Lone Wolf and Cub Volume 24: In These Small Hands

by Kazuo Koike

Dark Horse Comics is proud to present one of the authentic landmarks in graphic fiction, Lone Wolf and Cub, to be published in its entirety for the first time. Lone Wolf and Cub is an epic samurai adventure of staggering proportions -- a 17th century story of a disgraced Shogun's executioner wandering the country as an assassin.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1569715963
• ISBN13: 9781569715963
• Release Date: August 2002
• Publisher: Dark Horse Manga
• Length: 320 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 4.2" x 6.4"
• Age Range: 16 years and up

Customer Reviews

Ogami Itto and Retsudo Yagyu are unable to continue...

The epic saga of Lone Wolf & Cub certainly changed once father and son finally entered Edo, the city of the Shogun. But the final confrontation between Ogami Itto and Retsudo Yagyu has been disrupted by the intrigues of Abe-No-Kaii, the master poisoner. As "In These Hands," Volume 24 of this manga saga by Kazuo Koike and Goseki Kojima opens, the two master swordsmen have collapsed in the snow, felled not by the wounds they have inflicted upon each other, but by the poison with which Kaii tainted their blades: (117) "Child in the Fields" finds Daigoro struggling to save his father's life, even though the child has a severe case of frostbite. If Daigoro succeeds, then who will save him? Another touching example of a Daigoro story in the series. (118) "In These Small Hands" finds Daigoro's life in the hands of the most unexpected person of all. Meanwhile, the Yagyu letter falls into the hands of another. (119) "Kaii Triumphant" reminds us that every dog has his day as Abe-No-Kaii's latest plot seems to bring him as close as he has ever been to his quest for power. (120) "The Last Cherry Blossoms" begins with Ogami Itto and Retsudo Yagyu appointing the time for the continuation of their duel. Each prepares for the resumption of the duel in his own way, Retsudo by spearing cherry blossoms from the air and Ogami Itto by visiting the house that once was his home.(121) "Stone Upon Stone" finds Retsudo Yagyu called before the Shogun to answer for the Yagyu letters. This is a most unusual story because the sparring is all done with words rather than swords this time around. The emergence of Abe-No-Kaii as a major player in the death struggle between Ogami Itto and Retsudo Yagyu brings to the forefront the way of the warrior, bushido, and what it means to be bushi, a member of the samurai class. Obviously Kaii is not bushi, a point that Retsudo reminds the poisoner of on several occasions. But it seems to me that in castigating Kaii for his failings in that regard and having been confronted with the example of Diagoro, that Retsudo adheres more to bushido in the last couple of volumes with regards to Ogami Itto than he has over the course of the entire epic. It is also interesting that so late in the game Koike and Kojima succeed in introducing another major villain, who not only functions to delay the climatic sword fight but to make Retsudo look good in comparison. Only four volumes to go until the conclusion of one of the greatest comic books in the history of the known world.