Summary: Noriyuki is suspicious of
Lord Tamakuro and sends
Tomoe to investigate. Under the pretense of a friendly visit, she discovers a supply of guns, but is captured before she can bring the information to Noriyuki. A
Neko Ninja was also on the scene, investigating the guns. Meanwhile,
Gen is hunting for the bandit
Zato Ino, angry to be out in such terrible weather. He asks a familiar-looking woodcutter and his wife if they have seen anything. Other bounty hunters try to ambush Ino, but he overcomes them. He and
Spot have further to travel for peace. Tomoe's captors have the misfortunate of passing Usagi, who vows to rescue her. Ino notes the storm is worsening.
Tamakuro beats Tomoe to learn what she knows, and orders his retainer
Torame to destroy a village that is a Neko ninja hideout. Torame does so, massacring women and children. Usagi attempts to save the bodes from crows and
Shingen mistakes Usagi for the perpetrator leading to conflict. Meanwhile, Gen closes in on Ino.
Usagi joins Tamakuro's service and has talks with Torame about bushido. However, his deception is soon revealed as he frees Tomoe. She decides to sacrifice herself to buy Usagi time to get the information about Tamakuro's plans to Noriyuki. However, he runs afoul of Shingen. Meanwhile, Spot catches Usagi's scent and leads Ino toward him.
Shingen has learned Usagi is not responsible for the massacre and suggests an alliance to stop Tamakuro. Along the way, they pass the battle between Ino and Gen, both of whom Usagi recruits to the cause. The four heroes alongsides the Neko ninja storm Tamakuro's fortress.
Noriyuki receives the Neko messages and readies his forces to battle Tamakuro. The ninja and their allies are outnumbered. Ino sacrifices himself to save Gen. Tokohana is killed by a ninja. Usagi kills Torame. Shingen sacrifices himself to kill Tamakuro and destroy the gunpowder. The threat is over.
But what was the true fate of Zato Ino?
Thoughts: That terse summary hardly does justice to this epic masterpiece.
A true epic, spanning 6 issues, taking a year to complete, filling a book. Also the best
Usagi Yojimbo story yet, and one of the best ever. I spent a lot of time going over this for the thread in the hopes I could articulate why. At a glance, all I had was, "Well, look at it."
It's tricky, because it's not the story itself that is great. The story is fine, sufficiently exciting and action-packed. And, prior to the final chapter, which is perhaps more of an epilogue, there is not that tragic turn of events like we had seen in previous great stories.
What drives this arc is really more about storytelling than story. Everybody likes a good melodrama. But it has to earn the visceral thrill, make you feel the excitement and the danger, make the tension of the protagonists palpable. And that is all in the delivery. Many tricks have been used to enhance this effect to great effect in the best action films, from
Kurosawa to
Sergio Leone, from
North by Northwest to
Raiders of the Lost Ark to
Die Hard. And these techniques are at Stan's disposal. From the effect of a timely storm to a close-up on a stressed characters' face. But Stan must adapt them to a wholly different medium. And while this medium already has its masters at depicting action and bigger-than-life heroes, from
Kirby to
Buscema, with greats like
Kubert bringing us the tension of a battlefield, I would argue that here in these pages Stan finds the perfect for tone and pace for melodramatic action, comparable to anything seen before. And probably the best I have ever read.
Given such high praise, I darned well better be able to justify it. I will do my best, but, as always, appreciate other insights into why this comic works so damn well.
Chapter 1: The clouds gather.Trick #1: Base your entire story around a storm. As much of the issue has it already pouring rain, the title doesn't refer literally to the weather of the issue, but to the story.
On the other hand, it is not raining where the story really begins, but it will be soon, as evidenced by page 1, which picks up in the middle of the story, once the action has begun. A trick shaxper tells me is called "en media res". We begin with a downpour and Tomoe fighting off many attackers. We then jump back in time to see how she got here, before it was raining. This is effectively indicated with a thought bubble border opening and closing the flashback sequence.
The rest of the issue jumps back to the present. It is pouring rain, but there is no other action yet. Rather, we meet briefly our next three protagonists: Ino (with Spot), Usagi, and Gen. Each traveling their own path, with strong hints those paths are about to collide.
Look at that first page, the wind blowing against the trees, the rain drops in the puddles (somehow I can't help but think of
Killing Joke by
Moore/Bolland) and that look on Tomoe's face. Normally she is depicted as so pretty, with very smooth, very cute features. Not here. Her face is contorted from the stress and the fury of the moment. We feel perfectly her desperation as she fails, and we understand, before we have been told what is going on, that what is going on is important.
Besides the perfectly executed building of tension, the other bright spot to the chapter is Gen, who blames Ino for the inconvenience hunting Ino is causing him.
Chapter 2: The winds howlWhile it is no longer raining, we do see it remains fiercely windy. The wind adding to the mood of impending drama. Along with the crows. And the bodies. And the dramatic hut burning.
And the title evokes in my mind
All Along the Watchtower, which in turn evokes
Watchmen. I don't know why this story keeps reminding me of Alan Moore, but it does.
We open with Tomoe being beaten by Tamakuro. He then gives orders to exterminate an entire village. We later see him using prisoners to practice his shooting. No mistaking who the villain is here. This is the basic formula of melodrama. Establish a villain as evil, so the audience will root for the hero's victory. However, this story isn't quite simple, because of the nature of the heroes who band together to defeat this villain. Not all virtuous, and most in conflict with each other.
This is the most violent the series has been since the ongoing began. The original Albedo issues had some violent elements, but these had mostly been replaced by the more cartoonish skull-signifying-death motif. And we have seen very little blood since then. But Stan doesn't soften the images of Tomoe's imprisonment. Looking more human than ever before, bleeding, in clear anguish.
After checking in on Gen and Ino, with a little humor, of course, we meet the next major player in our unlikely band of heroes. Shingen, the most recent addition to the cast of characters, who we had just met 2 issues earlier. Though he has become the face of the Neko Ninja, who we met early on. A misunderstanding causes him to believe Usagi has massacred his village. We start to see how the threads will come together. Gen is hunting Ino. Shingen is hunting Usagi. Usagi is hunting for Tomoe. Tomoe is the prisoner of Tamakuro, who is amassing a small army armed with rifles and plotting a coup.
We get in this issue a great action scene as Usagi battles Shingen, Shingen with all his ninja tricks and traps. And we get a great image of Usagi on the final page, clear resolve in his eyes.
In comparing the sound of a gun to the roar of a dragon, Tamakuro explains the title of this saga.
Chapter 3: DownpourAt this point, we are balancing build-up with actual plot. Ino and Gen are still on the path to meet up with the story. Spot having caught Usagi's scent will bring Ino along, with Gen behind him. Shingen and Usagi briefly dueled last issue, but it was more of a warm-up the main event. However, Usagi has reached his destination, and is now masquerading in Tamakuro's service.
We see Usagi easily fells one of Tamakuro's best samurai in a duel. Just how good is Usagi? We see in Torome a true samurai, dedicated to bushido. He and Usagi discuss bushido, teaching the audience something, making for some interesting philosophy, and sharply contrasting Usagi's insistence a samurai must never betray his lord with his "fake service" to Tamakuro.
And we here find the dramatic heart of the series and another true samurai in Tomoe. She will soon be executed, but doesn't want to be rescued. The information she has for Noriyuki is more important than her life (on the other hand, Noriyuki knows she hasn't returned and will soon at least realize something is wrong.) When Usagi refuses, she is quite indignant. Usagi cares too much about life. Or perhaps he just cares about her. She wins in the end, giving Usagi no choice but to let her sacrifice herself to buy him time. That is heroism.
But it is in vain. Usagi does not make it to Noriyuki, landing at the feet of another, whom the lightning reveals to be Shingen.
Chapter 4: Thunder and lightningIf last issue was a downpour, the title of this chapter suggests things are about to get even more intense.
We open with a battle between Usagi and a dragon, the dragon who threatens to destroy the land, as well as Tomoe's ghost. It is of course a dream, and a substitute for the expected conflict with Shingen, who instead has rescued Usagi, having figured out the truth. The whole misunderstanding has become an unnecessary sideplot, but one that allowed for a great action sequence in Chapter 2, and a tense cliffhanger to end Chapter 3. So not necessary, but definitely not without contribution to the strength of the story.
We next see former enemies uniting against a greater evil, for the good of an entire nation. Along the way, we learn that samurai and ninja in truth have much in common.
And of course the storm itself is at the height of its raging. The drama added by thunder and lightning is pronounced, and a trick already employed by Sakai for Usagi's epic battle with Jei. When Gen and Ino finally meet (a confrontation we knew had to happen one day, ever since we met them) their battle is truly awesome. Reaching and perhaps exceeding the heights of Usagi's battle with Jei or his two battles with Shingen. Two full-page threads the action and tension just burst off. But, as we approach the climactic conclusion, the unexpected happens. The battle is diverted by Usagi, and even unlikelier allies join the battle against Tamakuro.
The pieces are in place. The issue ends literally with an explosion as our four heroes (and their lizard) charge forth to save their nation.
Chapter 5: The heart of the stormFinally, we reach the chapter 116 pages have been building towards. They were an excellent 4 chapters, so the payoff had better earn them.
It does.
How many great moments can one issue have? The skill of Lord Noriyuki. The introduction of Shingen's sister. Her dramatic words about the fate of Japan. Gen choosing to save Ino. Ino sacrificing himself to save Gen. The death of Torame (perhaps exactly what he wanted). The sacrifice of Shingen. The dragon fading into the distance.
After 4 issues of build-up, the battle lasted only one issue. But was no less satisfying for it. Stan can accomplish more in an issue than many fine artists can do with 6.
And the best part? The battle is over, the villains dead, the nation sage, but Stan knows the story is not over. There are two chapters left.
Chapter 6: The clouds part.The sky is clear and the characters all look happier.
The interaction between Usagi and Gen just brings a smile to my face. They both refused Noriyuki's offer. Usagi for bushido, because a samurai should serve only one master. And Gen because he loves the freedom of a wanderer. He claims Usagi does as well. He may be right, but Usagi's face and words suggest a longing for home. Perhaps Usagi does not know what he wants. The relationship between Usagi and Gen has never before been quite clear. They always met as rivals, each cheating the other, but you slowly got the sense that they were becoming friends. This was perhaps clear in Book 2, when Usagi told Gen his story. But it is crystallized in the casual banter and familiarity on display here.
And then we get a final revelation...
Chapter 7: The fate of the blind swordpig.
If it's all right with our readers, I think I will save this chapter for another post. It is definitely worth examining in the context of the Dragon Bellow Saga, of which it is the conclusion, but is also worth giving a little more space to, and treating as its own story.
It works well both ways.
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Did I successfully explain why I think this is so great? Or did I just summarize it again with more words. Hard to say. The sense of tension and excitement on every page is just so tangible. And the ending is just so poignant.
A story of evil and heroism and sacrifice and honor and redemption.
And a masterpiece of graphic storytelling.
Notes:- First book-length epic. Unites most of the characters we have met along the way: Tomoe, Noriyuki, Gen, Ino, Spot, Usagi, Shingen, Hebi, with Lord Hikiji scheming in the background. And passing two familiar woodcutters along the way.
- Introduces Lord Tamakuro and his samurai retainers Torame and Takohana, none of whom survive the story.
- Noriyuki still has his pet dog.
- Ino cuts off Gen's horn
- Introduces Shingen's sister, a fellow ninja, who is not named
- Usagi rejects an offer to serve Noriyuki, and Gen leaves before the offer can be made.
Grade: A+
