Usagi Yojimbo: Ice and Snow #1 Review

Usagi Yojimbo: Ice and Snow #1 Review

“The close of sixteenth-century Japan is regarded as the age of civil wars, as feudal lords fought
amongst themselves for land and power. It was during the battle of Adachigahara that the
samurai Miyamoto Usagi lost his lord Mifune to the armies of Lord Hikiji. With no clan, Usagi
now walks the warrior pilgrimage, searching for harmony. Discovering a long-lost cousin
recently, Usagi and his newly-found relative Yukichi head south in the winter, leaving the warmth of a kind couple’s home in Sendai Province in Northern Honshu . . .”

Most people miss the short epilogues, and I felt I’d give it some life here. I think it was really lost in the blue design. As an editor, the placement of such an important piece of content shouldn’t have been on the credits page. I know most people think YA when they see Usagi Yojimbo, but if you think about the source material, it’s watered-down history in a more likable format.

As someone who’s studied the culture for my own IP, Wild Oni, I’m usually very critical of the genre, but after reading Stan Sakai’s work, he captures the story in a unique element with grace and contemporary subtlety in its delivery, removing the savagery from the story to educate a new audience. I can respect that, and because of his approach, it’s understandable to see Usagi reach such heights, even crossing over with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

like history, and ever more so history on the content of the publications I like to read, so if that is also you, then I bet you’d be thrilled to know that Usagi actually appeared in two episodes of the TMNT animated series in 1987 as a warrior from an alternate reality that Donatello discovers by mistake. Even further back than that, before Dogu Publishing released the modernized version of Usagi, he’d been published previously in 1984 by Thoughts and Images Publishing in an independent issue of Albedo Anthropomorphics #2.

I thought that was pretty neat, especially for those of you who pride yourselves on being shamans of comic history in your comic circles. If you want to know more about Usagi Yojimbo, then I’d head on over to this awesome video I found about The History of Usagi Yojimbo on YouTube, or at least his comic publication history.

Spinning off in reference to The Green Dragon, Usagi and his cousin Yukichi find themselves in the bitter cold forest with two bags of gold, food, and nothing but time. The dangers of being a wanderer are, of course, bandits—lots of them. A group of sword-wielding cats test their nine lives in a face-off against Usagi but lose three bandit brothers in fur in the process. Usagi is suddenly pulled in the direction of nowhere, and Yukichi, concerned, is forced to follow him.

His odd tug of fate leads him to a small cottage in the mountains, where they gather around a hearth to get warm and eat, thanks to their gracious host, Yuki. Meanwhile, elsewhere, covered in snow, Keiko and her uncle forge for food, looking for a place to get warm.

They too stumble upon a cottage, but inside is not a warm welcome but a den of thieves hiding from the elements. When the boss becomes callous and egocentric, Keiko’s uncle defeats him with silence first, then with a warrior’s prowess. By the end, he is the new leader, and Keiko gets to eat. Did I mention Usagi may or may not witness Yukichi getting eaten by a yoaki?

Stan Sakai definitely knows how to set up a story for great things. How Keiko and her uncle will cross paths with Usagi and Yukichi is the plot point to look for here, but I’ll assume it’s not a frozen payoff. I can definitely see how taking away the senseless after-effects of violent battle gives the story some sense of tolerance, but I just don’t think these are YA topics.

Now that TMNT has matured—somewhat—with the release of The Last Ronin, it’s easy to see the manipulation and targeting of corporate or LLC-driven entities as they plow through the economic roadblocks that keep them from making big bucks. As Stan Sakai says in a fan letter at the end,

“I mentioned that Usagi Yojimbo has been published for almost forty years. Does that mean
Usagi, the character, is forty years old? Not by a long shot. Time in Usagi’s world works
differently than in ours.”

I think Usagi has spent 40 years doing a great job at not only educating and entertaining but also preserving his culture, and that’s a great homage to thousands of years of rich Asian history. In my opinion, it’s time for Usagi to grow up. It’s time for Donny, Raph, Mike, and Leo to grow up and move on. As someone who’s grown up with this property, these IPs are a little out of touch with the reality of how kids these days process and fight obstacles.

While cultural traditions will always have something to offer the youth of any new generation, it is time that the tradition of who provides that knowledge be honored. In every historical culture across the globe, the old honor the next generation of preservers by peacefully stepping aside, and publishers, I think, don’t know how to do that.

It’s one of the many issues of reader fatigue that no one really acknowledges because they go on to write the next issue of Squirrel Girl, Bat Girl, Teen Titans, Wild Cats, Superman, and even Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Not to make a statement at the expense of an iconic creator like Stan Sakai, but what stories could he have told had he matured Usagi in ten years, then moved on?

We might have gotten Space Usagi: Yokai Hunter a little earlier than announced at the 2023 San Diego Comic-Con, where Usagi has to save his girlfriend from Japanese demons. It’s something I don’t think authors think about too often, which is that when you write something, you’re not just inviting the reader to have an experience.

You’re also inviting a reader to be open-minded, and that is potentially opening a doorway into what will ultimately become the things they’re drawn to as adults and what their kids will like when they’re older.

No one ever thinks of that, so if you’re going to wield a sword, then give me the blood too. If you’re going to sell me your history, then I want the truth about all of it. We get so used to hiding the guts and passing the blood off as ketchup because we think we’re shielding kids and teens from the horrors of generational trauma, but what we’re doing is taking away their choice to accept that the world is both beautiful and dangerous, as the title of Ice and Snow suggests.

I know you think it’s just a comic; oh, it’s just a YouTube video or just a TikTok, but what it is and what it’s been molded to be are two totally different things. Duality, just like a yoaki, can’t also be a gracious host, understand? For the sake of the story and to relax from critical thinking mountain, this issue of Usagi was fun, but ultimately the set-up was something greater, like all comics are, puzzles that only get better as you connect the pieces.

If you like Usagi Yojimbo and don’t give two s**ts about my opinion, then head on over to your favorite online or in-person comic retailer. Personally, I’m going to visit Tessa Rose down the street at Jak’s, who’s had the pleasure of doing some Usagi Yojimbo work in the past, to get a personal piece.

If you’re ever in the Biloxi area, then I encourage you to visit Jak’s to meet Tessa and Sonny, who often visit local and southern comic cons to mingle with the geeks, freaks, and nerds who responsibly preserve and practice our fun popular culture. As always, stay geeky, share the network, and don’t forget to catch the latest on Fueled By Weird.