SAMURAI 8: THE TALE OF HACHIMARU, VOL. 2
VIZ MEDIA – @VIZMedia
CREATOR/STORY: Masashi Kishimoto
ART: Akira Okubo
TRANSLATION: Stephen Paul
LETTERS: Snir Aharon
EDITOR: Alexis Kirsch
ISBN: 978-1-9747-1538-1; paperback (May 2020); Rated “T” for “Teen”
200pp, B&W, $9.99 U.S., $12.99 CAN, £7.99 U.K.
Samurai 8: The Tale of Hachimaru is a shonen manga series created and written by Masashi Kishimoto (of Naruto fame) and illustrated by Akira Okubo. Samurai 8 was serialized in the Japanese manga magazine, Weekly Shonen Jump, from May 2019 to March 2020. VIZ Media published an English-language edition of the manga as a five-volume graphic novel series from March 2020 to February 2021 under its “Shonen Jump” imprint.
Samurai 8: The Tale of Hachimaru introduces Hachimaru, a boy who has always dreamed of becoming a samurai. Samurai carry special souls within themselves and can travel through space as easily as they walk the earth. Only the most powerful warriors are able to transcend their human bodies and become samurai! Hachimaru is weak and so sickly that he can’t even eat solid foods. But one day, his father's secrets and the arrival of a samurai cat named “Daruma” combine to give Hachimaru a chance to live his dream. With enough heart, could Hachimaru become a true samurai?
As Samurai 8: The Tale of Hachimaru, Vol. 2 (entitled “Who and Why” – Chapters 7 to 15) opens, Hachimaru asks, “What is fate?” Now, he begins his samurai training under Master Daruma, but he is not a good student. However, this day will also bring new people into his life. One is the samurai, Sir Hagamichi; the other is Princess Ann, a “princess of fate.” Hachimaru finds a new source of confidence in Ann – his princess of fate, and he is delighted, although Ann is somewhat wary of him. Elsewhere, Ata the Peerless, a new enemy, approaches, and he is a threat to Hachimaru's existence.
THE LOWDOWN: The Samurai 8: The Tale of Hachimaru manga is creator Masashi Kishimoto's follow-up to his legendary, smash hit manga, Naruto. [The Naruto sequel, Boruto: Naruto Next Generations, is written and drawn by a new writer-artist team.] Kishimoto created Samurai 8 and writes the story and produces the storyboards, and newcomer artist Akira Okubo draws it.
Samurai 8: The Tale of Hachimaru Graphic Novel Volume 2 has a perfect title, “Who and Why.” The first volume was quite a read for all the wild and inventive characters and concepts it introduced. In Vol. 2, Kishimoto and Okubo give us the adversary, Ata, that will vex Hachimaru, and, as Master Daruma explains, the vast conspiracy that threatens the world of Samurai 8. Granted that it is not until this volume's last chapter (Chp. 15), but the narrative gets there: the conflict and the competing ideologies. We also get the origin story and back story of Hachimaru and his father, with plenty of shocking reveals.
I like Akira Okubo drawing style, although it can tend to create cluttered panels that are difficult to read. Okubo draws like the late Moebius, but the younger artist's compositions are not as streamlined as Moebius'. Still Okubo and Kishimoto seem like a perfect pairing, and translator Stephen Paul does a good job making the narrative clearer. Snir Aharon's lettering also goes a long way to creating a rhythm that captures the fun of this story.
I READS YOU RECOMMENDS: Fans of Naruto will want to try the Shonen Jump title, Samurai 8: The Tale of Hachimaru.
A
8 out of 10
Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"
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