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Post by stillpoint on Dec 4, 2016 2:19:53 GMT -5
 Published: July 26, 2006 Synopsis: "Five years ago, Usagi dodged a bullet when the mysterious assassin Shizukiri was willing to accept an expected bounty rather than engage the rabbit ronin and his fellow wandering samurai, Gen. Shizukiri's reputation as a ruthless, unbeatable opponent was well established even before he became the only hired sword ever to stare down our long-eared hero, but now his formidable skills are up against Karma itself! When beggars hire him to kill a high-ranking samurai, Shizukiri becomes tangled in a fateful and unexpected plot. Will his skills preserve him, or is Karma truly inescapable?" Notes: Collected in Usagi Yojimbo Volume 23: Bridge Of Tears and The Usagi Yojimbo Saga Book 6. Discuss the issue and/or post full reviews below! |
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Post by stillpoint on Dec 4, 2016 2:55:32 GMT -5
Other than the cover, Usagi doesn't appear in this. He's not needed, because the point is to show how formidable Shizukiri is and establish his state of mind when he starts after Usagi. Job done, as far as I'm concerned. Shizukiri doesn't break a sweat plowing through a host of bodyguards, shows no hesitation or remorse at killing a child, and by the end pretty much has nothing to live for but his mission to eliminate Usagi.
The theme in this story centers on karma. I'm sorry to say that I know too little about the concept to comment other than it seemed almost like fatalism.
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Post by usagigoya on Dec 4, 2016 16:01:30 GMT -5
Karma - If you do good in life, good things will come to you / if you do bad things in life, it will come back and bite you in the @$$..... Example: Found on ebay with a $29.99 price tag!!! And it was already signed to me (or at least to my name)  |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Aug 24, 2017 20:16:21 GMT -5
Man that opening really got me, the father clutching his son was just really powerful.
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Post by richarddragon on Nov 6, 2017 12:23:03 GMT -5
So, do you guys think the "Bridge of Tears" arc begins here, or does it come before/after?
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Post by lobsterjohnson on Nov 6, 2017 13:10:49 GMT -5
So, do you guys think the "Bridge of Tears" arc begins here, or does it come before/after? I would consider this to be part of the same overall arc as "Bridge of Tears". I suppose the story that introduced Shizukiri could be considered the beginning of it, but this issue really sets everything up for Usagi and Shizukiri's eventual showdown. |
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Post by brutalis on Aug 10, 2020 11:48:42 GMT -5
Ain't Karma a Beyotch? There is much truth in we are what we are. If only Shizukiri and Haruye truly listened to each other or made an attempt for changing their own circumstances rather than accepting their lot in life. We are not shown that the League of Beggars told Shizukiri to kill the samurai's son, instead it could be that is Shizukiri's own interpretation of poetic justice. The samurai committed the earlier murder of the beggar's son, so if he had simply killed the samurai then Haruye may have not been inadvertently killed by his own sword and they might have escaped to the life they wished.
That's the problem with Karma, it doesn't recognize nor care if you have a good heart or bad heart. It just rewards you with giving back what you deliver or deserve. A harsh lesson many need to learn with doing your best in being honest and good because it is the best and proper thing for doing in anything. Not for karmic justice or any sort of reward but because it is the right way to live life.
As always, Stan delivers an amazing story to set up Usagi's next confrontation with providing splendid characterization and not just throwing another nameless assassin at him. That is what Stan is so good at, giving us living, breathing PEOPLE to think about and not the nameless villain of the week. I presume there will be more to the story with Shizukiri to come...
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