‘Afro Samurai’ walks boldly as bicultural hero

All too often, television shows feel as though they’ve been created in a factory. Last year, many new shows had an occult twist, and this fall’s trend was serious dramas with complicated plots. It’s easy to confuse them.

Then there’s “Afro Samurai.” Let’s face it, when was the last time you saw a black samurai?

Samuel L. Jackson had not, which is why he lends his voice to the main character, Afro, and his sidekick, Ninja Ninja, in the Spike TV animated show he’s also producing. It begins its five-week run at 11 p.m. Thursday.

“The concept alone is so strange and cool,” Jackson says.

Drawn in manga style, the cartoon has a mesmerizing effect. Manga, the Japanese word for comics, is most often seen in soft-covered books. It translates beautifully to television, where it is a study in shades of grays, blacks and browns except for copious amounts of red when blood spurts as people are decapitated or vivisected.

There’s some trash talk and sex as well, so be warned that just because this is, technically, a cartoon, it is not for youngsters.

The intriguing story begins with Afro as a little boy, walking with his father, who was No. 1 warrior. An evil dude, ironically named Justice, challenges him. While Afro’s father fights nobly, using his wits, fists and sword, Justice fatally shoots him, then cuts off his head.

“It’s unfortunate you had to see this, boy,” Justice says to Afro, paralyzed with fear. “This moment will always haunt you. Challenge me when you are ready.”

As if Afro Samurai needed an invitation. Seeing his father’s head roll next to him has a scarring effect. He grows into a revenge-seeking man with but one goal: to kill Justice.

“I think it is a very unique look at a strict code of being,” Jackson says. “It has its own distinct kind of vibe and rhythm. And it is a marriage of Asian culture and new culture, such as hip-hop, and it works extremely well.”