previously: >>153478796
today we'll look at the two issues from Kaito 84 that have been released so far.
>those reflections god I love watercolor.
cool sound effects
she's cute!
check that speed effect on the passing car in the middle panel, that's the good stuff
tokagé still exist, good.
goddammit yukichi
buddha helps us, here's something even worse than shogunate politics- late showa politics!
oh shit, is that what I think it is?
r e l a x also I can see why that anon pointed out the artstyle feels "more furry", kitsuné looks feral. but I don't think it's strictly a bad thing.
>>153493478Oh boy it's time for this huh I'm gonna be real conceptually I just didn't gel with this but I guess it's time to give it a look and see if it agrees with me after all.
>>153493478Fitting OP for the era this takes place inhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iXe-4Sipgtg&pp=ygUVY2l0eSBodW50ZXIgb3BlbmluZyAu
>re-reading every usagi yojimbo story >researching japan well that doesn't sound so hard does it
>>153493711I see it as a spin off, which I don't really mind. it's good so far.
>accurate skull anatomy huh
Am I the only guy thinking about Blacksad for colours and frame?
...I'm gonna keep the art gallery for last, there was something crazy there. >>153493781no you're not. a big part of it is the watercolors. blacksad is much more cohesive though, it doesn't use sketchy or blotches of color as much as this does.
>kaitosagi is a thief>this is the timeline where kitsune won the usagibowl
now onto the second issue.
>>153493666Looks like the Nekos evolved into the Arashikage. Storm Shadow Chizu when?
>>153493587>MarikoOh fuck, does Jotaro exist?
good old gen!
>>153493810you sure about that pal? also, kyoko is cute! >>153493830>teen pregnancy arc
>>153493845Kiyoko a cute.
>knocked out AND stolen fromsuch is life in late shōwa japan
alright, this is fucking cool! tomoe as a cop makes so much sense, and ishida is just the cherry on top. also is that a AE86 police car!?
>>153493899Classical Eurobeat begins to resound...
what the
>>153493899>'84 Tomoeĺ & Ishida Themehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9UtUzjUA5Q&pp=ygUQcGF0bGFib3Igb3BlbmluZ9IHCQneCgGHKiGM7w%3D%3D
>>153493899https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ty9Xd03_rvQReturning!
oh shit
OOH SHIT
>>153493923Christ, that's mean.
holy fucking shit
>>153493929WHY DO YOU HAVE TO PRICK YOUR FINGER ON IT YOU IDIOT!?
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
one thing is for certain- tomoe still a cute!
>>153493904Gen must moonlight as the Rhino or something.
THEY'RE ACTUALLY DOING IT!! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
>>153493994He just can't retire.
>>153493994BY GOD HES STILL AT IT
>>153493994Where the fuck were you between 1933 and 1945? Battling Colonel Olrik?
kitsune fans are rejoicing
>>153493994Ending Theme https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q0hk3FtTD3Y&pp=ygUUZ2V0IHdpbGQgY2l0eSBodW50ZXI%3D
absolute unit of a guy
>>153493899>Cop TomoeDid they steal my cyberpunk sloppa idea?
>>153493926>>153494035great choices by the way
>>153493974Okay Tomoe you have just said these words, where are my sexy Natsumi and Miyuki? WHERE?
>>153494023Imprisoned in Castle Wolfenstein
>that cover by stanTOMOE
>>153493679>Shonen Leap>Bundam
>>153494023dealing with a bad case of karakasa kozō
>>153494080>Bundam>Tragedy and war crimes in space but everyone is bunnieshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8tbu7kxIEU
>>153493704still would
and this was Kaitō 84! what did you think of it? personally I'm loving it, wasn't expecting that twist. in fact, the biggest criticism I can throw at it is that this could've easily been a volume or two instead of two issues! speaking of which the next one is set to release this month, I think.
>>153493994So that's it?
>>153494113See, I told you the pacing was wonky!Can't wait for the next issue though.
>>153493946>Dead Kitsune holding KyokoThat's sad
>>153493946Wishbo... Stray Dog! NOOOOOO!
>>153493899MAX POWER MAX POWERhttps://youtu.be/eLnqdKXZ1xQ?si=6zSuAJk68SKTClcy
>>153494142I'm imagining what they could have done with more time. imagine a more normal pacing introducing each character, playing around with action and SoL manga tropes before going into this thing. I want to see more cop tomoe!
>>153493967YOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
>>153494214>I want to see more cop tomoe!Urge to post my old sloppa... rising...
Told you you're gonna love it.>>153493899>Tomoe and IshidaSo Ishida DEFINETLY lives either in Osaka or in a town nearby which became a district of it later.>>153493946>Gen and Stray dog are still together
>>1534941183 more issues.
>>153493613I just want to say I like Kaito Yukichi more than mainline. Mainline felt like Stan getting shackled with something and trying to figure out how to use it while in Kaito the dynamic is a lot more natural. Probably helps that it's not heavily tied to thirty years of stories
>>153494286For now, I mean. Seems like a short storytime, unless someone else had something in mind
>>153494231I still have the "tea time" sloppa. That of course can't be posted here
>>153493967And there it is. Either we just got a SERIOUS teaser or they just did the hypest shit for nothing
>>153494346Well naturally. I was talking about the Cyberpunk characters I slopped together while still amazed at the newness of image generating.
>>153494023>Japan up to some SHIT during the Twenties to Fourties>All the war and atrocities are creating and empowering Yokai all over>Imperial officers also hunting around for powerful relics to weaponize unleashing all sorts of horrorsDude was probably up to his neck in supernatural bullshit. Go play the Raido games if you want to see what it was probably like
>>153494113Art is killer and 'm genuinely excited about that flashback. I kinda hope Stan let's them actually spin this off into it's own series since it scratches an itch only Cyberpunk 2077 managed to
>>153493478This franchise would be ten times more successful if the main guy was a chick
>>153494370I'm not buying this is anything other than a spin off. >>153494310I'm stretching the storytime out in the interest of reaching the end on a weekend isntead of the middle of the week.
>>153494623And you'd be ten times more successful if you didn't have shit for brains.
Take bets on how long it will be before Gen's horn gets cut off.
>>153493529>pineapple immediately denied
>>153494711I'm betting it happens in final issue of this storyline.
I hate to be the contrarian but this feels like a story and setting that just happens to have Usagi characters in it.
>>153494498The synopsis of issue 5 promises more adventures, so let's hope this sells.>>153494370I think this is like Senso, a giant WHAT IF.
>>153494735This isn't your dad's Usagi!!
>>153493546The small bean!
>>153493613He's got a nardo!
>>153494301>felt like Stan getting shackled with somethingWait, could this actually be true? Was he really trying to promote Samurai Rabbit by introducing Yukichi?
>>153493666...is that Jei's spear? Broken and repaired?**kintsugi is a Japanese artform where broken objects are repaired using gold to join the pieces back together, highlighting the previous damage rather than hiding it.
>>153493587Mariko's kimono pattern is surpisingly functional as a 1980s sweater.
>>153493636Man, looks like Noriyuki did have sex.
>>153493876Somehow these feels more wrong than when 17th century Kistune knocks a guard unconscious. Maybe it's the lack of civic authority in normal Usagi.
>>153493704I like the "rough" look that Kitsune has here. Doesn't look like she's supposed to be canonically super-pretty (which never comes up in the main run anyway)
>>153494080Excuse you, ShoNAN Leap.
>>153495404Or, hear my schizo theory out.A Conspiracy forced him to add Yukichi! A Conspiracy by new publisher wanting him to introduce the series main cast to new readers, without having to create some long character bio pages with a list of references on which stories and what comics they first appeared in.
>>153495489Looks more like a tanuki(yes, they're real animals) than a panda to me
>>153493738So, does this mean Stan has creative control over the, for lack of a better word, big plot beats? Things relating to the descendants, any reveals that might affect the main series, and so on?
>>153493834I like the different way Gen is drawn.>>153493845Holy shit Kitsune looks sinister as fuck.
>>153495491>the lack of civic authority in normal Usagiloominginspectorishida.png
>>153495531seppuku when?
>>153493899>'83 blue hatchbackThe car's only a couple years old and it's a piece of shit that can't start right?
>>153493979She still has NO GAME!
>>153493994>Area man still getting fucked by lax labor laws
>>153493513>I got the call last nightB-Bogdanoff-dono??!>>153493613Chashu is pork belly. This and the items on the spread the crooked politician's assistant is laying out for Kaitosagi here >>153493636 is interesting. So in '84 we're just side-stepping the question of why animal-people can eat each other.>>153493666Boy you better not. That spear is no good.>>153493679>>153494080>>153494102>Yukichi? Isn't that a GIRL'S name?
>>153493899Is that Tomoe?OH SHIT IS THAT ISHIDA????>>153493913>ninja riding Ninja'sA classic.>>153493923Oh no. Oh no no no no NO>>153493949WHAT????>>153493994W H A A A A T ? ? ? ? ? ?
>>153493904The '80s...the golden age of ninja movies...
>>153495821Really burns your jigokus. don't it!
>>153495722>Yukichi ends up witnessing his mothers death in space, loses a girlfriend who becomes a living core for a FUCKING EVIL giant robot, kills some asshole psychic with mind bullets and then loses his mind, becoming a debendant upon his childhood friend who lusts after himFeudal space is a shitty place.
>>153494083I don't like the cover. Spoils the big surprise at the end.
>>153493979For some reason this page makes me wants these guys to do a Swat Kats comic.
>>153493636I keep forgetting the end of Showa is 89 and not like, 81. In my head the 80s are already Heisei>>153493603Jei face on panel 12>>153495531Which is an actual location so it works as a pun>>153493679>Bundamwonder if that's the plan for Senso reprints if there's ever legal issues>>153495570Presumably, yeah. I don't recall us ever hearing about an Usagi descendant who's a thief in 80s Japan, so that might've been an idea Zack and Jared came up with, but otherwise they've mentioned multiple times scripts being submitted to "Stan and his family" so at the very least there's probably some degree of Stan getting to go "yeah do that" or "no don't do that" or "try this">>153493834The main comic had already been heading this way for a while but it's interesting to note how this comic ties itself to real geography. They presumably used Sakai because hee hee haa haa, but it IS a real place in Osaka, which obviously is also a real place. No vague "Genshu lands" here.>>153494023The mysterious Usagi villain...
>>153494055YUA was a good showhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zb2j_PQYM6c>>153493899It's a Honda Today. Because You're Under Arrest!
>>153493991Makes me realize a difference in approach between Sakai and this comic re: the animal characters; while the original Gen does in a figurative sense rush forward in a straightforward manner like a charging rhino, he's never shown to be some sort of physical powerhouse compared to other characters.
>>153493994>Kitsune immediately covers Kiyokocute
>>153493704There's a lot of stylistic details that you rarely see done by non furry artists>>153493979>one thing is for certain- tomoe still a cute!Preach
>>153493704ENTER BEST GIRL
>>153495942>I keep forgetting the end of Showa is 89 and not like, 81. In my head the 80s are already HeiseiI keep track using Godzilla movies
>>153494031The attempt to approximate the original's old-timey hairstyle as a shaggy '80s 'do with a ponytail looks good.
>>153495943>YUA was a good showThe OVA may have some cool chase scenes but the TV series is a tepid sitcom.
I feel I tend to be pessimistic about media as kind of a protective attitude- if I more easily see the negatives, then I won't be disappointed because I already saw them. So forcing myself to make this post first that focuses on the positives- the art is great, the watercolours are amazing, really like the detail and believability of the setting, with the vehicles especially being impressive- it's hard to draw and paint cars like that. A splash panel like >>153493869 looks obviously impressive, but I'm also heavily impressed by things like panel 5 in this page >>153493557. Really good work, very European. Saw someone comparing to Blacksad and while it's a bit too rough and expressionistic for it, it's an obvious comparison to make.I might make a post with my gripes in a bit if I feel like it, instead.>>153496029I feel that's exactly my issue- I always remember the first Godzilla in the Heisei series is actually Showa, and that vs Biollante is the one that's actually Heisei. I just always forget there's five years between them and think that Biollante came out way earlier than it did
>>153493577Yare Yare Daze
>>153493636National Diet member Hijiki wants to be Prime Minister some day.
>>153495979Not only is she best girl but also best older sister.
One amendment to yesterday's count, I missed the Nindroid.Not counting Kaito because it's a non-Sakai spin-off.>>153493929>>153493946>>153493949>>153493959>>153493967This is neat but oh how I wish Stan had done it.
>>153495942I kneel.
>>153495963Yeah, the most I think I've seen Gen do is busting down doors with Stray Dog or Usagi
>>153496133She also put Kiyoko in the dangerous position to start with and unlike feudal Japan she can get a fucking job.
>Terry Miyamoto has no idea whats up with her relations still in Japan. Only they apparently had some legal trouble and keep sending her photos of Osaka restaurants.
>>153496259this is me staring at you begging you not to start this shit again
>>153493513>>153493529Wait, is this a scar again? Because it disappeared for a panel.
Kaito cannot be more than 23-24 year.6 years ago he was at maximum 17/18.
>>153493967Actual genuine hype moment. Goddamn.
>>153496383Yeah you can see it having actual depth in how they shade it and outline it in some panels, it's a scar. When disappearing I'm assuming it's either a mistake or maybe an intentional joke about when Stan sometimes forgets to draw it
>>153496383The Miyamoto clan has a weakness to forhead scars, they just appear when their karma goes wrong.I imagine it's somehow related to Kaito's turn to avenging crime. Maybe related to his father dying?
>>153493967Wait a minute, that's Grasscutter.
>>153496467best anti-Jei weapon known
>>153494023>Sasuke having WW2 Supernatural adventures with Cap, Alucard, Nick Fury, the Rocketeer....
>>153493845Orginal Gen and Kitsune get along better than this.
>>153493501>>153493478I don't think I like it. The arts nice and everything but I just don't.... like it.
>>153496527Martian heat ray
>>153496467No it's not, that one is made of iron or steel, real grasscutter was a bronze sword.
>>153496575The two scenes aren't in continuity with each other...and it's the difference betwene srs mode Jei and "have to find something for him to do" gag Jei.
>>153496575Damnit Snake you created a time paradox!
>>153494055>>153495943
>>153496574That's ok. Personally, I DETEST all TMNT crossovers.
>>153496690>real Grasscutter was a bronze sword>this is obviously the fake Grasscutter replica made later from steel or ironHACKFRAUD Cullum does it again!!
>>153496125Is he related to Minister of Finance Hi-KI-Ji, by any chance?
>>153496538>Anon, I...
>>153494273>So Ishida DEFINETLY lives either in Osaka or in a town nearby which became a district of it later.That's a stretch of logic. Just because his '84 counterpart is in Osaka? I mean none of the other '84 characters are from Osaka either.
>>153496861They're both banked rolled by Hebi Heavy Industries and Extensive Enterprises.
>>153497021Hbi is a yakuza with a massive mural tattooed on his back.He killed Kaito's father when he wouldn't pay his protection money/standover tactics.Kaito got his record bushing up the biker gang that did it.It writes itself.
Why doesn't Lord Hebi just eat Jei?
>>153497021If there isn't a bonus #6 issue of Kaito '84 that's a salaryman comic featuring a giant possibly yokai snake wearing a business suit and tie racing against the clock to get his draft proposal in on time I am going to lose my shit
>>153497016No, because he is dead in Osaka in the past, right next to Gen and Inukai. >>153493946Those eyebrows are unmistakable >>153493899
>>153493738>>153494000These guys give off massive furry energy (at least to me).
Thanks for another year of good comics.
>>1534972011) Oh I see what you mean now, and 2) OH FUCK I MISSED ISHIDA IN THAT PANEL THE FIRST TIME AROUND FUUUUUCK, but 3) none of the other characters are from Osaka either, it seems more likely Usagi got the whole Crewsagi together for one final confrontation against Jei than they all just happened to converge in Ishidatown for the showdown. But then again maybe Ishida is supposed to be from Osaka. You could read that either way.
>>153497263Anon, we've still got senso to read through.
>>153494166Worse is that Kiyoko is screaming like a baby.
>>153497323I thought she was dead.
>>153493979
here's an update on that map project. the layout could use some work but most of the locations are there now. I'm thinking in how to show the character's movement, instead of lines I think they should just be arrows pointing the direction of travel, with the evidence linked to it. >>153497110LONG LIVE HATSUSHIBA
From Stan's Instagram account. Here is grandpa himself in Kyoto, November of last year. iirc that kabuto and the livery is supposed to be Ieyasu's personal armor, no?
>>153497382This is a great find, anon-san!
>>153497382my man is living the dream.
Why does he answer to Miyamoto Usagi if his name is Usagi Kaito
>>153497482Maybe Kaito is his nickname?
>>153497377That map is looking chef's kissu, division chief. >LONG LIVE HATSUSHIBA*Hebishiba, fixed your typo.>>153493979>>153494031I like how gremlin-y the characters in '84 are. Brings you back to the Fantagraphics/Critters era of Usagi's art style.
>>153497544Usagi is implied to have become the family name like in Samurai Rabbit
>>153494072The Eastman cover is gnarly
>>153497585That's dumb
>>153497463>>153497477You love to see it. A more recent picture of Stan. God I want that Mifune jacket so bad. From the insta post:>Throwback to an unforgettable day trip to Osaka. We kicked things off in Kyoto with a quick train ride into the city. Our first stop was a delicious okonomiyaki spot recommended by Zack>Next up was Osaka Castle. Fun fact: some of the massive stones used in its walls weigh over 100 tons and were transported without modern machinery—still a bit of a mystery how it was done!>From there, we staged a quick photo shoot along the waterway in Dotonbori to recreate the Ashcan cover of Kaito ’84. Stan rocked a Members Only jacket gifted to @dogupublishing by @jaredcullum and @comicnerd1988 at SDCC ’25, which made the moment even more special. >Of course, we had to take on the famous (and very crowded) Dotonbori strip. Since Osaka is known as the birthplace of takoyaki (Usagi’s favorite ) we made sure to grab some… though no photos survived because we devoured them immediately. >After escaping the crowds, we found a quieter spot overlooking the river before wrapping up the day with a delicious dinner and heading back to Kyoto. Anon mentioned, and I don't disagree, that the gap between the last issue of UY to come out and now is alarmingly long, and this may be a sign of Stan's failing health, and that's certainly on the table, but he did just have his younger brother pass away, so I'm hoping he's just taking the time he needs to grieve and recover, while being involved in less hands-on stuff, like doing promo work (as an excuse to travel with wife and family) and overseeing the bigger picture things going on at Dogu and with the Usagiverse.
>>153497727>God I want that Mifune jacket so badI think it's just a patch on a regular jacket.
>Stan has the pottery autism tooIt's absolutely fucking joewari da.
>>153497382Is that how the helmet is suppose to be worn? It looks like it is secured over his mouth
>>153493959>>153493967Return of Jei AND the grasscutter? Also incredibly hype moment for Usagi to drop both his swords for the grasscutter reveal.
>>153498036The rope is supposed to be secured under your lower lip, over your chin. It does look like grandpa is biting down on the rope but I think that's either just the camera angle or the rope got loose.
>>153493704They changed her catchphrase!
>>153493913Dotonbori Robo
man these are so insanely good...the setting, the little tweaks to stan's style, the watercolors...everything.it just rocks.
>>153498190Thanks. That guy has the look of "if only you knew how bad things really are" on his face.
>>153493666Heh heh heh
>>153493738>We went to the 4chan storyline threads and played Yakuza 0!
>>153495942>it's interesting to note how this comic ties itself to real geography. They presumably used Sakai because hee hee haa haa, but it IS a real place in Osaka, which obviously is also a real place. No vague "Genshu lands" here.I think the reason is that the 1980s are too close for vagueness to work for the reader. In mainline Usagi, the vagueness is useful because it allows Stan to fudge things for the plot and not worry too much if stuff doesn't line up with real geography. Nobody reading knows feudal Japanese geography from a hole in the ground anyway so the suspension of disbelief is unaffected. Here, if they tried to say "1984. The Geishu City" it would be fourteen kinds of weird and take the reader out of the story.
>>153495942Uh yeah more like GAYshu lands lmao.This post made by Hebi gang.
>>153493899This is the coolest page I've read this decade
I feel like these comics are both full of panels but it also doesn't feel like a lot has happened.
>>153497333She was.>>153497323Because Kitsune died trying to save her but failed and Kiyoko died scared in her arms.This is the scariest Jei has ever been.
>>153494113I like it except for that I think the artists are terrible at female anatomy Tomoe and Kitsune look like tall children than adults. My other gripe is a few neglected details or contrivancies, like why is Kaito being a vigilante? Because he used to steal stuff, thats it? He has such a die hard sense of justice that it seems like he would never be stealing stuff in the first place. No, it clearly is that they wanted Usagi in a 1984 setting as a character but didnt think too hard on how to get the character where they wanted it to be that is to say they came up with a cool picture and did not do a good job establishing it.Other than that its fine
>>153498843Check the image again, there's some movement lines around Kiyoko, Kitsune and Gen.Gen and Kitsune are probably dying, but Kiyoko is definitely crying there.
I like how Momo seems like a legit nice guy, if a bit oblivious; that kind of character in an antagonist role is neat don't like Yukichi being that different from the original though
>>153494011Beautiful.
>>153493899That last panel is fucking AWESOME, and the rest of the page is fantastic too. I kinda love this whole thing so far. But then, as I said in a previous thread, I'm a sucker for the "thief with a heart of gold" trope, and this thing is just giving it the spotlight with Kaito.
Usagi Bancho
>>153493613I can see Gen has rubbed off on '84-Yukichi.
>>153498505I mean, it's not like it's that weird. JoJo part 4 is a hit enough while being set in the fake Morioh, and no one goes "wait where's Batman set in? Gotham? What is a Gotham?". The comic could easily just be set in Geishu City and it'd work just as well. It's moreso an intentional choice to showcase authenticity in the historical angle.
>>153495404It's a notion that's been mooted around here, I haven't heard anybody give actual evidence for it though. Just speculation.
>>153495963I like it, it matches his physicality to his personality and feels fun.
>>153499284Would love to see Inazuma (with her second-in-command Sakura) come back as the leaders of a gang of sukeban biker delinquents.
>>153499022The vibe I get from FATS is he's faking being nice and he's actually a little vindictive asshole, he's just a political creature through and through so he knows when he has to put on the face.
>>153499367No hard evidence, but Yukichi looks like Yuichi and their names are one letter apart, plus timing
>>153496344lmao, excellent work
>>153497377What happened at Ise and Izumo Shrines?
>>153499445You sure it would be that way and not the other way around?Both come from high ranking families, but Sakura's family went through a downfall, which caused her to become independent at an early age.Tomiko/Inazuma meanwhile flees her family after objecting to an arranged marriage, she gets together with a guy she liked, but then he dumps her and leaves her alone on the streets.Inazuma and Sakura meet and Inazuma discovers her gift for EXTREME VIOLENCE.The Two proceed to terrorize the Osakan underworld with their all girl gang.Now give me an eisner award.
>>153493946Stray Dog and Gen wearing the Geishu clan mon...
>>153496061>I might make a post with my gripes in a bit if I feel like it, instead.alright, had a rest, here's some gripesart-wise while it looks splendid, I do think the layouts suffer a bit at moments. In most moments I if anything am happy to see a modern American comic book daring to have 15 panels in a page- I feel so many comics nowadays do 6 at most. But in moments like >>153493923 and >>153493913, between the tiny panels and the painterly blotchy art style, I do find the action is a lot more confusing to read and it makes me miss the clarity of Stan's layouts.I do also dislike some of the character design aspects, the "furrier than normal" angle. Not a fan of every carnivore character having the visible canine teeth, not a fan of Kitsune and Sasuke having more real fox fur patterns. That might overall be the angle I dislike the most visually- Kitsune and Sasuke just don't read as the same characters as before to me, which becomes an issue when the cast is so directly based on the prior cast and Sasuke is literally the same character.I see some anons preferring this version of Yukichi, and he's nice and sympathetic, but eh. If Stan's Yukichi is "just Usagi but naïve", I don't think "just Usagi but eats" is a nice replacement. I think the eating aspect works as a fun trait, but it feels overdone by now, it's the majority of lines he gets.
>>153500124Lastly though, I'm just finding myself instantly less interested in this once issue 2 came out. I was excited for this both because of a more general "I wanna see how others handle an Usagi comic" but especially because I wanted to see a take on the 1980s with this world. I love Space Usagi for how it connects to normal Usagi but is mostly its own thing. Yeah Gen becomes Rhogen, and there's a Tomoe, but the Tomoe is a rabbit, and dies, and the stories are their own setting, etc. The villain is this weird faction led by Amaterasu, there's Neko ninja but their leader is this rabbit character who's entirely new and has a new context, Usagi isn't trying to protect the space Geishu. I like the idea of these being mostly new material, with some connective element to make it a clear shared universe. If when we find Ten Little Creatures we read it and it's about American Noriyuki and the American Geishus against American Jei and American dunno, Dragon Bellow Conspiracy, it's going to be lame. Issue 1 here mostly seemed promising to me- a new story about this new cast of Usagi's descendant in the 80s, a little lore connection in having the Macguffin be Jei's spear which I thought would be moreso a cameo or a subtle element, and the fact Kitsune and Gen and Tomoe were here was eh but I was letting pass. But now the story is no longer about 80s Usagi but actually the mystery of "proper Usagi" and Jei having gotten to maybe kill everyone of the og cast and coming back to fight Usagi's descendant and Sasuke is here and it just feels so instantly much more so lame fanfiction and unable to stand on its own, and I lament that.Ah well. Hopefully it's still good once I adjust to the fact it's not interested in being more of its own thing, and maybe if it gets sequels the sequels will get to be more confident rather than instantly retreating into the shadow of the og comic.
>>153500173And God just remembered the flashback vision has Usagi fighting Jei with Grasshopper. That just feels so blatant. I want to like this and not instantly hate on it, I'll keep giving it a chance and again, it's not terrible, just a bit disappointing; but I can't help but feel they're just kinda going "REMEMBER JEI BADASS? REMEMBER GRASSHOPPER? REMEMBER USAGI?" and it sours me a bit on the project. Part of what I really like in Usagi Yojimbo is how little it has of that "REMEMBER THING?" instinct in it.
>>153500206I get where you're coming from, but I'm more excited about this than about the farting adventures. :-P
>>153496260UGH I wish Stan would actually do a Terry series referencing Kaito.
>>153496690>No it's not, that one is made of iron or steel, real grasscutter was a bronze sword.Easy mistake to make, but a false assumption.>During the Edo period, while performing various repairs and upkeep at Atsuta Shrine, including replacement of the outer wooden box housing the sword, the Shinto priest Matsuoka Masanao claimed to have been one of several priests to have seen the sword. Per his account, "a stone box was inside a wooden box of length 150 cm (59 in), with red clay stuffed into the gap between them. Inside the stone box was a hollowed log of a camphor tree, acting as another box, with an interior lined with gold. Above that was placed a sword. Red clay was also stuffed between the stone box and the camphor tree box. The sword was about 82 cm (32 in) long. Its blade resembled a calamus leaf. The middle of the sword had a thickness from the grip about 18 cm (7.1 in) with an appearance like a fish spine. The sword was fashioned in a white metallic color, and well maintained."This fits because swords of the Kofun period, in which the Yamato Kingdom existed, forward were normally made of iron or steel, not bronze.
>>153497377'At's-a nice-a mappa-ball!I'd like to see a more speculative version with best-guess domains for other lords, likely location of Ishida City etc. filled in too, but I respect you keeping this one minimalist and to the most certainly known facts.
>>153497382>iirc that kabuto and the livery is supposed to be Ieyasu's personal armor, no?What, the shit that he's wearing? I'm sure that can't be right. If you mean the stuff behind him to the left, maybe, IDK.Great picture though, he actually looks surprisingly menacing there.
>>153497727>Since Osaka is known as the birthplace of takoyaki (Usagi’s favorite) we made sure to grab some… though no photos survived because we devoured them immediately. HAFU, HAFUHe wasn't wrong either, they're awful when they get tepid>Anon mentioned, and I don't disagree, that the gap between the last issue of UY to come out and now is alarmingly long, and this may be a sign of Stan's failing healthI genuinely think this is alarmism; it's been established that Usagi apparently cannot survive as an ongoing anymore, and has to be done in five-issue minis because that works somehow. Kaito is clearly one of those, so it seems obvious that he just isn't doing an Usagi miniseries at the same time himself so as not to double up, oversaturate the market, and confuse things.That said, it wouldn't surprise me at all that he could use the vacation, and the Kaito guys saying they confirmed things "with the Sakai family" did unnerve me a little as well.But yeah, Kaito is just this year's Usagi miniseries.
>>153500753Did Stan take many hiatuses? I wasn't reading most of the series when it was an ongoing.
>>153500780Famously a 3 year one at one point due to personal circumstances. But even when the comic was on-going, it seemed to at its peak do about 8 issues a year
>>153499364>wait where's Batman set in? Gotham? What is a Gotham?It's literally NYC. Gotham is an old nickname for NYC, and in the early issues of Batman they used them interchangeably. The one where Doctor Strange unleashes humongous retards on the streets of the city mentions Broadway and IIRC the Chrysler Building.
>>153500124I agree that the paneling and painted art are both great in and of themselves but don't really work that well together. Big impressionistic watercolor brushstrokes need space.
>>153500484Sshhhh! Don't say that so Enmanon can hear it!
>>153500780The comic has been bimonthly for basically ever, IIRC. As Anon says he took one huge hiatus when his entire life exploded into a million tiny razor-sharp shards, but otherwise he's known for his clockwork delivery (go back through the threads to the 100th-issue celebration and you'll see his editor talk about it).
>>153500798Come on, anon, don't split hairs. I know Gotham is a NYC nickname but you're missing the point- the city is used as a fictional place. You think when watching the latest Batman movie, reading the latest Batman comic, playing the latest Batman game, most anyone in the world is going "ah yes, this is actually New York"? But fine, replace my example of Gotham with dunno, Central City. Keystone City. Springfield, where the Simpsons live. Quahog. The Midsommar county of England. My point is "contemporaneous fictional city" is not some weird rare thing that takes people out of the fiction, and so if, say, issue 2 opened with a blurb saying "Sakai Town, Geishu City", no one would bat an eye other than to go "heh, Sakai". Not that it's a bad thing they went with a real location, again- just that it's interesting to note, and IMO indicates an aspect of what they're wanting to sell with this story being authenticity in the setting. Same thing with how carefully they're trying to represent real cars (while dodging copyright) etc; they're trying to make you be able to go "oh wow, this IS how this real place looked like in this real year, just with funny animals!"
>>153500206>>153500484>>153500851What if we get both? The finale of Kaito is defeating Jei with beenz farts.
>>153500870Eh, you might be right. I still think it'd be weird, but I also cringe every time I see someone mention "Blüdhaven" so it might just be a me thing.
>>153501005I also cringe at "Blüdhaven, USA" but that's just because it's a bad name, contextually. It's too obviously and openly 90s cartoony edgy, closer to something like "Duckburg"
>>153494052Thanks. City Hunter has a fantastic OST. Here's another ending. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=jqTao0YEvRs&pp=ygUVY2l0eSBodW50ZXIgc3VwZXJnaXJs
>>153500206>but I can't help but feel they're just kinda going "REMEMBER JEI BADASS? REMEMBER GRASSHOPPER? REMEMBER USAGI?I don't see that as memberberries bullshit but the logical conclusion of several story beats. We know Jei is not only immortal but straight up empowered by dark Gods so it stands to reason that killing him with a literal godly weapon that they KNOW is capable of miracles and supernatural phenomena is a viable option.
>>153500206>>153501112What bothers me about it is that the spear is still black even after Usagi smashed it and very probably killed Jei with Grasscutter. We've seen perfectly clearly in the main comic that when Jei dies his blackened weapons turn back to normal. There's nothing special about any of them, they're just infused with his black soul and when it leaves his body it also escapes from the blade.
>>153500753>they're awful when they get tepidI'm more than happy to suffer mouth burns than eat lukewarm takoyaki fucking hell I love it when the hot dough is still slightly liquid on the inside, burns like a motherfucker but tastes so good
IMO, the wandering-to-meddling ratio is way off. There needs to be more calmness to contrast against the action. Still enjoyable though.>>153494031Pure sex>>153500124>between the tiny panels and the painterly blotchy art style, I do find the action is a lot more confusing to read and it makes me miss the clarity of Stan's layoutsI concur. But at least it's in trade for a gorgeous artstyle and not just a straight downgrade.>I do also dislike some of the character design aspects, the "furrier than normal" angleIt is a tad distracting
>>153501162Fair but that's also like a serious deep cut
>>153501194Oh, definitely. It's just that if you're a big UY fan you know how fastidious Stan is about stuff like that and being consistent with it, so not following that consistency feels like a tonal break in itself, y'know?
>>153501162>We've seen perfectly clearly in the main comic that when Jei dies his blackened weapons turn back to normal.When was this?
>>153501112It's a logical conclusion I'd want to see Stan do, though, as an element he wanted to explore. Done like this feels too much just like fans doing fanservice. And I know it's me in effect griping about what the comic is rather than what it could be, which is unfair, but eh, can't help but be disappointed. My ideal would've been Usagi descendants in the 1980s against a new threat but I can take it being the Neko gang as they get involved in some heist scheme, and the fact the MacGuffin of the heist was an element of the past in the form of being Jei's spearhead was a "oh neat worldbuilding detail" extra for fans, but otherwise the story is new characters in a new set of circumstances with Usagi flavour but without feeling outright like just "here's an AU interpretation of Usagi". Again, like how Space Usagi wasn't just "Space Usagi protects Space Noriyuki from Space Hikiji after his Space Lord Space Mifune was defeated in Planet Adachigahara">>153501162Judging by this issue 2, the idea is that at least in this specific case, there IS something special- Jei's somehow contained within it, hence possessing those holding the spear. Could just be a slip, but could also be an intentional element this time.Also yeah I was about to ask but >>153501218 just confirmed it- we've seen blades he picks up blacken, and I think we've seen them clear after, but the spear specifically we've always seen black, right? It doesn't clear when Jei I dies, and for all we know it's something like his original weapon that's always been possessed or something. Actually, do we ever see Jei retrieve this specific spearhead from this page? If not, maybe it's this specific one that's now in Kaito.
>>153493994He liiiives!
>>153493594>>153493636I like the more animalistic look of this characters
>>153493478
>>153500124>>153500173>>153500206Thank you, I wasn't planning to share my thoughts since everyone seemed to like it and I don't think two issues is enough to pass judgement yet but, yeah, disappointing is the word I'd use to describe it so far
>>153501239I don't believe we ever see him pick up one of the old spear heads, and Jei 3 which was the most recent one simply made a new one when he took over. Depending on when that anon got the idea of Jei's weapons turning back to normal after he dies, it's possible he simply thought Jei escaping from Inazuma and her sword turning back was the de facto response for his tainted weapons.
Were you funny guys ever planning on pointing out I keep accidentally calling the sword "Grasshopper" and not "Grasscutter">>153501279Hm, I'd forgotten we see Jei III outright make a new spear. Alright then, though, until a future issue contradicts it, I'm considering Kintsugi in Kaito '84 to be specifically the spearhead we see in Grasscutter I- the authors mentioned doing a full re-read of Usagi before doing the miniseries (side note, how easy is that to do in a legal medium nowadays? What're the odds that they read scans and are just obviously not mentioning it?) and it seems the sort of detail to easily get picked up as a "oh, we can follow this up"
>>153501218Here, for example. Easiest example for me to find; Inazuma's sword unblackens when she breaks Jei's possession even temporarily.
>>153501327>Were you funny guys ever planning on pointing out I keep accidentally calling the sword "Grasshopper" and not "Grasscutter"Lmao, no
>>153501279I think what makes sense to me is that the spear is an extension of his black soul, and whatever spear was last "his" will be blackened, but he recalls that piece of himself when he takes a new host, and transfers it into a new spear. The spear in Kaito would be the last one he used, one which still contains a part of him, and which is now the only part of him remaining after Grasscutter killed the rest.>>153501400This, it's funny
>>153493738you think Stan knows about these storytimes?
>>153501378Yeah, I figured it was something like that. My interpretation is that weapons only lose their color when Jei's power over them is removed outright, like here, where Inazuma temporarily regains control of herself. Remember, the sword is a samurai's soul, and it being returned to its normal hue is Inazuma breaking free from Jei. The spears, though? There's nothing or no one to release them from Jei's lingering evil, in a similar way to how he could cause Gen's wound incredible pain despite it having healed by the time they remet. They might not be wielded by him anymore, but they'll forever have his filth on them unless cleansed outright.
>>153493834>yukichi is a "food" guyi don't know if that's an upgrade or not
>mfw Hijiki wields Grasshopper>>153501239>It's a logical conclusion I'd want to see Stan do, though, as an element he wanted to explore.I agree with this take. It did feel very memberberry to me, too.
>>153493949>>153493959>>153493967HOLY SHITSASUKE AND GRASSCUTTER USAGI VS JEIHOLY FUCK
>>153493979>inspector Carmelita Zenigata Foxi'll take it
>>153493994ITS HIMTHE HARDEST WORKING MAN IN JAPAN
>>153499364>fake MoriohYeah but Morioh is some smallish town with some vague supernatural phenomena as its only claim, not a major city hosting rare artefacts
Wow! I didn't even know about this series! I love the art. I was all hype for the setup, and then kinda came down a little when anon pointed out how member-bait it is, but Ikm still pretty entusiastic. I like remixes. Tomoe as a cop is the only possibility, and golden-hearted thieves/ robin hoods is the only way to do ronin in the modern era.
>>153493929Golly that place REALLY must've needing a purging by Jei
>>153493967Susanoo approves of funny murderous meddler man
>>153493994Fucker really is the doomguy of japan.
I understand frustration that this mini-series starts out like its own thing only to plant itself firmly as a spin-off of the main series, but I'd ask what the point would be of a near-past series using the Usagi cast that DOESN'T connect to the main series in some way. Can you re-cast Usagi's long and sad ronin wanderings in a meaningful way in the modern setting?
>>153493478>>153493812I love 1980s Japan and manga set in the 1980s bubble economy era like City Hunter. But while it's tries it's hardest UY Kaito 84, just didn't do it for me.
>>153493929Okay. I take back what I said. I guess it's a time travel story now.
>>153502305I feel that's a false dichotomy to begin; the setup they have is in theory already good and interesting, seeing the first Usagi who's a criminal outright. There's nothing saying he couldn't just have a story about doing a heist and have some intrigue without having to tie in all this baggage from the original comic.
>>153493974>>153493979Anyone remember sly cooper and Carmelita fox? If this woman is a descendant of Tomoe I guess that means she had kids with that lord she married.
>>153502305>I'd ask what the point would be of a near-past series using the Usagi cast that DOESN'T connect to the main series in some way.What's the point of Space Usagi? The only connection is the swords, really.
>>153500798>It's literally NYCWhen it's not Newark, Chicago or Atlantic City.
I'd also like the stuff this series is doing to be done by Stan, but a part of me likes it this way. The painted "guest" art makes it feel more like a special event. There also seems like there's more going on in the story than we realize. Issue 2 felt like it was dropping bombs most stories would save for just before the climax, and while this could be poor pacing where it would have benefited from more build up I'd like to hope it's more a sign of a wild ride that's just beginning. I also have faith that whatever they're doing with the past is fully endorsed by Stan, however it works out.
>>153501902Enh. I'd go with Ex-Cops turned Private Eye. Granted, that'd be better suited for SF or Hawaii.
>>153493666Oh no I recognize that blade
>>153502489Actually, I'll admit that would work pretty well. Remembering that PIs are on the wrong side of the law constantly.
>>153493994Oh man, there is no rest for Sasuke
>>153494113I'm liking so far, I think we could have gone with a couple of Showa Japan adventures before introducing Jei.Something I like is the more animal like designs, Gen looks big, Kyoko more catlike, etc.
>>153495984Kino
>>153501902>Tomoe as a cop is the only possibility, and golden-hearted thieves/ robin hoods is the only way to do ronin in the modern era.Those Yakuza games explore the idea pretty well. Id buy Kaito being an ex yakuza thug given how much he likes to punch things.
>>153493994Man he's going to have a fun time with work once they hit Cyberpunk age
>>153502583You'd think he'd get a break during WW2.
>>153493666Extremely fitting demonic trips. Also did you'll ronin catch this relic from the Chris-Chan adventure? I don't care how memberberries it is that is absolute cinema.
>>153502658Nah I think that's good memberberries. Subtle, tasteful
>>153502613Yeah, its going straight to the plot. How many issues is this thing going to be?
>>153494113Is the storytime over?
>>153493478Sorry, have to catch up due to being busy the past few days, working my way through Space Usagi.>>153465308Oh man, I forgotten how much I missed Ryoko.
>>153501239>Jei's somehow contained within it, hence possessing those holding the spear. Could just be a slip, but could also be an intentional element this time.Maybe that's the only way to defeat Jei, permanently. He'll keep coming back again and again, and there will be some absolute bullshit Restored To Full Health On The Next Turn moments, but you keep kiting and plinking away at his 500,000 HP bars and eventually he just has enough juice left for one final demonic possession, short range under extreme contrivances situations, instead of being able to leap from body to marked and tainted body.
>>153502696Only 5 so we're moving at breakneck speeds.
>>153502703The annual storytime itself? No, about a week left. There's the TMNT crossovers, a sorta sequel miniseries to the main book, art books.
>>153493899You wont escape Lupin!!!!
>>153502305Space Usagi did a pretty good job being its own thing.
>>153493967Ok, first of all, fucking cool!!!!but second is too epic for Usagi Yojimbo, Usagi isn't suppose to be the legendary samurai that saves Japan, he is a wandering Ronin like a cowboy saving towns doing the right thing but living in a bigger world, you wont be seeing a cowboy saving the president or killing satan in any western, anyone gets what I'm saying
>>153502763It's very different from the main series, but in the sense that it's as if Usagi never became a ronin.
>>153502703I recon we have like 2 more days, there is still the entire TMNT crossover marathon, you would be surprised how ofthen Usagi teams up with the turtles.
>>153500851Some of you are alright don't come to Sakai ward tomorrow.
>>153493946>>153493949why would they all be there kek
>>153502824Yeah, Space Usagi doesn't need to retread or reference original Usagi's story it does a good job having Usagi, Gen and Tomoe in space adventures.
>>153502652No way. Battlefields are a breeding ground for yokai and malefic shit! He must travel to each individual battlefield of note and get to quelling, so says Shoki. Also he must travel by foot
>>153502850Yeah, is kind of ridiculous, at least Kitsune is dead.
>>153502652He would be a secondary character in a Indiana Jones adventure about the nazi stealing the sacred treasures of Japan.
>>153500791>>153500865Imagine being a Usagi FREAK in '92-'93 and having TWO Usagi's on the shelves at the same time god you know we used to be a superpower. We used to be a proper country.
>>153502820yeah but jei's fate is intertwined with usagi's, there is never any chance that jei meets his final end without usagi being the one dealing the blowthat he has some legendary blade to do it might be too epic but that amount of bodies and a ravaged town aren't out of the usagi+jei wheelhouse
>>153502820I mean, Usagi did help Sasuke in fending off some world ending demon march or whatever and had Grasscutter in his possession before. He may be a wanderer, but he also happens to get involved in big stuff from time to time
>>153502652It'd be tonally too dark but there's a story to be had about him having to deal with yokai while navigating a wartime imperial Japan. How would he handle firebombings, the draft, the fervour of the country around the time?
>>153502915At this point I think you kind of need a god blessed divine sword to keep Jei down
>>153502820>that saves JapanIs he though? Jei doesn't want to destroy Japan, he just wants to destroy evil, as defined by the nasty Shinto gods he serves. So presumably wicked people and the foreign buddhists and and anyone else who doesn't respect and fear and propitiate said nasty Shinto gods.
>>153502991>>153502652Could make for a neat story if he had to work with others too. Imagine members of opposing sides of the war caught in a horror story and he had to work with them to deal with the threat and survive. Reminds me of House of Ashes
>>153500675I mean not literally Big Man Ie's personal armor, but a recreation of what he wore. Out of curiosity I started googling it and the other recreations I found looked nothing like what Stan's wearing so I must have misremembered. No doubt this was from some vidya and my mind just got the wires crossed.>Great picture though, he actually looks surprisingly menacing there.This old samurai walks up to you and blocks your path and demands you tell him everything you know about making traditional Japanese kites wwyd?
>>153502305>but I'd ask what the point would be of a near-past series using the Usagi cast that DOESN'T connect to the main series in some way.Being an interesting and unique story for one. This is just spot the reference and because it's tied to the main book it can't actually do anything.
>>153503039Then why be "Usagi" and not original characters?
>>153502991>the draft, the fervour of the country around the time?Nothing he hasn't seen before, if he was alive six hundred plus years before Usagi's time that would make him close to a thousand by the time Japan starts fucking around in the Mid-Latte Twenties
>>153503015>Hyakki Yagyō happens>Sasuke along with some Axis and Allies
>>153503098NTA but anon, what're you arguing about? Again, we literally have Space Usagi to point at for an alternative, here. Why did Space Usagi need to be named "Usagi" at all? Yet it was, and it was fun. It's fun seeing the remix, but it's a balancing act, and the balance just feels off-kilter in Kaito issue 2
>>153502898kek>>153502972Y'know, that reminds me, the latest takeover attempt won't have been that long ago. Usagi Yojimbo: Kaito 2006 when?
>>153503036>wwydMake a huge kite, fly the fuck away, complain about it later to a nutty professor
Meanwhile Edge-Lord Of Owls is still trying to reconstitute his corporeal form because he tried to pull his bullshit "muh I see death" bit to some cranky Imperial Japanese vet on leave from fighting in Manchuria and ate an Arisaka 6.5x50mm cartridge to the face.
>>153502887>nazis stealing from their alliesc'mon, at least make it about Genghis Khan's banner or something.
>>153502746Okay. I'm going to do all of TMNT when it is done.
>>153503299I've been meaning to read that so thanks in advance
>>153503299I don't recall exactly how many more threads but it won't be many more, keep an eye out each day and I assume the last thread will outright say "FINAL" or something in the OP
https://youtu.be/W3_c4-4OMbM
>>153503336cars are pretty interesting
>>153502972Yeah but in the middle of nowere, here we see Edo being burn to the ground with every named character dead, is a little too much.
>>153503299>>153503316Here's the schedule for the final week >>153451358>tomorrow & after tomorrow: Space Usagi>saturday: Kaitō 84 (<- you are here)>sunday: Super Deformed Usagi: Attack of the Heebie Chibis>monday: MMPR & TMNT Saturday Morning Cartoon crossovers>tuesday: the rest of TMNT>wednesday: Wherewhen>thursday: Artbook>friday: the end.
Something I wonder if they'll address is how odd it might be that Sasuke is an old man now. By the time we see him in the normal comic he's already anywhere from some 500 to 800 years old, and he looks fine. Would the near 500 years after really make him age by comparison?
>>153501059It's also just not how Cities are announced, It's "New York, NY" "Minneapolis, MN" "Crawford, JF" "Duckburg, CS."
>>153503463Other than the beard he doesnt look different from how he looked in that vision/flashback in a substantial way
>>153502898I love how we found some old letter section with a random editor randomly calling Usagi fans FREAKS and it just stuck here.
>>153503499Sure, my point is more the notion of a random American city being named "Blüdhaven", umlaut included>>153503896Eh, he's hunched over, he's got the long beard, and his fur is overall drawn scruffier, look at the cheeks and near the ears and in the forehead. He's clearly meant to be looking aged compared to before
>>153493529Our pineapple...no...
>>153493967On one hand, yeah this is pretty much jumping to the biggest fanservice shot they can do and it's a bit too obvious and they could've done a few more Showa adventures first...but on the other hand HOLY FUCKING HYPE AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
>>153503463modern japan was... rough on our boyimagine suddenly having to deal with russian ghosts from the war, or yokai feasting on corpses from death marches and chinese labor campshe gets run roughshod just having to run across japan to quell, let alone multiple nations
>>153493573Yukichi is very cute here.
>>153493613His greed sickens me.
>>153493666>Jei's spear>Satan numbersI do not like where this is going
>>153504736>they could've done a few more Showa adventures firstNot in a five-issue miniseries, it's 40% over already
>>153493704HATE
>>153493845I like how this Gen seems to be pretty tired of her shit.
>>153493899Tomoe AND Ishida? And Tomoe is the Carmelita to Usagi's Sly? Sign me up!
>>153493929>>153493946>>153493949>>153493959>>153493967These are some pretty big implications for the timeline. Considering Senso and where and when things aren’t perfectly lining up.
>>153493923>>153493929Even far into the future, Usagi can never escape Jei.
>>153493994>one can never escape Feudal JapanAt this rate Sasuke was secretly Himiko's lover or some shit
>>153493949>>153493959>>153493967AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
>>153493994Someone PLEASE let this man retire already. He's worked hard enough.
>>153493994Sasuke literally never retires and gets jack shit for thousands of years of service.
>>153493994Crazy if he’s still dealing with his insane demon ex centuries later.
>>153502850The vision may not be accurate or it is and they all survived it.
>>153502652WW2 alone probably bred some legit world-destroying shit. Fullblown Gashadokuro wandering the countryside and drinking people to balloon in strength levels of depravity. No way in hell he'd get a break them.
>>153502652No.
>>153502820>but second is too epic for Usagi YojimboUsagi literally helped Sasuke stop the world from ending by a yokqi army led by a primordial demon queen. And if you count crossovers, Jei has already escalated to "destroy the entire country and kill everyone" levels once before. He's the biggest threat wandering Japan at this point, even accounting for Hikiji and the like.
Ok, so here's my two cents.The art, designs, colors, all amazing. The pacing is insanely fast, but that's preferable to a slog. Scenes and dialogues give us huge amounts of information about the world and characters. As for characters themselves, they're all right. Pretty basic characterization so far, but solid, everyone's distinct and with potential for growth. It's issue 2, original Usagi took much more time to gain any personality other than "generic good guy samurai".Like some anons noticed, the story at first seems as something almost unrelated to the main comic, only with familiar faces, then turns out to be heavily tied to a non-existant Usagi Yojimbo WHAT IF (the final Jei fight) that the Kaito comic has invented for it's own needs. It's meta as fuck and I like it.I don't consider it memberberries either. The comic markets itself as a future continuation, but it doesn't just take things from the original series, it tries to expand them. It's not nostalgia for sake of nostalgia, it's a plot point and a base for further worldbuilding.Since every Usagi may be someone's first, the flashback does three things very well: ties Kaito to UY (again, this was marketed as a sequel and we need those new readers), gives Usagi personal stakes (safety of Yu and his friends) in this affair and rightfully sets up Jei as a fucking menace. Now Sasuke has to bring us up to speed and we're done "membering" and the comic may start showing more of it's distinct personality, which it has quite a lot of (as issue 1 and the first half of issue 2 have shown). Some people laser focus on this HUGE flashback and forget it's barely 10% of the comic so far.The comic also does something people were BEGGING for years: a long overdue Sasuke/Jei meeting. Plus, our jokes about Sasuke still doing it for free to this very day have been canonized. Pure fanservice? Maybe, but we deserve it.Overall? Pretty good, but hard to judge till the series ends and we get all the payoffs.
>>153502400>>153505563These final confrontation is basically just a vision that may or may not be accurate. Especially with what we saw in Senso and where and when.
>>153505621>You want a canon UY ending?>Here, have THREE!STAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAN!!!!
>>153505667The Usagi Yojimbo multiverse
>>153505198This. Usagi is not a one man army who will defeat evil lords and make Japan a global superpower, but he's just the guy to stab a bad motherfucker, even if that motherfucker is a yokai trying to bring forth eternal darkness.He can save the world, just not from people. This is some deep zen shit.
>>153505719It's in line with Chinese storytelling. There's different spheres, so like, the police inspector will be helpless at dealing with murdering ghosts, and the occult magic guy can't stop the marching army, while the army general can't handle a criminal mastermind, but each is powerful in their own domains. Beating something like Jei pretty much requires a wandering sword-wielding hero type, and when it's done, nobody outside Usagi's sphere may ever know it happened, or even have an inkling of all the danger they were in.
>>153493738There is a non-zero chance at least one of them was in these threads.>>153493994There is a real chance one of them was in these threads.>>153494000I'm 30% sure at least one of them was in these threads.Need more issues to investigate.
Write a letter to the kaito writers one post at a timeDear Zach and Jared,
>>153502820Jei is an Usagi level threat as seen by how Usagi has beaten him on multiple occasions and Usagi finding a way to destroy him for good would absolutely be a key moment for him.
>>153502832A little. I already have everything organized and saw myself lol.>>153503314I started it the other day, but anons said to wait for Usagi to be finished.>>153503316>>153503369Right on. Thanks.
>>153465399Mariko as a futuristic space princess was not what I was expecting.
>>153465425>>153465434Jurassic Park jumpscare.
>>153465449>the Prince doesn't want to engage in /ss/What the hell is wrong with him?
>>153465481Future Usagi is just as shameless as his ancestor, holy shit.
>>153465639>come>/ss/ with ME instead
>>153465717Oh my god, you killed Ryoko. You bastards!
>>153497377Is the Geishu land really that far from Hikiji's territory? It's strange that Hikiji fucks with the Geishu as much as he does or that they are actively involved in his plots if that is the case.
>>153465836Wow, how...convenient.
>>153465846>Future Mariko wearing Tomoe's nameI'm utterly gobsmacked, holy shit what a twist.
>>153504952Senso was never confirmed to be mainline canon.
>>153504844>it's 40% over alreadyDouble dubs of SHI* confirm it.
>>153465892Everything about these space turtles is some of the most fucked up lore I've seen in a while.
>>153465922On one hand, I'm sad so see that Ryuko is indeed dead. On the other hand, I can't help but laugh how this page is literally just pic related.
>>153465980Is it just me or is Space Usagi a bit more violent than normal? You almost never see that level of gore in the proper series.
>>153508079It was during the jump to Mirage, so the extra violence is not surprising.I am anticipating more reactions to SU, it deserves more love.
There is not enough and nor can there ever be enough, ontologically speaking, Space Usagi fanart.
>>153466172I just now realized that this is supposed to be Kiyoko. If Stan ever decides to bring back Ryoko in the mainline, having her be Kiyoko's mother there too would be an interesting angle to take her.
>>153503299Hot damn
>>153508141>this is supposed to be Kiyoko. If Stan ever decides to bring back Ryoko in the mainline, having her be Kiyoko's mother there tooNearly 10 years of being in this storytime and I never made this connection what the fuck
Do you guys think that Miyamoto Usagi is into pegging?https://files.catbox.moe/cvgtly.jpg
>>153466255...I'm not gonna lie, she's kinda hot in a very imposing sort of way.
>>153508163Kiyoko is actually a psychic/magic girl, thereby explaining how she can steal anything and beat up full-grown men.
>>153466305>Rogen's horn
>>153508163>>153508188It's a pretty neat idea!
>>153466381We're just not going to elaborate on the "duct people"? No? Alright, moving on.
>>153508245Duct people claim yet another anon.
>>153507210you fuckingDOUBLE FURRIES
>>153507972Typically a Child Lord inheriting his lands from his dead "worthless" father is considered weak enough to put the moves on, even if he successfully defends against plots early on.It's also worth noting that Hikiji can't really advance upon the Shogun by force, so he's looking for servile acquisitions practically EVERYWHERE in Japan.
>>153466543>>153466563You ever just see something that reminds you a piece of media was made as a glorified toy commercial? Because the Samuroid is exactly that for me, it's so absurdly toyetic it's hilarious.
>>153466552I can't help but wonder if Stan regrets making Feudal Tomoe a catgirl instead if a rabbit.
>>153466688Oh godDAMMIT.
>>153466762Stan is determined to not let Tomoe score. Really fun story, but fucking hell.
>>153508334I prefer Space Tomoe to the feudal one. Both her look and character. Too bad there'a so little of her.
>>153508328Samuroid and Tomoeh switched colors (sort of) from the original to the new recolor. Personally I like the samuroid in Neo Zeon gold and red better.
>>153508245We do not speak of the Eta of the sewers.
>>153508422In the grim darkness of far future, Tomoe still has no game.
>>153508469How I imagine the Samuroid sounds likehttps://youtu.be/fcPx7QM4PLw?si=6zyktxdZomppleDL&t=320
>>153508469I like the Drixx colored Samuroid
>>153508314Hikiji is the second or third hardest working man in Japan with all his scheming.
Praying Shoki for these things in Kaito 84:- Chizu as not!Taimanin Chizu leader of the Neko clan- Stray Dog as masked wrestler that works as heel, but uses his money for an orphanage.- Inazuma as schizo biker delinquent like Nagisa from Shonan Junai Gumi- Kiyoko isn't a child here, but a sort of woman that as taken a stop-growth medicine like Minnie May.- Ikeda and Sanshobo yakuza members. Ikeda should have a spider/spider deity tattooed on the back.- Hikiji as Diet member and candidate to be President.
>>153508854-mayumi as a background character leading an easy, painless life.
>>153508854>Kiyoko isn't a child here, but a sort of woman that as taken a stop-growth medicine like Minnie May.Would be funny if Kiyoko was the nee-san (and '84 Kitsune's brattier attitude would fit that, actually) but that seems like too big a change to make considering how it's already handling other characters.
>>153508911>And featuring: MAYUMI as the nameless waitress who gets run over by Usagi's sports car
>>153508854I hope we get a background panel with Ishida going to mass or maybe just quietly praying at a small altar somewhere. Now that's the kind of fanservice I'm after. Zach, Jared, I know you're in here you little furry fucks. Stop gooning to your little hentais and draw what the people REALLY want.
>>153509071mayumi becomes kobeni
>>153497224yeah portraying yourself as a bear is like guaranteed furry
>>153493896lol
>Neko's downgraded from a clan to a gang>they're even taking on outside help Just how bad did Kagemaru fumble the ball.
>>153493967what the fuck
>>153493994holy fuck
>>153508598You know your Hustle Game is top-notch when "Meddleman" will only step in when he's in walking distance of your plots.
>>153493587>>153493830>Usagi is a deadbeat dad AGAIN
I'll have to start later than usual today, my apologies.
>>153509365Hardest working men in Japan tier list.>Sasuke, he does it for free>Hikiji, always be scheming>Usagi, the Meddler
