^Nothing official, but Stan's mentioned it a couple of times in the last... two years or so?
I've written so often and so long about how Usagi's my tiptop absolute favorite comic (and there's LOTS of contenders!), all now wiped out, gone, alas, with this new reiteration of CBR, that I just want to say, again, Usagi Yojimbo has been steadily, issue after issue, the single-most entertaining and consistently high-quality writing and artwork of any comic I've read in the past forty years. Cerebus is a major achievement, but all too often toward the end, not as entertaining; Lone Wolf perhaps comes closest, but rarely engaged in a lightness of spirit Usagi often evoked; Goon-- well, another few trades-worth and Goon'll be a close contender; Kane, again a bit short on production, and rarely as consistently on-time.... and so on. Usagi, yes, indeed, rules.
oh god yes please. Darkhorse's hardcover editions are terrific. I wish they get their act together and do ones for Usagi and the Goon please!
Usagi Yojimbo is one of my favorite series. The more I read it, the more I like it and admire Stan Sakai for his storytelling. Each volume is fairly accessible for new readers. Sakai is very skilled at communicating everything we need to know about the characters that Usagi encounters (e.g., Usagi has met them before, considers them friends/enemies, Gen is a bounty hunter, Kitsune is a thief, etc.). My advice is to start from the beginning so you can appreciate the world building, but you can pretty much grab a volume at random. Grasscutter is a good place to start if you want to begin with an epic-length story.
I think my favorite story is the issue with the tea ceremony. It felt like it had the gravity of a wedding ceremony, and it felt like a culmination of Usagi's and Tomoe's relationship up to that point.
Last edited by Fatty Meats Five; 05-04-2014 at 06:34 AM.
I have all of the trades, and really enjoy the series.
If I had to pick a favorite story arc it would be Grasscutter.
Just an update.. I just got fantagraphics vol. 1 2 and 3 (1 was second printing and 2 & 3 were first printings) for $20 off eBay. Also, found vol. 4 and 5 first prints for $15 a piece.. don't know if thats worth it though. could buy the IDW reprints for like $12 each on amazon.. although, the first prints from fantagraphics ARE cool