Usagi Yojimbo

Infobox Book
name = Usagi Yojimbo
title_orig =
translator =


image_caption = "Usagi Yojimbo book 11: Seasons"
author = Stan Sakai
illustrator =
cover_artist =
country = USA
language = English
series =
subject =
genre = Historical
Action-adventure
Fantasy
publisher = Dark Horse Comics
Thoughts and Images
Fantagraphics Books
Mirage Studios
Radio Comix
release_date = 1984
english_release_date =
media_type = Comic Book
Graphic Novel
pages =
isbn =
preceded_by =
followed_by =

nihongo|"Usagi Yojimbo"|兎用心棒|Usagi Yōjimbō|lit. "rabbit bodyguard" is a comic book series created by Stan Sakai.

Set primarily at the beginning of Edo period Japan (early 17th century), with anthropomorphic animals replacing humans, it features a rabbit "ronin", Miyamoto Usagi, who is partially based on the famous swordsman Miyamoto Musashi. Usagi wanders the land on a "musha shugyo" (warrior's pilgrimage) occasionally selling his services as a bodyguard. "Usagi Yojimbo" is heavily influenced by Japanese cinema and has included references to the work of Akira Kurosawa (the title of the series is derived from Kurosawa's 1960 film "Yojimbo") and to icons of popular Japanese cinema such as Lone Wolf and Cub, Zatoichi, and Godzilla. The series is also influenced somewhat by "Groo the Wanderer" by Sergio Aragonés (Sakai is the letterer for that series), but the overall tone of "Usagi Yojimbo" is typically less comedic.

The books consist of short stories, and occasionally novel-length stories, with underlying larger plotlines which culminate in long extended story lines. The stories include many references to Japanese history and Japanese folklore, and sometimes include mythical creatures. The architecture, clothes, weapons, and other objects are drawn with a faithfulness to the period's style. There are often stories whose purpose is to illustrate various elements of Japanese arts and crafts, such as the fashioning of kites, swords, and pottery. Those efforts have been successful enough for the series to be awarded a Parents' Choice Award in 1990 for its educational value through Stan's "skillful weaving of facts and legends into his work." [cite web|last=Dobashi|first=Mas|url=http://www.usagiyojimbo.com/other/tozai2.html|title=Stan Sakai Interview|publisher=usagiyojimbo.com (originally Tozai Times, Vol. 13 Issue 148|date=1997-02-24|accessdate=2008-01-21] The series also follows the standard traditional Japanese naming convention for all featured characters: their family names followed by their given names.

Publishing history

Originally, Usagi and other characters in the series were going to be human in stories explicitly modeled after the life of Miyamoto Musashi. However when Sakai was idly doodling, he drew rabbit ears tied in a topknot on his proposed hero and was inspired by the distinctive image it gave him. [ [http://usagiyojimbo.com/intro/faq/faq_uy.html#faq3 Usagi Yojimbo Dojo - FAQ: Questions about Usagi Yojimbo ] ] Usagi was first conceived as a supporting character in "The Adventures of Nilson Groundthumper and Hermy", a brief series that predates "Usagi Yojimbo". [ [http://usagiyojimbo.com/sakai/otherchars/nilsonhermy/faq_nh.html#faq3 Usagi Yojimbo Dojo - FAQ: Questions about Nilson Groundthumper and Hermy ] ] Sakai quickly expanded on the idea and his story world quickly took on an anthropomorphized cartoonish nature which created a fantasy setting he decided suited his dramatic needs well with a unique look he thought could attract readers.

Usagi first appeared in the anthology "Albedo Anthropomorphics", and later in the Fantagraphics Books anthropomorphic anthology "Critters", before appearing in his own series. The "Usagi Yojimbo" series has been published by three different companies. The first publisher was Fantagraphics (volume one; 38 regular issues, plus one "Summer Special" and three "Color Specials"). The second was Mirage Comics (volume two; 16 issues). The third is Dark Horse Comics, at which "Usagi Yojimbo" is still being published (as volume three, over 100 issues), and who also released a fourth "Color Special". A fourth publisher, Radio Comix, has published two issues of "The Art of Usagi Yojimbo" which contained a selection of unpublished drawings, convention sketches, and other miscellaneous "Usagi Yojimbo" artwork. The first issue also included an original "Usagi Yojimbo" short story. To confuse things, in 2004 Dark Horse Comics published a Twentieth Anniversary hardcover volume also entitled "The Art of Usagi Yojimbo".

Because "Usagi Yojimbo" is a creator-owned comic and Stan Sakai has complete and sole ownership of the character, Miyamoto Usagi has been able to appear in occasional short stories published by companies other than the one currently publishing his series. Usagi has appeared in stories published by Cartoon Books, Oni Press, Sky Dog Press, Wizard Press, and most recently in the benefit book "Drawing the Line", the proceeds of which went to Princess Margaret Hospital and The Hospital for Sick Children, both in Toronto, for cancer research.

Stan Sakai has also been able to experiment with formats for "Usagi Yojimbo", such as when he published the color story "Green Persimmon" originally as twelve separate 2-page chapters serialized in Diamond Comic Distributor's monthly catalog "Previews." He has also serialized two short stories in a comic strip format in the tabloid size promotional publication "Dark Horse Extra". With "Usagi Yojimbo" stories ranging in length from single page "gag" stories to multi-issue "epic" adventures, Stan Sakai has proven himself a master of sequential story-telling.

Usagi has also appeared several times in "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" (the comic, both of the animated series, and the toy line), and the Turtles have appeared in "Usagi Yojimbo" as well. In his guest appearances, he is closest to Leonardo, both sharing the same ideals and code of ethics.

In addition, Sakai created a limited spin off series called "Space Usagi" that featured characters similar to those in the original series, including a descendant of Miyamoto Usagi, but set in a futuristic setting that also emulated Feudal Japan in political and stylistic ways. Three mini-series of three issues each and two short stories featuring the characters were produced. Sakai has tentative plans to produce a fourth Space Usagi miniseries, but nothing has been announced yet. [ [http://www.usagiyojimbo.com/comingup.html#future Coming Up in Usagi Yojimbo ] ] There was also an abortive project for a "Space Usagi" animated series before the failure of "Bucky O'Hare and the Toad Wars" discouraged further development. [ [http://www.usagiyojimbo.com/spaceusagi/faq_su.html#faq8 Usagi Yojimbo Dojo - FAQ: Questions about Space Usagi ] ] "Space Usagi" was one of the action figures produced under the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles line.

Two editions of an Usagi role-playing game have been made, a 1998 version from Gold Rush Games and a 2005 version from Sanguine Productions.

There was also a computer game called "" released for the Commodore 64, ZX Spectrum and Amstrad CPC platforms in 1988, by the now defunct computer game label Firebird.

Awards

The "Grasscutter" storyline from issues 13 through 22 of the Dark Horse published series was a top votegetter for the Comics Buyer's Guide Fan Award for Favorite Story for 1999. The trade paperback collection of this story was a top votegetter for the Comics Buyer's Guide Fan Award for Favorite Reprint Graphic Album for 2000.

"Usagi Yojimbo" has also won several Ursa Major Awards, the major awards of the furry fandom. With the exception of 2006, it has won an award every year since the awards were founded. This makes "Usagi Yojimbo" the most successful publication in these awards. It won "Best Anthropomorphic Comic Book or Strip" in 2001 and 2002. [cite web|url=http://www.ursamajorawards.org/UMA_2001.htm|title=Award Winners 2001|publisher=Ursa Major Awards|accessdate=2008-01-12] [cite web|url=http://www.ursamajorawards.org/UMA_2002.htm|title=Award Winners 2002|publisher=Ursa Major Awards|accessdate=2008-01-12] In 2003, 2004 and 2005, it won "Best Anthropomorphic Comic Book." [cite web|url=http://www.ursamajorawards.org/UMA_2003.htm|title=Award Winners 2003|publisher=Ursa Major Awards|accessdate=2008-01-12] cite web|url=http://www.ursamajorawards.org/UMA_2004.htm|title=Award Winners 2004|publisher=Ursa Major Awards|accessdate=2008-01-12] [cite web|url=http://www.ursamajorawards.org/UMA_2005.htm|title=Award Winners 2005|publisher=Ursa Major Awards|accessdate=2008-01-12] The book "The Art of Usagi Yojimbo" also won "Best Anthropomorphic Other Literary Work" in 2004.

Film references

Several of the characters in Usagi's world are inspired by or make reference to samurai movies. Usagi's former lord is named Mifune, which is a nod to Toshiro Mifune, an actor who starred in countless classic Samurai films. Gen, the rhino bounty hunter, was inspired by the characters made famous by Toshiro Mifune in the samurai films "Yojimbo" and "Sanjuro". Zato-Ino, the Blind Swordspig, is a reference and tribute to the film character of Zatoichi. The story arc "Lone Goat and Kid" features an assassin who wanders with his son in a babycart, referring to the film/manga series, "Lone Wolf and Cub". Most significantly, the main character's name, Miyamoto Usagi, is a play on "Miyamoto Musashi," Japan's most famous historical samurai and the author of "The Book of Five Rings", and "Usagi" the Japanese language word for "rabbit" (Also, the story notes for one volume cite Hiroshi Inagaki's Samurai Trilogy, which features Miyamoto Musashi as a protagonist, as an influence). The storyline "The Dragon Bellow Conspiracy" includes elements reminiscent of the classic Akira Kurosawa films "The Seven Samurai" and "The Hidden Fortress", particularly the way that Usagi collects various allies to raid an evil lord's fortress.

While "Usagi Yojimbo" draws most heavily upon samurai and chanbara films, it has also been influenced by Japanese films from other genres. For example, the three-part story "Sumi-E" (included in Vol. 18. Travels with Jotaro) features monsters resembling Godzilla (identified as "Zylla," who was first introduced in Vol. 2. Samurai), Gamera, Ghidorah, Mothra, and Daimajin.

Collections

Books 1-7 are published by Fantagraphics Books; Book 8-up are published by Dark Horse Comics. Hardcover versions of the Dark Horse collections often include exclusive extras; some of this material was included in the 2004 artbook, also published by Dark Horse.
*Book 1: The Ronin
(Collects appearances in "Albedo" 2-4; "The Doomsday Squad" 3; "Critters" 1, 3, 6-7, 10-11, 14; and the "Usagi Yojimbo Summer Special")
*Book 2: Samurai
(Collects Fantagraphics issues 1-6)
*Book 3: Wanderer's Road
(Collects Fantagraphics issues 7-12 and “Turtle Soup”)
*Book 4: Dragon Bellow Conspiracy
(Collects Fantagraphics issues 13-18)
*Book 5: Lone Goat and Kid
(Collects Fantagraphics issues 19-24)
*Book 6: Circles
(Collects Fantagraphics issues 25-31, and story from "Critters" #50)
*Book 7: Gen's Story
(Collects Fantagraphics issues 32-38 and story from "Critters" #38)
*Book 8: Shades of Death
(Collects Mirage issues 1-6 and backup stories from 7-8)
*Book 9: Daisho
(Collects Mirage issues 7-12, 14)
*Book 10: The Brink of Life and Death
(Collects Mirage issues 13, 15-16 and Dark Horse issues 1-6)
*Book 11: Seasons
(Collects Dark Horse issues 7-12, and "Green Persimmon" from Diamond Previews)
*Book 12: Grasscutter
(Collects Dark Horse issues 13-22)
*Book 13: Grey Shadows
(Collects Dark Horse issues 23-30)
*Book 14: Demon Mask
(Collects Dark Horse issues 31-38, and stories from "Dark Horse Presents" 140 & Annual 1999; "Wizard" 97; "Oni Double Feature" 10; and "Dark Horse Extra" 20-23)
*Book 15: Grasscutter II: Journey To Atsuta Shrine
(Collects Dark Horse issues 39-45)
*Book 16: The Shrouded Moon
(Collects Dark Horse issues 46-52)
*Book 17: Duel at Kitanoji
(Collects Dark Horse issues 53-60)
*Book 18: Travels with Jotaro
(Collects Dark Horse issues 61-68)
*Book 19: Fathers and Sons
(Collects Dark Horse issues 69-75)
*Book 20: Glimpses of Death
(Collects Dark Horse issues 76-82)
*Book 21: The Mother of Mountains
(Collects Dark Horse issues 83-89)
*Book 22: Tomoe's Story
(Collects Dark Horse Issues 90-93 and "Usagi Yojimbo" Color Specials 1-3)
*Book 23: Bridge of Tears
(Release date TBA)
*Space Usagi
(Collects the "Space Usagi" 3-issue miniseries "Warrior," "Death & Honor," and "White Star Rising;" and stories from "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" 47 and "Usagi Color Special" 3)
* The Art of Usagi Yojimbo: 20th Anniversary Edition, published 2004.

See also

*
* List of minor Usagi Yojimbo characters
*

References

External links

* [http://www.usagiyojimbo.com The official Usagi Yojimbo website]
* [http://www.darkhorse.com/zones/usagi/index.php Usagi Yojimbo at Dark Horse Comics]
* [http://www.sanguine.com/usagi Usagi Yojimbo Role-Playing Game]
* [http://users.rcn.com/aardy/comics/awards/cbg.shtml Comics Buyer's Guide Fan Awards]

Translations

* [http://www.paquet.li/asie/album.php?id=85 Official website for the french edition] (collection in progress)