History YMMV / SamuraiChamploo

* OneTrueThreesome: The main three are frequently paired due to their VitriolicBestBuds dynamic, especially with Jin and Mugen admitting at the end that they consider each other their first friends.

* UnintentionallyUnsympathetic: Hellhounds for Hire involves a Yakuza gang trying to take over a town by cheating the residents at dice. While the gang is ObviouslyEvil, it's kind of hard to feel bad when all the residents know that they're cheating, and all they have to do to stop their take over is to NOT GAMBLE WITH THEM!

%%** Kohza.
** Fuu (if not just TheWoobie). As bossy as she may be, her mother died the year before and [[spoiler:the two were abandoned by her father aka the sunflower samurai, hence why she's so desperate to find him]]. And by the end of the series, [[spoiler:said father's sick, revealed to have left in order to save his family from Christian persecution, and dies at the hands of Kariya]], leaving Fuu overwhelmed.
* MoralEventHorizon: Umanosuke [[spoiler:chased down Fuu, molested her, knocked her out, then [[RuleOfSymbolism tied her to a cross]] and beat her in the semi-final episode]].

** The way the counterfeiter was going to torture the secret police in episode 15 ("Bogus Booty"). It involved molten gold and a funnel. TruthInTelevision in case you were wondering.

* StoicWoobie: The ever so stoic Jin, who killed his kendo master (his one parental figure) prior to the story.

* EnsembleDarkhorse: Several characters are quite popular despite their brief appearances and are prone to frequent appearances in fanfiction. This includes Sara (due to her intense arc), Yatsuha (due to her hilarious appearance and manipulation of Mugen, whom she's shipped with), Yukimaru (a significant figure from Jin's life, also often shipped), and Shino (due bringing out Jin's softer and more romantic side in her bittersweet appearance, again frequently shipped).

** Actually played straight (no pun intended) by the Dutchman, who comes from a sect who believes that enlightenment can be obtained through homosexuality.

** Mugen and Jin, bordering on FoeYay. One such example is the very first episode when Mugen dreams of Jin being naked in a bathtub during their fight, and he doesn't fail to point out "his dong hanging out" when he recalls the dream to him.
* IronWoobie: Mugen. The Misguided Miscreants two-parter revealing his backstory gives him plenty of reasons to feel sorry for himself, on top of being betrayed by his childhood friend/possible love interest and nearly dying. But at any point does he let it get him down? No. He lets it make him ''[[RoaringRampageOfRevenge angry]]''. The man simply does not give a fuck.

* SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic: The soundtrack, and with Nujabes' involvement, it's no surprise. There's also the haunting song that Sara sings as part of her traveling performer act and the one that plays over Mugen's flashbacks to his youth with Koza and Mukuro.

** The zombie episode ("Cosmic Collisions"). It starts off with Jin and Mugen eating rare mushrooms, and ends with [[spoiler:a nuclear explosion and the villain leaping out of his grave]], ''and it is never mentioned again.'' The operative word here is {{mushroom|Samba}}.

** Episode 9 ("Beatbox Bandits") at least towards the end, where all conflict is resolved... by a burning field of weed, which gets the anatagonists all chummy with each other while completely forgetting about whatever they were supposed to do.
* CompleteMonster: Mukuro is the EvilCounterpart to the AntiHero [[SociopathicHero Mugen]]. A particularly bloodthirsty pirate, Mukuro is [[EstablishingCharacterMoment first seen]] leading an attack on a ship for its gold, killing the sailors onboard and shoving a lit grenade into the mouth of a subdued man who was begging for mercy. Through flashbacks it's revealed that Mukuro was the one who talked Mugen into piracy, and used him as muscle to kill the guards of a sugar shipment only to leave Mugen to die once he'd stolen the cargo. In present day we discover that Mukuro and his band slaughtered nearly an entire village, including the [[WouldHitAGirl women]] and [[WouldHurtAChild children]]. The only ones who were spared were the young men that could be used as muscle for his biggest heist yet: a raid on a government ship carrying 60,000 ryu in gold coins. He talks Mugen into joining up with him again, but it's only another setup. Using his crew as canon fodder to lure the government security onto the pirate ship, Mukuro then uses a mass of explosives in an attempt to kill everyone, [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness his own crew included]], just so [[{{Greed}} he can keep the gold for himself]]. Mukuro also proves to care little for his "sister" Kohza, either, since he's spent his life controlling her, murdered her mother, and expresses an unreciprocated sexual interest in her. A {{sadist}} with a propensity for [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder betraying everyone he knows]] and [[LeaveNoSurvivors leaving no survivors]] from his attacks, Mukuro knows exactly what a bastard he is and [[CardCarryingVillain relishes the darkness within his soul]].
* CrazyAwesome: Mugen's nonsensical style of fighting works perfectly for him and is pretty damn impressive to watch.

* EnsembleDarkhorse: Several characters are quite popular despite their brief appearances and are prone to frequent appearances in fanfiction. This includes Sara (due to her intense arc), Yatsuha (due to her hilarious appearance and manipulation of Mugen whom she's shipped with), Yukimaru (a significant figure from Jin's life, also often shipped), and Shino (due bringing out Jin's softer and more romantic side in her bittersweet appearance, again frequently shipped).

** Is Mugen's and Fuu's bickering BelligerentSexualTension or just plain bickering between companions?
** Is Rodriguez a virtual non-factor, or the PluckyComicRelief [[SpotlightStealingSquad superstar of the episode]]?
** Sara: tearjerking unfortunate AntiVillain or boring overpowered Villain Sue?
** Also Kohza, whose exact motives aren't revealed. Money, companionship, both, or was she just confused?

* WhatAnIdiot: Mugen will be called an idiot and a fool by many viewers for actually trusting Mukuro again.

** The Jin/Yukimaru subtext. Even though Jin has sex with women on multiple occasions and actually falls in love with a brothel worker in one episode, he appears to be emotionally affected by Yukimaru's reappearance, who is essentially upset because Jin didn't take him with him.

* MoralEventHorizon: Umanosuke [[spoiler:chased down Fuu, molested her, knocked her out, then [[RuleOfSymbolism tied her to a cross]] and beat her in the last episode]].

** Mugen's and Fuu's bickering is BelligerentSexualTension.

** The Baseball episode ("Baseball Blues") also counts.
** Episode 9 ("Beatbox Bandits") may count as well, at least toward the end.
* CompleteMonster: Mukuro is the EvilCounterpart to the AntiHero [[SociopathicHero Mugen]]. A particularly bloodthirsty pirate, Mukuro is [[EstablishingCharacterMoment first seen]] leading an attack on a ship for its gold, killing the sailors onboard and shoving a lit grenade into the mouth of a subdued man who was begging for mercy. Through flashbacks it's revealed that Mukuro was the one who talked Mugen into piracy, and used him as muscle to kill the guards of a sugar shipment only to leave Mugen to die once he'd stolen the cargo. In present day we discover that Mukuro and his band slaughtered nearly an entire village, including the {{wo|uldHitAGirl}}men and [[WouldHurtAChild children]]. The only ones who were spared were the young men that could be used as muscle for his biggest heist yet: a raid on a government ship carrying 60,000 ryu in gold coins. He talks Mugen into joining up with him again, but it's only another setup. Using his crew as canon fodder to lure the government security onto the pirate ship, Mukuro then uses a mass of explosives in an attempt to kill everyone, [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness his own crew included]], just so [[{{Greed}} he can keep the gold for himself]]. Mukuro also proves to care little for his "sister" Kohza, either, since he's spent his life controlling her, murdered her mother, and expresses an unreciprocated sexual interest in her. A {{sadist}} with a propensity for [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder betraying everyone he knows]] and [[LeaveNoSurvivors leaving no survivors]] from his attacks, Mukuro knows exactly what a bastard he is and [[CardCarryingVillain relishes the darkness within his soul]].
* CrazyAwesome: Mugen.

* EnsembleDarkhorse: Sara. Also, Yatsuha and Yukimaru make an appearance in a ''lot'' of fanfics for such a relatively small fandom. Probably for {{shipping}} reasons, but still...
** Speaking of {{Shipping}} reasons, there's also Shino.
* EvilIsSexy: Hotaru.
* FandomBerserkButton: "Hey Gaiz, who would win in a fight, Mugen or Jin?"
* HollywoodHomely: Shino and Yuri.
* HoYay: Actually played straight (no pun intended). [[spoiler:The Dutchman]] comes from a sect who believes that enlightenment can be obtained through homosexuality. There's also the Jin/Yukimaru subtext, even though Jin has sex with women on multiple occasions and actually falls in love with a brothel worker in one episode. Mugen and Jin arguably count as FoeYay.

** Mugen.
** Kohza.
** Fuu (if not just TheWoobie).

* NightmareFuel: The zombie episode, especially the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=kFy8AiSEPX0#t=1378 credit ending]]. Also, the way the counterfeiter was going to torture the secret police in episode 15 ("Bogus Booty"). It involved molten gold and a funnel. TruthInTelevision in case you were wondering.

* OneTrueThreesome: The main three.

* TheScrappy: Kawara Sosuke
* StoicWoobie: Jin.

** The zombie episode. It starts off with Jin and Mugen eating rare mushrooms, and ends with [[spoiler:a nuclear explosion and the villain leaping out of his grave]], ''and it is never mentioned again.'' The operative word here is {{mushroom|Samba}}.
** The Baseball episode also counts.
** Episode 9 may count as well, at least toward the end.

* NightmareFuel: The zombie episode, especially the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=kFy8AiSEPX0#t=1378 credit ending.]] Also, the way the counterfeiter was going to torture the secret police in episode 15. It involved molten gold and a funnel. TruthInTelevision in case you were wondering.

* AlternateCharacterInterpretation:

** Sara: tearjerking unfortunate AntiVillain or boring overpowered VillainSue?

* CompleteMonster: Mukuro is the EvilCounterpart to the AntiHero [[SociopathicHero Mugen]]. A particularly bloodthirsty pirate, Mukuro is [[EstablishingCharacterMoment first seen]] leading an attack on a ship for its gold, killing the sailors onboard and shoving a lit grenade into the mouth of a subdued man who was begging for mercy. Through flashbacks it's revealed that Mukuro was the one who talked Mugen into piracy, and used him as muscle to kill the guards of a sugar shipment only to leave Mugen to die once he'd stolen the cargo. In present day we discover that Mukuro and his band slaughtered nearly an entire village, including the [[WouldHitAGirl women]] and [[WouldHurtAChild children]]. The only ones who were spared were the young men that could be used as muscle for his biggest heist yet: a raid on a government ship carrying 60,000 ryu in gold coins. He talks Mugen into joining up with him again, but it's only another setup. Using his crew as canon fodder to lure the government security onto the pirate ship, Mukuro then uses a mass of explosives in an attempt to kill everyone, [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness his own crew included]], just so [[{{Greed}} he can keep the gold for himself]]. Mukuro also proves to care little for his "sister" Kohza, either, since he's spent his life controlling her, murdered her mother, and expresses an unreciprocated sexual interest in her. A {{sadist}} with a propensity for [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder betraying everyone he knows]] and [[LeaveNoSurvivors leaving no survivors]] from his attacks, Mukuro knows exactly what a bastard he is and [[CardCarryingVillain relishes the darkness within his soul]].

* CrowningMusicOfAwesome: The soundtrack, and with Nujabes' involvement, it's no surprise. There's also the haunting song that Sara sings as part of her traveling performer act and the one that plays over Mugen's flashbacks to his youth with Koza and Mukuro.

* {{OT3}}: The main three.

* {{Reconstruction}}: There are those who see Samurai Champloo as a reconstruction of the JidaiGeki genre.

* SuperlativeDubbing: The English and French dubs have been very well received, the latter being considered the best French anime dub EVER, especially considering France's history of dubbing anime in general REALLY BADLY.

* UnintentionallyUnsympathetic: Hellhounds for Hire involves a Yakuza gang trying to take over a town by cheating the residents at dice. While the gang is ObviouslyEvil, it's kind of hard to feel bad when all the residents know that they're cheating, and all they have to do to stop their take over it NOT GAMBLE WITH THEM!

* EarWorm: Several. nujabes' "battlecry" (the opening theme), MINMI's "Shiki no Uta" (the closing theme), tsutchie's "pretending to…" and "sincerely", nujabes' "mystline" and FORCE OF NATURE's "vagrancy" are some select choices. Many ''Champloo'' fans have even stated that they thought the worst of hip hop music before this series came along and changed their minds about the entire genre.

* CompleteMonster: Mukuro is the EvilCounterpart to resident {{Antihero}}, Mugen. A particularly bloodthirsty pirate, Mukuro is [[EstablishingCharacterMoment first seen]] leading an attack on a ship for it's gold, killing the sailors onboard and shoving a lit grenade into the mouth of a subdued man who was begging for mercy. Through flashbacks it's revealed that Mukuro was the one who talked Mugen into piracy, and used him as muscle to kill the guards of a sugar shipment only to leave Mugen to die once he'd stolen the cargo. In present day we discover that Mukuro and his band slaughtered nearly an entire village, including the [[WouldHitAGirl women]] and [[WouldHurtAChild children]]. The only ones who were spared were the young men that could be used as muscle for his biggest heist yet: a raid on a government ship carrying 60,000 ryu in gold coins. He talks Mugen into joining up with him again, but it's only another set-up. Using his crew as canon fodder to lure the government security onto the pirate ship, Mukuro then uses a mass of explosives in an attempt to kill everyone, [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness his own crew included]] just so he can keep the gold for himself. Mukuro also proves to care little for his "sister" Kohza, either, since he's spent his life controlling her, murdered her mother, and expresses an unrequited sexual interest in her (though he's also perfectly happy to sell her to one of his crew). A sadist with a propensity for [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder betraying everyone he knows]] and [[LeaveNoSurvivors leaving no survivors]] from his attacks, Mukuro knows exactly what a bastard he is and [[CardCarryingVillain relishes the darkness within his soul]].

** WhatAnIdiot: To the point Mugen will be called an idiot and a fool by many viewers for actually trusting him again.

** NightmareRetardant: The zombie episode, while still frightening, loses a fair bit of its edge when you realize that they were most likely just having a [[MushroomSamba very, very bad trip]].

** Fuu.

** Also Shino.

* CompleteMonster: Mukuro is the EvilCounterpart to resident SociopathicHero, Mugen. A particularly bloodthirsty pirate, Mukuro is [[EstablishingCharacterMoment first seen]] leading an attack on a ship for it's gold, killing the sailors onboard and shoving a lit grenade into the mouth of a subdued man who was begging for mercy. Through flashbacks it's revealed that Mukuro was the one who talked Mugen into piracy, and used him as muscle to kill the guards of a sugar shipment only to leave Mugen to die once he'd stolen the cargo. In present day we discover that Mukuro and his band slaughtered nearly an entire village, including the [[WouldHitAGirl women]] and [[WouldHurtAChild children]]. The only ones who were spared were the young men that could be used as muscle for his biggest heist yet: a raid on a government ship carrying 60,000 ryu in gold coins. He talks Mugen into joining up with him again, but it's only another set-up. Using his crew as canon fodder to lure the government security onto the pirate ship, Mukuro then uses a mass of explosives in an attempt to kill everyone, [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness his own crew included]] just so he can keep the gold for himself. Mukuro also proves to care little for his "sister" Kohza, either, since he's spent his life controlling her, murdered her mother, and expresses an unrequited sexual interest in her (though he's also perfectly happy to sell her to one of his crew). A sadist with a propensity for [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder betraying everyone he knows]] and [[LeaveNoSurvivors leaving no survivors]] from his attacks, Mukuro knows exactly what a bastard he is and [[CardCarryingVillain relishes the darkness within his soul]].

* NightmareFuel: The zombie episode, especially the credit ending. Also, the way the counterfeiter was going to torture the secret police in episode 15. It involved molten gold and a funnel. TruthInTelevision in case you were wondering.

* CompleteMonster: Mukuro is the EvilCounterpart to resident SociopathicHero, Mugen. A particularly bloodthirsty pirate, Mukuro is [[EstablishingCharacterMoment first seen]] leading an attack on a ship for it's gold, killing the sailors onboard and shoving a lit grenade into the mouth of a subdued man who was begging for mercy. Through flashbacks it's revealed that Mukuro was the one who talked Mugen into piracy, and used him as muscle to kill the guards of a sugar shipment only to leave Mugen to die once he'd stolen the cargo. In present day we discover that Mukuro and his band slaughtered nearly an entire village, including the [[WouldHitAGirl women]] and [[WouldHurtAChild children]]. The only ones who were spared were the young men that could be used as muscle for his biggest heist yet: a raid on a government ship carrying 60,000 ryu in gold coins. He talks Mugen into joining up with him again, but it's only another set-up. Using his crew as canon fodder to lure the government security onto the pirate ship, Mukuro then uses a mass of explosives in an attempt to kill everyone, [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness his own crew included]] just so he can keep the gold for himself. Mukuro also proves to care little for his "sister" Kohza, either, since he's spent his life controlling her, murdered her mother, and expresses an unreciprocated sexual interest in her. A sadist with a propensity for [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder betraying everyone he knows]] and [[LeaveNoSurvivors leaving no survivors]] from his attacks, Mukuro knows exactly what a bastard he is and [[CardCarryingVillain relishes the darkness within his soul]].

* CompleteMonster: Mukuro is the EvilCounterpart to resident HeroicSociopath, Mugen. A particularly bloodthirsty pirate, Mukuro is [[EstablishingCharacterMoment first seen]] leading an attack on a ship for it's gold, killing the sailors onboard and shoving a lit grenade into the mouth of a subdued man who was begging for mercy. Through flashbacks it's revealed that Mukuro was the one who talked Mugen into piracy, and used him as muscle to kill the guards of a sugar shipment only to leave Mugen to die once he'd stolen the cargo. In present day we discover that Mukuro and his band slaughtered nearly an entire village, including the [[WouldHitAGirl women]] and [[WouldHurtAChild children]]. The only ones who were spared were the young men that could be used as muscle for his biggest heist yet: a raid on a government ship carrying 60,000 ryu in gold coins. He talks Mugen into joining up with him again, but it's only another set-up. Using his crew as canon fodder to lure the government security onto the pirate ship, Mukuro then uses a mass of explosives in an attempt to kill everyone, [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness his own crew included]] just so he can keep the gold for himself. Mukuro also proves to care little for his "sister" Kohza, either, since he's spent his life controlling her, murdered her mother, and expresses an unreciprocated sexual interest in her. A sadist with a propensity for [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder betraying everyone he knows]] and [[LeaveNoSurvivors leaving no survivors]] from his attacks, Mukuro knows exactly what a bastard he is and [[CardCarryingVillain relishes the darkness within his soul]].

---> '''Mugen:''' "I don't give a rat's ass about going to hell. I guess it's because I feel like I'm already there."