Usagi Yojimbo

Usagi Yojimbo is published by Dark Horse Comics. The current price per issue is $2.99.

Last Issue

 * Usagi Yojimbo #84: 15 Jun 2005, Part 2 of "The Treasure of the Mother of Mountains".

Current Issue

 * Usagi Yojimbo #85: 29 Jun 2005, Part 3 of "The Treasure of the Mother of Mountains".

Next Issue

 * Usagi Yojimbo #86: 31 Aug 2005, Part 4 of "The Treasure of the Mother of Mountains".

Status

 * Monthly on-going (10 issues per year).

Main Character

 * Miyamoto Usagi - A ronin (masterless samurai), Usagi wanders across 16th Century Japan taking on various odd jobs, but mostly just helping solve problems. Usagi is a firm supporter of the Shogun (military leader) and has made many enemies because of his loyalty.  However, has also made many friends because of his kind heart and willingness to help anyone in trouble.  Because of his peaceful nature, Usagi is sometimes mistaken for a coward, but, when provoked, Usagi can defend himself with nearly flawless sword work.

Allies

 * Murakami Gennosuke (Gen) - Another ronin, Gen is a bounty hunter, seemingly only out for a fast buck. He is not above robbing corpses or leaving a friend with the bar tap.  There are times, however, when Gen shows his worth: he is a loyal friend, regardless of his behavior otherwise.


 * Ame Tomoe - Tomoe is the personal bodyguard of Lord Noriyuki. She is fierce in a fight and steadfast in her duties.  Tomoe is honorable and lives strictly by the bushido (way of the warrior) code.


 * Lord Noriyuki - Noriyuki is a just a boy, but he is also leader of the Geishu clan and fiercely loyal to the Shogunate. He inherited his position from his father, who died when Noriyuki was just a boy.  In his years of leadership, Noriyuki has shown himself to be a capable leader.  Noriyuki's life has been saved countless times by Usagi.


 * Kitsune - A street performer, and also a thief. Kitsune had a harsh early life and ended up on the streets in her teen years.  She is an extremely skilled pickpocket, and uses her keen intellect to pull off larger heists.  Despite her profession, Kitsune is a loyal, if not always dependable, friend to Usagi.


 * Sanshobo - Sanshobo is a buddhist priest who was once a samurai. Due to an unfortunate accident in his past, Sanshobo gave up his position, and his name, and joined the priesthood.  He is smart, reliable, and wise, and has been a good friend to Usagi.


 * Katsuichi - Katsuichi is Usagi's old sensei, the only master of his personal fighting style. In his youth, Katsuichi rebelled against the eight traditional schools of sword fighting and formed his own school.  Due to a lack of students, Katsuichi abandoned the school and went to live as a hermit.  His first student was Usagi, who stubbornly forced his way into Katsuichi's life.  Katsuichi is a calm and wisened old man, who is not yet past his time.


 * Kashira Chizu - Chizu was once head of the Neko Ninjas, a devious band of assassins closely aligned with Lord Hikiji. However, she has recently lost her position and is now on the run from her own people.  Chizu has shown herself to be resourceful, but little else about her is reliable.


 * Kenichi - Kenichi was Usagi's childhood antagonist, but they eventually learned to work together to save their village, and the woman they both loved: Mariko. When Usagi went on to become a samurai, Kenichi stayed behind and became the leader of their village, eventually marrying Mariko and raising the child, Jotaro.  Although relations between Kenichi and Usagi are cool, they have put their past behind them.


 * Mariko - Mariko was Usagi's first love. However, she eventually married Kenichi when Usagi chose to leave the village and become a samurai.  It would be years later before Usagi learned the reason behind the marriage: Mariko was pregnant with Usagi's child, but did not want him to give up his position.


 * Jotaro - Jotaro is Usagi's son, raised by Mariko and Kenichi. Usagi wants to be a part of Jotaro's life, but doesn't dare destroy the bond between Kenichi and Jotaro.  Little does Usagi know, that before Jotaro left his village to train with Katsuichi, Mariko told Jotaro the truth.  For now, however, Usagi stays "Uncle Usagi."  Jotaro is in his teens.  He is impulsive and quick to action, and also very very curious . . . exactly like his father.

Enemies

 * Lord Hikiji - Hikiji is sometimes called the dark lord because he is a shadowy personage that works behind the scenes attempting to bring down the Shogunate. There is much bad blood between Hikiji and Usagi as Hikiji was responsible for the death of Usagi's Lord and Usagi's father, and was the man who gave Usagi his scar.  Hikiji rules the lands bordering the Geishu provience, and Hikiji's power mongering have been responsible for several assassination attempts against the young Lord Noriyuki.  In recent years, Hikiji has been fairly quiet with little active participation in the political landscape.  Some worry that he is merely gathering his forces.


 * Lord Hebi - Hebi is Hikiji's right hand man. Most of the time when any move is being made by the dark lord, Hebi issues the instructions.  Hebi is a lethal and dangerous man.


 * Kagemaru - Kagemaru recently usurped control of the Neko Ninja clan from Chizu through skillful manipulation of Lord Hebi and many others. With is new found power, Kagemaru's natural inclination towards manipulation and deceit are all the more dangerous.


 * Jei - Little is known about Jei. He has pure white eyes and a "voice like death." He claims to be the "Blade of the Gods," sent down to earth to punish the evil.  Many who meet him think him a madman.  It isn't clear which one, if either, is true.  Jei has seemingly died and returned several times, lending credence to his claim of divine origin.  In recent years, Jei has begun to travel with a young girl named keiko, who he calls his "little innocent."  She seems to be the only one immune from his judgment of evil.  To Jei, chief among the symbols of evil in the world is Usagi.  Jei appears to think that when he slays Usagi, his mission on earth will be finished.  Recently, during the Grasscutter incident, Jei was seemingly killed permenantly, but his spirit may have taken refuge somewhere else . . ..


 * Inazuma - Until recently, Inazuma was just another swordsman, unique only because of her gender. She saved Usagi's life and ran afoul of Gen (she has a bounty on her head).  Overall, she has appeared to be a good person trapped in bad circumstances.  That all has appeared to change.  Inazuma was struck down during the Grasscutter incident and, although she survived, she has not been the same since.  She now has pure white eyes and a "voice like death."  She travels with a young girl named Keiko.

Other Characters/Places/Things/

 * Neko Ninja


 * Koroshi League of Assassins


 * Edo


 * Geishu Province

Definitions

 * Shogun


 * Samurai


 * Ronin

Usagi Yojimbo #85

 * This is the current issue, and therefore no story information will be posted about this issue. Please check your local comic shop for copies of this issue.

Usagi Yojimbo #84

 * "The Treasure of the Mother of Mountains - Chapter Two" Usagi stumbles across a dying Geishu samurai and rushes to Tomoe's rescue. The two then set off to find out what is going on, and find a secret mining operation lorded over by Tomoe's vicious cousin, Noriko.  As Tomoe and Usagi try to escape to warn Lord Noriyuki, they head straight for an ambush.

Usagi Yojimbo #83

 * "The Treasure of the Mother of Mountains - Chapter One" Tomoe is sent to a quarantined section of the Geishu province to see if a plague has run its course. Once there, Tomoe discovers that the plague was a fake, caused by poisoned drinking water.  Before she can report, however, her group is attacked and she soon finds herself the only survivor . . . surrounded by a mass of angry foes.

"Samurai"
Usagi recounts how be became a samurai, and then a ronin. Collected in UY Book 2: Samurai.

"The Dragon Bellows Conspiracy"
A power hungry lord plots to overthrow the Shogun with the help of gunpowder and flintlock guns. Collected in UY Book 4: The Dragon Bellows Conspiracy.

"Circles"
Usagi returns to his home village only to find it under siege from bandits. Collected in UY Book 6: Circles.

"Grasscutter"
Many powers compete to gain possession of the legendary sword Grasscutter. Whomever controls the sword will rule Japan. Usagi finds himself in a precarious position when he stumbles across a very special sword. . . . Collected in UY Book 12: Grasscutter, and continued in UY Book 15: Grasscutter II.

Available Collections
UY Book 1: Ronin

UY Book 2: Samurai - Amazon - Mars Import

UY Book 3: The Wanderer's Road

UY Book 4: The Dragon Bellow Conspiracy

UY Book 5: Lone Goat and Kid

UY Book 6: Circles

UY Book 7: Gen's Story

UY Book 8: Shades of Death

UY Book 9: Daisho

UY Book 10: The Brink of Life and Death

UY Book 11: Seasons

UY Book 12: Grasscutter

UY Book 13: Grey Shadows

UY Book 14: Demon Mask

UY Book 15: Grasscutter II

UY Book 16: The Shrouded Moon

UY Book 17: Duel at Kitanoji

UY Book 18: Travels with Jotoro

UY Book 19: Fathers and Sons

Background
Miyamoto Usagi was born in Japan in the late 15th Century to the magistrate of a small village. At the appropriate age, Usagi left home to train as a swordsman. However, because of his impulsiveness, Usagi ended up training, not at a large school, but with a hermit named Katsuichi. Katsuichi proved to be an able teacher, and Usagi an able student. In his first tournament, Usagi bested all challengers and caught the attention of the lord of the province, Lord Mifune. It wasn't long before Usagi was asked to become a samurai in the employ of Lord Mifune, where he quickly rose in rank until he became the personal bodyguard of the Lord. All of this came to a tragic end, however, when a band of ninja's slaughtered Mifune's family. Mifune declared war against the man responsible, neighboring lord, Hikiji. It was in the final battle of this war that Usagi's life was changed forever. Mifune was cut down and his army defeated. Usagi became a ronin.

Leftover Useful Information
Stan Sakai is also the creator of Space Usagi, the story of a distant relation of Usagi in a space opera setting. Sakai has described this project as his sandbox where he can do anything he wants. The three miniseries and two short stories have been collected in one volume by Dark Horse Comics.

Order Codes
These are the order codes and prices as provided by Diamond Distribution. Your local comic shop should be able to order these for you.


 * JAN05 0062	USAGI YOJIMBO #83	$2.99
 * MAR05 0047	USAGI YOJIMBO #84	$2.99
 * APR05 0035	USAGI YOJIMBO #85	$2.99
 * JUN05 0039	USAGI YOJIMBO #86	$2.99
 * JUL05 0047	USAGI YOJIMBO #87	$2.99
 * AUG05 0019	USAGI YOJIMBO #88	$2.99
 * SEP05 0023	USAGI YOJIMBO #89	$2.99

Links
Dark Horse Comics - Home of Usagi Yojimbo

Usagi Yojimbo Dojo - Offical Fansite