is a well-known
gekigais Japanese for "dramatic pictures." The term was coined by Yoshihiro Tatsumi and adopted by other more serious Japanese cartoonists who did not want their trade to be known as manga or "irresponsible pictures." It's akin to Will Eisner who started calling his comics "graphic novels" as opposed...
or
mangaManga consist of comics and print cartoons , in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 20th century...
created by the writer
Kazuo Koikeis a prolific Japanese manga writer, novelist and entrepreneur.-Biography:Early in Koike's career, he studied under Golgo 13 creator Takao Saito and served as a writer on the series....
and the artist
Goseki Kojimawas a Japanese manga artist.-Biography:Kojima was born on the same day as Osamu Tezuka. After getting out of junior high school, Kojima painted advertising posters for movie theaters as his source of income....
. First published in 1970, the story was adapted into six films starring
Tomisaburo WakayamaTomisaburo Wakayama , born Masaru Okumura, was a Japanese actor, best known for playing Ogami Ittō, the disgraced, scowling, 17th century ronin in the six Kozure Okami samurai feature movies....
, four plays, a television series starring Kinnosuke Yorozuya, and is widely recognized as an important and influential work.
Lone Wolf and Cub chronicles the story of Ogami Ittō, the
Shogun is a military rank and historical title for Hereditary Commanders in Chief of the Armed Forces of Japan. The modern rank is equivalent to a Generalissimo...
's executioner who uses a
dōtanukiA dōtanuki is a Japanese swordmithing school. The word "dōtanuki" literally means "sword that cuts through torsos."The "dōtanuki" is a very thick, long handled sword resembling a katana. The dōtanuki was made to slice through a target with just a single cut. "Dōtanuki" is the name of a Shintô...
battle sword. Disgraced by false accusations from the
Yagyū clanThe ' were a minor family of daimyō with lands just outside Nara, who became the heads of one of Japan's greatest schools of swordsmanship, Yagyū Shinkage-ryū...
, he is forced to take the path of the assassin. Along with his three-year-old son, Daigorō, they seek revenge on the Yagyū clan and are known as "Lone Wolf and Cub".
Plot summary
Ogami Ittō, formidable warrior and a master of the
suiō-ryū swordsmanship, serves as the
Kogi KaishakuninThe Kogi Kaishakunin is a fictional position appearing in the manga Lone Wolf and Cub. In the story, it was the Japanese shogun's official executioner....
(the Shōgun's executioner), a position of high power in the
Tokugawa ShogunateThe Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the and the , was a feudal regime of Japan established by Tokugawa Ieyasu and ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family. This period is known as the Edo period and gets its name from the capital city, Edo, which now is called Tokyo...
. Along with the oniwaban and the assassins, Ogami Ittō is responsible for enforcing the will of the
Shogun is a military rank and historical title for Hereditary Commanders in Chief of the Armed Forces of Japan. The modern rank is equivalent to a Generalissimo...
over the
daimyōis a generic term referring to the powerful territorial lords in premodern Japan who ruled most of the country from their vast, hereditary land holdings...
(lesser domain lords). For those samurai and lords ordered to commit
seppukuis a form of Japanese ritual suicide by disembowelment. Seppuku was originally reserved only for samurai. Part of the samurai honor code, seppuku was used voluntarily by samurai to die with honor rather than fall into the hands of their enemies, as a form of capital punishment for samurai who have...
, the
Kogi KaishakuninThe Kogi Kaishakunin is a fictional position appearing in the manga Lone Wolf and Cub. In the story, it was the Japanese shogun's official executioner....
assists their deaths by decapitating them to relieve the agony of disembowelment; in this role, he is entitled and empowered to wear the crest of the Shogunate, in effect acting in place of the Shogun.
After Ogami Ittō's wife Azami gives birth to their son, Daigorō, Ogami Ittō returns to find her and all of their household brutally murdered, with only the newborn Daigorō surviving. The supposed culprits are three former retainers of an abolished clan, avenging the execution of their lord by Ogami Ittō. However, the entire matter was planned by Ura-Yagyū
(Shadow Yagyu) Yagyū Retsudō, leader of the Yagyū clan, in order to seize Ogami's post. During the initial incursion, an
ihai (funeral tablet) with the shogun's crest on it was placed inside the Ogami family shrine, signifying a supposed wish for the shogun's death. When the tablet is "discovered" during the murder investigation, its presence condemns Ittō as a traitor and thus forfeits his post.
The 1-year-old Daigorō is given a choice by his father: a ball or a sword. If Daigorō chose the ball, his father would kill him, sending him to be with his mother; however, the child crawls toward the sword and reaches for its hilt. This assigns him the path of a
rōninA was a samurai with no lord or master during the feudal period of Japan. A samurai became masterless from the ruin or fall of his master, or after the loss of his master's favor or privilege.-Etymology:...
, wandering the country with his father as "demons" – the assassin-for-hire team that becomes known as
Lone Wolf and Cub, vowing to destroy the Yagyū clan to avenge Azami's death and Ittō's disgrace.
On
meifumadō ("The Road to Hell"), the cursed journey for vengeance, Ogami Ittō and Daigorō experience numerous adventures, encountering (and slaying) all of Yagyū Retsudō's children and eventually facing Retsudō himself. The first duel between Ogami Ittō and Yagyū Retsudō runs 178 panels—one of the longest single fight-scenes ever published in comics.
Toward the end of their journeys, Ogami Ittō's
dōtanukiA dōtanuki is a Japanese swordmithing school. The word "dōtanuki" literally means "sword that cuts through torsos."The "dōtanuki" is a very thick, long handled sword resembling a katana. The dōtanuki was made to slice through a target with just a single cut. "Dōtanuki" is the name of a Shintô...
sword is surreptitiously damaged by a supposed sword-polisher who is really an elite "Grass"
ninja of the Yagyū clan. When attacked by the last of the "Grass" ninja, the sword wears down and breaks, and Ittō receives wounds that are ultimately fatal. Deadlocked in mid-battle with Retsudō, Ittō's spirit leaves his body after a lifetime of fatigue and bloodshed, unable to destroy his longtime enemy and ending his path of
meifumadō.
The story finishes with Daigorō taking up Retsudō's spear and charging in fury. Retsudō opens his arms, disregarding all defense, and allows Daigorō to drive the spear into his body. Embracing Daigorō with tears, Yagyū Retsudō names him, "Grandson of my heart", closing the cycle of vengeance and hatred between the clans and concluding the epic.
Manga
When
Lone Wolf and Cub was first released in
Japanis an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
in 1970, it became wildly popular (some 8 million copies were sold in Japan) for its powerful, epic
samuraiis the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. According to translator William Scott Wilson: "In Chinese, the character 侍 was originally a verb meaning to wait upon or accompany a person in the upper ranks of society, and this is also true of the original term in Japanese, saburau...
story and its stark and gruesome depiction of violence during
Tokugawa eraThe , or , is a division of Japanese history running from 1603 to 1868 and is the premodern era. The period marks the governance of the Edo or Tokugawa shogunate, which was officially established in 1603 by the first Edo shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu. The period ended with the Meiji Restoration, the...
Japan.
Lone Wolf and Cub is one of most highly regarded manga due to its epic scope, detailed historical accuracy, masterful artwork and nostalgic recollection of the
bushido, meaning "Way of the Warrior", is a Japanese code of conduct and a way of the samurai life, loosely analogous to the concept of chivalry. It originates from the samurai moral code and stresses frugality, loyalty, martial arts mastery, and honor unto death. Born of two main influences, the violent...
ethos. The story spans 28 volumes of manga, with over 300 pages each (totaling over 8,700 pages in all). Many of the frames of the series are hauntingly beautiful depictions of nature, historical locations in Japan and traditional activities done in the classical
ukiyo-e' is a genre of Japanese woodblock prints and paintings produced between the 17th and the 20th centuries, featuring motifs of landscapes, tales from history, the theatre, and pleasure quarters...
style.
Lone Wolf and Cub was initially released in North America by
First ComicsFirst Comics was an American comic-book publisher active in the 1980s, known for titles like American Flagg!, Grimjack, Nexus, Badger, Dreadstar, and Jon Sable.-History:...
in 1987, as a series of monthly, comic-book-sized, square-bound prestige-format black-and-white comics containing between 64 and 128 pages, with covers by
Frank MillerFrank Miller is an American writer, artist and film director best known for his dark, film noir-style comic book stories and graphic novels Ronin, Daredevil: Born Again, Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Sin City and 300...
, and later by
Bill SienkiewiczBoleslav Felix Robert "Bill" Sienkiewicz [pronounced sin-KEV-itch] is an Eisner Award-winning American artist best known for his comic book work, primarily for Marvel Comics' The New Mutants and Elektra: Assassin...
,
Matt WagnerMatt Wagner is an American comic book writer and artist, best known as the creator of two irregular series, Mage and Grendel.-Biography:...
, Mike Ploog, and Ray Lago. Sales were initially strong, but fell sharply as the company went into a general decline. First Comics shut down in 1991 without completing the series, publishing less than a third of the total series in 45 prestige-format issues.
Starting in 2000,
Dark Horse ComicsDark Horse Comics is the largest independent American comic book publisher.Mike Richardson, the owner of several comic book shops in the Portland, Oregon metropolitan area, began to publish in 1986 with an anthology series called Dark Horse Presents, investing profits from his stores into Dark...
began to release the full series in 28 smaller-sized trade paperback volumes, completing the series with the 28th volume in 2002. Dark Horse reused all of Miller's covers from the First Comics edition, as well as several done by Sienkiewicz, and commissioned Wagner and Guy Davis, and Vince Locke to produce new covers for several volumes of the collections.
In 2002, a "reimagined" version of the story,
Lone Wolf 2100 was created by writer
Mike KennedyMichael Kennedy is a former professional ice hockey centre who played in the National Hockey League from 1994–95 to 1998–99 for the Dallas Stars, Toronto Maple Leafs and New York Islanders....
and artist Francisco Ruiz Velasco with Koike's indirect involvement. The story was a
post-apocalypticApocalyptic fiction is a sub-genre of science fiction that is concerned with the end of civilization either through nuclear war, plague, or some other general disaster. Post-apocalyptic fiction is set in a world or civilization after such a disaster...
take on the tale with several differences, such as a female cub and a worldwide setting: Daisy Ogami, daughter of a renowned scientist, and Itto, her father's bodyguard and subsequent protector, attempt to escape from the Cygnat Owari Corporation's schemes. This series was not received as well as the original stories.
Dark Horse announced at the New York Comic Con that they have licensed
Shin Lone Wolf & Cub,
Kazuo Koikeis a prolific Japanese manga writer, novelist and entrepreneur.-Biography:Early in Koike's career, he studied under Golgo 13 creator Takao Saito and served as a writer on the series....
and
Hideki Moriis a Japanese manga artist. He made his professional debut in 1982 in Shonen Sunday, after which he was chosen by Kazuo Koike to illustrate the continuation of Lone Wolf and Cub, Shin Lone Wolf and Cub. Mori is best known for his manga adaptation of Kenichi Sakemi's historical novel Bokkō, which...
's follow-up to
Lone Wolf and Cub, starring the famous child in the baby cart after the original revenge epic.
Manga titles
1. The Assassin's Road
2. The Gateless Barrier
3. The Flute of the Fallen Tiger
4. The Bell Warden
5. Black Wind
6. Lanterns For the Dead
7. Cloud Dragon, Wind Tiger |
8. Chains of Death
9. Echo of the Assassin
10. Hostage Child
11. Talisman of Hades
12. Shattered Stones
13. Moon in the East, Sun in the West
14. Day of the Demons |
15. Brothers of the Grass
16. Gateway into Winter
17. The Will of the Fang
18. Twilight of the Kurokuwa
19. The Moon In Our Hearts
20. A Taste of Poison
21. Fragrance of Death |
22. Heaven & Earth
23. Tears of Ice
24. In These Small Hands
25. Perhaps in Death
26. Struggle in the Dark
27. Battle's Eve
28. The Lotus Throne |
Films
A total of seven
Lone Wolf and Cub films starring
Tomisaburo WakayamaTomisaburo Wakayama , born Masaru Okumura, was a Japanese actor, best known for playing Ogami Ittō, the disgraced, scowling, 17th century ronin in the six Kozure Okami samurai feature movies....
as Ogami Ittō have been produced based on the manga. They are also known as the
Sword of Vengeance series, based on the English-language title of the first film, and later as the
Baby Cart series, because young Daigoro travels in a baby carriage pushed by his father.
The first three films, directed by Kenji Misumi, were released in 1972 and produced by
Shintaro Katsu, born Toshio Okumura was a Japanese actor, singer, producer, and director...
, Tomisaburo Wakayama's brother and the star of the 26 part
Zatoichiis a fictional character featured in one of Japan's longest running series of films and a television series set in the Edo period. The character, a blind masseur and swordmaster, was created by novelist . This originally minor character was developed for the screen by Daiei Studios and actor...
film series. The next three films were produced by Wakayama himself and directed by Buichi Saito,
Kenji Misumiwas a notable Japanese film director. He created films such as Lone Wolf and Cub and Zatoichi.He died at age 53.-Filmography:Filmography of Kenji Misumi include 72 films from 1951 to 1974:...
and Yoshiyuki Kuroda, released in 1972, 1973, and 1974 respectively.
Shogun AssassinShogun Assassin, known in Japan as , is a very violent jidaigeki film made for the British and American markets and released in 1980. The film is considered a classic by many fans of the samurai-film genre...
(1980) was an English language compilation for the American audience, edited mainly from the second film, with 11 minutes of footage from the first. Also, the third film,
Lone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart to HadesLone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart to Hades , is the third in a series of six Japanese martial arts films based on the long-running Lone Wolf and Cub manga series about Ogami Ittō, a wandering assassin for hire who is accompanied by...
was re-released on DVD in the US under the name
Shogun Assassin 2: Lightning Swords of Death http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0068817/releaseinfo#akas.
| No. |
English Title |
Year |
Japanese |
Romanization |
Translation |
| 1 |
Lone Wolf and Cub: Sword of Vengeance Lone Wolf and Cub: Sword of Vengeance is a 1972 film directed by Kenji Misumi, the first in a series of six Japanese martial arts films based on the long-running Lone Wolf and Cub manga series about Ogami Ittō, a wandering assassin...
|
1972 |
子連れ狼 子を貸し腕貸しつかまつる |
Kozure Ōkami: Kowokashi udekashi tsukamatsuru |
Wolf with Child in Tow: Child and Expertise for Rent |
| 2 |
Lone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart at the River StyxLone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart at the River Styx is the second in a series of six Japanese martial arts films based on the long-running Lone Wolf and Cub manga series about Ogami Ittō, a wandering assassin for hire who is accompanied by...
|
1972 |
子連れ狼 三途の川の乳母車 |
Kozure Ōkami: Sanzu no kawa no ubaguruma |
Wolf with Child in Tow: Baby Cart of the River of Sanzu |
| 3 |
Lone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart to HadesLone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart to Hades , is the third in a series of six Japanese martial arts films based on the long-running Lone Wolf and Cub manga series about Ogami Ittō, a wandering assassin for hire who is accompanied by...
aka Shogun Assassin 2: Lightning Swords of Death |
1972 |
子連れ狼 死に風に向う乳母車 |
Kozure Ōkami: Shinikazeni mukau ubaguruma |
Wolf with Child in Tow: Baby Cart Against the Winds of Death |
| 4 |
Lone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart in PerilLone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart in Peril , is the fourth in a series of six Japanese martial arts films based on the long-running Lone Wolf and Cub manga series about Ogami Ittō, a wandering assassin for hire who is accompanied by...
aka Shogun Assassin 3:Slashing Blades of Carnage |
1972 |
子連れ狼 親の心子の心 |
Kozure Ōkami: Oya no kokoro ko no kokoro |
Wolf with Child in Tow: The Heart of a Parent, the Heart of a Child |
| 5 |
Lone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart in the Land of Demons Lone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart in Land of Demons is the fifth in a series of six Japanese martial arts films based on the long-running Lone Wolf and Cub manga series about Ogami Ittō, a wandering assassin for hire who is accompanied by his young son,...
aka Shogun Assassin 4: Five Fistfuls of Gold |
1973 |
子連れ狼 冥府魔道 |
Kozure Ōkami: Meifumando |
Wolf with Child in Tow: Land of Demons |
| 6 |
Lone Wolf and Cub: White Heaven in Hell Lone Wolf and Cub: White Heaven in Hell is the final entry in a series of six Japanese martial arts films based on the long-running Lone Wolf and Cub manga series about Ogami Ittō, a wandering assassin for hire who is accompanied by his young...
aka Shogun Assassin 5: Cold Road to Hell |
1974 |
子連れ狼 地獄へ行くぞ!大五郎 |
Kozure Ōkami: Jigoku e ikuzo! Daigoro |
Wolf with Child in Tow: Now We Go to Hell, Daigoro! |
| 7 |
Shogun Assassin Shogun Assassin, known in Japan as , is a very violent jidaigeki film made for the British and American markets and released in 1980. The film is considered a classic by many fans of the samurai-film genre...
|
1980 |
- |
[English language release] |
Shogun Assassin |
The films are renowned for an incredible amount of stylized violence. In fact, after the second film, each movie climaxes with Ogami slaughtering an entire army single-handedly.
The films closely resemble the comics. Entire panels of the manga are recreated in perfect detail throughout the film series.
In addition to the six original films (and
Shogun Assassin in 1980), various
television movieA television movie is a feature film that is produced for and originally distributed by a...
s have aired in connection with the television series as pilots, compilations or originals. These include several starring Kinnosuke Yorozuya (Nakamura) (see section
Television series), in 1979 a film called
Lone Wolf With Child: An Assassin on the Road to Hell better known as
Baby Cart In Purgatory where
Hideki TakahashiHideki Takahashi is a Japanese actor. Born in Kisarazu, Chiba near Tokyo, he attended Ichikawa Gakuen and later Nihon University.- Filmography :...
plays Ogami Ittō and
Tomisaburo WakayamaTomisaburo Wakayama , born Masaru Okumura, was a Japanese actor, best known for playing Ogami Ittō, the disgraced, scowling, 17th century ronin in the six Kozure Okami samurai feature movies....
as Retsudo Yagyu.
In 1992 the story was once more made into a film,
Lone Wolf and Cub: Final Conflict also known as
Handful of Sand or
A Child's Hand Reaches Up (
Kozure Ōkami: Sono chīsaki te ni, literally
In That Little Hand), directed by Akira Inoue and starring Tamura Masakazu.
Kills
In the film
White Heaven in Hell, Ogami Ittō kills 150 people on screen, the highest body count for a single character in a single film in cinema history.
Television series
Two full-fledged television series based on the manga have been broadcast to date.
The first,
Lone Wolf and Cub (
Kozure Ōkami) was produced in a typical
jidaigekiis a genre of film, television, and theatre in Japan. The name means "period drama", and the period is usually the Edo period of Japanese history, from 1603 to 1868. Some, however, are set much earlier — Portrait of Hell, for example, is set during the late Heian period — and the early...
format and broadcast in three 26-episode seasons from 1973 to 1976, each episode 45 minutes long. Kinnosuke (Nakamura) Yorozuya played Ogami Ittō, and later reprised the role in a mid-1980s
miniseriesA miniseries , in a serial storytelling medium, is a production which tells a story in a pre-planned limited number of episodes. The exact number is open to interpretation; however, they are usually limited to fewer than a whole season. The term "miniseries" is generally a North American term...
and several related television movies. Yorozuya's portrayal of Ōgami in the series, and the series as a whole, is said to be more faithful to the manga than the Wakayama films.
The series was shown in the United States on Nippon TV as
The Fugitive Samurai in the original Japanese with English subtitles and released for the Toronto, Canada market by CFMT-TV (now OMNI 1) in the original Japanese with English subtitles as
The Iron Samurai. It has also been aired in Germany dubbed in German, in Italy dubbed in Italian; around 1980, a Portuguese dub was aired in Brazil as "O Samurai Fugitivo (The Fugitive Samurai) on TVS, actually SBT.
The 26 episodes of the first season were released on DVD in Japan on December 20 2006, apparently without subtitles. The first twelve episodes were released on DVD in Germany as
Kozure Okami, with audio in Japanese and German. In the US,
Media BlastersMedia Blasters is a corporation in New York City that was founded by John Sirabella and Sam Liebowitz that acquires films that they translate, package, and dub. They are most well known for anime and live action Asian films for home video release...
released the original TV series on DVD on April 29 2008 under its
Tokyo ShockTokyo Shock is a distributor of Japanese films to North America. The films are often violent action films, many of which are distributed as unrated...
Label, containing the original Japanese with English subtitles.
The latest television series, also titled
Lone Wolf and Cub (
Kozure Ōkami), aired from 2002 to 2004 in
Japanis an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
with Kinya Kitaoji in the role of Ogami Ittō. This series is not available on DVD.
See also:
List of Lone Wolf and Cub episodes
Influence
Because of its immense popularity in Japan and its
cult statusA cult following is used to refer to a small or large group of fans that are either somewhat or highly dedicated to a specific area of pop culture.-Cult media:...
in the West, both the manga series and subsequent film adaptations have had a lasting impact on popular culture both in Japan and elsewhere.
Lone Wolf and Cub and
Kazuo Koikeis a prolific Japanese manga writer, novelist and entrepreneur.-Biography:Early in Koike's career, he studied under Golgo 13 creator Takao Saito and served as a writer on the series....
's style have heavily influenced other manga by creating a romanticization of the
rōninA was a samurai with no lord or master during the feudal period of Japan. A samurai became masterless from the ruin or fall of his master, or after the loss of his master's favor or privilege.-Etymology:...
, or masterless samurai, the lone wanderer who follows his own code. Similar titles in spirit include
Osamu Tezukawas a Japanese manga artist, animator, producer and medical doctor, although he never practiced medicine. Born in Osaka Prefecture, he is best known as the creator of Astro Boy and Kimba the White Lion. He is often credited as the "Godfather of Anime", and is often considered the Japanese...
's
Black Jackis a manga written by Osamu Tezuka in the 1970s, dealing with the medical adventures of the eponymous doctor Black Jack.Black Jack consists of hundreds of short, self-contained episodes that are typically about 20 pages long. Black Jack has also been animated into an OVA, two television series and...
and later
Nobuhiro Watsukiis a Japanese mangaka, best known for his samurai-themed series Rurouni Kenshin. He once worked as an assistant for his favorite author Takeshi Obata.-Biography:...
's
Rurouni Kenshin, also known as Rurouni Kenshin and Samurai X, is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Nobuhiro Watsuki. The fictional setting takes place during the early Meiji period in Japan. The story is about a fictional assassin named Himura Kenshin, from the Bakumatsu who becomes a wanderer to...
.
Lone Wolf and Cub has also influenced American comics, most notably
Frank MillerFrank Miller is an American writer, artist and film director best known for his dark, film noir-style comic book stories and graphic novels Ronin, Daredevil: Born Again, Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Sin City and 300...
in his
Sin CitySin City is the title for a series of comics by Frank Miller, told in a film noir-like style . The first story originally appeared in "Dark Horse's Fifth Anniversary Special" , and continued in Dark Horse Presents #51–62 from May 1991 to June 1992, under the title of Sin City, serialized in...
and
RoninRonin is a comic book limited series published between 1983 and 1984, by DC Comics. The series was written and drawn by Frank Miller with artwork painted by Lynn Varley. It takes place in a dystopic near-future New York in which a ronin is reincarnated...
series. Novelist
Max Allan CollinsMax Allan Collins is an American mystery writer who has been called "mystery's Renaissance man". He has written novels, screenplays, comic books, comic strips, trading cards, short stories, movie novelizations and historical fiction. He wrote the graphic novel Road to Perdition , created the...
acknowledged the influence of
Lone Wolf and Cub on his graphic novel
Road to PerditionRoad to Perdition is a series of fictional works written by Max Allan Collins.The graphic novel of the original series, with art by Richard Piers Rayner, is currently being published by DC Comics' imprint, Paradox Press...
in an interview to the BBC, declaring that "
Road To Perdition is 'an unabashed homage' to
Lone Wolf And Cub".
Darren AronofskyDarren Aronofsky is an American filmmaker, screenwriter and film producer.-Early life:Aronofsky was born in Brooklyn, New York to Abraham and Charlotte Aronofsky, both school teachers. His father taught science and was a dean at Bushwick High School.He graduated from Edward R. Murrow High School...
has been trying to get an official Hollywood version off the ground, but never really had the rights in the first place.
There are also various references to
Lone Wolf and Cub in popular culture:
- The video game Final Fantasy X
is a console role-playing game developed and published by Square as the tenth title in the Final Fantasy series. It was released in 2001 for Sony's PlayStation 2. The game marks the Final Fantasy series' transition from entirely pre-rendered backdrops to fully three-dimensional areas, and is also...
features a Samurai character named Yojimbo, who can be hired to attack the player's enemies. One of his attacks is performed by a sidekick (in this case a dog), which goes by the name "Daigoro".
- The comic Usagi Yojimbo
is a comic book series created by Stan Sakai in 1984.-Concept:Set primarily at the beginning of Edo period of Japan , with anthropomorphic animals replacing humans, it features a rabbit ronin, Miyamoto Usagi, who is partially based on the famous swordsman Miyamoto Musashi...
also has references to Lone Wolf and Cub in a pair of characters known as "Lone Goat and Kid."
- The album Liquid Swords
Liquid Swords is the second solo studio album by American rapper and Wu-Tang Clan-member GZA, released November 7, 1995 on Geffen Records. It is considered to be one of the best Wu-Tang Clan solo albums along with Raekwon's Only Built 4 Cuban Linx…. The album went platinum and was critically...
by rapper GZAGary Grice , better known by his stage name GZA and The Genius, is an American hip hop artist best known as a founding member of the seminal hip hop group the Wu-Tang Clan and for his inclusion on their group albums, his groupmates' solo releases and a successful solo career...
contains several samples from Shogun AssassinShogun Assassin, known in Japan as , is a very violent jidaigeki film made for the British and American markets and released in 1980. The film is considered a classic by many fans of the samurai-film genre...
, including Daigoro's monologue, the flute of the fallen tiger, and the choice between ball and sword.
- The song "Danger! Danger!" by UK punk band Sonic Boom Six
Sonic Boom Six are a five-piece band from Manchester, United Kingdom. Their ecelectic sound combines elements of punk, Ska, Reggae and Hip-Hop. Their lyrics tend to focus on social commentary, attacking mainsteam society/media anti-authoritarianism Sonic Boom Six are a five-piece band from...
contains a sample from Shogun AssassinShogun Assassin, known in Japan as , is a very violent jidaigeki film made for the British and American markets and released in 1980. The film is considered a classic by many fans of the samurai-film genre...
, from Daigoro's voiceover as the Lone Wolf and Cub enter the town.
- At the conclusion of the 22nd episode of Samurai Champloo
is a Japanese animated television series consisting of twenty-six episodes. It was broadcast in Japan from May 20, 2004, through March 19, 2005, on the television network, Fuji TV. Samurai Champloo was created and directed by Shinichirō Watanabe, whose previous work, Cowboy Bebop, earned him renown...
, both Ogami Ittō and Daigoro appear when a meteor hits the ground. Daigoro is shown saying, "Look, a mushroom!" referring to the cloud of debris left from the impact.
- In Episode 24 of Samurai Champloo
is a Japanese animated television series consisting of twenty-six episodes. It was broadcast in Japan from May 20, 2004, through March 19, 2005, on the television network, Fuji TV. Samurai Champloo was created and directed by Shinichirō Watanabe, whose previous work, Cowboy Bebop, earned him renown...
, while the character Fuu is asking around for Kasumi Seizou, the woman who tells her is seen taking care of Daigoro. It is unknown where Ogami Ittō is during this, or whether his character is still alive by this time.
- Lone Wolf and Cub served as the inspiration for Dark Horse Comics
Dark Horse Comics is the largest independent American comic book publisher.Mike Richardson, the owner of several comic book shops in the Portland, Oregon metropolitan area, began to publish in 1986 with an anthology series called Dark Horse Presents, investing profits from his stores into Dark...
' futuristic retelling, Lone Wolf 2100, written by Mike KennedyMichael Kennedy is a former professional ice hockey centre who played in the National Hockey League from 1994–95 to 1998–99 for the Dallas Stars, Toronto Maple Leafs and New York Islanders....
, with art by Francisco Ruiz Velazco.
- In episode XIX of Cartoon Network's Samurai Jack
Samurai Jack is a 4-time Emmy award-winning American animated television series created by animator Genndy Tartakovsky that aired on Cartoon Network from 2001 until 2004...
Season 2, Lone Wolf and Cub appear in a flashback of Jack's past. It is implied that witnessing Ogami Ittō fight off four basket-headed thugs helped to inspire Jack's development as a samurai.
- Volume 2 of the film Kill Bill
Kill Bill is a two part film by writer-director Quentin Tarantino, starring Uma Thurman as The Bride. Originally conceived as one film, it was released in two separate 'volumes' due to its running time of approximately four hours...
includes a scene in which two characters watch Shogun AssassinShogun Assassin, known in Japan as , is a very violent jidaigeki film made for the British and American markets and released in 1980. The film is considered a classic by many fans of the samurai-film genre...
on TV, and Volume 1 climaxes in an elaborate battle scene reminiscent of the Lone Wolf and Cub films.
- In volume 10 of Gin Tama, the lead character is depicted dressed as Ogami, because of a child left on his door-step.
- The Urusei Yatsura
is a manga series by Rumiko Takahashi that was published in the Weekly Shōnen Sunday from 1978 to 1987. It was adapted into a TV anime series which aired on Fuji Television affiliates from 1981 to 1986, lasting 195 episodes. The show is also known as Lum/Lamu, the Invader Girl, and, Those...
anime features a macabre parody of the characters.
- The Peter David novel "Tong Lashing" has Sir Apros meeting a man and his young son who, while not named, bear a close resemblence to Lone Wolf and Cub.
- Cormac Mcarthy's novel "The Road
The Road is a 2006 novel by the American author Cormac McCarthy.The Road may also refer to:* The Road , a 2009 film adaptation of the McCarthy novel* La strada , a 1954 film by Federico Fellini...
" invokes images reminescent of Lone Wolf and Cub: an old man pushing his son around in a shopping cart in a post-apocalyptic USA with danger around every corner, and survival being one minute to the next.
Characters
- The shogun's executioner, Ittō decides to avenge the death of his wife, and to restore his clan. - The son of Ittō and Azami, Daigorō becomes a stronger warrior as the story progresses - The leader of the Yagyū clan, Retsudō tries everything in his power to ensure that Ittō dies. - The shogun's food taster, Tanoshi dishonorably tries to kill Ittō and Daigorō.
Video game
In 1987, video game manufacturer
Nichibutsu released a Japan-only beat-em-up based on the series named Kozure Ookami. Players guide Ogami Itto through an army of assassins while carrying his infant son on his back. A baby cart powerup enables Ookami to mow down enemies with blasts of fire. The game is considered a rarity by the Video Arcade Preservation Society as there are no known instances of the game being owned, although it is available in ROM form for
MAMEMAME is an emulator application designed to recreate the hardware of arcade game systems in software, with the intent of preserving gaming history and preventing vintage games from being lost or forgotten. The aim of MAME is to be a reference to the inner workings of the emulated arcade machines;...
.
External links
- Lone Wolf and Cub at TV Asahi
, also known as EX and , is a Japanese television network headquartered in Roppongi, Minato, Tokyo, Japan. The company writes its name in lower-case letters, tv asahi, in its logo and public-image materials. The company also owns All-Nippon News Network.-Headquarters:In 2003, the company...
- Dark Horse Comics: Lone Wolf and Cub manga
- Frank Miller Lone Wolf and Cub Covers
- About the manga series, covers of the manga
- "The Shogun Assassin Movies", about the films
- Website of 2002 TV series (Japanese)
- Website of 2003 TV series (Japanese)