Synopsis: "Usagi encounters the mysterious female samurai, Inazuma, whom he had met in previous travels. She has been on the run from assassins, and, during her brief rest, she tells the story of her drunken husband and the twists of fate that turned her into a fugitive."
Notes:
Origin of Inazuma
Discuss the issue and/or post full reviews below!
"According to aquatic ape theory of human evolution, we're all seachimps." - EdoBosnar
Post by thwhtguardian on Mar 29, 2016 8:15:12 GMT -5
This is another of my favorites, as we come to this story Stan had been slowly building up Inazuma over the course of half a dozen issues with out giving us any detail of who she was or what she was doing and in this issue we finally get the answers and it was well worth the wait. I especially loved the end when Usagi realizes that all the other travelers are dead.
A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory. LLAP
One of my all-time favorite issues of any comic. I've read it many times, and I still get giddy on that first page when those thugs masquerading as peasants turn simultaneously to look at Inazuma. The whole story is a terrific example of characterization blended with action. Look at Inazuma's face when when she's killing those guys and their eight friends. Usagi or Gen or Tomoe would be gritting their teeth and yelling "Ryaaaaa!", but she never changes expression or utters a sound.
Then there's her origin story where she loses her family and then her husband who, even though he was worse than useless, was all she had. After, and even during, the orgy of violence in the gambling house, she's almost emotionless. Despite the mention of not sharing the same sky as the killer of your lord, I'm not even sure her motive was vengeance as much as punishing those who had caused her to be alone.
You can argue that she did wait for Usagi before telling her story and it was for his benefit--after all, she seems to have begun it just as he showed up--but I prefer to believe like thwhtguardian, that she was going to regale a room of dead men with the tale, and Usagi just happened upon it. That's creepier and shows how detached from the world she has become.
Great stuff. I understand that her character arc was most likely to end in tragedy, but I'm really sorry there won't be any more Inazuma stories than what we have.
One of my all-time favorite issues of any comic. I've read it many times, and I still get giddy on that first page when those thugs masquerading as peasants turn simultaneously to look at Inazuma. The whole story is a terrific example of characterization blended with action. Look at Inazuma's face when when she's killing those guys and their eight friends. Usagi or Gen or Tomoe would be gritting their teeth and yelling "Ryaaaaa!", but she never changes expression or utters a sound.
Then there's her origin story where she loses her family and then her husband who, even though he was worse than useless, was all she had. After, and even during, the orgy of violence in the gambling house, she's almost emotionless. Despite the mention of not sharing the same sky as the killer of your lord, I'm not even sure her motive was vengeance as much as punishing those who had caused her to be alone.
You can argue that she did wait for Usagi before telling her story and it was for his benefit--after all, she seems to have begun it just as he showed up--but I prefer to believe like thwhtguardian, that she was going to regale a room of dead men with the tale, and Usagi just happened upon it. That's creepier and shows how detached from the world she has become.
Great stuff. I understand that her character arc was most likely to end in tragedy, but I'm really sorry there won't be any more Inazuma stories than what we have.
Well said, all around. If attitude and spirit were everything in Usagi's world, Inazuma would have been emperess.
I too love this story, but the one place I struggle is with the idea of Inazuma being entirely self-trained. She's the first nemesis Usagi meets who is clearly capable of defeating him, and I have a hard time swallowing the idea that this comes solely from her attitude/convictions. Otherwise, this issue is a masterpiece.
"According to aquatic ape theory of human evolution, we're all seachimps." - EdoBosnar
One of my all-time favorite issues of any comic. I've read it many times, and I still get giddy on that first page when those thugs masquerading as peasants turn simultaneously to look at Inazuma. The whole story is a terrific example of characterization blended with action. Look at Inazuma's face when when she's killing those guys and their eight friends. Usagi or Gen or Tomoe would be gritting their teeth and yelling "Ryaaaaa!", but she never changes expression or utters a sound.
Then there's her origin story where she loses her family and then her husband who, even though he was worse than useless, was all she had. After, and even during, the orgy of violence in the gambling house, she's almost emotionless. Despite the mention of not sharing the same sky as the killer of your lord, I'm not even sure her motive was vengeance as much as punishing those who had caused her to be alone.
You can argue that she did wait for Usagi before telling her story and it was for his benefit--after all, she seems to have begun it just as he showed up--but I prefer to believe like thwhtguardian, that she was going to regale a room of dead men with the tale, and Usagi just happened upon it. That's creepier and shows how detached from the world she has become.
Great stuff. I understand that her character arc was most likely to end in tragedy, but I'm really sorry there won't be any more Inazuma stories than what we have.
Well said, all around. If attitude and spirit were everything in Usagi's world, Inazuma would have been emperess.
I too love this story, but the one place I struggle is with the idea of Inazuma being entirely self-trained. She's the first nemesis Usagi meets who is clearly capable of defeating him, and I have a hard time swallowing the idea that this comes solely from her attitude/convictions. Otherwise, this issue is a masterpiece.
I don't know Shax, the unconventionality of her skills could be the dominant factor of her wins. I know for a fact about this as my 1st year in college a friend convinced me to sign up for a fencing class. Now i have never had any sword training at that point excepting for my love of Errol Flynn movies and sword and sorcery movies. all through my childhood years and into my teen you could find me with an old fencing foil i bought from a Goodwill in hand fighting my shadow and thwarting imaginary villains. Once into the class and learning a few basics as we would practice i began to frustrate the other "professional" students who had either had classes or training as my responses and moves were considered not practical and correct. I was fencing in the Bruce Lee style of martial arts: i took whatever i had seen or watched or read about and fenced instinctively which drove the instructor and other students insanely crazy. I was doing this for fun, they for sports and the two did not work out well. I could win many and come out even more often than not and seldom did anyone ever have a total win over me. So there is something to think over about being self taught, especially in a time when that meant if you lost you usually died. Very quickly you would learn what works and what doesn't! En Guarde!
Gimme a home on the ol' prairie where I can sit in my rockin' chair reading my favorite old comic books of yesteryear!
Well said, all around. If attitude and spirit were everything in Usagi's world, Inazuma would have been emperess.
I too love this story, but the one place I struggle is with the idea of Inazuma being entirely self-trained. She's the first nemesis Usagi meets who is clearly capable of defeating him, and I have a hard time swallowing the idea that this comes solely from her attitude/convictions. Otherwise, this issue is a masterpiece.
I don't know Shax, the unconventionality of her skills could be the dominant factor of her wins. I know for a fact about this as my 1st year in college a friend convinced me to sign up for a fencing class. Now i have never had any sword training at that point excepting for my love of Errol Flynn movies and sword and sorcery movies. all through my childhood years and into my teen you could find me with an old fencing foil i bought from a Goodwill in hand fighting my shadow and thwarting imaginary villains. Once into the class and learning a few basics as we would practice i began to frustrate the other "professional" students who had either had classes or training as my responses and moves were considered not practical and correct. I was fencing in the Bruce Lee style of martial arts: i took whatever i had seen or watched or read about and fenced instinctively which drove the instructor and other students insanely crazy. I was doing this for fun, they for sports and the two did not work out well. I could win many and come out even more often than not and seldom did anyone ever have a total win over me. So there is something to think over about being self taught, especially in a time when that meant if you lost you usually died. Very quickly you would learn what works and what doesn't! En Guarde!
Good point. And certainly, part of Usagi's success comes from Katsuichi's unconventional style as well. I suppose it's the same with Poker -- a newbie can take down a table of champions if they have no idea how to account for his/her style.
Plus there's the whole idea of a samurai's blade being a manifestation of his/her spirit, and the whole idea of two samurai being able to look each other in the eye and know who will win before they even start. I can see all of that, I suppose. It just flies in the face of the years it took Usagi to master his craft.
"According to aquatic ape theory of human evolution, we're all seachimps." - EdoBosnar
I don't know Shax, the unconventionality of her skills could be the dominant factor of her wins. I know for a fact about this as my 1st year in college a friend convinced me to sign up for a fencing class. Now i have never had any sword training at that point excepting for my love of Errol Flynn movies and sword and sorcery movies. all through my childhood years and into my teen you could find me with an old fencing foil i bought from a Goodwill in hand fighting my shadow and thwarting imaginary villains. Once into the class and learning a few basics as we would practice i began to frustrate the other "professional" students who had either had classes or training as my responses and moves were considered not practical and correct. I was fencing in the Bruce Lee style of martial arts: i took whatever i had seen or watched or read about and fenced instinctively which drove the instructor and other students insanely crazy. I was doing this for fun, they for sports and the two did not work out well. I could win many and come out even more often than not and seldom did anyone ever have a total win over me. So there is something to think over about being self taught, especially in a time when that meant if you lost you usually died. Very quickly you would learn what works and what doesn't! En Guarde!
Good point. And certainly, part of Usagi's success comes from Katsuichi's unconventional style as well. I suppose it's the same with Poker -- a newbie can take down a table of champions if they have no idea how to account for his/her style.
Plus there's the whole idea of a samurai's blade being a manifestation of his/her spirit, and the whole idea of two samurai being able to look each other in the eye and know who will win before they even start. I can see all of that, I suppose. It just flies in the face of the years it took Usagi to master his craft.
It can also be said that it is not unbelievable Katsuichi win the 1st sword fight based on her unknown skill set and even that she might be able to overcome Ussagi, but after that initial confrontation and each succeeding battle Usagi will take the measure of her skills until she is losing more often than winning.
Gimme a home on the ol' prairie where I can sit in my rockin' chair reading my favorite old comic books of yesteryear!
Having read this last night it strikes me as being very much like an american western. I have read many stories and seen a few movies where the devoted wife looses her useless husband (usually due to his own damn stupidity or refusal to do right) and self trains herself to gain revenge and/or protection. Inazuma is that type of woman: cool under pressure, calculating, deceptively quiet until unleashing her bottled up emotions like the lightning sword of retribution which she is. I can totally see her sitting quietly telling her story to those she has just slain while cleansing her thoughts and soul as she would cleanse her sword. That Usagi happened to come along to hear her origin was just happenstance.
Gimme a home on the ol' prairie where I can sit in my rockin' chair reading my favorite old comic books of yesteryear!
Having read this last night it strikes me as being very much like an american western. I have read many stories and seen a few movies where the devoted wife looses her useless husband (usually due to his own damn stupidity or refusal to do right) and self trains herself to gain revenge and/or protection. Inazuma is that type of woman: cool under pressure, calculating, deceptively quiet until unleashing her bottled up emotions like the lightning sword of retribution which she is. I can totally see her sitting quietly telling her story to those she has just slain while cleansing her thoughts and soul as she would cleanse her sword. That Usagi happened to come along to hear her origin was just happenstance.
The classic "Spaghetti Westerns" were based upon popular Samurai films and, in some cases, were almost direct translations. Stan Sakai grew up watching those samurai films, so while the similarity between Westerns and some Usagi stories isn't directly intended, they're drawing from the same source material.
Last Edit: Feb 23, 2017 12:59:16 GMT -5 by shaxper
"According to aquatic ape theory of human evolution, we're all seachimps." - EdoBosnar