Dark Horse Comics Usagi Yojimbo #38                      Reunion  May 2000 (Click on the thumbnails to view full size cover art)

USAGI YOJIMBO LETTERS COLUMN
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Dear Stan,

Congratulations as usual for a cracking good whodunit. I must admit that while the villain was on my list of suspects, you displayed such a masterful balance of clues and misdirection that I was still left surprised at the solution and kicking myself for not figuring it out.

I also liked the ending with Nitta still as spiteful as ever against his father – and ronin in general – and Usagi unable to contradict him meaningfully. I was left hoping that Nitta could be caught in some crime that would allow Usagi to challenge him, but that would be clichéd and not how life goes.

By the way, it occurred to me that since you've done Usagi in a space opera, have you ever thought of spoofing one of Akira Kurosawa's most famous fans, Sergio Leone, and doing Usagi as a spaghetti western gunfighter? Think of him as "The Rabbit with No Name," and that may give you a fistful of ideas.

Endless inspiration and success to you.

Kenneth Chisholm
kchishol@execulink.com

Dear Stan S. and Diana S.,

I didn't want Demon Mask to turn out to be either Inspector Kojo, Assistant Inspector Nitta, or ronin Kuroda...and the best thing I can say about the conclusion of the mystery trilogy in Usagi Yojimbo [Vol. 3] #36 was that I could live with the ending.

Considering the deserved impact Inspector Ishida has had on readers, it would be dangerous to have a second friendly inspector in the life of the rabbit ronin, and so Kojo had to turn out to be the killer and to be eliminated. However, his fate was well handled: the love of a father for his son driving a man to desperate measures echoed, in a way, Kuroda's failure to reconcile with Nitta and promised, in a way, to echo further on with the "Duel at Kitanoji," with Usagi and Jotaro. Even better, while Usagi called the inspector "insane," the insanity remained articulate and eloquent, only becoming deranged when the out-of-shape deputy entered the picture. Kojo gave as good as he got in the sword fight, and Stan made it one of his best. (Page 23, panel 1 was superb and should be included in a textbook of comic book art as an example of showing motion and the passage of time within a single panel.)

Yet, perhaps Stan's real achievement was in bringing home the sadness of it all. Kojo lost his son, his reason, and his life; Kuroda lost his life and never reconciled with his son; and Nitta seemed to have learned nothing from the incident whatsoever. The anger in Usagi's expression at the end was almost tangible, and I found myself hoping for a sequel in which Nitta would learn that he was wrong, if not about his father, then at least about Usagi. (Here's a thought for you: have Nitta learn his error from a son and a father...specifically Gen, whose father would have committed seppuku, and whose decision to carry honor to the extreme cost him everything; and Sanshobo, who lost his son because he had to make reparation to his lord and master. Think about it sometime, Stan.)

In short, you pulled off another splendid story, Stan, as well as giving us a lesson in fire fighting, an amusing sword practice session (those two deputies were a lot of fun), and permitting Usagi to play detective with the skill of an Ishida. We had death's heads all over Demon Mask's robe, which made all the more poignant the one use of it in the story as he breathed his last, and the fire interlude was thrilling. (So were your exclamation points in the word balloons, which deserve to join "Good Lord! Choke!" as comics legend, if not to return "sigh" and "gasp" to the fore.) Once again, your black-and-white artistry generated its own color so well that going from the great cover wasn't jarring at all. Tom Luth did his best (in fact, I think he did better than his best! He was magnificent on the armor, the three robes of the killer, the ronin, and the dead man on the deceptively tranquil yellow of the floor), and you did yours, and no one could ask for any more, or say any more, either.

Charles Sperling
37-15 Parsons Boulevard
Flushing, NY 11354-5814

Dear Mr. Sakai,

I enjoy the way you weave a lot of Japanese mythology in with the stories and also the care you take in researching feudal Japan. Tell me, where can I get stories about the tanuki and kitsuné ? I love stories and would like to read more about them. Also, I like the fact that your characters reflect real people. Too many comics have characters with perfect bodies and drop-dead good looks. It is refreshing to have more normal characters. Well, that's all for now. Thanks again for making my day brighter.

Sabrina Bowker
sabrina-bowker@hotmail.com

Your best bet is to look for references on Japanese folktales and mythology. Japanese Ghosts and Demons by Stephen Addiss, 1985, George Braziller, Inc., NY, has an entire chapter devoted to these two tricksters. Also, check out the Usagi Mystics website at http://www.geocities.com/uymystics.