Usagi Yojimbo

Usagi Yojimbo ("Rabbit Bodyguard"), is a comic book series written and illustrated by Stan Sakai. The character first appeared in 1984 in Albedo Anthropomorphics, a comic book series published by Thoughts and Images. Since then, the series has been published by Fantagraphics Books, Mirage Studios, Radio Comix, and Dark Horse Comics.

Stan Sakai's official site summarizes the series as such: "Usagi Yojimbo is set in the beginning of Edo period Feudal Japan (early 17th century) with anthropomorphic animals replacing humans, and features a ronin rabbit, Miyamoto Usagi, who wanders the land as a shugyosha (student warrior on a pilgramage) occasionally selling his services as a yojimbo (bodyguard). Hence the title "Usagi Yojimbo". The character of Usagi has been inspired by the famous Japanese swordsman Miyamoto Musashi while the tone and inspirations of the stories are heavily influenced by Groo the Wanderer, Lone Wolf and Cub and the films of the acclaimed director Akira Kurosawa."

Usagi Yojimbo Book 1: The Ronin - With over fifty graphic novels in print, the samurai rabbit is more popular than ever! This is the seminal Usagi book collecting all the classic original Usagi stories from Albedo, Critters, Doomsday Squad, and the Usagi Yojimbo Summer Special. This is one of our very best sellers, and is also where Usagi started—don't miss out! The setting is 17th century Japan, when the age of civil wars has barely ended and the Shogun has established power. The samurai is the ruling class throughout the land, following a warrior's code of honor known as Bushido. Usagi Yojimbo Vol. 1 chronicles this time of settling unrest and political intrigue, told through the story of a wandering and masterless samurai named Miyamoto Usagi, aka Usagi Yojimbo! One of the great classics of the last 20 years, perfect for all ages.

Usagi Yojimbo Book 2: Samurai - The bunny's back! Originally printed in the long out-of-print Usagi Yojimbo #1 through 4, this volume features Usagi's origins as a wandering rabbit warrior in feudal Japan, and introduces many members of the cast of characters. Brimming with exciting swordfights, authentic locales and costumes, drama and humor, this is some of Stan Sakai's finest work. If you're unfamiliar with this multiple Harvey and Eisner winning comic for all ages, then what rock have you been living under?! Get your history lesson right here.

Usagi Yojimbo Book 3: The Wanderer's Road - Back in print—finally! Perhaps the best samurai rabbit story ever told, Usagi Yojimbo Book 3 collects full-length Usagi stories from issues #7 through #12 of the original Fantagraphics series, including "The Tower" (which introduces Usagi's travelling companion Spot the Wonder Lizard), "Return of the Blind Swordspig," "A Mother's Love," "Blade of the Gods," "The Shogun's Gift," and the hilarious Groo tribute "The Tea Cup," co-starring the amoral mercenary rhino Gen. ("Gen does what Gen does best!") PLUS, the little-seen Usagi team-up with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles "Turtle Soup and Rabbit Stew," written and drawn by Sakai. A must-have for adventure lovers of all ages!

Usagi Yojimbo Book 4: The Dragon Bellow Conspiracy - One of the great epics in the comic book field stars a rabbit? That's right, Stan Sakai's enormous dramatic saga of death and treachery, of ambition and honor, is the comics equivalent of Akira Kurosawa's classics such as Seven Samurai and The Hidden Fortress. This volume of the Usagi series features the novel-length "The Dragon Bellow Conspiracy," which originally ran in six consecutive issues of the Usagi comics series. Jam-packed with lethal sword battles alternating with humor, horror, suspense, and slapstick, this beautifully crafted and exciting volume features all of the most popular supporting characters from the series, including Tomoe Ame, Gen the rhino, and Zato-Ino the blind swordspig. Both an excellent starting point for new readers, and an absolute necessity for Usagi completists!

Usagi Yojimbo Book 5: Lone Goat and Kid - This fifth volume collects the epic-length "Blood Wings," in which Usagi battles a fearsome clan of ninja bats, while "Lone Goat and Kid" offers a cunning and affectionate parody of the famous "Lone Wolf and Cub" manga while doubling as one of Usagi's most dramatic and heartfelt adventures. "Frost and Fire" and "The Way of the Samurai" provide the psychological drama of this volume, which is rounded out by one of the most unique Usagi tales ever, "A Kite Story," which doubles as a fascinating look at the daily life and work of a 17th century Japanese kite maker, dramatically showcasing the thoroughness of Sakai's research and his skills as a storyteller. Featuring a foreword by the legendary Stan Lee! The hardcover edition also includes an expanded version of the "How I Draw Usagi Yojimbo" feature that originally appeared in Amazing Heroes.

Usagi Yojimbo Book 6: Circles - Circles features the graphic-novel-length epic title story, in which Usagi returns to his native village only to find everything very different indeed. (The discovery that his mentor, whom he thought dead, is actually alive and kicking is only the first of the shocks that await him.) "Circles" is an epic adventure, a love story, and one of the most affecting Usagi stories ever. In addition to the 80-page "Circles," this volume includes "The Bridge," "The Duel," and the hard-to-find "The Tangled Skein" from Critters #38. Jam-packed with lethal sword battles alternating with humor, horror, suspense and slapstick, this beautifully crafted and exciting volume (with an introduction by Jeff Smith) is both an excellent starting point for new readers, and an absolute necessity for Usagi completists.

Usagi Yojimbo Book 7: Gen's Story - The seventh volume in this legendary series about a wandering rabbit samurai in feudal Japan is back in print! This dense tome collects issues 32 through 38 of the original Usagi series as well as the Usagi strip from Critters #38. In addition to the novel-length "Gen's Story," which forms the centerpiece of this volume, and which relates the heretofore untold story of the mercenary swordsrhino Gennosuke, Usagi Yojimbo Book 7 includes "Kitsune" (introducing a new romantic interest for Usagi), "The Last Ino Story" (the final fate of the Blind Swordspig Zato-Ino), "The Return of Kitsune," and "Broken Ritual," a tale of hara-kiri based on an idea by Sergio Aragonés, who also contributes this volume's introduction. This perennial favorite features dragons, ghosts, demons, bats and more, all in set in Sakai's warrior landscape. A classic!

Usagi Yojimbo Vol. 8: Shades of Death - The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles travel through time to team with Usagi in 17th-century Japan! Collecting the first six issues of the Mirage-published Usagi Yojimbo, out of print since 1993, this is the eighth in a series of successful Usagi trade paperbacks. This book weighs in at a whopping two hundred pages!

Usagi Yojimbo Vol. 9: Daisho - Continuing our collections of the out-of-print issues originally published by Mirage, Stan Sakai's rabbit ronin continues his journey through a lawless land. Usagi meets a mysterious assassin disguised as a priest, encounters dishonest gamblers, and comes to the aid of the unfortunate. Introduction by James Robinson (Starman, Leave It to Chance).

Usagi Yojimbo Vol. 10: The Brink of Life and Death - Join Usagi Yojimbo in his hare-raising adventures of life and death. Watch as he faces assassins, medicine peddlers, bat ninjas, and more! This is a story of honor and adventure. It's a masterful adaptation of samurai legend to sequential art. Dark Horse is proud to present this epic story of good versus evil. Sakai's unique blend of storytelling and Japanese legend has made a unique niche for itself.

Usagi Yojimbo Vol. 11: Seasons - Spring breezes stirring the memories of lost battles. Summer fields burning with fires of treachery. Chill autumn nights echoing with demonic screams. Winter snows stained red with the blood of honor. Follow Stan Sakai's Eisner award-winning Usagi Yojimbo through a cycle of short stories continuing the ronin rabbit's journeys through feudal Japan. Ten tales in all, an essential collection for all seasons!

Usagi Yojimbo Vol. 12: Grasscutter - Forged in heaven, it is called Kusanagi, the Grasscutter--the lost sword of the Gods. This legendary blade could potentially tip the scales of power for the shadowy Conspiracy of Eight in their quest to overthrow the Shogunate and reinstate the Emperor. With the help of a witch and the souls of dead warriors, they plan to recover the lost sword and bring the Shogun down. But when the fates place the Grasscutter in the hands of masterless samurai Usagi Yojimbo, the ronin rabbit becomes the focus of a deadly struggle for possession of the dread blade. And this crisis pales beside the dark possibilities should the sword come to the demonic warrior, Jei! Grasscutter collects Dark Horse Usagi Yojimbo issues 13-22, Stan Sakai's longest and most ambitious Usagi tale to date: a sweeping epic showcasing one of comics' most individual artistic voices at the peak of his creative skills.

Usagi Yojimbo Vol. 13: Grey Shadows - Fresh from winning the Best Serialized Story 1999 Eisner Award for Grasscutter, Stan Sakai returns with a new Usagi Yojimbo collection featuring six tales of the ronin rabbit's journeys and adventures in feudal Japan. "My Father's Swords" retells an encounter with a young samurai who follows in-and is followed by-the footsteps of his father's warrior heritage. In "The Demon Flute," a village is plagued by a music-playing supernatural killer. Usagi recounts a classic Japanese folk tale in "Momo-Usagi-Taro." Two Tokugawa-era whodunits play out in "The Hair Pin Murders" and Taméshigiri," a pair of Inspector Ishida mysteries. Usagi becomes entangled in a conspiracy to overthrow a lord's throne in "The Courtesan." Memory, mystery, and treachery intermingle to form Grey Shadows.

Usagi Yojimbo Vol. 14: Demon Mask - The close of 16th century Japan was a violent age, as rival feudal lords fought for land and power. Miyamoto Usagi braved many a battle only to lose his lord and find himself a masterless samurai, or ronin. While many ronin became bandits or mercenaries, Usagi chose the warrior pilgrimage: wandering the land, fighting injustice, seeking enlightenment. Eisner Award winner Stan Sakai has crafted a truly original and delightful work, an all-ages adventure epic that creates a world of excitement, mystery, and imagination, while building each story on painstaking research of Japan's history, culture, and mythology. Demon Mask is a collection of diverse Usagi stories, featuring a graveyard encounter with creatures from Japanese folktales, a whodunit clash with a mysterious masked assassin, a young adventure-lover insistent on receiving Usagi's sword training, a peasant village terrorized by a ravaging Spider Woman, and more. Few works of graphic fiction offer—or deliver—as much action, depth, and sheer fun as Stan Sakai's Usagi Yojimbo.

Usagi Yojimbo Vol. 15: Grasscutter II—Journey to Atsuta Shrine - Forged in the clouds by the elemental gods of feudal Japan, the legendary sword Kusanagi—also known as "Grasscutter"—holds such power that it is sought after by mighty forces of good and evil. Multiple award winner Stan Sakai continues the epic adventures of his signature samurai rabbit, Usagi Yojimbo, in this second book centering on the mystical sword. Starting with a prologue that unveils the history of the sword, Grasscutter II rejoins Usagi with his samurai travelling companion, Gen, as they journey to the sacred shrine of Atsuta to return the powerful sword to its final resting place. But two ninja clans will fight the honorable samurai as well as each other in order to capture the sword and gain control of the empire with it. An enthralling book for all ages to enjoy, Grasscutter II will amaze readers with its narrative depth and poetic storytelling.

Usagi Yojimbo Vol. 16: The Shrouded Moon - Throughout his journeys across feudal Japan, rabbit ronin Usagi has faced many dangers, crossed paths with some who have become his sworn enemies, and forged bonds of friendship stronger than any threat that might cross his path. Collected here are six tales featuring those companions Usagi holds dear. "Showdown" finds Usagi traveling with master swordsman Gen, as the two disrupt the dueling influences of a pair of corrupt families. Neko ninja clan leader Chizu finds herself betrayed and on the run in "Escape!" In "Three Seasons," Usagi is forced to defend himself with the most unlikely of weapons. The beautiful thief Kitsune's tragic history is revealed in "The Shrouded Moon" and "Kitsune's Tale." And in "Lesson in Courtesy," a hot-headed young Usagi incurs a debt that takes nearly a lifetime to repay! Once again, Stan Sakai masterfully weaves together the many threads of intrigue, adventure, humor, and heart in another endearing Usagi Yojimbo collection.

Usagi Yojimbo Vol. 17: Duel at Kitanoji - Nothing comes easy for rabbit ronin Usagi, not even being a spectator at the planned duel between his former teacher Katsuichi and Katsuichi's rival Nakamura Koji. Before the duel even begins, Usagi becomes embroiled in a dispute between Koji and a local fencing school. Along the way, Usagi discovers a devastating secret—a weakness in Koji's style. It's a secret that could save his teacher's life, but at the cost of his own honor. This 17th volume of Usagi Yojimbo collects issues #43-60, including the entire "Duel at Kitanoji" story, and a handful of other great shorts. And, as a special treat for our longtime fans, this collection features—for the first time!—preliminary sketches and designs by Sakai.

Usagi Yojimbo Vol. 18: Travels with Jotaro - Throughout his journeys across feudal Japan, rabbit ronin Usagi has faced many dangers, crossed paths with some who have become his sworn enemies, and forged bonds of friendship stronger than any threat that might cross his path—but now he does it with young Jotaro at his side! This 18th volume of internationally acclaimed Usagi Yojimbo collects issues #61-68 of the multi-award winning ongoing series, and continues the adventures as “Uncle” Usagi struggles with keeping a secret from Jotaro that everyone else seems to know. Not only do their travels bring the perils of the Neko Ninja (in hot pursuit of Chizu, ex-leader of their clan and friend to Usagi), they also have a close encounter with a new and deadly organization—the Koroshi League of Assassins. The beautiful thief Kitsune is up to her old tricks, and Usagi relates a story from his youth about a goblin swordmaster. Finally, an evil artist targets Jotaro with a possessed ink set in the three-part “Sumi-E” story, which features the return of Sasuké the Demon Queller!

Usagi Yojimbo Vol. 19: Fathers and Sons - Master storyteller Stan Sakai opens this brand-new collection with a deadly ambush on the fugitive Lone Goat Assassin and his child, Gorogoro. Lone Goat is victorious, but wounded-and his son is too young to help. Unable to seek proper medical attention, Lone Goat collapses in an abandoned house. What he needs is a knowledgeable ronin, and soon! Elsewhere, Usagi is in a desperate search for his young companion, Jotaro, who has eluded murderous kidnappers. His is a panic that only rises out of fatherly love, though he has kept the secret of Jotaro's parentage from the boy throughout their travels together. If they are able to continue on to Kitanoji Temple, will the rabbit samurai confess before they part ways? Featuring appearances by readers' favorite characters-including the deadly Neko Ninja. Collecting issues #69-#75 of the ongoing series.

Usagi Yojimbo Vol. 20: Glimpses of Death - Wandering ronin Usagi Yojimbo is alone once again, having emerged from his travels with young Jotaro. His brief respite from danger was not destined to last long, for adventure in feudal Japan waits for no one! In this volume of the internationally acclaimed series, master storyteller Stan Sakai treats readers to intriguing tales of Usagi on his own and catches up with a bevy of fan-favorite characters—"whodunit" maestro Inspector Ishida has another puzzling mystery to solve, bounty hunters Gen and Stray Dog are each on the tail of the possessed swordswoman Inazuma, bodyguard Tomoe has a new political rival in Lord Noriyuki's court, and Priest Sanshobo's temple is plagued by a vile demon! Throughout these stories we follow Usagi as he is roped into a covert smuggling operation, escorts a cantankerous old woman through dangerous territory, assists an inventor with a visionary flying machine, and once again encounters a vengeful young samurai.

Usagi Yojimbo Vol. 21: The Mother of Mountains - The discovery of gold ignites a struggle of striking proportions as a power-mad tyrant's lust for wealth threatens to destroy not only Usagi Yojimbo and his companion Tomoe but an entire innocent village! When plague strikes a border town in the mountains of the Geishu Province, Lord Noriyuki sends his loyal bodyguard Tomoe to investigate. Once there, she and her retinue discover a truth far more terrible. Meanwhile, back at the castle, the sycophantic Lord Horikawa sets in motion a plot to eliminate Tomoe his own way. Only the rabbit ronin Usagi could extricate a friend from a predicament this perilous—if he hadn't ended up landing in the same one himself! Usagi and Tomoe must use every ounce of skill and wit if they are to survive "The Mother of Mountains," an adventure in the spirit of the award-winning epic "Grasscutter" by internationally celebrated storyteller Stan Sakai! Introduction by film director John Landis!

Usagi Yojimbo Vol. 22: Tomoe’s Story - Learn why Tomoe is the most valuable retainer of Lord Noriuki of the Geishu Province, then plunge into a terrifying ghost story where a string of mysterious murders points to a woman dead for ten years. Finally, experience the mesmerizing beauty of a formal tea ceremony, as Usagi and Tomoe share this spiritual event to mark the rabbit ronin's departure from the province to resume his travels. Collects Usagi Yojimbo Color Special #1-3 (originally published by Fantagraphics) and Usagi Yojimbo #90-93. Introduction by Heidi MacDonald of Publishers Weekly and features the newly redrawn "Tomoe's Story" introductory tale!

Usagi Yojimbo is showcased in Adventures Into Digital Comics.