Synopses & Reviews
The close of 16th century Japan was a violent age, as rival feudal lords fought for land and power. Miyamoto Usagi braved many a battle only to lose his lord and find himself a masterless samurai, or ronin. While many ronin became bandits or mercenaries, Usagi chose the warrior pilgrimage: wandering the land, fighting injustice, seeking enlightenment. Eisner Award winner Stan Sakai has crafted a truly original and delightful work, an all-ages adventure epic that creates a world of excitement, mystery, and imagination, while building each story on painstaking research of Japan's history, culture, and mythology. Demon Mask is a collection of diverse Usagi stories, featuring a graveyard encounter with creatures from Japanese folktales, a whodunit clash with a mysterious masked assassin, a young adventure-lover insistent on receiving Usagi's sword training, a peasant village terrorized by a ravaging Spider Woman, and more. Few works of graphic fiction offer -- or deliver -- as much action, depth, and sheer fun as Stan Sakai's Usagi Yojimbo.
Review
Usagi Yojimbo is an enduring work. Bravo. (Will Eisner)
Synopsis
The close of the 16th century in Japan was a violent age, as rival feudal lords fought for land and power. Miyamoto Usagi braved many a battle, only to lose his lord and find himself a masterless samurai, or ronin, once a ruling shogun was finally declared. While many ronin became bandits or mercenaries, Usagi chose the warrior pilgrimage: wandering the land, fighting injustice, seeking enlightenment. Award-winning creator Stan Sakai has crafted a truly original and delightful work, an all-ages adventure epic that creates a world of excitement, mystery, and imagination while building each story on painstaking research of Japan's history, culture, and mythology. With it's anthropomorphic characters and masterful cartooning, Usagi speaks clearly to a younger audience, while the power of its themes and the richness of its setting keep adult readers challenged and entertained.
Synopsis
The tale of Usagi Yojimbo is a masterful adaptation of samurai legend to sequential art, and a parable of 16th century Japan told with characters that are all anthropomorphized animals. Young or old, male or female, if you enjoy stories of high adventure and high honor, you will thrill at the saga of Usagi Yojimbo!