The Art of USAGI YOJIMBO #1

There's been much hullabaloo of late over director's cuts. You know, those re-released laser discs containing "extended footage" - scenes reclaimed from the cutting room floor, extricated interviews or unseen trailers. A ravenous public has demanded another look at their favorite classics, demanded to be on the inside, to see and know the forbidden facts, to glean more meaning - hidden like diamonds amongst the dust - in their favorite works. Not just movies, but music, novels, games and even comics. We love being privy to secrets and I think it says something wonderful about our culture. At the least we're insatiably curious. However, I suspect there's more. Cynics let slip, too easily, that we've become a superficial society, caught up in a quagmire of mass media. Bombarded by slick advertisements, inundated with diversions - we've little time for reflection; one might fear those critics have a point. But this doesn't account for our insatiable desire for that "extended footage." Why do we continually return to the thoughtfully written story, the cleverly directed movie, the skillfully drawn story? We revere these qualifies; they are our passion. Our society (perhaps not so bereft as we were led to believe) rightfully venerates these works. There's a reason they're called classics, and a reason the people who create them are called masters. More than simply wanting to relive the story itself, we want to retrace the artist's original path, to see for ourselves how his or her fertile idea took root, to examine the process of creativity, to see what was discarded, kept or reworked and to question for ourselves, "Why?" More than insatiable curiosity, perhaps we're students, learning, experiencing and living through their work. Perhaps somehow we're acknowledging their rich contribution to our lives.

Contained herein are the unseen works of Usagi: forgotten sketches, commissions and discarded designs. A director's cut, if you will. I encourage you to reflect on this work for it is both rich and rewarding. It is a rare glimpse into a masterful creation and perhaps the most insightful Usagi work to date. Long-time fans, such as I, will be pleased because this volume collects work ranging from difficult to impossible to find anywhere else. And, if this is your first exposure to Stan's work I envy you, for a road of wonder and delight awaits you.

- Pat Duke

Last change: 19. May 2003

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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 authors imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons (living or dead), events, institutions, or locales, without satiric content, is coincidental.