Star Wars: Visions (2022) #1

by Takashi Okazaki

From the creative mind behind the STAR VISIONS episode "The Duel" comes an all-new story! Takashi Okazaki (Afro Samurai) is continuing his storytelling from the acclaimed STAR VISIONS episode "The Duel," featuring the Ronin! The mythology of STAR WARS infused with elements of Feudal Japan makes this issue a must read for Star Wars and manga fans alike!

Genres: Star Wars, Comics, Graphic Novels, Marvel, Science Fiction, Graphic Novels Comics, Fantasy

31 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 20, 2024

About the author

Takashi Okazaki (岡崎 能士), born in the Kanagawa Prefecture in 1974, is a Japanese comic book artist, animation concept artist and graphic designer.
Okazaki is most notably known for writing and illustrating the manga Afro Samurai (1998-2002), also adapted into an anime series.
Okazaki has been a character designer for animation and video games, most notably the movies Summer Wars (2009), Garo: Vanishing Line (2017) and Batman Ninja (2018).
Since 2020, Takashi Okazaki has worked on a number of Marvel comic book series, as both writer and artist.

Reviews

[Oneirosophos · Rating 5 out of 5]

MUST READ MASTERPIECE!!!!!!!!!!!

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

Came in not knowing anything about this book. If anything came before it, if it’s setting any things up going forward or if these characters have been in other stories. But the art was dope. Pretty much black and white with some grey tones jumpin’. The only thing in color was the light sabers and the lights on the droids. Cool fights too.

[Rick Ray · Rating 4 out of 5]

A near perfect one-shot comic that has me wanting more.

This tells an incredibly badass story featuring great lightsaber duels and action, all rendered with beautiful heavy inks and grayscales contrasted against the sharp hues of the ignited lightsabers. An absolutely wonderful comic.

[Katherine (Kat) · Rating 4 out of 5]

So gooooood! I want more!

[David Dalton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved it. Want more. I have seen the video and read the hardback novel.

[True Sankofa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great prequel to the animated ep of Visions featuring the Ronin. The former "Shogun" he comes across in this one shot had me thinking it was Mace Windu for one, he looks like the character in Afro Samurai that was voiced by Samuel Jackson. Two, he talks about being hit by what seemed like lightning before falling from a tower and 3, a purple lightsaber? No missing limb though but don't they just get prosthetics pretty easily in this universe? Maybe I'm reaching. Am I?

[Frédéric · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sticking pure samurai iconography onto the Star Wars universe is an obvious choice... and one that's hardly ever seen as clearly as it is here. And it simply looks great.

This one-shot is a perfectly assumed rip-off of Lone Wolf and cub, with a nice mini-twist at the end.

Nothing earth-shattering, but a little pleasure, and not even a guilty one at that.

[deLibroenLibroconAJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

¡Buenísima historia y arte increíble del mismísimo Afro Samurai, Takashi Okazaki!🔥

[Elwin Kline · Rating 1 out of 5]

I am going to go against the grain here, as most readers and throwing up 4 and 5 star reviews for this.

"I did not like it." - 1 out of 5 stars.

There is just waaay too much going on here for me. I really tried my best to be open-minded and accepting of this type of material, I do sincerely mean that. But the mash up of so many genres into one delivery platform is not for me.

Japanese-style content such as anime/manga/samurai stuff/etc... all of this is GREAT in its own creative and beautiful way.

Fantasy, with unlimited worlds, magic, beasts, possibilities, and so forth... again, I totally get why people still play Dungeons and Dragons, read heaps of fantasy novels, and play fantasy videogames.... because its a great escape to reality and its fun to get lost in a different world!

Science-fiction, my go to... same as above with fantasy.

Star Wars, same same as fantasy + sci-fi.

Then you have Star Wars: Visions... that tries to roll all 4 of these into one. It just does not work for me. It's like someone having 10 different hobbies, and being sucky/mediocre at best for some of them... versus maybe have 2-3 hobbies and being excellent/superb at the few that they actually focus on and commit to.

Too much, too thin, spread in too many different directions.

I hate to say it, but I don't even feel motivated to give this 2 stars. Even the writing is lackluster/poor... and it's a single standalone comic (as of April 2023, with a October 2022 original release date of the comic) as well that makes it impossible to establish reader hook, character depth, or just about anything.

I wanted to like this, but I have to be true to myself.

[Rakib Khan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Those who saw and loved 'The Duel' episode from Star Wars: Visions animated series were eagerly awaiting the return of the Ronin and his world. And after the full length, he returns again, this time in a story by the original writer of the episode.

The story is a short prequel set in an unspecified period before the episode, describes the Ronin's adventures in a snowy mountain as he battles a band of bandits and encounters a mysterious stranger while travelling with his droid.

The short one-shot has quite an enjoyable plot once again reminding us about the glorious movies and fiction it so beautifully pays homage to. The dialogue is poignant and to the point, the action sequences are stunning and brilliant. And the overall experience leaves any reader desiring more stories featuring these characters.

The art is almost as beautiful as the original episode minus the vivid and stylized animation. The black and white drawing inspired by Manga and the use of colors only to highlight the weapons and battles works wonders to create a sense of visual motion and makes the detailed art even more gorgeous.

I left with wishing this was at least a mini-series instead of being just a one-shot. This is recommended to not only to any fans of the original, but also to any fans of Star Wars and samurai inspired fiction in general.

A well deserved 4.5 out of 5 stars from me.

For more reviews and stuff check out my blog -
http://ihate00critics.blogspot.com/

[RubiGiráldez RubiGiráldez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Increíble que Okazaki haya colado totalmente a Afro Samurai en esta historia... Pero la verdad es se antoja totalmente lógico. Puede que sea verdad que la historia de este Sith particular de la revisión chanbara del 1º episodio de la 1º temporada de Visions sí que merezca más recorrido (sé que hay una novela, desconozco si este cómic adapta algo de ello de alguna forma). Puede que parezca que no nos muestra nada nuevo, pero sí que toda la identidad visual de aquel episodio, logra hacer muy interesante cualquier nueva dosis de bandidos con piezas y armamento roñoso de stormtroopers y elementos de la Fuerza pasadas por el filtro feudal japonés (aquí mostrando una interesante deriva de la mística Jedi). Gran fuerza visual, pero tampoco desmerece los momentos velados pero contundentes del dolor y arrepentimiento del Ronin y momentazos como ese "duelo" en ese cruce de caminos helado.

[Norman Cook · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the most interesting interpretations of Star Wars is the animated Visions anthology streaming on Disney+. One of the best of those episodes, "The Duel", reimagines Star Wars as a Japanese samurai epic. This comic by the same creator as that anime is a prequel to "The Duel." It's done in stark black and white, with color highlights for lightsaber combat and a few other spots, so it takes a bit of concentration to see everything that's happening. Nevertheless, the art and story work well together as the ronin protagonist interacts with another warrior. This is a fascinating premise and I'm looking forward to more of this style of anime in the upcoming second series of Visions.

[Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The artwork is amazing! Fans of Afro Samurai will appreciate this and the incorporation of lightsabers— I know I did!

The use of color in the largely black and white comic added quite an impact to the action and highlighting certain aspects. I enjoyed the story and the artwork! I would definitely read more if there was a sequel!

Short and sweet!

[Drew Canole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Takashi Okazaki is best known for his Afro Samurai... which I now need to go check out.

The main character here feels very similar... IE it's definitely Samuel L. Jackson. Purple light-sabre included.

It's part-Star Wars part Lone Wolf and Cub. I'm loving it.

The artwork is the star of the show here but the story was very enjoyable. I hope Okazaki explores these characters more!

[Craig Schorling · Rating 4 out of 5]

An addition to probably my favorite episode from the show sharing the same name. If I was rating this on the art and style alone it would be an easy 5. It is so slick and stylish. The combat pops and the art is fantastic. The story is not the deepest but there is a good little short story here. It's a fast read but well worth it. Need more of this.

[Marius · Rating 4 out of 5]

Life Of A Ronin

Much better than expected. Story is just a small piece of Ronin's life meeting a stranger - nothing too surprising. The action is the key factor in this one. Everything feels dynamic and looks incredible with a contrast between black/white/grey and the colors of the sabers. Many hints towards Japanese culture round everything up. Well done! 4/5

[Lynn]

Continuation of a great idea

This is a continuation of an originally one-off episode of Star Wars Visions - my favorite episode - combining Edo Japanese masterless samurai with Star Wars elements and it maintains the style, tension and mystery really well. I hope they do more.

[Jackson · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cool one shot with amazing art, though it can be difficult to tell what is going on in a few panels. The world of The Ronin is very interesting, and every story they have done in it has left me wanting more, even if the comic story was a bit unsatisfying in itself.

[Jed Doyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not much lore is offered in this small snippet, but then again, it’s more than we probably ever planned to get. And in terms of what we got, it delivered that same awesomeness as that first episode of visions did. So basically, this was pretty cool. It was short, but it was cool.

[Steven Shinder · Rating 2 out of 5]

What was even going on here?

[Derik Boonstra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jan 19, 2023

[Mariano Magnano · Rating 5 out of 5]

Una bomba

[Jay Gabler · Rating 3 out of 5]

The visual style of this universe is so cool.

[Eden · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gorgeous Manga art. Thought provoking writing. I highly recommend.

[Mohannad · Rating 5 out of 5]

Star wars in a Japanese way, i love it

[David A.]

Deepening a mysterious character

Another glimpse into the past of the mysterious samurai. Also a name for his droid ) . A must read for the fans of Visions

[Mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it. Star Wars with an Afro Samurai spin.

[Matthew]

Goodreads has the 2022 and 2024 standalone titles by the same author as two versions of the same release. They are completely different ☠️

[vk chompooming · Rating 1 out of 5]

In my humble opinion, the art, the story, and the characters all sucked. I can see why the publisher only had one issue. I feel this read was a waste of my time.

[Anwar Vázquez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ese personaje ronin es genial. Misterio e historia en un solo personaje. En esta historia luce lo que no se cuenta, sólo lo que se infiere. Me gustó.