Customer Reviews

Path Of The Assassin, Vol. 5 (v. 5)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Just as the LONE WOLF & CUB "Baby Cart" films hooked me into getting the entire 14 trade paperback manga series in Japanese before its 28 digest volume release in English, watching KAGE NO GUINDAN on TV a decade or so back [as well as his recent appearance in KILL BILL] got me hooked on Hattori Hanzo. PATH OF THE ASSASSIN is the tale of the original Hattori Hanzo at the birth of the Tokagawa Shoginate that gives both depth and the historical perspective on his descendants ablely acted by Chiba Shinichi. Kazuo Koike gives his readers insight on Japanese character by giving them the role models of LONE WOLF & CUB, SAMURAI EXECUTIONER, and now PATH OF THE ASSASSIN all from Dark Horse and available on Amazon. This series is a must for mature manga fans as is all of the Kazuo Koike's historical work.

"Path of the Assassin" ("Hanzo no Mon") was originally published in 1972 but it was not until last year that Dark Horse Manga published the first of what will be 15 volumes reprinted in English but also in the original right-to-left format. Writer Kazuo Koike and artist Goeski Kojima, well known for their epic saga "Lone Wolf and Cub" ("Kozure Okami," 1970-76) and the related manga "Samurai Executioner" ("Kubikiri Asa," 1972-76), continue the story of two famous figures from the history of Japan. Set in the 16th-century, "Path of the Assassin" is about the fabled ninja Hattori Hanzo and his master Tokugawa Ieyasu, the man who would unite Japan as shogun. Consequently this is the most historical work by Koike and Kojima to date, and in some ways the most ambitious for dealing with real people and events. That being send, Volume 5 is the least historical of the volumes to date. As always, the Parental Advisory label warning of explicit content in these stories should be taken seriously.

At this point in the saga we are continuing the "Chapter on Relinquishing Paths." The death of Imagawa Yoshimoto has created a power vacuum and it is clear that each of Ieyasu's steps towards power are becoming more and more fraught with danger. Previously Hanzo had pulled off a hostage exchange scheme to rescue Ieyasu's wife Tsukiyama and their children. However, having seen Tsukiyama having sex with Ujizane, Hanzo has compelled Tsukiyama not to sleep with Ieyasu for ten months, to insure that she is not carrying Ujizan's child. In exchange, Hazno has agreed to stay away from his master during that time. "Volume 5: Battle of One Hundred and Eight Days" contains only parts, with the first setting up the 244-page story that gives this volume its title.

"No. 6: "Departing Sleep and the Logic of Sleep" is set in the Takeda territory of Kofuchu, where Kansuke, father of Hanzo's wife Tsukumo, is attacked in his sleep by the ninja Kite Danzo, known as Kite Kato. Kansuke is mortally wounded, but is able to get Kato to flee because he has planned for this moment in quite an unusual way (reading this story the day after seeing "Planet Terror" is one of those coincidences that convinces me irony is the master trope of the universe). Hanzo and Tsukumo come to Kansuke's side, at which doing the dying man argues that his son-in-law must support Oyakatsama in the coming struggle to seize control of the nation and establish a new reign and not Nobunga, despite his success in defeating and killing Imagawa. Then, as a dowry for the groom who took his daughter as a bride, Kansuke explains what the title of the story calls "the Logic of Sleep."

"No. 7: Battle of One Hundred and Eight Days" begins with the funeral of Kansuke, and then with Hanzo bringing his father-in-law's bones to Oyakatsama and set up a favor for his master down the road. But what this story is really about is the epic battle between the two ninjas when Hanzo goes after Kite Kato. Tsukumo helps her husband by using special techniques to sharpen her sense of smell while Kite Kato does his own purification ritual, thereby raising the curtain for the battle that would last over one hundred and eight days. However, despite that title, it is more of a psychological battle than a physical contest as Kite Kato is confounded by the way Hanzo and Tsukumo are "one flesh" (and, yes, there is a significance to the number of days). Hanzo also has the radical ideal that as a samurai his death is not the greatest gift he can give his master. Meanwhile, the Baldy Rat visits Ieyasu with a proposal of marriage to consider and gives Hanzo's master an explanation for why his right hand has gone away without permission. What you will take away from this volume is the sense that this is the end of an interlude before Hanzo returns to the side of Ieyasu as they take the next step on the road to power. Still, I round up on this volume because of the depth Koike and Kojima provide to the deadly battle pitting youth against wisdom.

Like the other two series "Lone Wolf and Cub" and "Samurai Executioner", "Path of the Assasin" is a very pleasant book for one to read. But unlike the other two series, there is a focus on the geopolitical events of that era in japan and much less battles. Also it is almost impossible to remember all the different names and charactes that take part on the plot.

I've been a long time collecter or almost everything that Kazuo Koike and Goseki Kojima have done, even some books and novels that were never released in the USA or translated into English. Their creative story lines and tradtional style of graphics are just outstanding!