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子連れ狼 [Kozure Ookami] #1
Lone Wolf and Cub, Vol. 1: The Assassin's Road
Lone Wolf and Cub (Kozure Okami in Japan) is acknowledged worldwide for the brilliant writing of series creator Kazuo Koike and the groundbreaking cinematic visuals of the late Goseki Kojima. Creating unforgettable imagery of stark beauty, kinetic fury, and visceral thematic power, the epic samurai adventure has influenced a generation of visual storytellers both in Japan and in the West.
303 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 1970
357 people are currently reading
6832 people want to read
About the author
Kazuo Koike
560 books292 followersKazuo Koike (小池一夫, Koike Kazuo) was a prolific Japanese manga writer, novelist and entrepreneur.
Early in Koike's career, he studied under Golgo 13 creator Takao Saito and served as a writer on the series.
Koike, along with artist Goseki Kojima, made the manga Kozure Okami (Lone Wolf and Cub), and Koike also contributed to the scripts for the 1970s film adaptations of the series, which starred famous Japanese actor Tomisaburo Wakayama. Koike and Kojima became known as the "Golden Duo" because of the success of Lone Wolf and Cub.
Another series written by Koike, Crying Freeman, which was illustrated by Ryoichi Ikegami, was adapted into a 1995 live-action film by French director Christophe Gans.
Kazuo Koike started the Gekika Sonjuku, a college course meant to teach people how to be mangaka.
In addition to his more violent, action-oriented manga, Koike, an avid golfer, has also written golf manga.
Early in Koike's career, he studied under Golgo 13 creator Takao Saito and served as a writer on the series.
Koike, along with artist Goseki Kojima, made the manga Kozure Okami (Lone Wolf and Cub), and Koike also contributed to the scripts for the 1970s film adaptations of the series, which starred famous Japanese actor Tomisaburo Wakayama. Koike and Kojima became known as the "Golden Duo" because of the success of Lone Wolf and Cub.
Another series written by Koike, Crying Freeman, which was illustrated by Ryoichi Ikegami, was adapted into a 1995 live-action film by French director Christophe Gans.
Kazuo Koike started the Gekika Sonjuku, a college course meant to teach people how to be mangaka.
In addition to his more violent, action-oriented manga, Koike, an avid golfer, has also written golf manga.
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August 24, 2016
The role of comic books in America is in transition, and so comics hold a tenuous and unusual position in the American psyche. To some degree, they are still considered dirty and cheap, still artistically bankrupt, and there are good reasons for this. For a long time, the industry had its hands tied by the 'Comics Code', a punitive ratings system. One can realize the effects the code had by imagining what movies would be like if the government stated that all films released must attain a 'G' rating.
Imagine a G-rated Star Wars, a G-rated Godfather, a G-rated Blazing Saddles, and you may begin to understand the impossibility of trying to write quality comics under the code, which held sway over comics for thirty years. Here are some examples of rules that had to be followed under the code:
*Crimes shall never be presented in such a way as to create sympathy for the criminal
*Policemen, judges, government officials, and respected institutions shall never be presented in such a way as to create disrespect for established authority
*In every instance good shall triumph over evil
*Profanity, obscenity, smut, vulgarity, or words or symbols which have acquired undesirable meanings are forbidden
It was positively Orwellian, and it wasn't until the early eighties that publishers began to break away from the code, first under the daring pen of Steve Gerber, who lost his career in comics over it, and then under Alan Moore, who was made a household name for helping break the grip of the code. But comics are still fighting a bad reputation, as evidenced by the fact that the term 'graphic novel' has been coined solely so people who consider themselves sophisticated don't have to condescend to read 'comics'.
But this struggle for recognition as an art form has played out very differently around the world. In Europe, the revolution took place in the mid sixties, so that today, an individual can get a government grant to work in the field of comics, so that, instead of trying to please the narrow requirements of a multimedia conglomerate bent on cannibalizing old stories (like Marvel and DC), they can freely bring to life their meticulous, experimental visions, pointing towards a future for comics, instead of a well-thumbed past.
And it's this level of experimental artistry that I have come to expect from comics, since my experience with them has been primarily from foreign authors. Even the early books I read from the big publishers were mostly the result of their hiring British and Irish authors. After this experience, I explored the Franco-Belgian and Italian traditions, much to my edification.
But oddly enough, I had never read any Japanese manga. Here I was, searching the back shelves fruitlessly for English translations of rare European comics when every bookstore has a thickly-stocked manga section. It's partially a sense of stubborn iconoclasm I can't seem to shake, but there are other reasons I have remained wary.
Like anyone my age, I'm familiar with 'anime'--animated cartoons from Japan. In fact, I got into them fairly early, around '94, before we had the word 'anime' to describe them. So it's odd that I never became a committed japanophile like so many of my peers.
Most of the anime I've seen is just repetitive escapism, but there have been a few works, here and there, that impressed me. But then, that's true for any medium: most books are sub par, as are most movies and comics, and we hold out for the rare good one.
But there are some larger complications to get around. Firstly, America has an Animation Age Ghetto to match its Comics Age Ghetto, meaning that when companies bring in animation from Japan (or Europe), they are looking for something to sell to kids, and aren't very picky about the quality of the writing or acting.
But, even when this isn't the case, and we've got entities like Cartoon Network who are deliberately trying to bring in adult animation fare, we aren't getting the most conceptual and experimental stuff from Japan, because translating such a work is no enviable task. The wordplay, allusions, cultural content, and literary traditions are just not in the reference pool for Americans. Hence, the average American can only appreciate a story which is simple enough to translate clearly.
Even with European comics it's less challenging, because we are culturally and linguistically closer to France than we are to Japan. Unless you're willing to go in there and learn the language, culture, and history, the most complex and involved works will remain remote. Eventually, when you get a large academic community committed to the works of the culture, you can start producing expert, informed translations, but it's only recently that we've begun to look seriously at our own comics, much less those of Japan.
But there are still those stories that translate well, even across such boundaries, such as the film work of Akira Kurosawa, which I loved as a child, long before my occasional studies of Japan. But then, Kurosawa is, in many ways, reflecting our own culture back at us: he takes American film and story techniques--most notably Westerns and Shakespeare--and adapts them to his culture.
Even though the content and language are different, the film techniques and literary tropes are recognizable. But then, that should also be true for comics and animation, both of which were explored and refined in America three-quarters of a century ago. In both Disney's Fantasia and McCay's Little Nemo, we have visions of great experimental artistry in both animation and comics.
Unfortunately, the great conservative backlash of the nationalistic fifties put an end to that. The intense controls put onto films and books hurt these fledgling forms, who had few defenders in the arts and academia to keep fighting for authorial rights.
So, our comics and animation were sent out, all over the world, inspiring both Europe and Asia, where Carl Barks is still a household name. Without the same cultural controls and juvenile expectations, they thrived. And they have provided great inspiration for American authors and artist throughout the years, from the Spaghetti Westerns to Valerian and the abortive European 'Dune', which birthed Alien, Blade Runner, and Star Wars, the cultural exchange of ideas continued, though other media.
So it is far past time for me to crack open some of the great Asian works, daunting as their unfettered length might be (no thirty page issue limits, here), and see for myself how the visions of Osamu Tezuka--the innovative father of both manga and anime--have played out. After all, Tezuka based his stories off the works of Disney and Carl Barks, so in many ways, manga and anime are prodigal children, finally returning.
We should thank the Japanese and the Europeans for keeping the artistic vision alive and thriving for those long decades when we, blinded by fear and nationalism, had forgotten them. And now, they deliver them back to us, fully-formed, and I can only hope that some American artists will be able to help us get back on track, moving forward to a bright, innovative future for comics and animation.
Though perhaps I should have started with Tezuka, the appeal of the traveling ronin story was a great draw for me. As epitomized in the Kurosawa/Mifune films (Yojimbo, Sanjuro, and Seven Samurai), and also in the Zatoichi films, such stories, while straightforward in concept, allow for many variations of theme and many explorations of characters and cultural elements.
Lone Wolf & Cub takes the form of a series of vignettes: small, self-contained stories. Each one has its own theme and tone, each shows the complete arc of an idea; but, like a poetic cycle, these stories are greater as a whole than they are alone. We return again and again to concepts, and each time, a new layer is added, a new side of the story is explored.
Gradually, these small stories build up into a much larger arc. They are not related by a continuous plot, but by continuous thematic explorations. I often find such collections of short stories are much more effective in creating intriguing settings and characters than a protracted plot full of exposition. The author is free to move through time and place, exploring character and world elements as they come up, and is not forced to create tenuous, convenient connections to string the plot together. The characters and themes anchor the story more deeply than a simple sequence of events.
The art takes its cue from traditional sumi-e ink and wash painting, with the swift, decisive strokes which were so equated with sword strokes that it was said you could read a man’s fencing style in his art and calligraphy. The marriage of this style with Western sequential art is seamless, and it’s hardly surprising that the stylized forms displayed here have proven so inspirational in the visual arts.
Some of the story comes off as cliché, but it’s always difficult to say with an original work how much of that is because other artists have copied the style in the meantime. We have the amusingly esoteric discussions of styles, attacks, and schools which grew up as Japanese society formalized and striated, turning death-dealing into an academic exercise for the literate. But that’s part of the charm for adherents of samurai and wuxia.
We also have the inevitable ‘passing stroke’ which dramatically ends every battle, which might seem repetitive to a Western eye, until we recognize that every Western fight ends with a haymaker. The scenarios which play out prior to this final blow are widely varied, action-packed, and fully realized in the onrush of dark, ever-moving lines.
Many of the plots are likewise variations on a theme, presenting us briefly with a complicated bit of feudal shogunate politics which necessitate our protagonist’s intervention. Though he is an impossibly strong, invincible warrior, sometimes to the detriment of tension, his methods of solving these problems are often surprisingly insightful and subtle, showing a deep and shrewd intelligence behind his mighty sword arm.
The stories are unapologetically violent, which includes graphic sexual violence. However, the sexual violence is not pornographic: it does not linger upon carefully detailed forms, but is used to tell a realistic, if sometimes unsettling story. Nor does the book get drawn down into taking itself too seriously, as so many of its imitators have. Violence is only one part of the human story, portrayed in equal footing with love, honor, sorrow, hope, and humor. It is the nature of the story that physical conflict often takes the forefront, but never to the exclusion of other human desires.
It is, in short, a familiar story to anyone familiar with Kurosawa’s great samurai films, and if it does not reach the depth or variety of those films just yet, we must recall that this is only the first volume of twenty-eight, while those films are amongst Kurosawa’s best.
My Suggested Readings in Comics
Imagine a G-rated Star Wars, a G-rated Godfather, a G-rated Blazing Saddles, and you may begin to understand the impossibility of trying to write quality comics under the code, which held sway over comics for thirty years. Here are some examples of rules that had to be followed under the code:
*Crimes shall never be presented in such a way as to create sympathy for the criminal
*Policemen, judges, government officials, and respected institutions shall never be presented in such a way as to create disrespect for established authority
*In every instance good shall triumph over evil
*Profanity, obscenity, smut, vulgarity, or words or symbols which have acquired undesirable meanings are forbidden
It was positively Orwellian, and it wasn't until the early eighties that publishers began to break away from the code, first under the daring pen of Steve Gerber, who lost his career in comics over it, and then under Alan Moore, who was made a household name for helping break the grip of the code. But comics are still fighting a bad reputation, as evidenced by the fact that the term 'graphic novel' has been coined solely so people who consider themselves sophisticated don't have to condescend to read 'comics'.
But this struggle for recognition as an art form has played out very differently around the world. In Europe, the revolution took place in the mid sixties, so that today, an individual can get a government grant to work in the field of comics, so that, instead of trying to please the narrow requirements of a multimedia conglomerate bent on cannibalizing old stories (like Marvel and DC), they can freely bring to life their meticulous, experimental visions, pointing towards a future for comics, instead of a well-thumbed past.
And it's this level of experimental artistry that I have come to expect from comics, since my experience with them has been primarily from foreign authors. Even the early books I read from the big publishers were mostly the result of their hiring British and Irish authors. After this experience, I explored the Franco-Belgian and Italian traditions, much to my edification.
But oddly enough, I had never read any Japanese manga. Here I was, searching the back shelves fruitlessly for English translations of rare European comics when every bookstore has a thickly-stocked manga section. It's partially a sense of stubborn iconoclasm I can't seem to shake, but there are other reasons I have remained wary.
Like anyone my age, I'm familiar with 'anime'--animated cartoons from Japan. In fact, I got into them fairly early, around '94, before we had the word 'anime' to describe them. So it's odd that I never became a committed japanophile like so many of my peers.
Most of the anime I've seen is just repetitive escapism, but there have been a few works, here and there, that impressed me. But then, that's true for any medium: most books are sub par, as are most movies and comics, and we hold out for the rare good one.
But there are some larger complications to get around. Firstly, America has an Animation Age Ghetto to match its Comics Age Ghetto, meaning that when companies bring in animation from Japan (or Europe), they are looking for something to sell to kids, and aren't very picky about the quality of the writing or acting.
But, even when this isn't the case, and we've got entities like Cartoon Network who are deliberately trying to bring in adult animation fare, we aren't getting the most conceptual and experimental stuff from Japan, because translating such a work is no enviable task. The wordplay, allusions, cultural content, and literary traditions are just not in the reference pool for Americans. Hence, the average American can only appreciate a story which is simple enough to translate clearly.
Even with European comics it's less challenging, because we are culturally and linguistically closer to France than we are to Japan. Unless you're willing to go in there and learn the language, culture, and history, the most complex and involved works will remain remote. Eventually, when you get a large academic community committed to the works of the culture, you can start producing expert, informed translations, but it's only recently that we've begun to look seriously at our own comics, much less those of Japan.
But there are still those stories that translate well, even across such boundaries, such as the film work of Akira Kurosawa, which I loved as a child, long before my occasional studies of Japan. But then, Kurosawa is, in many ways, reflecting our own culture back at us: he takes American film and story techniques--most notably Westerns and Shakespeare--and adapts them to his culture.
Even though the content and language are different, the film techniques and literary tropes are recognizable. But then, that should also be true for comics and animation, both of which were explored and refined in America three-quarters of a century ago. In both Disney's Fantasia and McCay's Little Nemo, we have visions of great experimental artistry in both animation and comics.
Unfortunately, the great conservative backlash of the nationalistic fifties put an end to that. The intense controls put onto films and books hurt these fledgling forms, who had few defenders in the arts and academia to keep fighting for authorial rights.
So, our comics and animation were sent out, all over the world, inspiring both Europe and Asia, where Carl Barks is still a household name. Without the same cultural controls and juvenile expectations, they thrived. And they have provided great inspiration for American authors and artist throughout the years, from the Spaghetti Westerns to Valerian and the abortive European 'Dune', which birthed Alien, Blade Runner, and Star Wars, the cultural exchange of ideas continued, though other media.
So it is far past time for me to crack open some of the great Asian works, daunting as their unfettered length might be (no thirty page issue limits, here), and see for myself how the visions of Osamu Tezuka--the innovative father of both manga and anime--have played out. After all, Tezuka based his stories off the works of Disney and Carl Barks, so in many ways, manga and anime are prodigal children, finally returning.
We should thank the Japanese and the Europeans for keeping the artistic vision alive and thriving for those long decades when we, blinded by fear and nationalism, had forgotten them. And now, they deliver them back to us, fully-formed, and I can only hope that some American artists will be able to help us get back on track, moving forward to a bright, innovative future for comics and animation.
Though perhaps I should have started with Tezuka, the appeal of the traveling ronin story was a great draw for me. As epitomized in the Kurosawa/Mifune films (Yojimbo, Sanjuro, and Seven Samurai), and also in the Zatoichi films, such stories, while straightforward in concept, allow for many variations of theme and many explorations of characters and cultural elements.
Lone Wolf & Cub takes the form of a series of vignettes: small, self-contained stories. Each one has its own theme and tone, each shows the complete arc of an idea; but, like a poetic cycle, these stories are greater as a whole than they are alone. We return again and again to concepts, and each time, a new layer is added, a new side of the story is explored.
Gradually, these small stories build up into a much larger arc. They are not related by a continuous plot, but by continuous thematic explorations. I often find such collections of short stories are much more effective in creating intriguing settings and characters than a protracted plot full of exposition. The author is free to move through time and place, exploring character and world elements as they come up, and is not forced to create tenuous, convenient connections to string the plot together. The characters and themes anchor the story more deeply than a simple sequence of events.
The art takes its cue from traditional sumi-e ink and wash painting, with the swift, decisive strokes which were so equated with sword strokes that it was said you could read a man’s fencing style in his art and calligraphy. The marriage of this style with Western sequential art is seamless, and it’s hardly surprising that the stylized forms displayed here have proven so inspirational in the visual arts.
Some of the story comes off as cliché, but it’s always difficult to say with an original work how much of that is because other artists have copied the style in the meantime. We have the amusingly esoteric discussions of styles, attacks, and schools which grew up as Japanese society formalized and striated, turning death-dealing into an academic exercise for the literate. But that’s part of the charm for adherents of samurai and wuxia.
We also have the inevitable ‘passing stroke’ which dramatically ends every battle, which might seem repetitive to a Western eye, until we recognize that every Western fight ends with a haymaker. The scenarios which play out prior to this final blow are widely varied, action-packed, and fully realized in the onrush of dark, ever-moving lines.
Many of the plots are likewise variations on a theme, presenting us briefly with a complicated bit of feudal shogunate politics which necessitate our protagonist’s intervention. Though he is an impossibly strong, invincible warrior, sometimes to the detriment of tension, his methods of solving these problems are often surprisingly insightful and subtle, showing a deep and shrewd intelligence behind his mighty sword arm.
The stories are unapologetically violent, which includes graphic sexual violence. However, the sexual violence is not pornographic: it does not linger upon carefully detailed forms, but is used to tell a realistic, if sometimes unsettling story. Nor does the book get drawn down into taking itself too seriously, as so many of its imitators have. Violence is only one part of the human story, portrayed in equal footing with love, honor, sorrow, hope, and humor. It is the nature of the story that physical conflict often takes the forefront, but never to the exclusion of other human desires.
It is, in short, a familiar story to anyone familiar with Kurosawa’s great samurai films, and if it does not reach the depth or variety of those films just yet, we must recall that this is only the first volume of twenty-eight, while those films are amongst Kurosawa’s best.
My Suggested Readings in Comics
March 13, 2017
"Seminal" is not a word to throw around lightly, but there seems to be a consensus surrounding the influence of this manga series both at home in Japan and across the Pacific, where the likes of Frank Miller and Max Allan Collins cite it as a major influence on their artistic development. Having read the first album from Kazuo Koike and Goseki Kojima, I can atest now to the merit of their glowing praises. The story surpassed my expectations both in the epic scale of the narrative, in the gritty realism (also known as extremely violent and explicit adult material) of the battle scenes, in the wealth of historical detail about the Edo period Japan (the same covered by James Clavell in Shogun and in the majority of samurai movies), and in the spectacular artwork inspired by classical woodwork prints in the ukiyo-e style made famous by the likes of Hokusai. I am not surprised to learn that the adventures of ronin assassin Ogami Itto and of his son Daigoro have translated well to film, since the black and white panels drawn by Goseki Kojima excell in dynamism and unusual angles of view.
The Assassin's Road is the opening gambit in a game of go that seems to cover Japan from coast to coast, witnessing the travels of Ogami Itto, pushing the wooden cart carrying his three-year-old son Daigoro on the Tokaido road and beyond, advertising on a vertical flag "Sword for Hire, Son for Hire" . The two are available for assassination contracts and they are so succesful that they become known on the road as "Lone Wolf and Cub" . The 300 hundred pages of the first album include several episodes highlighting the unmatched skill of Ogami Itto with his heavy 'dotanuki' war-sword and various other killing implements. The usual outcome is a pile of corpses left behind, as the duo walks off into the sunset. Daigoro is often playing an active part in the various ploys to get his father in the right position for a strike at his enemies or designated targets.
It's hard to pick a favorite among the episodes included here. They might look similar to each other at first glance : Lone Wolf goes somewhere and kills some guys!, but each of them adds a little more detail to the code of honour that underlines every action taken by Ogami Itto, about his careful interrogation about the reasons he is asked to perform murder and, slowly, about the background story that have driven the former personal assassin of the shogun on the road to hell . I believe my favorite for now is called "Wings to the Bird, Fangs to the Beast", about how the Lone Wolf comes to rescue some poor villagers in a hot springs resort from a wild bunch of masterless samurai turned bandits. It is the longest story-arc in the first volume and has a larger cast than usual. I could easily see it turned into a movie of the sort that made Kurosawa famous.
One more thing that I found remarkable in this first album is the way the writer captures the social structure and the power plays in medieval Japan: at the top of the pyramid is the Shogun with his close allies and advisers, the place Ogami Itto belonged to before his fall from grace. Next are the local landlords known as daimyo, who enforce the law in their lands with the help of their faithful acolytes from the warrior class - the samurai. Warriors without allegiance are known as ronin and are either looking for employment or turn to banditry. Operating in the shadows are ninjas - the spy class and assassins currently controlled by the enemies of Ogami Itto, the Yagyu clan. Half legal, half secret are the Yakuza clans, controlling gambling, protection taxes and geisha houses. The short end of the stick goes to the peasants, who are mostly victims of corrupt officials and greedy lords. Itto and his son Daigoro are outsiders, following their own path, but mostly they act in defense of the underdog, making the usual plot of the series a sort of medieval Japanese version of a typical western story.
**** stars for now, since I loved the story and the artwork, but I believe there is still some room for improvement and I am still uncomfortable giving the highest marks to a story that glorifies killing in such gory details. I might revise higher once I go through the following albums, with number 2 coming hopefully later this week.
August 23, 2016
Lone Wolf and Cub are a disgraced samurai and his infant son travelling through Edo-period Japan (sometime between 1603 and 1868) working as a sword-for-hire. He kills lots of people, some of them try to kill him and his boy and fail (that’s not a spoiler, there are several more books after this so of course he’s in no real danger), and that’s about it!
I’ve heard nothing but good things about this title and I enjoy samurai comics too so I was disappointed to discover it’s actually a pretty boring read. The stories are drearily episodic and repetitive: Lone Wolf and Cub rock up somewhere, someone hires him to kill someone, they’re put in faux peril, and he kills the target successfully. There’s no sense of an overarching story like why these two are wandering about or what Lone Wolf does with the money he earns from his hit jobs or whether he’s working towards something or this is just it.
The action is always the same: Lone Wolf and his opponent stand opposite each other about to draw swords, they run at each other, then stand a few feet apart, backs to each other, swords out, and the opponent falls. So clichéd and boring with zero tension because you always know the outcome.
It doesn’t help that all of the characters are ciphers. Lone Wolf is the archetypical silent unstoppable tough guy and Cub is just a kid, his visible Achilles’ heel. Everyone else is disposable - the bad guys are there to be slaughtered by Lone Wolf, the innocents are there to be rescued by Lone Wolf; they’re not characters so much as plot points.
To be fair, there’s one scene - one! - towards the end when Lone Wolf gives his son a choice to his life’s path: stay on the assassin’s road with him or choose peace. The decision was inevitable given the title but it showed how on the edge Lone Wolf lives and how far he’s willing to go. It only lasted a few pages though and then we went back to the predictable action.
Writer Kazuo Koike faithfully uses Edo-period language in his script but quite often there’s no English translation to the words used and no footnotes to help explain the dialogue. Lines like “Does he think he can defeat the Mugyo-Ryu Suemonogiri technique of Bessho-Sama, the fencing master of Mito Han?!” left me puzzled as to their meaning and, long before the halfway point after being bombarded with similarly baffling lines, eventually ambivalent about what I was reading. There’s a glossary of some terms included at the back of the book but who wants to keep flipping back and forth when you’re reading?
Goseki Kojima’s black and white art is quite nice when it comes to scenic backdrops and the Japanese countryside but I don’t think he handled the action well - it’s hard to tell in quite a few scenes exactly what’s happening. Also, the character designs are extremely limited with nearly all of the male and female models looking identical - in some of the stories a number of characters look like Lone Wolf so it’s difficult to follow.
Maybe back in the ‘70s when this comic first came out, the samurai action wasn’t clichéd and these genre stories still felt relatively fresh, but, 40+ years later, Lone Wolf and Cub fails to impress. I’ve read much better samurai comics like Vagabond and Usagi Yojimbo, all of which came out after Lone Wolf and Cub so perhaps owes a debt of influence to Koike and Kojima, but I’d still check those out instead of this stale, dull “classic” instead.
I’ve heard nothing but good things about this title and I enjoy samurai comics too so I was disappointed to discover it’s actually a pretty boring read. The stories are drearily episodic and repetitive: Lone Wolf and Cub rock up somewhere, someone hires him to kill someone, they’re put in faux peril, and he kills the target successfully. There’s no sense of an overarching story like why these two are wandering about or what Lone Wolf does with the money he earns from his hit jobs or whether he’s working towards something or this is just it.
The action is always the same: Lone Wolf and his opponent stand opposite each other about to draw swords, they run at each other, then stand a few feet apart, backs to each other, swords out, and the opponent falls. So clichéd and boring with zero tension because you always know the outcome.
It doesn’t help that all of the characters are ciphers. Lone Wolf is the archetypical silent unstoppable tough guy and Cub is just a kid, his visible Achilles’ heel. Everyone else is disposable - the bad guys are there to be slaughtered by Lone Wolf, the innocents are there to be rescued by Lone Wolf; they’re not characters so much as plot points.
To be fair, there’s one scene - one! - towards the end when Lone Wolf gives his son a choice to his life’s path: stay on the assassin’s road with him or choose peace. The decision was inevitable given the title but it showed how on the edge Lone Wolf lives and how far he’s willing to go. It only lasted a few pages though and then we went back to the predictable action.
Writer Kazuo Koike faithfully uses Edo-period language in his script but quite often there’s no English translation to the words used and no footnotes to help explain the dialogue. Lines like “Does he think he can defeat the Mugyo-Ryu Suemonogiri technique of Bessho-Sama, the fencing master of Mito Han?!” left me puzzled as to their meaning and, long before the halfway point after being bombarded with similarly baffling lines, eventually ambivalent about what I was reading. There’s a glossary of some terms included at the back of the book but who wants to keep flipping back and forth when you’re reading?
Goseki Kojima’s black and white art is quite nice when it comes to scenic backdrops and the Japanese countryside but I don’t think he handled the action well - it’s hard to tell in quite a few scenes exactly what’s happening. Also, the character designs are extremely limited with nearly all of the male and female models looking identical - in some of the stories a number of characters look like Lone Wolf so it’s difficult to follow.
Maybe back in the ‘70s when this comic first came out, the samurai action wasn’t clichéd and these genre stories still felt relatively fresh, but, 40+ years later, Lone Wolf and Cub fails to impress. I’ve read much better samurai comics like Vagabond and Usagi Yojimbo, all of which came out after Lone Wolf and Cub so perhaps owes a debt of influence to Koike and Kojima, but I’d still check those out instead of this stale, dull “classic” instead.
August 24, 2024
The Assassin's Road is long - father and son must travel down it as Lone Wolf and Cub - epic manga that has influenced dozens of other works. If you are squeamish then this may not be the book for you. This is one of the most intense series I have ever read. Not for children - intense violence that may be too much for some readers.
November 20, 2013
A ground-breaking manga first published in Japan in 1970, Koike & Kojima’s “Lone Wolf & Cub” series follows the exploits of a laconic master assassin whose most defining characteristic, aside from his near unstoppable lethality and ingenious tactics, is probably the fact that he wanders Tokugawa- era Japan pushing a baby cart containing his three-year-old son Daigorō. As a result they are known throughout the country as Lone Wolf and Cub, a mysterious assassin ‘team’ who, for 500 ryu (gold pieces) will kill anyone so long as all details about the victim and circumstances are provided. The series became a pop-culture phenomenon in Japan, spawning six movies (they’re quite good), four plays (thanks Wikipedia!), a television series, and numerous rip-offs and homages. This volume is part of the reprint series published by Dark Horse comics starting in 2000 and contains nine of the adventures of Lone Wolf and Cub.
If you’re going to read this series you should be prepared for a few things: graphic violence involving samurai combat and assassinations is prevalent as is (usually violent) sex scenes and nudity…so not one for the kiddies. Also keep in mind that the basic premise behind each of the stories is usually a depiction of the various assassinations undertaken, and invariably completed, by Lone Wolf and Cub. There can, as a result, be an apparent sameness to many of the stories once the novelty of a new victim being dispatched in a unique way loses some of its shine. Keep in mind, however, that as the stories build we begin to get glimpses into the life and motives that drive Ogami Ittō (the eventually revealed name of the assassin) and each individual ‘adventure’ starts to tie in to the larger story arc of his tale of loss and vengeance. You will also be treated to some wonderful artwork and storytelling depicting both the stunning natural beauty and convincing historical details of 17th century Japan.
One thing to note is the way in which, while we come to learn a lot about both Ogami and Daigorō as the stories progress, in many ways it is the secondary characters who really shine in these stories. Even though they are usually people we will never see again, often because they don’t survive the issue, they really do come to life on the pages and often resonate far beyond the confines of their individual stories. Their diversity is also impressive as they exemplify a truly varied range of characters, lifestyles, and outlooks within the Tokugawa-era Japan that Koike & Kojima bring to such vivid life on the pages. One final element to note: Ogami is an assassin who has willingly ostracized himself from normal human society and he acts accordingly, thus we do not have the somewhat dubious paradox of the ‘good guy assassin’. Ogami is certainly often sympathetic, and when he is able to do so he is often more than willing to help those in need, but he is first and foremost an assassin with an agenda of his own that overrides all other concerns and thus he will always finish the job, whether we think his victim deserves their end or not.
“Son for Hire, Sword for Hire”: Koike & Kojima drop us in media res as we observe a secret meeting between a nobleman and an unknown assassin. His assignment is to kill a high ranking noble who schemes to gain control of his Han as well as ‘the Guardian Eight of Mibu‘ who defend him. Ogami uses both his skill with weapons and tricky planning to earn his gold as he faces off against the group of famed warriors that guard his mark, a fairly typical scenario for LW&C. We see that Ogami plays the long game even in this very first story as he safeguards himself against not only his opponents, but also his employer.
“A Father Knows his Child’s Heart, as Only a Child Can Know his Father’s”: We learn that Ogami is truly single-minded in his devotion to his path of vengeance, even to the point of using his own son as a tool in his missions, whether that be as bait or in other ways. As far as Ogami is concerned both he and Daigorō truly are united in their endeavour and both father and son “walk the path of meifumado”, or Hell on Earth.
“From North to South, From West to East:” Ogami uses his martial skill to despatch many assailants, but proves that it is his strategic and tactical decisions that truly make him formidable. A child once again proves the key to Ogami completing his mission, though this time it isn't Daigorō.
“Baby Cart on the River Styx”: Ogami and Daigorō are caught between corrupt government officials, a shift in local power, double crosses, and an imminent gang war between rival Yakuza clans. I have to admit that I didn't fully follow the intricacies of the plot in this one, maybe they got the story from Raymond Chandler?
“Suiō School Zanbatō”: Ogami again uses Daigorō in his plans, this time to draw a samurai into a fight he can't win. When his victim’s friends look for vengeance Ogami utilizes the secret of his Suiō School Zanbatō technique to even the odds.
“Waiting for the Rains”: Ogami uses Daigorō as a way to secretly transport both instructions and payment from his current employer and then shows how his thorough research into both his victims and his employers leads him to success. Even though only drawn with minimal strokes the background story of two of the secondary characters revolving around love deferred and promises kept even in the face of death was pretty striking.
“Eight Gates of Deceit”: Ogami proves his martial skill as he faces off against eight famed female assassins and then proves his superior strategy and forethought in the midst of a wily trap.
“Wings to the Bird, Fangs to the Beast”: Ogami and Daigorō come across a village famed for its hot springs spa that has become overrun by a gang of rōnin where they meet a hooker with the proverbial heart of gold. This seemed like a pretty light issue with not much to it aside from the proverbial fight and a partial reveal about Ogami’s background.
“The Assassin’s Road”: The final story of the volume gives us a flashback glimpse into the events that led both Ogami Ittō and his son Daigorō to choose the path of meifumado and head out on the ‘Demon’s Road’ of assassination. Schemes at the highest levels of government have targeted Ogami and his family and only his cleverness allows him to escape his most dangerous foes with his life.
What can I say? LW&C is truly a classic of the genre and as long as you can stomach some significant scenes of violence and a ‘hero’ whose gray shades significantly into black at times, then I highly recommend it. Especially excellent for its depiction of a historical era and society so different from what we know that still manages to bring the characters and world it presents to vivid life.
Also posted at Shelf Inflicted
If you’re going to read this series you should be prepared for a few things: graphic violence involving samurai combat and assassinations is prevalent as is (usually violent) sex scenes and nudity…so not one for the kiddies. Also keep in mind that the basic premise behind each of the stories is usually a depiction of the various assassinations undertaken, and invariably completed, by Lone Wolf and Cub. There can, as a result, be an apparent sameness to many of the stories once the novelty of a new victim being dispatched in a unique way loses some of its shine. Keep in mind, however, that as the stories build we begin to get glimpses into the life and motives that drive Ogami Ittō (the eventually revealed name of the assassin) and each individual ‘adventure’ starts to tie in to the larger story arc of his tale of loss and vengeance. You will also be treated to some wonderful artwork and storytelling depicting both the stunning natural beauty and convincing historical details of 17th century Japan.
One thing to note is the way in which, while we come to learn a lot about both Ogami and Daigorō as the stories progress, in many ways it is the secondary characters who really shine in these stories. Even though they are usually people we will never see again, often because they don’t survive the issue, they really do come to life on the pages and often resonate far beyond the confines of their individual stories. Their diversity is also impressive as they exemplify a truly varied range of characters, lifestyles, and outlooks within the Tokugawa-era Japan that Koike & Kojima bring to such vivid life on the pages. One final element to note: Ogami is an assassin who has willingly ostracized himself from normal human society and he acts accordingly, thus we do not have the somewhat dubious paradox of the ‘good guy assassin’. Ogami is certainly often sympathetic, and when he is able to do so he is often more than willing to help those in need, but he is first and foremost an assassin with an agenda of his own that overrides all other concerns and thus he will always finish the job, whether we think his victim deserves their end or not.
“Son for Hire, Sword for Hire”: Koike & Kojima drop us in media res as we observe a secret meeting between a nobleman and an unknown assassin. His assignment is to kill a high ranking noble who schemes to gain control of his Han as well as ‘the Guardian Eight of Mibu‘ who defend him. Ogami uses both his skill with weapons and tricky planning to earn his gold as he faces off against the group of famed warriors that guard his mark, a fairly typical scenario for LW&C. We see that Ogami plays the long game even in this very first story as he safeguards himself against not only his opponents, but also his employer.
“A Father Knows his Child’s Heart, as Only a Child Can Know his Father’s”: We learn that Ogami is truly single-minded in his devotion to his path of vengeance, even to the point of using his own son as a tool in his missions, whether that be as bait or in other ways. As far as Ogami is concerned both he and Daigorō truly are united in their endeavour and both father and son “walk the path of meifumado”, or Hell on Earth.
“From North to South, From West to East:” Ogami uses his martial skill to despatch many assailants, but proves that it is his strategic and tactical decisions that truly make him formidable. A child once again proves the key to Ogami completing his mission, though this time it isn't Daigorō.
“Baby Cart on the River Styx”: Ogami and Daigorō are caught between corrupt government officials, a shift in local power, double crosses, and an imminent gang war between rival Yakuza clans. I have to admit that I didn't fully follow the intricacies of the plot in this one, maybe they got the story from Raymond Chandler?
“Suiō School Zanbatō”: Ogami again uses Daigorō in his plans, this time to draw a samurai into a fight he can't win. When his victim’s friends look for vengeance Ogami utilizes the secret of his Suiō School Zanbatō technique to even the odds.
“Waiting for the Rains”: Ogami uses Daigorō as a way to secretly transport both instructions and payment from his current employer and then shows how his thorough research into both his victims and his employers leads him to success. Even though only drawn with minimal strokes the background story of two of the secondary characters revolving around love deferred and promises kept even in the face of death was pretty striking.
“Eight Gates of Deceit”: Ogami proves his martial skill as he faces off against eight famed female assassins and then proves his superior strategy and forethought in the midst of a wily trap.
“Wings to the Bird, Fangs to the Beast”: Ogami and Daigorō come across a village famed for its hot springs spa that has become overrun by a gang of rōnin where they meet a hooker with the proverbial heart of gold. This seemed like a pretty light issue with not much to it aside from the proverbial fight and a partial reveal about Ogami’s background.
“The Assassin’s Road”: The final story of the volume gives us a flashback glimpse into the events that led both Ogami Ittō and his son Daigorō to choose the path of meifumado and head out on the ‘Demon’s Road’ of assassination. Schemes at the highest levels of government have targeted Ogami and his family and only his cleverness allows him to escape his most dangerous foes with his life.
What can I say? LW&C is truly a classic of the genre and as long as you can stomach some significant scenes of violence and a ‘hero’ whose gray shades significantly into black at times, then I highly recommend it. Especially excellent for its depiction of a historical era and society so different from what we know that still manages to bring the characters and world it presents to vivid life.
Also posted at Shelf Inflicted
January 2, 2019
Oh boy!
I finally got to read the ever famous Lone Wolf and Cub.
Produced in the relatively ancient era of the (19)70's this seminal work has had far reaching influence that well exceeds the boundaries of the comic book realm. As (relatively) faithfully reduplicated by Max Allen Collins in his (some-what)overrated Road to Perdition and more recently, the Dumb Hanks cinematographic rendition of such, Kazuo Koike's tale of revenge and blood and guts definitely holds up well over 40-some years later.
From inspiring future manga influenced hyper violence to more delicate depictions of Tokugawa era Japan, Lone Wolf and Cub is as enjoyable to read as fantastically erudite in its historically accurate fabrications. Darning together the past and the future into a mostly coherent narrative, a serious round of applause is deserved. Portrayed with stark pencil-work that revels in its intrinsic minimalism, the lo-fi maxim, "that less is more," is perfectly employed here to superior effect.
Triumphant across most areas there are few faults here.
I finally got to read the ever famous Lone Wolf and Cub.
Produced in the relatively ancient era of the (19)70's this seminal work has had far reaching influence that well exceeds the boundaries of the comic book realm. As (relatively) faithfully reduplicated by Max Allen Collins in his (some-what)overrated Road to Perdition and more recently, the Dumb Hanks cinematographic rendition of such, Kazuo Koike's tale of revenge and blood and guts definitely holds up well over 40-some years later.
From inspiring future manga influenced hyper violence to more delicate depictions of Tokugawa era Japan, Lone Wolf and Cub is as enjoyable to read as fantastically erudite in its historically accurate fabrications. Darning together the past and the future into a mostly coherent narrative, a serious round of applause is deserved. Portrayed with stark pencil-work that revels in its intrinsic minimalism, the lo-fi maxim, "that less is more," is perfectly employed here to superior effect.
Triumphant across most areas there are few faults here.
July 22, 2017
A lone samurai working as an executioner for the Shogun who, betrayed and framed for treason, is forced to earn a living as an errant assassin for hire with his baby in tow? Now that's an unique premise, and of course I was going to be caught like a fly in a honey pot.
The promotion blurb didn't lie, for once, and the storyline didn't disappoint. Following an episodic narrative structure that tells of Ogami Itto's assignments in relatively long vignettes, we come to learn of the man's peculiarities: he's lethal as all hell, and his services will cost you an arm, a leg and an eye for good measure. Oh, and your secretest of secrets, too. Because it's not enough that you put his standard fee of 500 ryu of gold in his hand, you have also to tell him why you want to kill and everything about and round that killing, don't even dream of hiding anything, before he accepts the task. And if he says no, you're out of luck. If he says yes, consider the person you want dead is already dead from the moment the word of acceptance is out.
Ogami Itto's methods are . . . unorthodox, to put it mildly, and brilliant in a "bloody bastard, he duped me!" way. And his son Daigoro is part of the team, too, the wolf's cub is also a wolf and so he must hunt. This may be uncomfortable, the idea of using a baby as bait, and even some characters say it so out loud, but read on, read on and you'll see why this has to happen. The opening scene works as a red herring, and it's only by the last vignette that we learn that Itto (and Daigoro, because families aren't spared in the samurai way of life) was framed for treason, and then all pieces fall into place and it's understood it's all about survival and retribution, and if both are to live and strike back at those who want them gone, father and son must work as a team.
It's very gritty, graphic violence is all over the place, as well as graphic nudity. Those who've read Hiroshi Hirata's works will likely get to this comfortably like ducks to water, as I did, but for those who may have difficulties, let me tell you that this isn't all about senseless violence and suffering. Kazuo Koike is an excellent storyteller, his stories are interesting, and the short nature of the vignette style of narration makes it easy to digest in small bites, so to speak.
The promotion blurb didn't lie, for once, and the storyline didn't disappoint. Following an episodic narrative structure that tells of Ogami Itto's assignments in relatively long vignettes, we come to learn of the man's peculiarities: he's lethal as all hell, and his services will cost you an arm, a leg and an eye for good measure. Oh, and your secretest of secrets, too. Because it's not enough that you put his standard fee of 500 ryu of gold in his hand, you have also to tell him why you want to kill and everything about and round that killing, don't even dream of hiding anything, before he accepts the task. And if he says no, you're out of luck. If he says yes, consider the person you want dead is already dead from the moment the word of acceptance is out.
Ogami Itto's methods are . . . unorthodox, to put it mildly, and brilliant in a "bloody bastard, he duped me!" way. And his son Daigoro is part of the team, too, the wolf's cub is also a wolf and so he must hunt. This may be uncomfortable, the idea of using a baby as bait, and even some characters say it so out loud, but read on, read on and you'll see why this has to happen. The opening scene works as a red herring, and it's only by the last vignette that we learn that Itto (and Daigoro, because families aren't spared in the samurai way of life) was framed for treason, and then all pieces fall into place and it's understood it's all about survival and retribution, and if both are to live and strike back at those who want them gone, father and son must work as a team.
It's very gritty, graphic violence is all over the place, as well as graphic nudity. Those who've read Hiroshi Hirata's works will likely get to this comfortably like ducks to water, as I did, but for those who may have difficulties, let me tell you that this isn't all about senseless violence and suffering. Kazuo Koike is an excellent storyteller, his stories are interesting, and the short nature of the vignette style of narration makes it easy to digest in small bites, so to speak.
February 21, 2016
When Daigoro was little, his father was famous. He was the greatest samurai in the empire and he was the Shogun's decapitator. He cut off the heads of a hundred and thirty-one lords. It was a bad time for the empire. The Shogun just stayed inside his castle and he never came out. People said his brain was infected by devils. Daigoro's father would come home, he would forget about the killings. He wasn't scared of the Shogun, but the Shogun was scared of him. Maybe that was the problem. Then, one night, the Shogun sent his ninja spies to their house. They were supposed to kill Daigoro's father but they didn't. That was the night everything changed...
As magnificent as its reputation suggests, Lone Wolf And Cub plays out as a series of Jacobean one-act tragedies, with art that feels it could be as old as the setting and as instinctive as the protagonist's uncanny fighting skills. It's a manga of landscape as much as action - rope bridges, misty forests, sudden flights of birds, and the bloody ruin of man's ambition around each corner. Goseki Kojima's gift for facial expressions - especially the childish play of emotion on the three year old Daigoro's face - adds another layer of intensity. Not always an easy read, and best taken slowly, but a masterpiece.
As magnificent as its reputation suggests, Lone Wolf And Cub plays out as a series of Jacobean one-act tragedies, with art that feels it could be as old as the setting and as instinctive as the protagonist's uncanny fighting skills. It's a manga of landscape as much as action - rope bridges, misty forests, sudden flights of birds, and the bloody ruin of man's ambition around each corner. Goseki Kojima's gift for facial expressions - especially the childish play of emotion on the three year old Daigoro's face - adds another layer of intensity. Not always an easy read, and best taken slowly, but a masterpiece.
November 17, 2011
This series might look like non stop Samurai action,epic story but the strenght of the writing is how much the story shows less romantic,more realistic view on Samurai era,culture. The normal people that didnt thrive under the caste,honor system of the Samurai.
The most brilliant part of the work is though the stunning,cinematic artwork. 40 years old it still looks more beautiful,stronger than 100% of other japanese comics,other comics i have read.
There are maybe many classic important series like this but this is best and my alltime fav. Its my third time reading the whole series now.
The most brilliant part of the work is though the stunning,cinematic artwork. 40 years old it still looks more beautiful,stronger than 100% of other japanese comics,other comics i have read.
There are maybe many classic important series like this but this is best and my alltime fav. Its my third time reading the whole series now.
September 25, 2017
So, I'm really into samurai stuff. I love old samurai movies, there's some samurai comics that I think are fantastic, I'm interested in samurai history and even have a samurai sword so when I saw this beloved classic samurai manga sitting at the library I had to read it. I don't know why people love it.
What's it about?
A samurai guy with a little baby goes around killing people.
Pros:
The art is extremely well done.
The action scenes are pretty sweet. Always a fan of good samurai action.
Cons:
The story has no substance at all. What I described in the "what's it about?" section is pretty much the entire story. And it's done over and over again with no twists making the entire book predictable as hell (and not in that fun, satirical One Punch Man way).
No character... anything. All we know about the characters are cool samurai guy and little baby. I guess a lot of people will probably just think the samurai guy is cool and the little baby is cute or something? I like a bad-a** samurai as much as the next guy but I like to know things about the characters I read about. I don't like babies or kids so... there goes that.
The text is so tiny. The size of the book is just barely larger than my phone which I wouldn't mind if the pages were a panel or two each but it's the same design as a typical comic page. That doesn't work!
A surprising amount of random nudity and sex. I normally don't mind when it has something to do with anything but it really doesn't, it usually just comes out of nowhere feels more like near samurai porn.
Overall:
It's really annoying how much I want to love this book but can't. The art and action are good, as a fan of samurai stuff I really would love to be a fan of this but it is so flawed and poorly made that I can't say I enjoy it and I'm not gonna bother trying to force myself to read more of this series.
2/5
What's it about?
A samurai guy with a little baby goes around killing people.
Pros:
The art is extremely well done.
The action scenes are pretty sweet. Always a fan of good samurai action.
Cons:
The story has no substance at all. What I described in the "what's it about?" section is pretty much the entire story. And it's done over and over again with no twists making the entire book predictable as hell (and not in that fun, satirical One Punch Man way).
No character... anything. All we know about the characters are cool samurai guy and little baby. I guess a lot of people will probably just think the samurai guy is cool and the little baby is cute or something? I like a bad-a** samurai as much as the next guy but I like to know things about the characters I read about. I don't like babies or kids so... there goes that.
The text is so tiny. The size of the book is just barely larger than my phone which I wouldn't mind if the pages were a panel or two each but it's the same design as a typical comic page. That doesn't work!
A surprising amount of random nudity and sex. I normally don't mind when it has something to do with anything but it really doesn't, it usually just comes out of nowhere feels more like near samurai porn.
Overall:
It's really annoying how much I want to love this book but can't. The art and action are good, as a fan of samurai stuff I really would love to be a fan of this but it is so flawed and poorly made that I can't say I enjoy it and I'm not gonna bother trying to force myself to read more of this series.
2/5
March 15, 2021
Başarılı bir debut cilt, yılların eskitemediği bir hikaye.
Japon kültürü ve tarihi ile ilgili öyle çok edebi eser var ki sadece bunları okuyarak bile sanki dönem hakkında bilgi sahibi olabiliyorsunuz. Mesela Osmanlı Tarihi ile ilgili yalnızca başarıları değil, başarısızlıkları ve dönem halkını içeren bir popüler kültür eseri var mı? TRT'nin garip gureba "pump up the jam" dizilerini saymadığım için pek yok. Birkaç çizgi roman biliyorum ama onlar da yeterince bilinirliği olmadan tarihin sayfalarında solup gidiyor.
Yalnız Kurt ve Yavrusu'nu 20'den fazla cildi olduğu için biraz daha kitapvari bir hikaye beklemiştim. Aslında öyle değil. Daha çok 26 dakikalık Samurai Champloo animesi gibi. Lineer bir düzlemde gitmiyor hikaye.
Oldum olası siyah beyaz çizgi romanları sevmemişimdir. Hani Gazze'nin Dipnotları veya Cahiller: Karşılıklı Bir Aydınlanmanın Hikâyesi gibi boyut olarak geniş ve çizgi olarak da yalın romanlardan bahsetmiyorum. Midi-boy diyebileceğimiz Teksas Tommiks tarzı eserlerden bahsediyorum. Çizgileri çok karanlık ve sıkıcı gelir. O yüzden bu kitaba da biraz tereddütle yaklaştım.
Tam da tahmin ettiğim gibi küçük bir sayfada altı kare bile olsa detayları görmek de harfleri okumak da çok güç. Çok karanlık. Hatta kılıçtan damlayan kanı bile anlayamayacaksam ne anlamı var cinsinden. Bölüm fontları da kötü seçilmiş. Ve nedense sayfanın altına minik bir * koymak yerine kitabın en sonuna bir sözlük koyulmuş. Halbuki bu sözlüğe hiç gerek yok çünkü neredeyse her kelime sadece 1-2 kez geçiyor. Oysa ki her anlamadığınız kelimede kitabın arkasına gitmek daha çok hikayeden kopmaya neden oluyor.
İnanıyorum ki ilerleyen kısımlarda hikaye daha da içine çekecek. Ha şunu da belirtmeden geçmeyeyim ki bu elimizdeki eser tam 51 yaşında! O yüzden biraz da hakkını vermek lazım. Eğer bu ebatta bir çizgi roman serisi 50 yıl dayandıysa o zaman iyidir.
Bir baba oğlunun kalbinden geçenleri, sadece oğlunun babasının kalbinden geçenleri bildiği kadar bilebilir.
Herkese keyifli okumalar!
Japon kültürü ve tarihi ile ilgili öyle çok edebi eser var ki sadece bunları okuyarak bile sanki dönem hakkında bilgi sahibi olabiliyorsunuz. Mesela Osmanlı Tarihi ile ilgili yalnızca başarıları değil, başarısızlıkları ve dönem halkını içeren bir popüler kültür eseri var mı? TRT'nin garip gureba "pump up the jam" dizilerini saymadığım için pek yok. Birkaç çizgi roman biliyorum ama onlar da yeterince bilinirliği olmadan tarihin sayfalarında solup gidiyor.
Yalnız Kurt ve Yavrusu'nu 20'den fazla cildi olduğu için biraz daha kitapvari bir hikaye beklemiştim. Aslında öyle değil. Daha çok 26 dakikalık Samurai Champloo animesi gibi. Lineer bir düzlemde gitmiyor hikaye.
Oldum olası siyah beyaz çizgi romanları sevmemişimdir. Hani Gazze'nin Dipnotları veya Cahiller: Karşılıklı Bir Aydınlanmanın Hikâyesi gibi boyut olarak geniş ve çizgi olarak da yalın romanlardan bahsetmiyorum. Midi-boy diyebileceğimiz Teksas Tommiks tarzı eserlerden bahsediyorum. Çizgileri çok karanlık ve sıkıcı gelir. O yüzden bu kitaba da biraz tereddütle yaklaştım.
Tam da tahmin ettiğim gibi küçük bir sayfada altı kare bile olsa detayları görmek de harfleri okumak da çok güç. Çok karanlık. Hatta kılıçtan damlayan kanı bile anlayamayacaksam ne anlamı var cinsinden. Bölüm fontları da kötü seçilmiş. Ve nedense sayfanın altına minik bir * koymak yerine kitabın en sonuna bir sözlük koyulmuş. Halbuki bu sözlüğe hiç gerek yok çünkü neredeyse her kelime sadece 1-2 kez geçiyor. Oysa ki her anlamadığınız kelimede kitabın arkasına gitmek daha çok hikayeden kopmaya neden oluyor.
İnanıyorum ki ilerleyen kısımlarda hikaye daha da içine çekecek. Ha şunu da belirtmeden geçmeyeyim ki bu elimizdeki eser tam 51 yaşında! O yüzden biraz da hakkını vermek lazım. Eğer bu ebatta bir çizgi roman serisi 50 yıl dayandıysa o zaman iyidir.
Bir baba oğlunun kalbinden geçenleri, sadece oğlunun babasının kalbinden geçenleri bildiği kadar bilebilir.
Herkese keyifli okumalar!
March 31, 2014
One of my all time favorites. A story that embodies honor, sacrifice, family, loyalty, discipline, revenge, love, and violence. Epic in scope and unlike anything else I've ever read. Love it from beginning to end (all 28 volumes). A classic that should be included in the short list of the greatest graphic novels of all time.
August 8, 2020
It's a bit wordy at times, but apart from that this classic more than deserves its formidable reputation.
December 13, 2016
Lone Wolf and Cub Volume 1 is a perfect example of how to start a great and epic story, commencing Ogami Itto's vengeful path against the Yagyu clan.
The first volume establishes the Lone Wolf as a masterful swordsman and a sword for hire assassin who is able to defeat and kill his targets in the most glorious and dramatic ways. Kazuo Koike and Goseki Kojima are meant for each other in creating this masterpiece.
Lone Wolf's son Daigoro also proves to be a capable ally (in a cunning way) instead of just being an accessory to his father's Meifumado or path towards hell.
The violence here is outrageously poetic with samurai stances bringing chill to my spine and joy to my craving for action scenes. Kojima's cinematic illustrations really give the manga its authentic Japanese feel. There may be some scenes here where women are portrayed as sex objects, and I think it will persist throughout the story but they are nonetheless strong and as strong as men.
I really love reading Lone Wolf and Cub. Glad I still have 27 more volumes to read.
The first volume establishes the Lone Wolf as a masterful swordsman and a sword for hire assassin who is able to defeat and kill his targets in the most glorious and dramatic ways. Kazuo Koike and Goseki Kojima are meant for each other in creating this masterpiece.
Lone Wolf's son Daigoro also proves to be a capable ally (in a cunning way) instead of just being an accessory to his father's Meifumado or path towards hell.
The violence here is outrageously poetic with samurai stances bringing chill to my spine and joy to my craving for action scenes. Kojima's cinematic illustrations really give the manga its authentic Japanese feel. There may be some scenes here where women are portrayed as sex objects, and I think it will persist throughout the story but they are nonetheless strong and as strong as men.
I really love reading Lone Wolf and Cub. Glad I still have 27 more volumes to read.
November 24, 2008
Please, please, try the Lone Wolf and Cub series.
The art of "comic book" storytelling, while not exactly a lost art in the States, is nevertheless not something particularly prized here; comic book readers seem to be objects of scorn and ridicule to mainstream folk, lumped in with those who attend renaissance faires and Star Trek conventions as people perhaps not right in the head.
In Japan however, the reading of comic books, or manga, as the format is more properly called, is as common a practise as the reading of any other genre. Those willing to try the Lone Wolf and Cub series will immediately understand why.
Lean and well-written, there are nevertheless sometimes whole pages of nothing but the starkly beautiful illustrations telling volumes without the need for words. While uniquely Eastern, the evolving story is something that any old soul, any knight, soldier, or romantic who believes that honour exists and some things are worth the sacrifice, can understand. Too, the relationship between Ogami and Daigoro (father and son, the principal characters), is a unique and extraordinary one; they may be characters on a page, but such is the skill of Kazuo Koike and Goseki Kojima that their bond seems a very palpabe one.
The books will give even the most uninterested person a lesson in feudal Japan; the societal role of the samurai; the concept and application of Bushido (somewhat akin to the knight's sense of chivalry, though rather more rigid and necessary); and the outsider status of ronin. Those with any interest in history, knights, Arthurian England, and the like, will come away better informed and enlightened, as well.
Go ahead. Take the plunge.
The art of "comic book" storytelling, while not exactly a lost art in the States, is nevertheless not something particularly prized here; comic book readers seem to be objects of scorn and ridicule to mainstream folk, lumped in with those who attend renaissance faires and Star Trek conventions as people perhaps not right in the head.
In Japan however, the reading of comic books, or manga, as the format is more properly called, is as common a practise as the reading of any other genre. Those willing to try the Lone Wolf and Cub series will immediately understand why.
Lean and well-written, there are nevertheless sometimes whole pages of nothing but the starkly beautiful illustrations telling volumes without the need for words. While uniquely Eastern, the evolving story is something that any old soul, any knight, soldier, or romantic who believes that honour exists and some things are worth the sacrifice, can understand. Too, the relationship between Ogami and Daigoro (father and son, the principal characters), is a unique and extraordinary one; they may be characters on a page, but such is the skill of Kazuo Koike and Goseki Kojima that their bond seems a very palpabe one.
The books will give even the most uninterested person a lesson in feudal Japan; the societal role of the samurai; the concept and application of Bushido (somewhat akin to the knight's sense of chivalry, though rather more rigid and necessary); and the outsider status of ronin. Those with any interest in history, knights, Arthurian England, and the like, will come away better informed and enlightened, as well.
Go ahead. Take the plunge.
March 1, 2016
I'm only marking the first book in the series, but all 28 books and all the separate little stories are amazing little gems of Japanese perfection. The artwork is beautifull, and the historical and cultural portrayal of Japan's Edo-period is both fascinating and - apparently - very accurate. The main character is a Ronin assassin, a former royal executioner and top-ranked samurai gone on a long, honorbound vengence spree. He is as unstoppable as Conan the barbarian, but follows a strict bushi code which allows no exceptions whatsoever - honor is paramount, and seems integrated in his ideal of perfection in all aspects of life. Thus the stories become more than just violent tales of samurai fighting skills, for more than anything they form a story of focus, counciousness, honor and the satisfaction of perfection, with an increasingly skillfull samurai assassin as a guide to correct conduct.
Read
July 15, 2013It's like putting your head into a bathtub filled with film pulled off of reels of Kurasawa movies.
February 21, 2019
Great book, great story line (no spoliers) one man and his kid wandering around Japan, great black and white graphics Very enjoyable book. 1st class.
December 18, 2019
A dishonored samurai and his son wander feudal Japan killing people.
January 4, 2022
4.5
Aslında bu tarz samuray, Japon tarihi vs. ilgimi çeken konular değil. Çok tereddütle yaklaştım o yüzden seriye. Üstelik hem çok eski, hem de uzun bir seri. Bir de mangayla barışamayan ben var tabii. Tüm bunlara rağmen öyle büyük bir zevkle okudum ki. Anlatım şekline hayran kaldım en başta. Hikayeye dalıyoruz resmen, konu bütünlüğü yok, bunu sonradan fark ediyoruz. Aslında uzun bir seriye başlamak için şahane bir yol izlenmiş. Karakterler, terimler, ana olay verilmiş, ilgi çekici olaylar işlenmiş, okuyucuya daha fazlası vaadedilmiş ve bitiş. Cidden bu kadar sevmeyi beklemiyordum. Tek sorun bazı çizimlerde yüzler birbirine çok benziyor. :) Bunun çok önemli bir detay olmayacağını ümit ediyorum ilerde.
Aslında bu tarz samuray, Japon tarihi vs. ilgimi çeken konular değil. Çok tereddütle yaklaştım o yüzden seriye. Üstelik hem çok eski, hem de uzun bir seri. Bir de mangayla barışamayan ben var tabii. Tüm bunlara rağmen öyle büyük bir zevkle okudum ki. Anlatım şekline hayran kaldım en başta. Hikayeye dalıyoruz resmen, konu bütünlüğü yok, bunu sonradan fark ediyoruz. Aslında uzun bir seriye başlamak için şahane bir yol izlenmiş. Karakterler, terimler, ana olay verilmiş, ilgi çekici olaylar işlenmiş, okuyucuya daha fazlası vaadedilmiş ve bitiş. Cidden bu kadar sevmeyi beklemiyordum. Tek sorun bazı çizimlerde yüzler birbirine çok benziyor. :) Bunun çok önemli bir detay olmayacağını ümit ediyorum ilerde.
August 3, 2018
The start of an amazing epic (and as much as that word is overused I think this is one of the only books I've read that is deserving of that title).
I've re-read this volume more than the others due to it being the first one, but I've yet to tire of the stories here. I love the serialization of stories style that Koike employs here. The plot moves along slowly as we enjoy a variety of exceptional short stories and learn more about our protagonist and the foreign, and ancient, world that he lives in.
Even if you don't think you'll be able to read the, what?, ~8000 pages of this series, I think reading this single volume is a rewarding experience in itself; and, who knows? You may end up staying for the whole journey.
I've re-read this volume more than the others due to it being the first one, but I've yet to tire of the stories here. I love the serialization of stories style that Koike employs here. The plot moves along slowly as we enjoy a variety of exceptional short stories and learn more about our protagonist and the foreign, and ancient, world that he lives in.
Even if you don't think you'll be able to read the, what?, ~8000 pages of this series, I think reading this single volume is a rewarding experience in itself; and, who knows? You may end up staying for the whole journey.
July 20, 2020
A classic but I wasn't in love. I didn't get attached to anyone. But some of the story structure was interesting, nice twist here or there, and the art remains great.
March 22, 2024
Poranek ścietych głow podobała mi się bardziej. Tutaj mam wrażenie, że oncyzns nie wiem, sceny walki rozgrywają się bardzo szybko, a o głównym bohaterze też jak na razie nie wiem zbyt wiele.
January 31, 2020
My absolute fav Manga right now!
May 23, 2016
Just to set things straight, it's 4 stars, but I'm a sucker for samurai stories and feudal Japan. And now I have almost 30 volumes of greatness waiting
It's my first manga, and how lucky I was to start with such classic! I don't bother you with story as you can find it in annotation, but this volume consist short stories, which are connected and slowly tells the story and character of main protagonist. What I really liked, is that it showed not only bright side of the samurai, but also the other part of it and I believe it won't stop in other volumes. Art style is top notch, I can't believe how manga was ahead of time, as this was first published in 1970 and it's still looks very good, though most of the comics, even from 1990's looks outdated.
Only complaint that you had to have some basic knowledge of the Samurai or feudal Japan, to know stuff like what Ronin is, what Koku means. What is Daimyo and why it's ruled by Shogun, etc. though you can gather that easily if you watch anime or read manga.
P.S Now I know what series I will watch now, alongside reading this gem.
It's my first manga, and how lucky I was to start with such classic! I don't bother you with story as you can find it in annotation, but this volume consist short stories, which are connected and slowly tells the story and character of main protagonist. What I really liked, is that it showed not only bright side of the samurai, but also the other part of it and I believe it won't stop in other volumes. Art style is top notch, I can't believe how manga was ahead of time, as this was first published in 1970 and it's still looks very good, though most of the comics, even from 1990's looks outdated.
Only complaint that you had to have some basic knowledge of the Samurai or feudal Japan, to know stuff like what Ronin is, what Koku means. What is Daimyo and why it's ruled by Shogun, etc. though you can gather that easily if you watch anime or read manga.
P.S Now I know what series I will watch now, alongside reading this gem.
December 6, 2022
Brutal. Uncompromising. Steadfast. That’s pretty much what Lone Wolf the rōnin is, as he wanders the land with his young son, Diagora/Cub, taking on commissions (with one stipulation).
The author takes us through multiple episodes before divulging the reason behind their wandering: Wolf (Ogami Ittō, and Shōgun’s executioner) wants to avenge himself on the assassins of the Yagyú clan, who killed the Ogami clan. He gives Daigoro a choice: go with him or die. There are clear parallels between this critical moment in the pair’s lives, and with Grogu and Luke Skywalker. No wonder this series was such a big influence for “The Mandalorian”.
The artwork is dynamic, the violence swift and the appeal of the pair and their quest unexpected. I’m intrigued to find out what’s next for the assassins.
The author takes us through multiple episodes before divulging the reason behind their wandering: Wolf (Ogami Ittō, and Shōgun’s executioner) wants to avenge himself on the assassins of the Yagyú clan, who killed the Ogami clan. He gives Daigoro a choice: go with him or die. There are clear parallels between this critical moment in the pair’s lives, and with Grogu and Luke Skywalker. No wonder this series was such a big influence for “The Mandalorian”.
The artwork is dynamic, the violence swift and the appeal of the pair and their quest unexpected. I’m intrigued to find out what’s next for the assassins.
April 22, 2015
This is very different from anything I've read before. It's full of history and traditional ways of the samurai.
A fantastic story, one I think I will pursue until the end.
I liked it so much I just bought all the omnibus editions :)
A fantastic story, one I think I will pursue until the end.
I liked it so much I just bought all the omnibus editions :)
August 8, 2018
A legendary manga, later adapted to film, this is a great action read, if a bit flawed.
The art is fantastic, veering from almost impressionistic to realistic, generally residing in the trad-manga comfort zone. The writing is good, too, but the book is very episodic and a bit repetitive. Up until the final chapter, all motivation and long-term story are absent. This can leave some readers dissatisfied, but what is here is good. Will continue this series.
The art is fantastic, veering from almost impressionistic to realistic, generally residing in the trad-manga comfort zone. The writing is good, too, but the book is very episodic and a bit repetitive. Up until the final chapter, all motivation and long-term story are absent. This can leave some readers dissatisfied, but what is here is good. Will continue this series.
January 4, 2020
Lone Wolf and Cub travel around Japan kicking ass, staying one step ahead of their enemies, and occasionally philosophizing. Add in the awesome artwork and it's easy to see why this is such a beloved classic.
June 17, 2020
This samurai manga has a unique premise and bring something so riveting and intense. Taking place during feudal Japan, we follow a traveling ronin (samurai with no lord or master) and his toddler child in a carriage who meet many unfriendly and dangerous types of people who are no match for him. While there’s not much depth about the main duo or what the main story is about, the manga’s presentation is so captivating and action packed while having little dialogue at time. Still, an interesting tale of a father and son. A (100%/Outstanding)
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