Blade of the Immortal: Volume 25: Snowfall at Dawn

by Hiroaki Samura, 220 pages

Manji and Rin set out on what they hope is Anotsu's trail, but they don't get very far before their search is interrupted by an all-too-familiar face.

See that guy on the cover there?  I hate him.

Also, I love this series.

The loathed one is at last face-to-face with his most hated enemy, but readers hoping for the former's permanent expiration (which has got to be nearly every single one of us) will have to wait for at least another volume (but April is so far away!) to learn the outcome.  The part of me that's terrified of the cockroach is frustrated about the waiting part, but the good-story-loving part of me is glad the face-off wasn't rushed to squeeze the whole thing into one book.  I just worry (and often with good cause) for all the other characters every moment longer he lives.  *sigh*  Patience, Grasshopper.

Samura has recently announced that, after nineteen years, the series is finally drawing to a close with the 30th volume (the last chapter will come out in the February issue of the Japanese magazine it's serialized in before being bundled for the book, so I'll have to be careful to avoid spoilers until the English release).  I'm both excited to see it all come together and sad that there won't be any more.  So conflicted!

Blade of the Immortal: Volume 24: Massacre

by Hiroaki Samura, 202 pages

What the title says, man.  What the title says.  Just not where / how the reader (or most anybody else) expected it.

Wow.  I guess that's one way to get your point across.  Anotsu's one crazy, sneaky, cocky guy.  I had to laugh at all the dropped jaws (including my own) in his wake.  I also had to stifle a few giggles with the shinobi duo and Rin and Manji.  But I did not laugh one iota when Kagimura's boss's unfortunate envoys encounter the cockroach on the road.  I hate him so, it makes me ill.  I can handle sex and violence in my reading, but I do not so much handle them well together, and Shira revels in mixing the two in the most horrible ways (and as much as I love Samura's beautiful, detailed artwork, I do wish he'd leave just a little more to the imagination when it comes to this monster).  Until he's well and truly dead so I may mentally stomp on his ashes, a little piece of me is going to be a nervous wreck every time I open a new volume.

Blade of the Immortal: Volume 23: Scarlet Swords

by Hiroaki Samura, 218 pages

After the Ittô-Ryû lay a clever trap for Kagimura and his men, everybody's on the road and hot on their trail.  But Anotsu still has a trick or two up his sleeve.

Arg!  Whom do I root for, here?  I like so many of these people and feel at least a little sympathy for most of the ones I don't.  Stupid bureaucracy and vengeance and indebtedness, pulling everybody into messes.  Kagimura's still a "villain"--as most definitely are some of the people previously or presently in his employ (including the vilest of the vile)--but, dude, you can't help but pity him a little after this volume.

Blade of the Immortal: Volume 22: Footsteps

by Hiroaki Samura, 222 pages

A case of mistaken identity results in now one-armed Manji moving in with Rin and Sori-sensei while disgraced yet still deadly Kagimura's hand is forced by his wily replacement.  At the same time, what's left of the Ittô-Ryû regroups and Anotsu bargains with the authorities (though perhaps not on the terms they'd planned).

Ha!  Poor Manji can't catch a break and Rin's still so worried about him that she won't even let him feed himself.  Their amusing little moments (and those of Sori-sensei's odd-couple new art students) are a needed break after all the tension of the previous volumes, but Samura doesn't let the reader drop her guard too long.  Clearly, there's some sneakery afoot on any number of fronts.  And then there's the cockroach.  Samura didn't have to remind me about him.  Though I guess knowing where he is at any given time is better than letting my imagination fill in the blanks.  Or maybe not...?

Blade of the Immortal: Volume 21: Demon Lair II

by Hiroaki Samura, 218 pages

Rin and the others battle madmen and mother nature, but as long as Manji's still chained to his prison cell wall, they're not going to get very far.

Sweet and hilarious, scary and horrible, all tossed together with loads of exciting, life-or-death action. How can I laugh and go "awww" over the fun bits when I know the cockroach is alive, free, and (oh so sadly!!) not alone?! Dang that Samura, he's got me right where he wants me. And I guess I'm happy to be there, too. Only I'd be happier if the cockroach were dead (for reals, this time, 'kay?). *sigh*

Blade of the Immortal: Volume 20: Demon Lair

by Hiroaki Samura, 280 pages

Rin forges ahead alone, desperate to see Manji and know that he's alive. All the suffering she's witnessed along the way only fills her with more fear and anger. Woe to the fool who stands in her way.

Oh, my heart hurt and then jumped up and down with woo-hoo! this volume. Such a nice, fat book full of Samura goodness. Rin gets maaaaad and kicks some behind, which makes me so very happy. Now if all these idiots would just get out of her way. She's not a little girl anymore (not entirely, anyway) and doesn't settle for being defended when going on the offensive will yield better results--much to Manji's surprise. :) On a less pleasant note, even though he doesn't get a mention this volume, the reader knows the cockroach is somewhere beneath the castle, too, the prison cells of which are swinging wide.... *clenches fists and looks around warily*

Blade of the Immortal: Volume 19: Badger Hole

by Hiroaki Samura, 162 pages

Rin and Dôa break into the sprawling Edo Castle complex to find missing Manji and Isaku. But surviving long enough to find their friends, let alone make it back out again, may be harder than they thought.

Rin has grown from the naive girl she once was. She tries to rein in Dôa's kill-first-and-dispense-with-the-questions instincts and protect her at the same time. She plans things out a little more before jumping in head first. She understands the consequences of what she has done, and is willing to do, in her quest for revenge for her family and now for Manji's sake. I just hope she doesn't grow up too much anytime soon, because her idealism and optimism are much-needed rays of sunshine for the reader and Manji and everyone else around her. Chin up!

Blade of the Immortal: Volume 18: The Sparrow Net

by Hiroaki Samura, 270 pages

Rin's houseguests get themselves--and her--into trouble. And Manji's getting pretty tired of having bits of himself chopped off and sewn back on in the name of "science."

Uh oh. The doctor's gone off the deep end and left his humanity behind on the shore. And Isaku's next up on the "otter" list. You don't want to know what that means. I just hope, for his sake, that he passes the test.

Blade of the Immortal: Volume 17: On the Perfection of Anatomy

Hiroaki Samura, 182 pages

To find Manji, Rin and Hyakurin go looking for the man who saw him last, but Giichi doesn't exactly want to be found, either. And as one immortality test subject after another dies, Manji's emotionally distraught doctor begins to give in to his conscience, much to the impatient ire of the poor man's pragmatic, ambitious master.

What does Kagimura want with immortality, anyway? Is it for himself? His ideals? His leader? I can't figure him out, and that makes me nervous. Manji just needs to kick his behind and get the heck out of there. But one of the things I like about Samura is how he doesn't make his heroes perfect (even if they're practically indestructible). Manji's not too shabby with a blade, but his biggest advantage is being able to get back up when he should be toast--and that cat's already out of the bag with Kagimura, whom Manji knows is the better swordsman. We'll see, we'll see.

Blade of the Immortal: Volume 16: Shortcut

by Hiroaki Samura, 192 pages

Hyakurin gets a pink slip out of the blue and Rin deals with unexpected houseguests while our missing Manji finds the authorities have finally decided to try and see what makes him tick long after normal men's clocks have stopped.

Scalpels and microscopes are only the beginning for poor Manji, who's keeping a remarkably *meh, shrug* attitude about things until he can figure a way out for him and his as-yet-mortal co-guinea pig. Pain's nothing new to him, after all. But he does worry about his new comrade. And about what his cold, calculating captor plans to do with whatever knowledge his desperate men of science discover.

I wondered how long it would take somebody with some clout to catch wind of Manji's condition and start poking him with sharp pointy instruments. I think Kagimura just didn't believe it till he saw it with his own eyes. But now that he has, life is just going to get more complicated for everyone.

Blade of the Immortal: Volume 15: Trickster

by Hiroaki Samura, 218 pages

The Ittô-Ryû get more than they bargained for when they try to bait Manji. To thank Giichi for his assistance, Manji agrees to meet Habaki Kagimura, the authority controlling the Mugai-Ryû. And of course that doesn't go entirely as planned, either, only this time not in Manji's favor.

Meanwhile, in the prison below Edo castle a deal is being struck with the devil....

!&$#@*!!! Cockroach!! I knew he wasn't dead! And he's more horrible and terrifying than ever. *skin crawls* He makes me ill and I just want him to DIE!!!

Blade of the Immortal: Volume 14: Last Blood

by Hiroaki Samura, 251 pages

Conflicted Rin is forced into leading ill Anotsu's enemies right to him, but the fight grows more even with the arrival of a few familiar faces. The enemy of one's enemy is one's friend, no? At least till the threat is eliminated.

Reunions all around, this volume, as paths are taken and "choices" offered.

Blade of the Immortal: Volume 13: Mirror of the Soul

by Hiroaki Samura, 246 pages

As bedraggled Rin crosses the mountain into Kaga, Anotsu heads out to return to Edo for a gathering with his men and the government's representative. Tables are turned as plans unfold and paths cross.

Rin and Anotsu, travel buddies?? Ha! Anotsu's got it rough this volume, enough so that even the reader wants to cut him some slack. Rin still can't defeat him on her best day, but somehow the thought of taking advantage of his misfortune doesn't set right with her and her samurai pride--for which fact the equally conflicted reader is thankful.

Blade of the Immortal: Volume 12: Autumn Frost

by Hiroaki Samura, 222 pages

Manji and Magatsu catch up with Shira, who's quite happy to engage them as he hasn't forgiven Manji for lopping off his hand. Meanwhile, Rin scrounges for food in the woods and Anotsu makes a multi-faceted pact.

My revenge fantasy comes to pass, but I'm not 100% absolutely certain of its outcome. That human monster Shira is a cockroach...and he doesn't even have the advantage of Manji's bloodworms. At least listening to Manji and Magatsu bicker and make fun of each other lightens things up. But that just means I'll be even more upset if and when something happens to them.

Blade of the Immortal: Volume 11: Beasts

by Hiroaki Samura, 186 pages

When Shira, white-haired and one-handed, shows up at the Mugai-Ryû's base of operations, Hyakurin knows it can only bode ill for her and Shinriji. Sadly, she is not wrong.

I'm not even sure what to say about this traumatic, emotionally uncomfortable and draining volume. Tragedy and violence in the past, tragedy and violence in the present. I think Hyakurin has suffered enough even before the events here, but the one bright spot is the way she chooses to mentally deal with it all. It's sad, but it seems the healthiest option she has--and the one most likely to keep her alive. It says something about the strength of her character and the story that I didn't even realize until the end that Manji and Rin don't show up at all this volume except in a few passing comments from other characters. When your side characters can support an entire volume on their own, you're doing something right.

Blade of the Immortal: Volume 10: Secrets

by Hiroaki Samura, 227 pages

As Anotsu negotiates with the master of a dojo in Kaga and Rin, doggedly on his trail, struggles to adjust to traveling alone, Manji recovers from his less than successful battle on the road, learns a few interesting things about the Mugai-Ryû from his crazy but genial host, and finds himself face-to-face with a man he thought was dead.

Booyah!! Manji and Magatsu! Shira-assassination squad, unite! My squeal of joy at this revelation was a little disturbing, to be sure, but seriously--that man is a danger to anyone unfortunate enough to cross his path. Since they're heading out after Rin, anyway, maybe they'll find her before they find Shira (or he finds her--gah! that would be bad!) and then the three of them can each land a blow for all those he's unrepentantly trespassed against in the past.

For some reason, I was distracted by the size of everybody's ears in this volume. :P I'm still impressed with Samura's panel perspectives. He uses everything from tight shots to long ones, from straight-on, above, below, the side, cock-eyed, level, upside-down, whatever works. The reader's eyes never get bored, but neither do they get overwhelmed or too confused by all the variation, either, because he uses them in the right places and makes them feel natural.

Blade of the Immortal: Volume 9: The Gathering Part II

by Hiroaki Samura, 220 pages

It's a violent three-on-one (with a few late-comers) fight to the death as Manji tries to get a traveler's pass from his unsavory prey so he can catch up to his foolish (or brave?) charge. Meanwhile, resolute Rin succeeds in talking her way to the checkpoint--but will she come out the other side?

My nerves took a little shredding this volume! While I expect the two principals to ultimately survive their encounters for the time being (other characters, who knows?), there's no guarantee they will be whole and intact when they do and no way to know by what thread or with how much suffering and (potentially permanent) scarring. Samura's characters are anything but static, and growth (whether positive or negative) is a given, so the reader rarely gets the opportunity to relax--except maybe when the characters sit around and eat while they talk things out. Those quiet moments a.) give us a little break while still revealing character relationships and b.) make me hungry. :) But there's none of that "relaxing" business this volume. Nope. *sigh*