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USAGI YOJIMBO LETTERS COLUMN
Send comments to: Usagi Yojimbo ~ Letters Column c/o Dark Horse Comics
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UsagiYojimbo
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STORY NOTES Japan has an incredibly rich tradition of folklore. Usagi has encountered a few of the more maleficent obaké (haunts), such as the kappa, obakéneko, the tengu, and the nue, and will, no doubt, meet up with a few more. This issue, however, focuses on some of the weirder of the Japanese monsters of folklore. I grew up hearing of some of these creatures in Hawaii, which has a huge Japanese-American population. A mujina (faceless woman) was purported to have haunted the women's restroom at the old Waialae Drive-In Theatre in Honolulu. She really didn't do anything. The story usually unfolds as a woman goes into the restroom and sees a girl coming her long hair. She sees a reflection of her face in the mirror...only there is no face, just a smooth, egg-like shape. The girl may or may not have feet...a trait common to many Japanese ghosts. The drive-in is no longer there, having been torn down to make way for a subdivision. Many obakémono seem to be fairly benign, such as the rokuroshikubi (long-neck woman) or the sasosho (that hairy foot with the eye)...and what's with that walking umbrella (bakegasa)? For another story of a mujina and other strange tales, I suggest Kwaidan by Lafcadio Hearn (Dover Publications, NY, 1968). |
Dear Stan,
I was reading an older issue of Usagi Yojimbo [Vol. 1] #31 (the conclusion of "Circles") and was wondering: Will Jotaro ever know who his real father is? Kenichi is his father now and has raised him. But you can see the pain in Usagi's eyes when Jotaro calls him "Uncle Usagi." Will Mariko ever sit him down and tell him? I know Mariko cannot be with Usagi since she is married to Kenichi and it would dishonor him if she did anything. But doesn't Usagi feel dishonored knowing Jotaro has been thinking all this time that Kenichi is his father?
Jupie
jupie069@idir.net
Jotaro will be making an appearance in an upcoming issue which will set the stage for a father-and-son reunion.
Stan,
Lady Maple's son! I was actually right, but that was the easy part. I still missed Chamberlain Toyofuku's involvement, and I didn't even begin to guess at Maple's backstory or Kotaro's paternal parentage. As I've said [in a previous letter], I am not going to be mistaken for the world's greatest detective anytime soon.
Wonderful work, Stan. See everyone next time for another visit from Inspector Ishida.
Michael C. Lorah
219 Waupelani Dr.,
#W-12
State College, PA 16801
Hey Stan! I'm a big fan of Usagi Yojimbo, as well as a big fan of Akiko comics. I've recently e-mailed Mark Crilley about a "crossover" with Akiko and Usagi. He said he'd love the idea, but time would be a factor. I'm sure you'd say the same, but I thought I'd at least plant the idea in your head. I mean, Usagi did meet Akiko, Spuckler, and Mr. Beeba on the splash page of Usagi Yojimbo [Vol. 3] #28 anyway, so how hard could it be to get them to go a couple more pages? The story could take place between pages 1 and 2 of Usagi [Vol. 3] #28. Akiko and the gang could have arrived in your "universe" again, via the Trans-Spatial Surroundulator Mr. Beeba created in Akiko #26. You and Mark could look at this as being a big event with the characters – maybe even use Mark's back cover to issue #27 of Usagi Yojimbo as the front cover, with Akiko standing next to Usagi in her kimono outfit. Just a thought. Thanks for your time and for the great comic you've created with the rabbit bodyguard.
Vance Harris
vance.harris@juno.com
First of all, let me congratulate you on your fine taste in reading matter. Akiko is, indeed, a superb book and well deserving of the many accolades it has received. Also, Mark Crilley is a heck of a nice guy. I would love to do a crossover with Akiko . Time is just one of the factors involved. There's also the artwork: Who draws what? Do I draw my characters and Mark draws his? Do we just split the book in half? Who gets to keep the originals? How will the story be written?
Sergio Aragonés and I have wanted to do a crossover for a long time. So far, we've plotted out a six-issue miniseries, and that took us six years to do!
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"Usagi Yojimbo", including all prominent characters featured in the stories and the distinctive likenesses thereof are trademarks of Stan Sakai and Usagi Studios. Usagi Yojimbo is a registered trademark of Stan Sakai. Names, characters, places, and incidents featured in this publication either are the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons (living or dead), events, institutions, or locales, without satiric content, is coincidental.