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Usagi Yojimbo #6
Usagi Yojimbo, Vol. 6: Circles
In the title story, Usagi returns to his native village to find everything very different indeed. "Circles" is an epic adventure, a love story, and one of the most affecting Usagi stories ever. Plus three more great stories! Circles features the graphic-novel-length epic title story, in which Usagi returns to his native village only to find everything very different indeed. (The discovery that his mentor, whom he thought dead, is actually alive and kicking is only the first of the shocks that await him.) "Circles" is an epic adventure, a love story, and one of the most affecting Usagi stories ever. In addition to the 80-page "Circles," this volume includes "The Bridge," "The Duel," and the hard-to-find "The Tangled Skein" from Critters #38. Jam-packed with lethal sword battles alternating with humor, horror, suspense and slapstick, this beautifully crafted and exciting volume (with an introduction by Jeff Smith creator of Bone ) is both an excellent starting point for new readers, and an absolute necessity for Usagi completists. Black-and-white comics throughout
164 pages, Paperback
First published November 13, 1994
About the author
Stan Sakai
888 books357 followersStan Sakai (Japanese: 坂井 スタンSakai Sutan; born May 25, 1953) is an artist who became known as an Eisner Award-winning comic book originator.
Born in Kyoto, Sakai grew up in Hawaii and studied fine arts at the University of Hawaii. He later attended the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California. He and his wife, Sharon, presently reside and work in Pasadena.
He began his career by lettering comic books (notably Groo the Wanderer by Sergio Aragonés and Mark Evanier) and became famous with the production of Usagi Yojimbo, the epic saga of Miyamoto Usagi, a samurai rabbit living in late-sixteenth and early-seventeenth-century Japan. First published in 1984, the comic continues to this day, with Sakai as the lone author and nearly-sole artist (Tom Luth serves as the main colorist on the series, and Sergio Aragonés has made two small contributions to the series: the story "Broken Ritual" is based on an idea by Aragonés, and he served as a guest inker for the black and white version of the story "Return to Adachi Plain" that is featured in the Volume 11 trade paper-back edition of Usagi Yojimbo). He also made a futuristic spin-off series Space Usagi. His favorite movie is Satomi Hakkenden (1959).
Born in Kyoto, Sakai grew up in Hawaii and studied fine arts at the University of Hawaii. He later attended the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California. He and his wife, Sharon, presently reside and work in Pasadena.
He began his career by lettering comic books (notably Groo the Wanderer by Sergio Aragonés and Mark Evanier) and became famous with the production of Usagi Yojimbo, the epic saga of Miyamoto Usagi, a samurai rabbit living in late-sixteenth and early-seventeenth-century Japan. First published in 1984, the comic continues to this day, with Sakai as the lone author and nearly-sole artist (Tom Luth serves as the main colorist on the series, and Sergio Aragonés has made two small contributions to the series: the story "Broken Ritual" is based on an idea by Aragonés, and he served as a guest inker for the black and white version of the story "Return to Adachi Plain" that is featured in the Volume 11 trade paper-back edition of Usagi Yojimbo). He also made a futuristic spin-off series Space Usagi. His favorite movie is Satomi Hakkenden (1959).
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 51 reviews
July 16, 2024
3 short stories, but the main Circles is really the star of the show. Usagi returns to his native village just in time to see his old lover's son kidnapped by the demon creature from an earlier adventure. The ending is quite a shock.
June 29, 2022
This volume contains a story in which Usagi returns to his hometown. He meets the girl he loved when he was younger who is married to his rival and learns a secret that will change his perspective on life. In the process a returning villain threatens Usagi's hometown, so he must team up with his rival to defeat this villain. There is a lot of payoff here for those who have read the first five volumes.
For those who like supernatural stories, a few of the smaller ones presented here deal with supernatural threats.
For those who like supernatural stories, a few of the smaller ones presented here deal with supernatural threats.
August 4, 2016
I'm stopping to review this 48 pages in because, whatever else may lurk afterwards, I've just seen the saddest page ever crafted in the comics medium. Stan Sakai is a genius. You don;t need to know anything about books #1-5; grab this and read the second story in.
December 18, 2014
Bullet Review:
I continue to be hugely entertained by Usagi. It's one of those trades I can pick up and know I will enjoy, front to back, either at a leisurely pace or break-neck speed.
I continue to be hugely entertained by Usagi. It's one of those trades I can pick up and know I will enjoy, front to back, either at a leisurely pace or break-neck speed.
May 22, 2020
First half consists of short stories, mostly relating to Usagi beating some sort of supernatural being. The exception was The Duel which was based in “reality”. This was the best of the one shots, with some actual emotional punch, although it highlights my main issue with this series, which is that Usagi never loses so there's no real stakes.
The second half of the trade is taken up with the story Circles. As a story on its own merit, it doesn’t really stand out. Bandits and a demon and Usagi beats them all. The compelling part of the narrative comes from it being set in Usagi’s home town and his lost love’s son being in peril.
I’m rating this trade pretty high because I did enjoy it, but the last few pages did demonstrate to me that Usagi himself isn’t all that compelling as a character.
The art is what it ever is, goofy to the max. Although I did find myself appreciating the landscapes a lot more, and how well Stan Sakai uses his art to convey what is going on and what characters are thinking. It looks dumb and it’s a subtle as a sledgehammer, but at least it’s not confusing.
The second half of the trade is taken up with the story Circles. As a story on its own merit, it doesn’t really stand out. Bandits and a demon and Usagi beats them all. The compelling part of the narrative comes from it being set in Usagi’s home town and his lost love’s son being in peril.
I’m rating this trade pretty high because I did enjoy it, but the last few pages did demonstrate to me that Usagi himself isn’t all that compelling as a character.
The art is what it ever is, goofy to the max. Although I did find myself appreciating the landscapes a lot more, and how well Stan Sakai uses his art to convey what is going on and what characters are thinking. It looks dumb and it’s a subtle as a sledgehammer, but at least it’s not confusing.
April 18, 2016
Few comic books have ever made me cry. This one did.
January 18, 2020
Stejně jako je tomu u Mignoly, Stan Sakai umí skvělé epizodické příběhy. Tzn. jedno ústřední téma (Usagi se vrací domů) poskládá z různých krátkých epizod (dobrodružství po cestě) které fungují jak za sebou, tak samostatně. Pak se člověk dostane k hlavnímu příběhu (vesnice) a případně i jedné dvou epizodám po něm jako epilog. Tenhle způsob vypadá jednoduše, ale pokud autor na to nemá, tak buď to zdrcne a ztratí to ladnost, nebo naopak je tam málo pojiva a rozpadne se to. Kruhy jsou ale skvělé. Čtyři příběhy než přijde ta hlavní část, první dva jsou hodně skvělé. Most je uderný, na poměry Usagiho hororový, Souboj zase melancholický a vypointovaný. Yurei je zase taková karmická duchařina a Dcera je takové Usagi - fantasy. Takže člověk má rozmanitosti dost a najednou je u hlavního příběhu a uvědomí si, že tam celou dobu směřoval. Hlavní příběh, Kruhy, je fajn, ale v důsledku ho trochu zastiňují předcházející epizodky. Výsledek je ale skvělý, vybalancovaný a skvěle se čte. Usagi je balzám na duši.
September 16, 2021
This volume has a long arc where Usagi goes back to his home village, hoping to settle down. Of course, things do not work out for him. Along the way he meets with demons, murders, gamblers and the like.
I'm quite enjoying reading through this series. The art is lovely and the stories are touching and fun.I also like the recurring characters and story lines.
I'm quite enjoying reading through this series. The art is lovely and the stories are touching and fun.I also like the recurring characters and story lines.
July 13, 2020
Jei is a scary MF! He is quite a good villain. He combines just enough mysticism and ordinary mortal crazy that he is unpredictable and menacing without being so powerful that he's unbeatable.
October 4, 2021
This is a cumulative review of the 35 volumes of collected Usagi Yojimbo stories that have been published to date. They span a 37-year history, from the first published Usagi story in Albedo Anthropomorphic #2, across the first seven volumes published by Fantagraphics, across the next 24 volumes published by Dark Horse, and finally across the most recent three volumes published by IDW, bringing us to Usagi Yojimbo v35: Homecoming, published in 2021. This review does not include the volumes Space Usagi, Usagi Yojimbo: Yokai, Usagi Yojimbo: Senso, Usagi Yojimbo/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Complete Collection, or Chibi Usagi: Attack of the Heebie Chibis.
In a land very much like Japan, in a time very much like the early days of the Tokugawa Shogunate, when legions of samurai suddenly found themselves out of work in a war-torn land trying to get back to normal, a masterless samurai - a ronin - named Usagi Yojimbo walks the path of a student-warrior. He goes wherever fate takes him, living by his honor, his swordsmanship and by the grace of the friends he makes along the way. On his endless adventures, Usagi confronts wicked bandits, cruel tyrants, sinister assassins, and dire supernatural fiends. He often encounters humble folk plying their trade in an often cruel and harsh world (and along the way, learns a bit about their work, like brewing sake or weaving tatami mats).
Along his way, he builds a vast cast of friends, allies and rivals, including the bounty hunger Gen, fellow samurai )and love interest) Tomoe, the ninja Chizu, the third Kitsune, the noble lord Noriyuki, the stalwart Inspector Ishida, and of course, Usagi’s own son (and chip off the old block), Jotaro. And just as well, he builds no small list of enemies, including the dire Lord Hikiji (the power-hungry lord who is the very reason why Usagi no longer has a master), the Neko and Komori ninja clans, the Koroshi league of assassins, and the demonic ronin Jei. Amid all this, Usagi strives to uphold the warrior ideals of bushido and find a sense of enlightenment on his journey.
The stories are often funny, exciting, smart, sharp, tight, and occasionally touched with tragedy. They offer an informed look at medieval Japan, and pay no small number of homages to all kinds of cultural references both ancient and modern, as a reflect of Sakai’s own journey to connect with his personal heritage and honor it with his stories. They are simultaneously suitable for adults and kids alike - despite all of the carnage, Sakai never descends into gruesome detail, and yet, the many scenes of battle never seem so sanitized that they lost their gravity.
The artwork is distinct and excellent. Sakai’s is a master of sharp lifework (as well as lettering), and since he writes, pencils, inks and letters every issue solo, there is a uniformity and consistency to Usagi Yojimbo that you just don’t find in many other comics or cartoons. Until the last few volumes, it is all B&W, but Sakai’s sense of depth as well as his supremely skilled panel composition, pulls you in so deeply that you forget if it’s in color or not. You are under Usagi’s spell from the first page, and along for the ride, however long it goes.
To get an idea of the length, breadth and depth of how beloved an impactful Stan Sakai’s Usagi Yojimbo series has been, look no further than the introductions to each of the collected volumes published to date. There you will find a dazzling array of some of the finest talents in modern cartooning, who have a seemingly endless variety of ways to say how much they love Usagi Yojimbo, how impactful it has been on their own careers, and how great Stan Sakai has been himself as a goodwill ambassador for both cartooning as well as of the Japanese culture he so masterfully serves throughout his stories.
For those who have not yet enjoyed these stories for the first time, a wonderful journey awaits you. Usagi Yojimbo was created during those days in the 80s when anthropomorphic martial arts characters were all the rage. And yet, Usagi Yojimbo stood apart almost immediately. He might have been a rabbit ronin in a world of talking, walking animals, but he never seemed to be drafting the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles or trying to comment on the martial-art zoo comic trend. From the beginning, Usagi Yojimbo, like its titular character, was determined to walk its own path, to be the best it could be, and to celebrate the things in life that are worth celebrating: devotion to one’s craft, honoring one’s family, upholding one’s obligations, serving one’s highest aspirations, accepting one’s limitations, and acknowledging one’s flaws.
The stories are largely episodic varying in length from just a few pages, to an entire collection. They often are self-contained, but just as often reference slowly building meta plots, or serve an entire, novel-length story on their own. Everything is delicately interconnected, and yet, without such a heavy continuity that one can not simply pick up any of these volumes and begin reading without skipping a beat. Such is this series, endlessly accessible and friendly to beginners, and endlessly rewarding to long-time fans for whom earned narrative developments deliver terrific dividends.
As with any series of this length, some moments in it won’t land as well with the reader as others. But there just are not that many lows with this - if you appreciate what Sakai is doing here, you’re likely to enjoy pretty much all of it. There are some volumes that really stand out, largely because they tell the biggest and most epic stories (v04: The Dragon Bellows Conspiracy, v12: Grasscutter, v15: Grasscutter II - Journey to Astuta Shrine, v17: Duel at Kitanoji, v19: Fathers and Sons, v28: Red Scorpion, v32: The Hidden, and v35:Homecoming all come to mind), but really, the entire catalog of worth enjoying on equal terms. It’s saying something indeed that the most recent volume of Usagi Yojimbo tells one of the most compelling and moving stories of the entire series. Some edges dull over time, but as a storyteller, Stan Sakai’s edge never does.
Usagi Yojimbo has been hailed as one of the greatest independent comics ever. And it is. But it is more than that. It is one of the greatest comics, period. Read every volume. You will be glad that you did.
In a land very much like Japan, in a time very much like the early days of the Tokugawa Shogunate, when legions of samurai suddenly found themselves out of work in a war-torn land trying to get back to normal, a masterless samurai - a ronin - named Usagi Yojimbo walks the path of a student-warrior. He goes wherever fate takes him, living by his honor, his swordsmanship and by the grace of the friends he makes along the way. On his endless adventures, Usagi confronts wicked bandits, cruel tyrants, sinister assassins, and dire supernatural fiends. He often encounters humble folk plying their trade in an often cruel and harsh world (and along the way, learns a bit about their work, like brewing sake or weaving tatami mats).
Along his way, he builds a vast cast of friends, allies and rivals, including the bounty hunger Gen, fellow samurai )and love interest) Tomoe, the ninja Chizu, the third Kitsune, the noble lord Noriyuki, the stalwart Inspector Ishida, and of course, Usagi’s own son (and chip off the old block), Jotaro. And just as well, he builds no small list of enemies, including the dire Lord Hikiji (the power-hungry lord who is the very reason why Usagi no longer has a master), the Neko and Komori ninja clans, the Koroshi league of assassins, and the demonic ronin Jei. Amid all this, Usagi strives to uphold the warrior ideals of bushido and find a sense of enlightenment on his journey.
The stories are often funny, exciting, smart, sharp, tight, and occasionally touched with tragedy. They offer an informed look at medieval Japan, and pay no small number of homages to all kinds of cultural references both ancient and modern, as a reflect of Sakai’s own journey to connect with his personal heritage and honor it with his stories. They are simultaneously suitable for adults and kids alike - despite all of the carnage, Sakai never descends into gruesome detail, and yet, the many scenes of battle never seem so sanitized that they lost their gravity.
The artwork is distinct and excellent. Sakai’s is a master of sharp lifework (as well as lettering), and since he writes, pencils, inks and letters every issue solo, there is a uniformity and consistency to Usagi Yojimbo that you just don’t find in many other comics or cartoons. Until the last few volumes, it is all B&W, but Sakai’s sense of depth as well as his supremely skilled panel composition, pulls you in so deeply that you forget if it’s in color or not. You are under Usagi’s spell from the first page, and along for the ride, however long it goes.
To get an idea of the length, breadth and depth of how beloved an impactful Stan Sakai’s Usagi Yojimbo series has been, look no further than the introductions to each of the collected volumes published to date. There you will find a dazzling array of some of the finest talents in modern cartooning, who have a seemingly endless variety of ways to say how much they love Usagi Yojimbo, how impactful it has been on their own careers, and how great Stan Sakai has been himself as a goodwill ambassador for both cartooning as well as of the Japanese culture he so masterfully serves throughout his stories.
For those who have not yet enjoyed these stories for the first time, a wonderful journey awaits you. Usagi Yojimbo was created during those days in the 80s when anthropomorphic martial arts characters were all the rage. And yet, Usagi Yojimbo stood apart almost immediately. He might have been a rabbit ronin in a world of talking, walking animals, but he never seemed to be drafting the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles or trying to comment on the martial-art zoo comic trend. From the beginning, Usagi Yojimbo, like its titular character, was determined to walk its own path, to be the best it could be, and to celebrate the things in life that are worth celebrating: devotion to one’s craft, honoring one’s family, upholding one’s obligations, serving one’s highest aspirations, accepting one’s limitations, and acknowledging one’s flaws.
The stories are largely episodic varying in length from just a few pages, to an entire collection. They often are self-contained, but just as often reference slowly building meta plots, or serve an entire, novel-length story on their own. Everything is delicately interconnected, and yet, without such a heavy continuity that one can not simply pick up any of these volumes and begin reading without skipping a beat. Such is this series, endlessly accessible and friendly to beginners, and endlessly rewarding to long-time fans for whom earned narrative developments deliver terrific dividends.
As with any series of this length, some moments in it won’t land as well with the reader as others. But there just are not that many lows with this - if you appreciate what Sakai is doing here, you’re likely to enjoy pretty much all of it. There are some volumes that really stand out, largely because they tell the biggest and most epic stories (v04: The Dragon Bellows Conspiracy, v12: Grasscutter, v15: Grasscutter II - Journey to Astuta Shrine, v17: Duel at Kitanoji, v19: Fathers and Sons, v28: Red Scorpion, v32: The Hidden, and v35:Homecoming all come to mind), but really, the entire catalog of worth enjoying on equal terms. It’s saying something indeed that the most recent volume of Usagi Yojimbo tells one of the most compelling and moving stories of the entire series. Some edges dull over time, but as a storyteller, Stan Sakai’s edge never does.
Usagi Yojimbo has been hailed as one of the greatest independent comics ever. And it is. But it is more than that. It is one of the greatest comics, period. Read every volume. You will be glad that you did.
January 5, 2021
I came to this series very late but I am a full fledged fan now. These are easy and enjoyable reads. It is such a nice change of pace for some of the edgier reads in the mainstream comics (and even many Indy comics). It is the mark of a great writer that on volume 6 I still feel he is growing as a writer and has a lot more stories to tell. This one - where Usagi revisits the village of his childhood and his old love - is wonderful. We even get a hint that her son is his son and while it is bitter sweet that he has to leave the son behind the writer does it in a way that feels good. We also get the reappearance of the "Black spear villain" who shows up again in the future. Although it is a little weird he came back (he was killed in his first appearance) and it is a little odd that he considers Usagi to be evil and must destroy him for the Gods, he is such an entertaining villain I can let it slide.
Overall - another wonderful collection.
Overall - another wonderful collection.
February 18, 2010
Yet again, Stan Sakai does not disappoint. This book does not have all my favorite characters (Gen, Zato), but it reveals some new facts about Usagi's master (Katsuichi) and an interesting twist to the relationship between Usagi and Mariko.
An interesting coincidence - we all know Sakai is inspired by Kurosawa among others. After all, Sakai is writing the definitive graphic novel on Samurais while Kurosawa has the same distinction in films. Towards the end of the book, Usagi teaches young Jotaro the true meaning of a samurai sword - that the best sword always remains sheathed. That's exactly what Sanjuro (Mifune) realizes in the film.
An interesting coincidence - we all know Sakai is inspired by Kurosawa among others. After all, Sakai is writing the definitive graphic novel on Samurais while Kurosawa has the same distinction in films. Towards the end of the book, Usagi teaches young Jotaro the true meaning of a samurai sword - that the best sword always remains sheathed. That's exactly what Sanjuro (Mifune) realizes in the film.
April 16, 2013
Sakai somehow manages to take his art to another level in UY book 6. Both art and storytelling are palpably finer. Although I already love this series, it was a pleasant surprise!
March 30, 2016
Usagi Yojimbo, on the surface is a simple concept. Anthropomorphic animals in 16th century Edo Japan - with the narrative centering around a "Long Eared Samurai", a Rabbit - the eponymous Usagi of the title. Usagi,literally means Rabbit in Japanese and Yojimbo refers to "Bodyguard". Rabbit Bodyguard. It mixes several references to the Samurai films of Kurosawa with a deliberate homage to the great samurai swordsman Miyamoto Musashi while treading its own unique path. There really isn't another comic like it on the stands and Sakai has been writing, plotting and drawing this gem for the past twenty five years or more - sticking to what must seem like a cutthroat monthly schedule. He makes it all look so easy which just proves - it probably isn't.
Usagi is a Ronin - a masterless Samurai. He wanders the land on a Warriors Pilgrimage, honing his mind and his sword. A near master swordsman, Usagi practices a unique fighting style. His gentle demeanor, humble bearing and diminutive frame often leads his adversaries to underestimate him - to their detriment.
The Kill Bill films of Tarantino center around the bloodshed unleashed by Samurai swords in the hands of a skilled wielder. The aesthetization of violence is a common theme with Tarantino and he repeatedly uses Japanese samurai motifs over the course of the two Kill Bill films. I enjoyed those films but they led me to expect the same within the pages of Usagi Yojimbo. The animal characters are mostly cute. I expected decapitated bunny heads and chopped feline limbs. Stories of the seamier side of human nature and war. Sakai delivers none of this; at-least, not in the way you would expect. The violence in Usagi Yojimbo is always tinged with regret. Usagi takes no pleasure in it, tries to avoid killing and maiming as much as possible and always resorts to defense. However, once you see the click of the sword, with the picture of Usagi flicking the blade from the scabbard it is almost certain that blood will be shed.
The fight sequences are brilliant. Sakai takes his time, worrying less about space and more about the deliberate choreography of death. People are stabbed, decapitated and killed. Most of it is left up to your imagination with almost no blood. The graphics of the death continue to toe the line between humor and morbidity - the dead lie with their tongues lolling out and creative skulls paraphrasing the end of their appearance in the comic. It makes for excellent reading - the violence isn't cool, it isn't desirable and it almost always ends in tragedy for some character. This is age appropriate violence!
A centerpiece to the entire saga and one of the major plot motivators is Bushido - the unrelenting and unbending code of the Samurai. It is a harsh discipline, focusing more on the tenets laid down by it than any sense of morality. There are several instances in the story where a common question asked is if a samurai retainer who serves an evil/corrupt lord is justified in rebelling against him. The answer is invariably no. No matter how evil/corrupt and insane your lord may be, no matter what criminal activities he may indulge in, no matter how depraved his tastes it is the duty of the retainer to follow him and remain Honorable. The concept of good and evil and self righteousness is almost done away with. Usagi is our hero just because he has the good fortune to have served under Lord Mifune, a great man just prior to his death in the Battle of Adachigahara. He seems to recognize this fact and I think this influences his approach to almost all his antagonists. Those who serve an evil lord win more respect from him than the evil lords themselves.
Sakai, through his focus on the laws of Bushido manages to evoke an atmosphere of rigidity and sacrifice that makes the book quite unique at times. When Usagi's sweetheart is married off to someone else he fails to put an end to the wedding due to his loyalty to his lord - his duty forbids him from going away. The duty of a Samurai's wife is to her husband, this prevents his love Mariko from ever being with him. Honour and duty are cages within which our characters live their life. It is a harsh law that seems to hurt much more than helps but it is his adherence to this discipline that sees Usagi through his many encounters. He is unable to avoid direct challenges to a duel as a result - he must kill, albeit with regret, if he is to regain his honor. Usagi isn't a rebel. He doesn't seek to reform or buck the system. When a peasant begs to hold on to the swords of her lover, a samurai he is quite categorical about the right thing to do - the sword is the soul of a Samurai and doesn't belong with a peasant. In another episode he tells a peasant's son that there is no hope for him to ever become a Samurai. Any historical novel seeks to impose the character of a man of our times on someone dead years ago. Stan Sakai eschews this approach by depicting a man (rabbit??!) of his time in Usagi and making him a truly sympathetic character.
This focus on honour and Bushido is not the only layer to this comic. There are several more. History lessens on the culture of Japan are interwoven into the narrative - be it pot making, kite making or the fashioning of a Samurai blade. An entire episode dedicated to seaweed farming was a highlight of the series and the Grasscutter arc elaborates on the major dieties of Japanese culture. This is a meticulously researched comic that isnt heavy handed with the historical details. It mixes humor, history, culture and pathos to make a wonderfully enjoyable comic.
Rather than speaking about the artwork in the peripheral fashion I have employed so far I think I ought to come out and say it - the artwork is fascinating. It uses simple lines and expression to convey the message. At first glance it seems simplistic but as I trace my eyes over the artwork a wealth of detail leaps out. The grass bends gently with the breeze. The folds of Usagi's kimono float lazily around him as he jumps into the air. The Sword strokes are clear, easy to follow with the use of masterfully placed after images. Sakai is a master of the quiet panel. Several pages hold only movement, expression and silence, lending a wonderful quietude to the comic until a brutal explosion of action breaks the silence. Quiet panels fused with a silhouette are even more melancholy - it forms a space in which the contemplation of the character within the panel tends to wash over the reader himself. The artwork isn't simple. A lifetime of garish coloring and the bright but shallow palette of superhero comics seems to have robbed me of what little sense I possess. The black and white lines in Usagi are pieces of art I want to revisit forever.
Like most successful comics, Usagi Yojimbo doesn't succeed through the strengths of the main character alone. Usagi has a wealth of peripheral friends and enemies who recur throughout the various stories. These plot points keep diverging and melding together seamlessly over the course of the volumes I have read. I am still about halfway through the entire run but so far the side characters are vibrant, well sketched and interesting. Gen, the bounty hunter, the crime solving Inspecter Ishida, the ex samurai turned priest Sanshobo. The women in Usagi's life are a fun bunch - his lost loves Mariko and Kinuko, his comrade in arms Tomoe and his antagonist/friend Chizu. Add to this his lion sensei - Katsuichi, his frenemy Kenichi and a pet lizard Spot, not to mention the blind swordspig Zato Ino, Sakai has amassed a wealth of characters who ought to see him drawing Usagi comics well into hist nineties.
Usagi Yojimbo is to superhero comics what a glass of single malt is to spurious liquor. It is the very pinnacle of comic book art. I agree with an another reviewer who states that in the twenty five years he has been following Usagi, Sakai has yet to draw a single bad issue. I am not yet through the entire run and I must agree - the first issues are great though Sakai is still finding is feet. Seven issues in and you will be hooked till the end. This is an excellent comic, worth reading and proof that in the right hands the comic book has a significant advantage over the prose form. It should probably be the introduction to the world of comics - and I hope that those of you who havent yet started reading comics will avoid wading through a lot of garbage like i had to and start with Usagi Yojimbo.
Believe me, its worth it.
(5 on 5 stars)
Usagi is a Ronin - a masterless Samurai. He wanders the land on a Warriors Pilgrimage, honing his mind and his sword. A near master swordsman, Usagi practices a unique fighting style. His gentle demeanor, humble bearing and diminutive frame often leads his adversaries to underestimate him - to their detriment.
The Kill Bill films of Tarantino center around the bloodshed unleashed by Samurai swords in the hands of a skilled wielder. The aesthetization of violence is a common theme with Tarantino and he repeatedly uses Japanese samurai motifs over the course of the two Kill Bill films. I enjoyed those films but they led me to expect the same within the pages of Usagi Yojimbo. The animal characters are mostly cute. I expected decapitated bunny heads and chopped feline limbs. Stories of the seamier side of human nature and war. Sakai delivers none of this; at-least, not in the way you would expect. The violence in Usagi Yojimbo is always tinged with regret. Usagi takes no pleasure in it, tries to avoid killing and maiming as much as possible and always resorts to defense. However, once you see the click of the sword, with the picture of Usagi flicking the blade from the scabbard it is almost certain that blood will be shed.
The fight sequences are brilliant. Sakai takes his time, worrying less about space and more about the deliberate choreography of death. People are stabbed, decapitated and killed. Most of it is left up to your imagination with almost no blood. The graphics of the death continue to toe the line between humor and morbidity - the dead lie with their tongues lolling out and creative skulls paraphrasing the end of their appearance in the comic. It makes for excellent reading - the violence isn't cool, it isn't desirable and it almost always ends in tragedy for some character. This is age appropriate violence!
A centerpiece to the entire saga and one of the major plot motivators is Bushido - the unrelenting and unbending code of the Samurai. It is a harsh discipline, focusing more on the tenets laid down by it than any sense of morality. There are several instances in the story where a common question asked is if a samurai retainer who serves an evil/corrupt lord is justified in rebelling against him. The answer is invariably no. No matter how evil/corrupt and insane your lord may be, no matter what criminal activities he may indulge in, no matter how depraved his tastes it is the duty of the retainer to follow him and remain Honorable. The concept of good and evil and self righteousness is almost done away with. Usagi is our hero just because he has the good fortune to have served under Lord Mifune, a great man just prior to his death in the Battle of Adachigahara. He seems to recognize this fact and I think this influences his approach to almost all his antagonists. Those who serve an evil lord win more respect from him than the evil lords themselves.
Sakai, through his focus on the laws of Bushido manages to evoke an atmosphere of rigidity and sacrifice that makes the book quite unique at times. When Usagi's sweetheart is married off to someone else he fails to put an end to the wedding due to his loyalty to his lord - his duty forbids him from going away. The duty of a Samurai's wife is to her husband, this prevents his love Mariko from ever being with him. Honour and duty are cages within which our characters live their life. It is a harsh law that seems to hurt much more than helps but it is his adherence to this discipline that sees Usagi through his many encounters. He is unable to avoid direct challenges to a duel as a result - he must kill, albeit with regret, if he is to regain his honor. Usagi isn't a rebel. He doesn't seek to reform or buck the system. When a peasant begs to hold on to the swords of her lover, a samurai he is quite categorical about the right thing to do - the sword is the soul of a Samurai and doesn't belong with a peasant. In another episode he tells a peasant's son that there is no hope for him to ever become a Samurai. Any historical novel seeks to impose the character of a man of our times on someone dead years ago. Stan Sakai eschews this approach by depicting a man (rabbit??!) of his time in Usagi and making him a truly sympathetic character.
This focus on honour and Bushido is not the only layer to this comic. There are several more. History lessens on the culture of Japan are interwoven into the narrative - be it pot making, kite making or the fashioning of a Samurai blade. An entire episode dedicated to seaweed farming was a highlight of the series and the Grasscutter arc elaborates on the major dieties of Japanese culture. This is a meticulously researched comic that isnt heavy handed with the historical details. It mixes humor, history, culture and pathos to make a wonderfully enjoyable comic.
Rather than speaking about the artwork in the peripheral fashion I have employed so far I think I ought to come out and say it - the artwork is fascinating. It uses simple lines and expression to convey the message. At first glance it seems simplistic but as I trace my eyes over the artwork a wealth of detail leaps out. The grass bends gently with the breeze. The folds of Usagi's kimono float lazily around him as he jumps into the air. The Sword strokes are clear, easy to follow with the use of masterfully placed after images. Sakai is a master of the quiet panel. Several pages hold only movement, expression and silence, lending a wonderful quietude to the comic until a brutal explosion of action breaks the silence. Quiet panels fused with a silhouette are even more melancholy - it forms a space in which the contemplation of the character within the panel tends to wash over the reader himself. The artwork isn't simple. A lifetime of garish coloring and the bright but shallow palette of superhero comics seems to have robbed me of what little sense I possess. The black and white lines in Usagi are pieces of art I want to revisit forever.
Like most successful comics, Usagi Yojimbo doesn't succeed through the strengths of the main character alone. Usagi has a wealth of peripheral friends and enemies who recur throughout the various stories. These plot points keep diverging and melding together seamlessly over the course of the volumes I have read. I am still about halfway through the entire run but so far the side characters are vibrant, well sketched and interesting. Gen, the bounty hunter, the crime solving Inspecter Ishida, the ex samurai turned priest Sanshobo. The women in Usagi's life are a fun bunch - his lost loves Mariko and Kinuko, his comrade in arms Tomoe and his antagonist/friend Chizu. Add to this his lion sensei - Katsuichi, his frenemy Kenichi and a pet lizard Spot, not to mention the blind swordspig Zato Ino, Sakai has amassed a wealth of characters who ought to see him drawing Usagi comics well into hist nineties.
Usagi Yojimbo is to superhero comics what a glass of single malt is to spurious liquor. It is the very pinnacle of comic book art. I agree with an another reviewer who states that in the twenty five years he has been following Usagi, Sakai has yet to draw a single bad issue. I am not yet through the entire run and I must agree - the first issues are great though Sakai is still finding is feet. Seven issues in and you will be hooked till the end. This is an excellent comic, worth reading and proof that in the right hands the comic book has a significant advantage over the prose form. It should probably be the introduction to the world of comics - and I hope that those of you who havent yet started reading comics will avoid wading through a lot of garbage like i had to and start with Usagi Yojimbo.
Believe me, its worth it.
(5 on 5 stars)
June 13, 2021
More adventures of the ronin rabbit as he heads back to his hometown...
The Bridge--Usagi crosses a bridge during a dark and stormy night. He thinks he sees something on the bridge but maybe it was just the lightening. He stops at the inn on the other side of the bridge. The customers and the innkeeper don't believe he made it across at night. A demon haunts the crossing and kills nighttime travelers. The next morning, one of the customers discovers a severed hand in the middle of the span. Usagi stays to see the problem through. The book has some nods to The Evil Dead, which I found surprising. It's a good, creepy story.
The Duel--Usagi winds up dueling a local swordsman in some random town on Usagi's way to his hometown. A bookmaker made a bundle of money off the fight, though he has his own ronin who will fight Usagi the next day, so the two (the bookie and his swordsman) can make even more money. The other ronin has been working with the bookmaker for a year in order to earn enough money to retire with his wife and infant child. Fighting Usagi turns out to be a bigger challenge.
Yurei--Sleeping by a river, Usagi has an encounter with a ghost or yurei. The ghost is an innkeeper's daughter who married one of the hired hands. When her father died, the hired hand took over the inn, played around on her, and finally killed her and threw her body in the river. In the morning, Usagi assumes it was a dream but does find an expensive hair pin. He goes to the local inn to trade it for a small meal. The innkeeper recognizes his dead wife's pin and thinks Usagi is trying to blackmail him. Through circumstances, justice is satisfied. This is another spooky and satisfying tale.
My Lord's Daughter--Usagi tells a tall tale of his saving the daughter of his lord from an ogre and the ogre's minions. The story is short and fun and not too deep, just some light entertainment.
Circles--The last half of the book is taken up with this story where Usagi finally arrives home. Things are the same and totally different. His old master has new students; his childhood sweetheart has married the chief of the village and has a son; said chief is still a rival to Usagi. Usagi plans to settle down but bandits have been raiding. On their last raid, they kidnapped the child. The head of the bandits is an old foe of Usagi's who wants the ronin dead. The story shifts from action to drama quite deftly and has a fine melodramatic ending.
Recommended, highly for fans of the series--the storytelling is as good as always and the art matches well.
The Bridge--Usagi crosses a bridge during a dark and stormy night. He thinks he sees something on the bridge but maybe it was just the lightening. He stops at the inn on the other side of the bridge. The customers and the innkeeper don't believe he made it across at night. A demon haunts the crossing and kills nighttime travelers. The next morning, one of the customers discovers a severed hand in the middle of the span. Usagi stays to see the problem through. The book has some nods to The Evil Dead, which I found surprising. It's a good, creepy story.
The Duel--Usagi winds up dueling a local swordsman in some random town on Usagi's way to his hometown. A bookmaker made a bundle of money off the fight, though he has his own ronin who will fight Usagi the next day, so the two (the bookie and his swordsman) can make even more money. The other ronin has been working with the bookmaker for a year in order to earn enough money to retire with his wife and infant child. Fighting Usagi turns out to be a bigger challenge.
Yurei--Sleeping by a river, Usagi has an encounter with a ghost or yurei. The ghost is an innkeeper's daughter who married one of the hired hands. When her father died, the hired hand took over the inn, played around on her, and finally killed her and threw her body in the river. In the morning, Usagi assumes it was a dream but does find an expensive hair pin. He goes to the local inn to trade it for a small meal. The innkeeper recognizes his dead wife's pin and thinks Usagi is trying to blackmail him. Through circumstances, justice is satisfied. This is another spooky and satisfying tale.
My Lord's Daughter--Usagi tells a tall tale of his saving the daughter of his lord from an ogre and the ogre's minions. The story is short and fun and not too deep, just some light entertainment.
Circles--The last half of the book is taken up with this story where Usagi finally arrives home. Things are the same and totally different. His old master has new students; his childhood sweetheart has married the chief of the village and has a son; said chief is still a rival to Usagi. Usagi plans to settle down but bandits have been raiding. On their last raid, they kidnapped the child. The head of the bandits is an old foe of Usagi's who wants the ronin dead. The story shifts from action to drama quite deftly and has a fine melodramatic ending.
Recommended, highly for fans of the series--the storytelling is as good as always and the art matches well.
September 18, 2017
A fantastic edition to the Usagi world. Perfect for Halloween time as it features ghosts, demons, spirits... Circles is the perfect name for it as things do come full circle for our samurai warrior rabbit. The book acts as a series of vignettes and short stories but each one adds to the world and types of characters we meet. The first two verge on horror, very spooky. A demon curses a bridge at the end of town and no one can cross it without losing their life. Sakai is pitch perfect in spookiness. His imagery is wonderful. Really good at drawing horror even in this light style. The stakes are ramped up for sure for the townsfolk. Real fear and loss abound in this world. It makes the adventure and the journey that much more worth it. Second Usagi meets the ghost of a betrayed wife needing to get revenge on her husband and uses Usagi as a pawn...without his knowledge. It's very funny how dim Usagi can be sometimes. Another tale sees Usagi meeting up with a samurai and a gambler who think they can use him to make a lot of money. This is very touching as it features the story away from Usagi of the other samurai's family and the consequences of his actions. Very touching and sad. After these short tales, we get into Usagi's past as he reunites with his sensei. This circles back to previous encounters too...it's really nice to see this character again not seen since book 2. Lastly he returns to his home, the village he grew up and reunites with his former sweetheart and his new family. Thetension of him being there, especially with his old friend who married his sweetheart and their son. A nice love triangle complicated with the kidnapping of the boy by a group of bandits led by a demon. Just lots of high stakes with consequences. It's wonderful. You really don't know who is going to survive or who is going to lose someone dear to them. And there's always humor in the drawings along with the adventure. Fans of Bone should read this series.
August 9, 2023
Usagi Yojimbo continues to be excellent. This volume dives straight into the samurai melodrama, with a particularly tragic streak this time around. Like many volumes, we have a mix of short stories and a longer arc, though this particular collection is a bit more narratively and thematically cohesive than others.
Save for one, all the stories here are tragedies in some way, showing the consequences of the samurai lifestyle. The final page of The Duel, in particular, is probably one of the saddest comic pages I've ever read.
The one outlier is "My Lords Daughter," which is clearly just Sakai wanting to draw Usagi fighting a bunch of monsters. Which, you know, fair.
Small moments are set up, followed up on and concluded all in this volume. I don't know how much of that was planned on Sakais part, or if it's just a marvelous coincidence, but it still makes for a very good standalone volume.
That being said, it still rewards long time readers. Plots and characters from the entire series up until this point are brought together and concluded, making this feel almost like a season finale. You don't need to read the previous volumes, but it adds so much more context and emotion to the proceedings.
There are some on here that can't get past the art style. Which is fair, I had trouble at first too. It's very cartoonish and exaggerated, something you'd expect to see in a comedy comic. But I have to admit, I have fallen in love with the pure technical skill on display. The backgrounds are gorgeous, and Sakai is proving himself a master draftsman.
Save for one, all the stories here are tragedies in some way, showing the consequences of the samurai lifestyle. The final page of The Duel, in particular, is probably one of the saddest comic pages I've ever read.
The one outlier is "My Lords Daughter," which is clearly just Sakai wanting to draw Usagi fighting a bunch of monsters. Which, you know, fair.
Small moments are set up, followed up on and concluded all in this volume. I don't know how much of that was planned on Sakais part, or if it's just a marvelous coincidence, but it still makes for a very good standalone volume.
That being said, it still rewards long time readers. Plots and characters from the entire series up until this point are brought together and concluded, making this feel almost like a season finale. You don't need to read the previous volumes, but it adds so much more context and emotion to the proceedings.
There are some on here that can't get past the art style. Which is fair, I had trouble at first too. It's very cartoonish and exaggerated, something you'd expect to see in a comedy comic. But I have to admit, I have fallen in love with the pure technical skill on display. The backgrounds are gorgeous, and Sakai is proving himself a master draftsman.
June 25, 2021
I have a BookTube channel where I review books, give reading suggestions, and more! Check it out here: https://www.youtube.com/dragonarmybooks
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The tales of Miyomoto Usagi continue in Vol. 6: Circles, with a few short stories followed by a multiple chapter run of a lengthier story of the ronin rabbit's first return home after all these years apart. Only one of these stories are a standout (The Duel), while the others are just okay.
By now, I know what to expect with each volume. While the stories and characters differ, the rise and fall of the plot remains fairly steady. One of the things that is a little frustrating is that Usagi just doesn't lose, so every fight, no matter if it's one-on-one or one-on-fifty, has such low stakes. Even in those rare moments when Usagi is scarred by an attack, the scars don't even stick around to the next page. This hasn't been a big deal so far, but it is something I'm beginning to notice.
The art is still spectacular. Sakai knows how to give us emotion with such simplicity. He rarely embellishes his panels. Instead, Sakai utilizes a minimalist technique to help center the reader's eye on what matters most.
Sakai is a one of a kind storyteller. Usagi Yojimbo is a one of a kind graphic novel series, one that I look forward to reading with each new issue.
---
The tales of Miyomoto Usagi continue in Vol. 6: Circles, with a few short stories followed by a multiple chapter run of a lengthier story of the ronin rabbit's first return home after all these years apart. Only one of these stories are a standout (The Duel), while the others are just okay.
By now, I know what to expect with each volume. While the stories and characters differ, the rise and fall of the plot remains fairly steady. One of the things that is a little frustrating is that Usagi just doesn't lose, so every fight, no matter if it's one-on-one or one-on-fifty, has such low stakes. Even in those rare moments when Usagi is scarred by an attack, the scars don't even stick around to the next page. This hasn't been a big deal so far, but it is something I'm beginning to notice.
The art is still spectacular. Sakai knows how to give us emotion with such simplicity. He rarely embellishes his panels. Instead, Sakai utilizes a minimalist technique to help center the reader's eye on what matters most.
Sakai is a one of a kind storyteller. Usagi Yojimbo is a one of a kind graphic novel series, one that I look forward to reading with each new issue.
April 24, 2020
For this latest Throwback Thursday, after reviewing Lone Goat and Kid a couple of weeks ago, I am still in a Usagi Yojimbo mood, so I thought I would check out the sixth volume of this fantastic comic book series, Circles.
Circles is another fun and exciting addition to this excellent series which I honestly cannot praise enough (although I have been trying very hard in my last several Throwback Thursday articles). This sixth volume once again presents the reader with several outstanding and inventive stories that chronicle the adventures of the rabbit samurai, Miyamoto Usagi, as he journeys around a unique version of historical Japan. This volume contains five separate stories, derived from issues #25 – 31 of the Fantagraphics Books run on the Usagi Yojimbo series, as well as a short story taken from Critters number #50 (a comic magazine that had some early Usagi Yojimbo appearances). There are some rather amazing stories featured within this volume, and I had an incredible time reading them.
To see the full review, click on the link below:
https://unseenlibrary.com/2020/04/24/...
For other exciting reviews and content, check out my blog at:
https://unseenlibrary.com/
Circles is another fun and exciting addition to this excellent series which I honestly cannot praise enough (although I have been trying very hard in my last several Throwback Thursday articles). This sixth volume once again presents the reader with several outstanding and inventive stories that chronicle the adventures of the rabbit samurai, Miyamoto Usagi, as he journeys around a unique version of historical Japan. This volume contains five separate stories, derived from issues #25 – 31 of the Fantagraphics Books run on the Usagi Yojimbo series, as well as a short story taken from Critters number #50 (a comic magazine that had some early Usagi Yojimbo appearances). There are some rather amazing stories featured within this volume, and I had an incredible time reading them.
To see the full review, click on the link below:
https://unseenlibrary.com/2020/04/24/...
For other exciting reviews and content, check out my blog at:
https://unseenlibrary.com/
March 4, 2024
The first half of the volume is pretty standard Usagi ronin stories - he comes into a village and has to save the townsfolk, usually from a greedy and selfish ruffian with too high of an opinion of himself and too low an opinion of Usagi. Good stuff but nothing spectacular.
The second half is him finally feeling safe returning to his home and trying to settle down. And he not only finds that those bands of brigands are roaming in his home turf, but he also finds that he can't stay. The woman he loves reveals to him that he is in fact the father of Jotaro but the life her family has created is too precarious for Usagi to remain. Harsh, and not really fair, but I felt so bad for Usagi walking off at the end of this compared to how it feels in all the previous volumes.
Also he finds that his sensei is still alive and teaching new students, and has another epic duel with Jei. I do want to see where the adventure takes him next but it is starting to feel like there's not much of an overall plot now. The stand alone adventures are enjoyable, but how many do you really need?
The second half is him finally feeling safe returning to his home and trying to settle down. And he not only finds that those bands of brigands are roaming in his home turf, but he also finds that he can't stay. The woman he loves reveals to him that he is in fact the father of Jotaro but the life her family has created is too precarious for Usagi to remain. Harsh, and not really fair, but I felt so bad for Usagi walking off at the end of this compared to how it feels in all the previous volumes.
Also he finds that his sensei is still alive and teaching new students, and has another epic duel with Jei. I do want to see where the adventure takes him next but it is starting to feel like there's not much of an overall plot now. The stand alone adventures are enjoyable, but how many do you really need?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 4, 2022
A really good volume with some of my favorite stories being The Duel which is a really tragic story and you feel sorry for the family at the end and you can understand why Shubo did what he did and you feel sorry for his family at the end. The ending does such a good job conveying the pain that is going on in such a beautiful way. The big story is of course Circles which shows Usagi returning back to his village where he reunites with a lot of old characters including his master who he thought was dead and of course his old rival and his old love interest. Jei comes back and he is again such a threating villain being both visually disturbing and mysterious in how it talks. Also the twist at the end was both tragic and actually kind of sweet.
May 7, 2021
When Usagi returns to his home town, he learns much of what he believes to be wrong. It's an okay story, but it feels like it treads on cliche plot points a bit too heavily, especially in regards to his relationship with Mariko and Jotaro, although Sakai does provide some emotional impact to it. The shorter stories in this collection are more preferred for me - The Duel in particular has a lot of the power of Circles in a single issue, with a brutal last page. And Yurei is clever in its brief stay.
Sakai's art and skills are definitely still on display here, and most of the stories are enjoyable, even if the tropes he is building off of show through a little more in the main story.
Sakai's art and skills are definitely still on display here, and most of the stories are enjoyable, even if the tropes he is building off of show through a little more in the main story.
January 30, 2020
in the introduction to this volume, jeff smith says it best: sakai *gets* it. usagi yojimbo is peak cartooning. sakai is a master of conveying exactly what he wants to convey jn a precise, artful manner. the series as a whole perfectly balances humor and tragedy and respect in a way that delightfully lines up with usagi miyamoto’s own characterization. each of these volumes are so pleasant to read, perfectly encapsulated episodes. definitely meant to be enjoyed slowly and ruminated on.
April 5, 2018
This is all good. I've been here before in a different collection, I think. Wikipedia confused me about which stories are in which collections.
The larger collections are definitely better ways to read Usagi becuase Sakai is excellent at running longer-term plots while changing styles in the shorter term. Here, you don't get to feel the diversity in his stories as much.
The larger collections are definitely better ways to read Usagi becuase Sakai is excellent at running longer-term plots while changing styles in the shorter term. Here, you don't get to feel the diversity in his stories as much.
November 18, 2022
8/10
El uso de un tópico muy tópico en el cierre de la historia principal le ha restado las décimas suficientes como para alcanzar las cinco estrellas, pero sigue siendo magnifica la forma en que el autor consigue transmitir toda la emoción, la épica, la tristeza (hay una historia que te parte el corazón con una última página tan bella como demoledora), la pérdida...
Maravillosa.
El uso de un tópico muy tópico en el cierre de la historia principal le ha restado las décimas suficientes como para alcanzar las cinco estrellas, pero sigue siendo magnifica la forma en que el autor consigue transmitir toda la emoción, la épica, la tristeza (hay una historia que te parte el corazón con una última página tan bella como demoledora), la pérdida...
Maravillosa.
December 31, 2018
Osobně považuju Usagiho za jeden z nejlepších komiksů a přestože se rámce příběhů vlastně celkem opakují, vždycky se najde některý, který mě zasáhne. Takže za mě jednoznačně příjemný konec roku a reading challenge 2018.
February 19, 2021
Definitely a high point of the series. Episodic, but with strong enough central theme to tie everything together and companies by sweet sweet Japanese folklore .
From well working horror story (Bridge) to full fledged relationship tragedy of Circles. Sakai has outdone himself with this one.
From well working horror story (Bridge) to full fledged relationship tragedy of Circles. Sakai has outdone himself with this one.
October 20, 2017
one of my favirots now
December 1, 2020
THE TWIST
May 3, 2021
Once again, how did I miss reading this all those years ago?
Love that Stan Sakai can tell a story with adult themes and ideas without it being offensive or rude.
Love that Stan Sakai can tell a story with adult themes and ideas without it being offensive or rude.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 51 reviews