Blade of the Immortal

Submitted: Mon, 03/17/2008 - 16:12
Author: Hiroaki Samura


Simply, a man of many, many, many…blades.

Pop Quiz! The secret behind every great samurai is: A) a tough, but nimble-witted Master? B) a little woman of his own, patiently sitting by the window awaiting his return? Or C) some type of magically-endowed/demon-processed/specially forged from lunar steel under the light of the full moon sword/spear/mallet? … Actually, this time it’s worms. Okay, so that probably wasn’t what you had in mind, but then again it’s nice to have a little something different to spice up the ol’ manga collection, and Blade of the Immortal is certainly a refreshing look at the wandering samurai archetype.

The hero of our story is Manji, a well-traveled ronin of mystery (not to be confused with an international man of mystery, although there is an ample supply of deadly beauties awaiting him…) recently cursed by 800-year old Yaobikuni and her ‘kessen-chu,’ or sacred bloodworms, which give him immortality. In order to get him to eat them… well we never actually see this part, but surely it must have had something to do with that cunningness only available to an 800-year old nun. Endowed with the power of the kessen-chu and a vow to kill 1000 bad men (I won’t spoil all the details as to the ‘why’) Manji is on his way to a life of redemption. A little further on, our hero agrees to escort young Rin, heir and sole-survivor to the Mutenichi-ryū sword school, down her road to sweet, sweet revenge. Unfortunately, the path to fulfillment is riddled with bandits, serial killers, questionable hobbies (one character you will meet early on carries two highly unusual good-luck charms on his shoulders), a gang of highly-skilled, thus deadly, misfits with a monopoly on the sword-school market (headed by the young prodigy, Anotsu), a few dubious government officials with an interesting healthcare program, as well as a plethora of other highly memorable characters and obstacles you won’t find anywhere else! Don’t expect to read many chapters of our protagonist faithfully fulfilling his domestic responsibilities, because he’s much too busy slicing and dicing; if you want some laundry done you’ll have to visit a certain red-haired Rurouni for that.

Manji is a character you just have to love, due to the fact that if he were a real person, he’d be completely despicable – he’s rude, lecherous, extremely dangerous, and has the hygiene of a wild hog (no wait, I don’t want to insult the hog) – but combine these seemingly aversive qualities, throw in a guilt-ridden past, scruffy good looks, and a heart of…silver (he’s not perfect, but at least he keeps his friends highly prioritized) and you’ve got a hero worth cheering for. As for the other characters, as mentioned earlier, they’re not to be forgotten and highly original. What’s even more amazing is the depth of characterization Mr. Samura bestows upon his company, and they only continue to grow as three-dimensional figures throughout the series, meaning you won’t be bored. Well placed, if not thought provoking, humor adds to the already colorful feudal landscape. But if you want some general specifics on the day to day routine of our hero, the story can be summarized by its painfully appropriate title:

First, Manji is immortal – and by this I mean immortal. The man’s impervious to every form of spur-of-the-moment and pre-meditated murder available to the human imagination (which it turns out, is an awful big selection). The exception to this is a rare poison (Every man of steel needs a weakness, right?), but how many bad guys go around carrying that sort of thing?

And second, it can be said that Manji is a man of many, many blades. In fact, there’s not an inch of room left in Manji’s kimono for hyperboles, and it is with a fantasy-loving mind that I overlook the question of how a man can possibly hide so many sharp, pointy objects in his pants and still manage to jump about without being the least bit anxious. But this is all part of the fun with Blade, and I wouldn’t want it any other way. What makes this series a real page-turner is the sheer suspense created by these impossible situations and whimsical feats of acrobatics – you’ll find yourself asking, how the heck is he going to get out of this one?! The battle sequences are impressive, and it is not very often that you can actually ‘watch’ a manga, but here it is. The flow from panel to panel runs smoother than that curious red liquid which seems to show up every time Manji makes a new enemy, or friend, as the case may be.

The series has won numerous awards, including the Will Eisner Comic Industry Award in America and Japan’s prestigious Media Arts Award for 1998. But if all my praise and shiny medals hasn’t convinced you yet, consider the fact that the series has been in print since 1994, and continues to this day. So if you’re weary of arriving late, never fear since you’ve many years of fresh, immortal goodness to look forward to. I’m not saying it’s the manga to end all others, but it’s certainly worth most of the pennies invested. Which leads me to the few down-sides of this unique series; the price is definitely at the high end for manga, sometimes going as high as $17.95 for the thicker volumes, the lowest being $14.95. Another sad part is that over the years the artwork seems to have declined and gotten just a tad sloppier (did I mention that it’s drawn and shaded in pencil? which gives it a very unique, sketchy, but lively quality), but not by much and thankfully the story makes up for this slump. For comparison, think the hip-street culture meets feudal Japan of Samurai Champloo, but a whole lot more graphic and thus definitely not suitable for younger audiences; mature people only please. Presently, I look forward to reading the next installment of Samura’s amazing story telling, which is up to 17 volumes, and hopefully you will too! Happy Reading!