If Kenshin and Soujiro were to fight without Soujiro going insane or his sword breaking, who would win? (My opinion: Soujiro would kick his ass, because he is FAR faster, Kenshin cant read him at all due to his lack of emotion, and he has a finishing move exactly like Kenshin's)

-- Anonymous, September 27, 2003

Answers

*nods nods* totally agreeing with u.

-- Anonymous, September 27, 2003

Ok... well your theories are well and all but improbable... First of all, his lack of emotion is connected to the fact that he goes insane... You cant have one without the other... sooo kenshin would still win... cause if his sword didnt break kenshin would spin around again and kill him...

-- Anonymous, September 27, 2003

Soujiro could also spin around and kill kenshin all the same, and he could probably do it faster, since he's used to the speed, whereas kenshin takes tremendous strain to his body when performing his move. And Soujiro going insane right at the right moment was a one in a million fluke...

-- Anonymous, September 28, 2003

Well, it was due to the fact tt Soujiro went bonkers that Kenshin was then able to defeat him. If he were to remain his usual emotionless self, I highly doubt that he would have lost at all.

-- Anonymous, September 28, 2003

Well the fact that Soujiro went insane is due to Kenshins persuasions and strong words. I think that also plays a part in Kenshin's strength. Lets not forget Kenshins succession technique. It blooms twice with one swing.

-- Anonymous, September 28, 2003

i used to go for soujiro, but now that i think about it, i dont agree anymore kenshin can also use the shikkichu (invisible speed thing) - except his is combined with the succession technique, so even if soujiro evaded it, he'd be caught by the vacuum, and then smashed, like shishio. really, the proof that kenshin can beat shishio and enishi means that he couldnt really lose. u also have to take into account he was injured from that battle cos of aoshi - who he didnt even have to fight.

-- Anonymous, September 28, 2003

Theres absolutely no way Kenshin could use Shukuchi except with his succession attack, in which he takes a trememdous amount of strain due to his desparation. Additionally, Soujiro's succession attack would also create a vacuum, cancelling out Kenshin's vacuum. It would make perfect sense that Soujiro could spin around faster than kenshin directly after the initial attack, since hes used to the speed, but Kenshin isnt. Finally, Soujiro could have murdered Kenshin right at the beginning of the match if he wanted to: just Shukuchi from the start. And he could have even done that at the village, and Kenshin would have never had the chance to change his personality.

-- Anonymous, September 28, 2003

I believe that Soujiro would win easily. Let's look at it logically: With Soujiro at full power, Kenshin couldn't even see him. This makes it difficult for kenshin to even attempt to hit him. The only reason that Kenshin was able to hit Soujiro was due to his mental trip that seriously slowed him down. And let's not forget to include that fact that now Soujiro knows when Kenshin is going to use his Ougi. This is a definate advantage to Soujiro.

Then there is the reading. Before, Kenshin was completely unable to read Soujiro. After his little breakdown, we don't know if he is still emotionless or not. So Kenshin reading his opponent is still up in the air. However, Soujiro is so fast that even if Kenshin could read his moves, it may not matter. Just food for thought.

-- Anonymous, September 28, 2003

you are all wrong..... soujiro does fight kenshin, only this time he wins because s has a emotional breakdown......and p.s KENSHIN IS HOT!!!

-- Anonymous, September 28, 2003

Please read the stupid question before you answer!

-- Anonymous, September 28, 2003

soujiro, for sure. kenshin lost the ability to see him when he was 2 steps from full power. and even then, he could only react to his attacks, and STILL got hurt. furthermore, even though he went crazy, if he had gone full power, even if kenshin could read his moves, his own body wouldn't be fast enough to react to them. besides, soujiro had plenty of chances to kill him, he was just holding back.

-- Anonymous, September 28, 2003

i think that soujirou is the better swordsman and everything....but kenshin just happens to get lucky ALOT...but he does have more experience and all.... what about the old battousai against soujirou?

-- Anonymous, September 30, 2003

Soujiro would hammer the Battousai even faster than Kenshin, because the Battousai is unable to perform the Amakakeru Ryu no Hirameki, and has no will to live.

-- Anonymous, September 30, 2003

Uh... no, soujiro in his prime wouldn't stand a chance against Kenshin in his prime. Not to say that Kenshin uses a sakabatou. I mean, if Kenshin can break soujiro's sword with a dull one, he is so going to break it again if he uses a non-dull one. On the other hand, I would think a Shishio without burns, and in his prime would take either one of those out.

-- Anonymous, October 04, 2003

The question is not a good question. Yes, the reason Kenshin won was because Soujiro had a breakdown. Yes Soujiro was toying with Kenshin at the begining. BUT Soujiro came into the battle knowing Kenshin's philosophy and that is what threw him off. Because of Kenshin's philosophy and Soujiro's inability to comprehend it, Soujiro went mad. That was part of Kenshin's strength. PLUS, we do not know if Soujiro was capable of the second attack that Kenshin was able to use against Shishio. Who knows what is fully involved in making that attack. It might not be all speed, but strength as well. Also, Kenshin's final attack would be faster than Soujiro's even with the Shukuchi because the attack goes beyond what Kenshin is capable of. He draws upon his will to live and that gives him the extra speed to make the first attack and the strength to make the second. I think a much better question would be if the two Battousai met at full strength each with their own final technuque, who would win? I thin that would have to go to Shishio. Even burnt and all messed up he withstood the force of Kenshin's final technique (granted it may not have been at full strength) and fought until his own body destroyed him.

-- Anonymous, October 04, 2003

What the HELL are you guys smoking? Soujiro in his prime would rape Kenshin in his prime. Soujiro wasn't at his prime when he went crazy, and thats the only reason Kenshin won the fight! And theres no way Kenshin can exceed Shukuchi even with his succession attack (if he did, he would have hit Soujiro without breaking Soujiro's sword). Keep in mind that Soujiro dodge Kenshin's 9 point Kuzu Ryu Sen, which is supposed to be impossible to dodge by anyone, performing only 2 steps short of Shukuchi. Also keep in mind that Soujiro's mind was shattered when he performed the Shuntensatsu, so you dont really know if what he perform was his best. SO...study the anime carefully before making false assertions, you retards!!

-- Anonymous, October 04, 2003

@, ur such a dumbshit. The only reason Soujiro's sword broke was because Kenshin had a better sword to begin with. Soujiro's sword breaking has nothing to do with Kenshin's ability as a swordsman! So got to school once in a while, dumbass!!!!!!!!!!

-- Anonymous, October 05, 2003

Well why don't u just view the fight....

http://www.outwar.com/page.php?x=1634831

-- Anonymous, October 05, 2003

Well why dont you read the question before answering?!!!

-- Anonymous, October 05, 2003

First off you really need to think about this, i have wached and studied soujiro and have concluded that what is ment by how many steps short of the Shuntensatsu is not literal steps but steps of location. If you noticed that when he went only 2 steps short of it that he was going all around the room several times instead of just a fairly strait line means the the fully blown Shuntensatsu would be an attack from litteraly everwhere all at the same time surpassing Kentions 9 point attack and succesfully attack from an infinaite number of places.

-- Anonymous, October 06, 2003

11 different people have answered my old Kenshin vs Soujiro question (not including the people who responded without even glancing at the question). Out of those, 4 people favored Kenshin, and 7, including myself, favored Soujiro. I humbly conclude that in a fight between Kenshin and Soujiro in which Soujiro doesnt go insane and his sword doesnt break, more people agree that Soujiro would murder Kenshin. This also means that Soujiro could clearly defeat the Battousai, since Kenshin himself states, during his battle with Aoshi (in which Aoshi didnt stand a chance), that he has surpassed the Battousai. If you would like to visit my question to make sure im not lying, go right ahead. And if you still insist on arguing with me and my fellow Soujiro fans, BRING IT ON!!!

-- Anonymous, October 07, 2003

I would agree that Soujiro has the greater physical ability. However, state of mind during a fight is the driving force behind any other skill one may have. I love Soujiro too, but he lost; Sojiro himself conceeds that Kenshin is stronger. You can't succeed in anything without a strong mind. Even Kenshin's succession technique depends on his state of mind. Soujiro flipping out wasn't just some random one in a million event, Kenshin's spirit crushed him. You can't un-bake a cake, how Soujiro deals with stress is integrated into who he is. Haven't you guys ever seen someone who seemed to be winning choke before, that's what happened to Soujiro. It's like Shishio said, "Soujiro was a loser", so let's not make excuses for him.

-- Anonymous, October 08, 2003

If you read the question you would have noticed that i said "without Soujiro going insane," so read the question before answering!!! Also, do you honestly believe that Kenshin was the only opponent Soujiro has ever faced that has shown spirit? Before you convince yourself that Kenshin's spirit single-handedly broke Soujiro during the match, consider the fact that Soujiro has faced countless situations in which his emotions built upon. True, Kenshin's spirit was the "straw that broke the camel's back," but the point remains that Kenshin couldnt have done it alone, and that Soujiro reaching his emotional limit at the critical moment was a one in a million FLUKE. And about Shishio calling Soujiro a loser: Soujiro could have murdered that bastard Shishio anytime he wanted. It wouldnt surprise me at all if Shishio was totally unaware that Soujiro could perform Shun Ten Satsu. True, Shishio taught Soujiro how to fight, but, Soujiro's Shun Ten Satsu is a combination of 2 devastation moves that Soujiro most likely invented himself. After all, Shun Ten Satsu is as fast as Kenshin's Ame Kakeru Ryu no Hirameki, so it could therefore easily create a vacuum, just like Kenshin's vacuum that ultimately defeated Shishio. And about Soujiro admitting defeat: Soujiro has always acted humble like that! I mean come on!!!! When Kenshin was fighting Senkaku, Soujiro was actually praising Senkaku's fighting abilities, and Senkaku clearly didnt stand a chance against him or Kenshin. So...im still convinced that Soujiro would murder Kenshin.

-- Anonymous, October 09, 2003

You can whine all you want but the kid lost the fight. Duh; I lost because my girl friend dumped me, I lost because I didn't have a good breakfast, I lost because my shoe was untied...oops wasn't that one of Soujiro's excuses. Every competitor in every arena must deal with distractions and personal demons. A tiger might have a thorn in its paw but still must get out there and win it's next meal. Kenshin went into that fight wounded and aware that everyone was depending on him, not to mention the fact that he was holding back. However, none of these handicaps matter, because Kenshin had the will to win and Soujiro didn't. Also, I did read the question but I reject your premise as ridiculous. It's silly to ask if Soujiro would've won minus insanity. His insanity wasn't temporary, it's the core of his character. He was insane from the moment he killed his family and at least unbalanced before that, which is why Shishio chose him. His insanity is what made him strong; you can't un-mix a cake even if it is half baked. Let's face it all these samurai fuckers are insane, that's how they can so coldly cut people into bloody pieces. Why do you think Kenshin's master chose him. Soujiro's awesome just as all those warriors are, but he lost! If you've ever been in a fight you know that you must deal with the reality in front of you, and "what ifs" won't protect you.

-- Anonymous, October 09, 2003

So what if the kid lost the fight? Obviously he would ultimately lose the fight, if anything, because of the simple fact that he isnt the main character! I dont really give a damn about who actually won or lost in the anime. Since youre so fond of correlating the actual anime plot with reality, ill remind you that anime always imbues the main character with a ridiculous amount of luck. Only a true retard would think Kenshin would lose that anime staged fight with Soujiro. But that doesnt automatically make Kenshin better than Soujiro. Indeed, it sickens me how almost all of you people side with the main characters in ANY anime. True, Soujiro was insane the first time he started killing. However, that insanity was invisible on the outside, and until it became visible to Kenshin, Kenshin had no chance of winning. And the chance of Soujiro's insanity violently erupting before Soujiro cold-heartedly murdering the guys is very minute. The point is, Soujiro could have murdered Kenshin the very first time he saw him. And no, Kenshin's "strength" wouldnt have helped because Soujiro would have killed him before he ever realized his "strength." You say Kenshin was handicapped? It wouldnt really matter! Realistically speaking, Kenshin wouldnt have won if he was fresh out of his bed, katana in hand. I noticed that you agree that Soujiro's awesome, and i respect your WHOLE opinion. However, anime is so different from reality, that anyone who watches any anime without asking a few "what ifs?" is an absolute moron.

-- Anonymous, October 10, 2003

Ok first off Kenshin really isn't the main character, technically no one is. The whole show was based off of a commic book which in turn was based off of several jounals found that were written at the time of the events.

-- Anonymous, October 10, 2003

Hey jowe@usc.edu, you should try to make rational arguments. Your ideas are all over the place, and name calling will not make your points any more valid. The whole purpose of a story is for the audience to relate to it. We are able to suspend our disbelief and become emotionally involved because the auther establishes universal parallels to our reality. For the purpose of debating we must take the story seriously or there's no point in discussing it. By entering the debate we're all agreeing to take the Kenshin universe seriously, you can't have it both ways; you either respect the story or you don't. You shouldn't betray yourself or the story just to win an argument.

-- Anonymous, October 10, 2003

Hey Bob, if Kenshin isnt the main character, mind explaining to me why the anime show is named after him? And Owltwelve, perhaps you can watch all anime without a shadow of disbelief, but many people cant ignore the obvious. Can you rationally just accept everything that the screen shows in front of you? No, you yourself decide the limitations of whats acceptable and whats ridiculous. True, i enjoy Rurouni Kenshin, but not to the extent that i will ignore the perposterous. You shouldnt stubbornly accept all of anime as truth, just for the sake of winning the argument.

-- Anonymous, October 11, 2003

Jowe@usv.edu, you are putting words in my mouth, I said nothing about all anime being truth. However, if we can't agree to take this paticular story seriously or accept what it says about itself, then how can this debate have any meaning. When you ask your "what if" question, we all understand you because we all saw the same cartoon and accept as fact the events that took place. For example, we can all agree that Kenshin doesn't fly, and Soujiro doesn't pilot a giant robot. We can agree that Kenshin has red hair and has a scar on his face. I simply challenge your assertion that there could be a non-crazy Soujiro. Most of your points seem to depend on ideas that didn't take place in the actual anime we are discussing. My points right or wrong are an analysis of actual events in the story. As I've said, you can't accept the facts of the story only when it suits you.

-- Anonymous, October 11, 2003

Actually Owltwelve, youve got me all wrong. To begin with, i was cheering for Kenshin in his fight with Soujiro. At the time i simply couldnt believe that brat was better than Kenshin. However, since that time i have sorted out the facts and decided what in the anime was acceptable and what wasnt. The end result was my conversion to favoring Soujiro. So... what i did was sort out the facts BEFORE i chose Soujiro as my fav Kenshin character. You challenge me saying that theres no way Soujiro can be sane, but ive already answered your challenge at a previous date. I already specified that Soujiro didnt really have to be sane to win. All he had to do was suppress his insanity temporarily until he defeated Kenshin.

-- Anonymous, October 11, 2003

My favorite character would have to be Kenshin's master, followed by Kenshin & Shishio in a tie with Soujiro coming in at a very close third. I'm really into the concept that trauma creates the potential for strength.

-- Anonymous, October 11, 2003

My fav characters in descending order are Soujiro, Hiko, and Kenshin. I hate Shishio with a passion.

-- Anonymous, October 11, 2003

First if you watched the show in its original language with goods subtitles you would have noticed that they call Kenshin's ultimate attack the amakakyru no ryu no hirmakei (whatever it is) the ultimate god speed and soujiro's attack the suchuci (however it is spelled) god speed. So in turn it would not matter if soujiro was insane or not his ultimate attack was not as fast as kenshins. If by chance soujiro's sword didn't break (even though that didn't effect anything) the same thing would have happened to him as it did to shishio the reall part of kenshins technique is that is supposedly rips a hole in the air or something which acts like a black hole type of thing which would draw soujiro toward it and kenshins second half of the attack would hit soujiro no matter how fast he is. When they went at it at the end of the episode kenshin used his ultimate god speed against soujiro's god speed (mind you that these were both characters ultimate techniques) and kenshin won. It really didn't matter if soujiro was insane. Kenshin could have walked into the room performed his technique and defeated soujiro. Don't get me wrong sourjiro is very cool he just didn't stand a chance against kenshin's attack. All soujiro's insanity did was give time for kenshin to recouperate and try and convert soujiro. He didn't want to fight soujiro because of his beliefs so he didn't want to defeat him right away without trying to save him with his beliefs. I hope you people understand this because this is essentially what happened.

-- Anonymous, October 19, 2003

Oh jeese. Sorry I was just reading some earlier responses I cannot believe what people are saying. Soujiro's insanity never slows him down all it does is make it easier for kenshin to percieve what soujiro is going to do next. Also soujiro's finishing move is nothing like kenshins because if it was it would have been a draw. Kenshins ultimate attack leads with his left leg which generates greater speed and power where as soujiro is only using his speed with a normal battoujutsu which lacks in speed and power compared to kenshin's. IF you want to find out go to this web site to understand kenshins techniqueshttp://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Towers/7050/rk/technique.htm l they are fairly acurate descriptions. Think about this also kenshin performed the technique against aoishi and was injured by him which decreases many things. At the begginning of the fight kenshin could have started as they did in the other dojo at the village which would have changed the entire fight. He decided not to because he learned that soujiro was emotionless and he wanted to help him.

-- Anonymous, October 19, 2003

Actually, Shukuchi really literally means "reduced earth," so youre reliance on attack names to determine superiority is irrelevant. Furthermore, in MY translation of Kenshin, Shishio referred to Kenshin's speed as "God Speed" but referred to Soujiro's as "Ultimate, Extreme God Speed." And, the battous-jutsu showdown at the end of the 2nd match WOULD have been a draw if Soujiro's sword didnt break. The only advantage all you guys mention is that Kenshin's Ougi produces a vacuum. However, all thats needed is speed to produce that vacuum, and its an obvious fact that Soujiro CAN match the speed of Kenshin's Ame Kakeru Ryu no Hirameki (if he didnt, Kenshin's sakabatou would have struck Soujiro without breaking his sword), and can therefore, also produce the vacuum. So...I fail to understand your logic.

-- Anonymous, October 20, 2003

Shishio did can kenshins speed god speed but he did not know about kenshins ougi which surpasses that. YOu do make sense by saying that soujiro is as fast as kenshins ougi but you fail to see the point of the ougi. By leading with his left leg kenshin not only speeds up his attack(which makes him able to keep up with soujiro) but its power is much greater than soujiro's which is why he was defeated. Soujiro had the speed but not the power.

-- Anonymous, October 20, 2003

There is NO proof that Kenshin's Ougi is more powerful. Keep in mind that the power of the Ougi comes from the speed gained by the left foot. But Soujiro can match that speed, so it makes perfect sense that his Shuntensatsu is just as powerful. Yes, Soujiro's sword broke, but that only means that his sword is weaker than Kenshin's sword. If the creator of Rurouni Kenshin really intended to make Kenshin the superior fighter, he would have had Kenshin strike Soujiro without breaking the sword. If you have watched the 3rd Season of Kenshin (yes, I know it sucks, and deviates from the manga) you would notice that when Kenshin and the Hiten Mitsurugi Master performed their Ougi showdown, Kenshin obliterated the fool without touching his sword, solidifying his superiority. This was not the case with Soujiro.

-- Anonymous, October 20, 2003

Are you trying to say that becasue he obliterated the christian guy who was the master of the Hiten Misturugi Ryu he is stronger than soujiro. I don't get the point of that comment. I don't remember correctly but didn't the other guy not know the exact power of the ougi because his master didn't pass the test of his master which is why kenshin's master was chosen as the next successor. Didn't they say that soujiro's sword was one of the rarest around. If it was it probably wasn't very weak. Do you think that if shishio didn't know the trick of the left foot of the ougi he would have been able to block the first wave of kenshins ougi.

-- Anonymous, October 21, 2003

What im trying to say is that Kenshin defeated the Mitsurugi Master without hitting his sword, leaving unquestionable proof that his Ougi is superior to the Master's Ougi. But this wasn't the case with Soujiro, who's sword broke. If Kenshin's Ougi was indeed superior to Soujiro's Ougi, Soujiro's sword wouldn't have been harmed. This is because the strength, as well as the vacuum, created by Kenshin's Ougi depends directly on the additional speed gained by his left foot. But, if Soujiro can match his speed (and im certain he can), he can also match his strength and vacuum. And yes, the Mitsurugi Master knows the Ougi, since he defeated the previous master's 9 point attack Kuzu Ryu Sen.

-- Anonymous, October 21, 2003

Well, sounds to me like owltwelve hit the nail right on the head a few times. please re-read the importance of state of mind rather than technique or speed in overcoming harsh circumstances(being battered and bloody, going insane at an inconvienient time, etc). then I'll get back to the point. I watched the series (yes, in Japanese). I paid attention. I read the question. Let me read it back to make sure I have it right.

"If [my favorite character] and [a character who beat him] were to fight [and my favorite character kept everything "ass kicking" about him] without [my favorite character having any of his essential weaknesses that made him lose--but made him interesting], who would win? ... Soujiro would kick his ass, because.....[I'm trying to create circumstances for the contest so my favorite character would win]" It almost sounds like you're pretending you're playing Soujiro in a video game, rather than in the story. In which case, yes, you could have your half-baked cake and probably win with him too. That is...unless you loose your nerve...

-- Anonymous, October 22, 2003

Damn it!! Will you guys stop it already! Im sick and tired of getting emails about this old question! And Xthorius, it seems that you skipped over some of Tenken's reasoning. Tenken chose Soujiro as a favorite character exactly because he believed that Soujiro would have won if Kenshin wasn't the main character. Originally, Tenken was totally for Kenshin, until he analyzed the details. Do you deny the fact that main characters are given all the luck? Are you someone that blindly accepts all of what the anime shows you as true? As far as I'm concerned, Tenken was nailing Owltwelve! Anyway, SHUT THE HELL UP EVERYONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

-- Anonymous, October 22, 2003

Boy! I haven't visited this thread in a while but I thought the point was to discuss the anime based on the question posed. dudetto101@hotmail.com, you don't have to become so emotional, name calling and telling people to shut up; come on, why don't you make a logical argument. I have nothing against jowe@usc.edu, I just didn't agree with him so I made my case. This board would be pretty dull if we all agreed. However, if you really need us all to think the same, then stop screaming like a child and debate with strong ideas we can all respect. You all should just calm down and back up your ideas with facts from the actual story. As I've said many messages back, if we all throw out the facts when they don't suit our purposes, then we're not talking about the same story. If we can't agree on the imperical facts of the story then this debate is unstable and pointless. If you don't agree with someones argument, then show us "LOGICALLY" where they're wrong.

-- Anonymous, October 22, 2003

Whoa, Iddamaniac, calm down. If you really dont want any more emails from this question, just select that option on one of the emails already sent to you. Owltwelve, just because you don't agree with an idea doesnt make it irrational. And Xthorius, you exaggerate FAR too much. I do not disregard any facts that I see as relevant. I already mentioned that I selected Soujiro as a fav character AFTER I determined that he really could have killed Kenshin. Furthermore, I do not intend to take away any of Soujiro's weaknesses. I merely suggest that there is a chance of Soujiro not "exploding" before he defeats Kenshin. The human mind is a very unpredicable thing, and I find it impossible for you guys to conclude, beyond a reasonable suspision, that Soujiro is doomed to "explode" before he beats Kenshin. Keep in mind that Soujiro has killed "strong" people before. For example, he murdered that Okubu governer without hesitation, and HE was pretty strongwilled to decide on opposing Shishio. The only other weakness that I can think about is the weak sword that broke. But that really cannot be counted as a weakness of Soujiro. It was just the creator's lousy excuse to make Kenshin win the match. There is NO proof that Soujiro's Ougi is inferior to Kenshin's, and therefore no proof that Soujiro would lose the match even after "exploding." All we know is that Soujiro has a weaker sword. If the creator really wanted to establish Kenshin as being superior, he would have made Kenshin defeat Soujiro without breaking the sword. Finally, about the myth that Shishio is somehow superior to Soujiro: there is no rule (especially in anime) that the student cannot surpass the master.

-- Anonymous, October 24, 2003

Sojiro kicks ass but so does kenshin. Everyone in the anime is tight! Gatotsu!

-- Anonymous, October 25, 2003

jowe@usc.edu, I've never said or implied that holding a contrary opinion to my own equaled irrationality. However, if you re-read some of the messages posted (not naming any names), there have been quite a few emotional and unfounded statements. I am asking for any idea to run along a logical thread, so that we can all follow and respect it; I might even be inspired to change the way I look at the story. Now, I believe I've said this a couple of times already but let me be as clear as possible. If we all subjectively ignore parts of the story that we don't like, then how can we have an accurate discussion? Ten different people might for example, find twenty different events in the story to disregard, what then? How would we know what we all agree on; what in the story could we take as a given. The debate can only have meaning by contrast to the objective facts of the story. If I say that Kenshin has red hair in the story, I am objectively right, and there really is no valid argument against this point, fore the story absolutely supports this flat fact. You and I can debate the value of Soujiro's sanity during his Kenshin fights. I may be right or wrong because my ideas are based on my subjective opinions, but if I use objective facts from the story to support my ideas then my argument has weight. If you don't agree, you must also use objective facts from the story for your ideas to to have equal or greater weight. Do you follow my logic? A belief that the protagonist has a disproportionate amount of luck is an opinion, not a fact and if argued, should be supported by objective facts from the story. Lastly, if we accept what the author is telling us about the story one moment and then disregard him the next, then the author has no credibility. If we don't accept it when then the author tells us Soujiro loses a fight, how can we then if it's the same author accept his stregths? Unless of course you wish to say that the author is a bad writer, in which case we can take nothing he says seriously.

-- Anonymous, October 25, 2003