CompleteMartialArts.com - Path Of The Assassin Volume 4 (Path of the Assassin)
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List Price: $9.95
Our Price: $9.95
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Manufacturer: Dark Horse
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Average Customer Rating: 
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Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 741.5952
EAN: 9781593075057
ISBN: 1593075057
Label: Dark Horse
Manufacturer: Dark Horse
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 304
Publication Date: 2007-01-11
Publisher: Dark Horse
Studio: Dark Horse
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Editorial Reviews:
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War! Ninjas! Love! Political Intrigue! It's all packed into Path of the Assassin. Drafted by classic samurai manga creators Kazuo Koike and Goseki Kojima of Lone Wolf and Cub fame, Path of the Assassin is the story of a young shogun on his way to unite Japan and the trusty ninja assigned to protect him. Be it in crafty maneuverings of war, political push and pull or bedroom adventures, young Hattori Hanzo will not be kept from his duties.
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Customer Rating:
Summary: "I can't see the tomorrow...of my lord...anymore"
Comment: "Path of the Assassin" ("Hanzo no Mon") was originally published in 1972, but it took over three decades for it to become available to an English speaking (and reading) audience. Dark Horse first introduced the manga duo of writer Kazuo Koike and artist Goseki Kojima through their epic saga of "Lone Wolf and Cub" ("Kozure Okami," 1970-76) followed by the publication of "Samurai Executioner" ("Kubikiri Asa," 1972-76). The 15-volume "Path of the Assassin" series is different in that the main protagonists are a pair of famous historical figures from 16th-century Japan, the fabled ninja Hattori Hanzo (yes, the same name that pops up in the "Kill Bill" movies to describe the samurai swords everybody is carting around), and his master, Matsduaira Jiro Saburo Monotnobu, who in the fullness of time would become the great shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu who would unite Japan into a modern nation. Previously Hanzo's method for reducing rice kernels to the size of sesame seeds has allowed Monotnobu, who is now calling himself Motoyasu, to deliver much needed provisions to Odaka Castle, the most forward point of Imagawa Yoshimoto's army. Then Motoyasu succeeds in defeating Sakuma Morishiege, but each success puts the young lord and his future in even more jeopardy.
The first two stories in Volume 4, "The Man Who Altered the River's Flow," complete the "Chapter on Relinquishing Death." In No. 2: "Hard Crossing on the Plain, Part 2," draws a final fateful distinction between Motoyasu and Imagawa. Both are seen eating and complaining that baked rice balls are hard and make their jaws tired. But whereas Imagawa is content to continue eating, Motoyasu continues to play out the possibilities of the war in his mind and anticipates the next move of the enemy. No. 3: "The Festivity Is in the Waiting" begins with Motoyasu listening to his vassals debate what they should do next now that the time for them to fawn, grovel, crawl, and cower beneath Imagawa is over. Again, the future shogun shows himself to be more farsighted than the rest and now that he has a home he takes a new name: Ieyasu. Meanwhile, Tsukumo's father Masanari shows up and wants to discuss with Hanzo and his father the future of their children.
The other five stories make up the "Chapter on Relinquishing Paths," which may or may not be the entire chapter. No. 1: "The Path Taken Upon Surrendering to Fate" has Ieyasu concerned that his wife and infant son being held hostage constrains his future actions. He sees before him a path of resignation and cannot help but feel that his whole life has been built upon letting things go, and makes his choice as to which side to take in the war. No 2: "The Man Who Altered the Flow of the River," is a brief but pointed conversation between Takedga Shigen and Masanari. No 3: "Last Gasp Scheme" begins with Ieyasu having nightmares about his wife and son being slaughtered and he decides to do anything to save their lives. So it is that he sends Hanzo with an urgent message for Udono Nagateru to set up another masterstroke. Meanwhile, Ieysau's wife Tsukiyama does what she must to survive, and a fateful misunderstand makes her desire Hanzo's death. No. 4: "The Vilamba's Man" tells of Tsukiyama's attempt to have Hanzo killed. No. 5: "Enduring in Ninja's Castle" finds Hanzo caught between his master and his master's wife, and taking extreme steps to make sure that he can continue to serve Ieysau.
Even as Koike and Kojima follow the path of history their emphasis is on the characters in the tale. At the start of the epic there was more of an emphasis on Hanzo, who clearly knew more about the ways of the world than his young master. But now Ieysau has clearly become the dominant figure in these books and I find myself enjoying the scenes in which the future shogun thinks things through in his head to those in which Hanzo runs around and does his ninja magic. At this point Masanari appears to have replaced the character of the Baldy Rat in being the primary foil, which continues the whole idea that no one is Ieysau's equal and whatever shortcomings he might have are more than covered by the loyal Hanzo. I really do think that despite the popularity of "Lone Wolf and Cub," it is this magna that really represents Koike and Kojima at their best. As always, the Parental Advisory label warning of Explicit Content on the cover of this manga should be taken seriously.
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