Blade of the Immortal, Vol. 17: On the Perfection of Anatomy [Paperback]

Hiroaki Samura (Author, Artist)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 26, 2007

Manji, the immortal swordsman, lies imprisoned in the bakufu stronghold of the mysterious Habaki Kagemura. Seeking to impart the life-extending powers of the Manji's kessen chu bloodworms to other humans, Kagimura orders his medical examiners to discover the secrets of Manji's amazing regenerative abilities. Using a series of convicts as live subjects in an increasingly grisly series of twisted experiments, Burando, Kagimura's lead medical examiner, begins to grow more desperate and sickened with each horrifying failure. And through it all, Manji lives, and regenerates, and bides his time for the moment that he can pay back his tormentors... limb by limb!

Product Details

• Paperback: 184 pages
• Publisher: Dark Horse (June 26, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1593077823
• ISBN-13: 978-1593077822
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 6.2 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #395,908 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Fair, but let's move on..., November 11, 2007

By 

CB - See all my reviews

This review is from: Blade of the Immortal, Vol. 17: On the Perfection of Anatomy (Paperback)

I've followed Blade of the Immortal for a number of years, and never cease to be impressed by the unique twists and turns that the series' writer-artist Hiroaki Samura adds to it. BOTL's 17th volume, "On the Perfection of Anatomy," continues the great Samura tradition of the title, but has its downside...

The story picks up right from volume 16, as Manji is in the clutches of the former head of the Mugai-Ryu, and high-ranking shogunate official, Gen. Habaki, who wants to use his unique powers to transfer immortality to others. This plan involves a driven western-educated doctor who is mentally on the edge (and under pain of death to complete the task) and grisly surgeries on Manji and a series of convicted felons - surgeries which get more and more desperate, more and more terrifying... Meanwhile, Rin (who has been without Manji for nearly a month) is traveling around with Hyakurin, trying to find her erstwhile bodyguard, and her Itto-Ryu houseguests are becoming a nusiance in the city...

Samura takes a decidedly leisurely pace with this series' plotting, and volume 17 is no exception - in a series where a single duel can take up an entire volume (no kidding) I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that Manji is still in the dungeon in this volume. However, despite the twists and turns and reversals of fortune that this series incorporates, I'm starting to worry if maybe Samura is starting to lose his way... any central focus that the series had seems to have fallen by the wayside, and one wonders when (or if) it can be brought to a satisfactory conclusion. This volume just feels like Samura is treading water - but well-written and well-drawn nonetheless.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A bloody pause, October 17, 2007

By 

Autumnrain "autumnrain" (Fairfield, NJ) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Blade of the Immortal, Vol. 17: On the Perfection of Anatomy (Paperback)

Great series! This issue however, was a little slow on the story side. Maybe I've become accustomed to all the action taking place in the books prior. But the blood and gore is still there, and it's still a very interesting story. I highly recommend this series.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not much action, July 26, 2007

By 

Stanley Ang BK (Singapore) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Blade of the Immortal, Vol. 17: On the Perfection of Anatomy (Paperback)

Seems like a filler issue - nothing much happening in this volume, purely focusing on the medical procedure of trying to transfer immortality to another regular person.