Inspired by Okazaki's love of hip hop and soul music, it follows the life of Afro Samurai, whose father and the owner of the No.

After the release of the anime series, Okazaki remade the original Afro Samurai dōjinshi into a two-volume manga.

For the television series and film, two soundtracks by RZA of Wu-Tang Clan and a profile book were released in Japan.

In a feudal yet futuristic Japan, it is said that the one wearing the Number 1 headband is the greatest warrior in the world and shall possess god-like powers.

Recalling his tragic past, Afro goes to Mount Shumi to face Jinno, his childhood friend and fellow samurai, who blames him for killing their master (who had the Number 2 headband).

He defeats Jinno and tracks down Justice, who explains that there are other headbands in existence, ranging to an unspecified higher number.

Claiming that he intends to use his power as the Number 1 to bring peace to all mankind, Justice reveals that he killed all headband bearers and decorated his safe house with corpses.

Okazaki started drawing African-American characters on items like Kleenex boxes when he was a teenager, inspired by his fondness for hip hop and soul music.

[7] Although the recreation of the original manga was created in Japan, it was first published in the United States by Seven Seas Entertainment and Tor Books in two tankōbon volumes.

[13][14] One of Okazaki's friends decided to make action figures based on characters, which were released in small amounts.

[16] It was announced that the series would be a five-episode "creative collaboration", between Jackson, Okazaki and Gonzo, and Wu-Tang Clan member RZA served as a music composer.

[19] In 2006, it was announced that Funimation (later Crunchyroll, LLC) acquired the rights to the anime series which would premiere on Spike, later that year, and that Jackson would voice Afro.

[24] In 2008, Funimation released the Afro Samurai anime series onto Xbox Live in high definition format and also debuted on Blu-ray Disc in that year.

[28] In 2008, the sequel was announced to be a television film, Afro Samurai: Resurrection, with Lucy Liu and Mark Hamill joining the cast.

At the Emmy awards, Afro Samurai: Resurrection lost to Destination Imagination, a television film based on Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends.

[40][41] A sequel, titled Afro Samurai 2: Revenge of Kuma, was released for the PlayStation 4 and Microsoft Windows on September 22, 2015.

Scott Green, writer of the Anime AICN segment of Ain't It Cool News said that the manga "is a work of design" and that it "utilizes the medium to which it is applied as a platform rather than as an ends unto itself."

"[50] Anime News Network reviewer, Carlo Santos stated about the anime that "like most typical action-adventures, the story starts out slow and only picks up toward the middle and end when the blades really start flying" and that "Afro Samurai is hardly a complex story" and that it only has "a handful of characters and a straightforward beat-the-next-guy plotline".

Carlo Santos also noted that "the original Afro Samurai manga is pretty lousy" and that Takashi Okazaki often gets lost in "incomprehensible scribbles" and "style over substance.

[53] On June 12, 2015, the Chinese Ministry of Culture listed Afro Samurai among 38 anime and manga titles banned in China.