Samurai Jack
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"Long ago in a distant land, I, Aku, the shape-shifting master of darkness, unleashed an unspeakable evil! But a foolish samurai warrior wielding a magic sword stepped forth to oppose me. Before the final blow was struck, I tore open a portal in time and flung him into the future, where my evil is law! Now the fool seeks to return to the past, and undo the future that. Is. Aku!" - Aku, in the best damn intro to any show ever
If this sounds familiar to you, that's because it was the inspiration for everyone's favorite Grey Knight.
One of the golden age of American cartoons from Cartoon Network, and officially on the Approved Television list for /tg/. A super badass samurai warrior wielding a holy sword (created by Odin, Ra, and Vishnu) attempts to destroy a shapeshifting wizard abomination called Aku, but the monster sends him into a distant future where Aku has taken control of the galaxy. Samurai Jack now explores the world (he never leaves Earth, it just changed dramatically), helping those oppressed by Aku's evil minions and seeking a portal to return him to his own time, that he may slay Aku and undo his evil future.
Samurai Jack, is a melting pot of everything awesome and so many things /tg/ loves. It's art, first off, takes influence from old 1960s and 70s Japanese anime (most notably classic Toei Animation) and Bruce Lee-era Kung Fu movies. It is also inspired by Lawrence of Arabia, Blade Runner, and even Frank Milller's 300 (having a surge of popularity after the movie too). While cyberpunk is a major theme of the show, it draws influence from many other sources, such as Ancient Greece, the Volsunga Saga, feudal Japan, and even fucking 1920s Chicago. Yup. Cyborg gangsters.
Samurai Jack is one of those rare shows where there is not much skub about it, even among fans. Literally every episode is good enough for you to call it your favorite and no one would disagree with you. Most are the same though; either mercenaries or bounty hunters come after Jack, Jack learns some sort of valuable lesson, or he has a run-in with Aku. Still, each episode is a work of art figuratively and literally and are really enjoyable.
Characters
Jack: One badass motherfucker. However, as a character he doesn't have too much personality, being the basic stoic hero that we usually see. Still has enough to stay interesting though.
Aku:THA SHAPESHIFTING MASTA OV DARKNASS, equal parts hilarious and fucking evil. Speaks in ultra engrish (but this is intentional on his voice actors part) is even more stupid evil than the love child of Skeletor, Megatron and the Marines Malevolent.
Minor Characters
The Scotsman: The name says it all. Jack's best friend (whom tried to kill him when they first met), and is one of the more frequent characters in the series. Can also pull a 20-second long insult.
Status
Sadly Samurai jack has been effectively cancelled (including the planned movie) for quite some time although old episodes have started airing again. Aku's voice actor dieing of throat cancer may have had something to do with it. But being cancelled doesn't really matter because Toonami announced it will air new episodes in 2016.