Path of the Assassin, Vol. 8: Shinobi With Extending Fists

半蔵の門 [Hanzou no Mon] #8

by Kazuo Koike, Goseki Kojima

An impenetrable castle must be defeated, the country’s best samurai swayed, competing warlords politicked and tricked into line. All this sounds technical and textbook, so how does it turn out to be so sexy and dramatic and fun? Kazuo Koike and Goseki Kojima (Lone Wolf & Cub) are masters of samurai storytelling, and Path of the Assassin is no slouch when it comes to action, drama, tactics, sex, love, honor and a terrific, engaging story.

Genres: Manga, Comics, Graphic Novels, Historical Fiction, Japan, Fiction, Japanese Literature

302 pages, Paperback

First published November 19, 2014

About the author

Kazuo Koike (小池一夫, Koike Kazuo) was a prolific Japanese manga writer, novelist and entrepreneur.

Early in Koike's career, he studied under Golgo 13 creator Takao Saito and served as a writer on the series.

Koike, along with artist Goseki Kojima, made the manga Kozure Okami (Lone Wolf and Cub), and Koike also contributed to the scripts for the 1970s film adaptations of the series, which starred famous Japanese actor Tomisaburo Wakayama. Koike and Kojima became known as the "Golden Duo" because of the success of Lone Wolf and Cub.

Another series written by Koike, Crying Freeman, which was illustrated by Ryoichi Ikegami, was adapted into a 1995 live-action film by French director Christophe Gans.

Kazuo Koike started the Gekika Sonjuku, a college course meant to teach people how to be mangaka.

In addition to his more violent, action-oriented manga, Koike, an avid golfer, has also written golf manga.

Reviews

[Drew Canole · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit of a lull in the action and stakes. Weird sex stuff takes a more prominent role in this volume unfortunately.

[Jedi JC Daquis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Coming from a quieter volume 7, Shinobi with Extending Arms combines cunning, respect, a couple of action and a bit of sex into yet another exciting volume of Path of the Assassin. This book revolves more around Hideyoshi and Hanzo than Ieyasu and Hanzo which makes the story move at a faster and livelier pace considering that the two are born to roam the field. The cliffhanger siege chapter makes me want to read volume 9 right away.

[Indah Threez Lestari · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hahaha... setelah aku ngomel di review Taiko kalau gaya Hideyoshi merayu Hanbei jadi anak buahnya persis gaya Liu Bei merayu Zhuge Liang di cerita Sam Kok (inikah namanya copas? oh inikah copas? dejavu pada jumpa pertama...), ternyata manga ini punya versinya sendiri. Dengan melibatkan Hattori, pastinya.

Dan iyaaa, Hattori tampil di setiap cerita keberhasilan Hideyoshi, termasuk di penaklukan Mino, hal yang tak pernah ada di versi novel Taiko. Tapi tentunya, nggak jelas juga sih versi mana yang benar.

Ya sudahlah, namanya juga tokoh utama. Terserah pengarangnya saja deh.

Kalau percaya sama Chin Yung, Kwee Ceng saja punya peran sangat penting dalam membantu Jenghiz Khan menaklukkan Samarkand. Atau Thio Bu Ki sebagai ketua Beng-kauw, yang punya peran sangat dahsyat dalam menaklukkan kekaisaran Mongol dan membangun dinasti Beng (baca: dinasti Ming).

[Ruz El · Rating 3 out of 5]

Continues to be really good. Still mixes action, politics and philosophy in a masterful way, with a bit of porn on the side to keep it from getting dull.

[David the Ñoldo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finally, the appearance of Fūma ninja! Though no Kotarō Fūma (yet?).