After the battle of Sekigahara, the masterless samurai fight die slowly as one kills all the others while one cannot die at all.
What They Say:
17th century Japan: a time and place of violent upheaval. Into this strange and dangerous world come Wolverine, Pyslocke, Punisher, Hulk and Deadpool. Five of Marvel’s greatest heroes as you’ve never seen them before!
The Review:
To say that Logan is well suited to all things Japanese is very much an understatement, so when Marvel announced an alternate world miniseries entitled 5 Ronin, it felt very much like a natural fit. The book, written by the always intriguing Peter Milligan and illustrated by Tomm Coker who is spot on perfect for it, takes us back to the year sixteen hundred where it’s after the battle of Sekigahara and there have been serious losses. Those who served under the master that died have been turned out as ronin, unable to fight for honor as they have all their lives, they now travel the roads looking for some way to reclaim their honor or just to survive. Prideful for the most part, they do what they know best but largely they fall victim to their own pride. The story opens by showing us one of these brothers, a ronin now who travels the path and is off to a temple to meet with his other brothers.
Unfortunately, he’s been duped as one of them has been coldly killing all the rest as he comes across them. While most ronin trade their armor for traditional garb, one has not and he’s intent on killing all those he calls brother, and does so brutally. Yet while he does this, a legend grows about a former samurai who cannot be killed. While we see one of these brothers die early on, one that looks exactly like Logan (who is never named within the issue, but we’ll call him that for the sake of simplicity), the story shifts to Logan himself as he grouses in a small tavern when the innkeeper talks poorly about ronin and how they’re dragging everyone down. Of course, the daimyo of that area has a lot to do with it as he’s helped to eliminate many of the bandits in the area, but there are hushed whispers by drunken men about how he hunts more than just that.
The story sets the stage well here as we see Logan discover what his brother has been up to and the connection that they all share as these former samurai all look alike, though Logan has that extra mystery about him as the one that supposedly cannot be killed. As it explores the story, it has a sense of grandness about it that comes from so few words and is rather made more of by the setting and how Logan tells the tale through the thought captions. There’s a dark and oppressive feel to much of it, as both the writing and the artwork captures the feel of the time and its people as so much is out of their control, and Logan has that mixture of being someone who believes in the right thing needing to be done, but has disdain for those that speak ill of what he considers to be something honorable. While ronin have fallen, they still have their pride and belief in what they have done.
Digital Notes:
The comiXology edition of the book contains some of the extras that were available in the print edition with a page of characters sketches done parchment style for Logan and a two page spread showing off the enxt issue as well as covers for all the remaining issues, both in their detailed former and with the character names attached. Only the edition with the character name is included for the cover of this issue itself.
In Summary:
Because of the nature of the story here, and the amusing trick of character early on, the setup here is somewhat lean and there isn’t exactly a whole lot of meat to it. But a lot is being laid out with a somewhat traditional samurai turned ronin story, yet there are larger manipulations in the picture that we can sense, especially as other characters will be making their way into the series in subsequent issues. This opening installment does a really nice job of establishing the setting and making it feel as rough and raw as it should be. Milligan does a solid job writing this and has largely done his homework, but it’s Coker’s artwork that really sells it even more. The style, the angular look with certain character designs at times, the heavy darks and the general roughness of it all is very inviting and gives it an authentic feel that heightens the atmosphere. There’s a lot to like here and a lot of potential, but Logan is ideally suited for it. The real challenge will come with how the rest of the characters are brought into it and whether they take it too far to the surreal or whether it all blends together right. So far, my money’s on Milligan pulling it off.
Grade: B+
