Pam's Book Log

20 October, 2002

There are two general types of Lone Wolf and Cub. There are "arc" stories, which are directly relevant to Ogami Itto's quest for revenge against the Yagyu clan, and "non-arc" stories, in which Itto and Daigoro serve mainly to provide a framework for other people's stories. Volume 11 is composed entirely of stories the first type. It continues with the adventures of Itto and Daigoro after they were separated in Volume 10, their reunion, and how Itto uncovers another clue to the secret of the "Yagyu letters."

The episode which gives the volume its title, "Talisman of Hades," is particularly notable because it shows how Itto really feels about his son, something I've wondered about, as I've read the series. "Thirteen Strings," at 116 pages, practically qualifies as a graphic novel in and of itself, and it's got enough plot to qualify it as one. It's got all the features of a good Western or Samurai film: the strong-but-silent wanderering hero (Itto), a han of starving peasants on the brink of revolt, a feudal lord who's putting the squeeze on the peasants, a high-spirited young lady. However, the lord isn't as greedy and cruel as stereotype would expect him to be, the young lady is not the love interest, and the peasants really don't want to revolt, they just feel that they're being pushed to their limit and have no choice. It's a great story, with an exciting climax. It may be my favorite Lone Wolf story so far.

Quite the opposite of Volume 11, Volume 12 consists almost entirely of stories where Itto and Daigoro are not the center of the plot. All but one of these stories center on one of the main themes of Lone Wolf and Cub: revenge. In "Nameless, Penniless, Lifeless," a ruined man seeks vengence against the criminal who destroyed his life. "Shattered Stones" is about a disgraced samurai who seeks to destroy his wife, who betrayed and abandoned him when she got the chance to become the local lord's concubine. In "Wife Killer," a stage magician desires to take on a gang of thugs who have, with the help of a former master magician, been extorting protection money from other magicians by threatening to reveal the secrets behind their tricks. All of these people hire Ogami Itto to assist them, but, interestingly, not to actually kill their antagonists.

"Nameless, Penniless, Lifeless" deserves particular mention. It is extremely shocking and graphic-- it deals with what can only be described as a hard-core porn show. The first time I read it, I didn't like it, because it was so disturbing. I read it again, though, and since the shock had worn off, I realized that it was actually a good story, and fits very well into the Lone Wolf and Cub oeuvre. The situation of the couple in the story is really just a more extreme version of Itto and Daigoro's. In any case, it's a perfect demonstration that distasteful material can indeed have artistic merit which is a direct consequence of its distastefulness. The story wouldn't be nearly so affecting if all the sexual material was toned down to PG-13 (or even R) level.