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Usagi Yojimbo

Usagi Yojimbo
Usagi Yojimbo, Book 1: The Ronin
Publication information
PublisherDark Horse Comics[1]
Thoughts and Images
Fantagraphics Books
Mirage Studios
Radio Comix
IDW Publishing
FormatOngoing series
GenreHistorical
Action
Fantasy
Publication date1984–present
No. of issues165 (219 overall as of December 2016)
Creative team
Written byStan Sakai
Artist(s)Stan Sakai[2]
Collected editions
The RoninISBN 0-930193-35-0

Usagi Yojimbo (兎用心棒, Usagi Yōjinbō, "rabbit bodyguard") is a comic book series created by Stan Sakai. It is set primarily at the beginning of the Edo period of Japanese history and features anthropomorphic animals replacing humans. The main character is a rabbit rōnin, Miyamoto Usagi, whom Sakai based partially on the famous swordsman Miyamoto Musashi.[3] Usagi wanders the land on a musha shugyō (warrior's pilgrimage), occasionally selling his services as a bodyguard.

Usagi Yojimbo is heavily influenced by Japanese cinema; it has included references to the work of Akira Kurosawa (the title of the series is derived from Kurosawa's 1961 film Yojimbo),[citation needed] as well as to icons of popular Japanese cinema, such as Lone Wolf and Cub, Zatoichi, and Godzilla. The series is also influenced somewhat by Groo the Wanderer by Sergio Aragonés (Sakai is the letterer for that series), but the overall tone of Usagi Yojimbo is more serious and reflective. The series follows the standard traditional Japanese naming-convention for all featured characters: their family names followed by their given names.

The books are primarily episodic, with underlying larger plots which create long extended storylines—though there are some novel-length narratives. The stories include many references to Japanese history and Japanese folklore, and sometimes include mythical creatures.[4] The architecture, clothes, weapons and other objects are drawn with a faithfulness to period style. There are often stories whose purpose is to illustrate various elements of Japanese arts and crafts, such as the fashioning of kites, swords, and pottery. Those efforts have been successful enough for the series to be awarded a Parents' Choice Award in 1990 for its educational value through Sakai's "skillful weaving of facts and legends into his work."[5]

Usagi Yojimbo first appeared in Albedo Anthropomorphics #2, published by Thoughts and Images in November 1984.[6] Early positive reviews and an advertisement in Bud Plant's Spring Catalog in 1985 helped propel the character's popularity. Stan Sakai accepted an offer to move his warrior rabbit to Fantagraphics Books where he appeared in several issues of the new anthropomorphic anthology series Critters.[7] Usagi's popularity influenced Fantagraphics to then release the Usagi Yojimbo Summer Special in October 1986[8] and then to give the ronin rabbit his own ongoing series with issue #1 being published in July 1987.[9][10] Usagi was named the 31st-greatest comic book character by Empire magazine[11] and was ranked 92nd in IGN's list of the top 100 comic book heroes. Rolling Stone named Usagi Yojimbo no. 43 in their '50 Best Non-Superhero Graphic Novels'.[12]

  1. ^ "Stan Sakai Talks Usagi Yojimbo". UGO.com Comics. Archived from the original on 2011-06-15. Retrieved 2010-11-28.
  2. ^ "Bcc: spotlight on stan sakai". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved 2010-11-25.
  3. ^ Solomon, Charles (2005-11-25). "Don't get between the rabbit and his sword". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2010-11-28.
  4. ^ Solomon, Charles (1993-03-08). "Take one part Toshiro Mifune. Then add adventure and humor to get artist Stan Sakai's 'Usagi Yojimbo'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2010-11-28.
  5. ^ Dobashi, Mas (1997-02-24). "Stan Sakai Interview". usagiyojimbo.com (originally Tozai Times, Vol. 13 Issue 148. Archived from the original on 2007-10-12. Retrieved 2008-01-21.
  6. ^ Albedo Anthropomorphics #2 (Thoughts and Images, 1984)
  7. ^ Rovin, Jeff (1991). The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Cartoon Animals. Prentice Hall Press. p. 182. ISBN 0-13-275561-0. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
  8. ^ Usagi Yojimbo Summer Special (Fantagraphics Books 1986)
  9. ^ Usagi Yojimbo #1 (Fantagraphics Books 1987)
  10. ^ "Home - Usagi Yojimbo". Usagi Yojimbo. Archived from the original on December 5, 2012.
  11. ^ Empire | The 50 Greatest Comic Book Characters. https://web.archive.org/web/20150701092828/http://www.empireonline.com/50greatestcomiccharacters/default.asp?c=31(2006-12-05). Retrieved on 2015-07-30.
  12. ^ "The 50 Best Non-Superhero Graphic Novels". 16 November 2019. {{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)

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