genuine desire to make Japan strong. The author Watsuki even considers him his favorite villain of the series.

* TheProblemWithLicensedGames: "Rurouni Kenshin: Meiji Kenyaku Romantan - Ishin Gekitouhen", a [=PlayStation=] game for the series was released in 1996 before Watsuki finalized the Kyoto arc. The game was criticized by modern fans of the series because it only features small amount of characters (all relevant fighting characters up to Saito encounter, except Hiruma and Yahiko) compared to the PSP game from the same series, which features significantly more rosters (including fan-favorite PosthumousCharacter such as Sagara and Okita).

** Kenshin himself is a FriendToAllChildren. In 2017 series creator Nobuhiro Watsuki was charged with possession of child pornography. Eerier still, a year before that, the writer of the manga's English translation, Gerard Jones, was charged for the same reason. The franchise seemingly addressed this unfortunate reality in the 2023 anime remake. As this aspect of Kenshin's character is more or less removed, since he never interacts with any children aside from plot essential characters such as Yahiko.

** Kenshin himself is a FriendToAllChildren. In 2017 series creator Nobuhiro Watsuki was charged with possession of child pornography. Eerier still, a year before that, the writer of the manga's English translation, Gerard Jones, was charged for the same reason.

* OvershadowedByControversy: Watsuki's charges for possession of child pornography in 2017 cast an inescapable shadow over the entire franchise. If this were any other mangaka or any other franchise it wouldn't have hit as hard since many anime/manga fans know about the cultural differences in Japan and the West specially regarding child psychology, but the work always preached for a moral improvement. This coming out in the way it did, instead of let's say the author himself revealing it makes it hard for fans to rewatch the series without feeling hypocritical. And despite Watsuki expressing regrets for his actions, paying the fine and returning to work in April 2018, the damage is already done and fans are mixed whether to support his work or not. There's also the publisher Shueisha letting him continue to work after six months since the charges, which many people felt was too soon since the controversy is still fresh in the people's minds. Another sticking point is that many feel Watsuki hasn't done enough to atone for his crimes, with the fine and his brief suspension being viewed as just a slap on the wrist considering the seriousness of those crimes.[[note]] Although, it has been noted by commenters knowledgeable in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RWIzGng2WLY Japanese culture]] that the fine and suspension, while feeling like a slap on the wrist to Westerners, are nothing compared to the experience of having to carry a perceptual shame everywhere you travel and being constantly condemned by everyone around you. In a Japanese environment, this is one of the absolute worst things that can happen to any person. Prior to modern times, seppuku was genuinely considered to be a preferable fate then having to bear such shame and endure constant humiliation. As such, there is a degree of ValuesDissonance between Western and Japanese cultural viewpoints at play here, as will as the assumption that such a thing is even happening to Watsuki.[[/note]]