What do you think?
Rate this book
Okko #5-6
Okko: The Cycle of Air
It is the Spring of 1110 in the official calendar of the Pajan Empire. Okko is called upon to assist the daughter of Lady Mayudama, who has retreated into a profound silence. The best doctors have been unable to provide even a diagnosis of her condition, and Okko may prove to be her last resort. But a strange force that has been prowling around the region for over a week has also arranged a meeting with the ronin for a duel of incomparable violence!
104 pages, Hardcover
First published May 19, 2010
8 people are currently reading
92 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews
July 27, 2015
This is the third book in the four book Okko series by Hub. This series continues to be very interesting and well drawn.
We continue to follow Okko and his companions as they journey from city to city seeking out demons. In this book they are asked to help Lady Mayudama’s daughter who has been unresponsive and is thought to be possessed by a demon. While assisting Lady Mayudama they run into another demon hunter who ends up having history with Okko and demanding a duel with Okko.
Like previous volumes this one is beautifully illustrated with wonderful color and lots of detail. It was easy to follow and great to look at.
There is a ton of action and fighting in this volume as well. Additionally we get to learn a bit more about Okko’s past.
The book is called the Cycle of Air because in this installment Noshin and Tikku end up summoning air spirits to assist Okko. We also learn a bit more about what Noboru is; the demon hunter that duels Okko is also hunting Noboru.
Overall I continue to really enjoy the Okko series and look forward to reading the final book in it, The Cycle of Fire. I would recommend this to people who enjoy historical fantasy graphic novels with lots of action.
We continue to follow Okko and his companions as they journey from city to city seeking out demons. In this book they are asked to help Lady Mayudama’s daughter who has been unresponsive and is thought to be possessed by a demon. While assisting Lady Mayudama they run into another demon hunter who ends up having history with Okko and demanding a duel with Okko.
Like previous volumes this one is beautifully illustrated with wonderful color and lots of detail. It was easy to follow and great to look at.
There is a ton of action and fighting in this volume as well. Additionally we get to learn a bit more about Okko’s past.
The book is called the Cycle of Air because in this installment Noshin and Tikku end up summoning air spirits to assist Okko. We also learn a bit more about what Noboru is; the demon hunter that duels Okko is also hunting Noboru.
Overall I continue to really enjoy the Okko series and look forward to reading the final book in it, The Cycle of Fire. I would recommend this to people who enjoy historical fantasy graphic novels with lots of action.
April 19, 2017
hub's art is sumptuous.
I have never used that adjective before (haha dont check ok guys)
I have never used that adjective before (haha dont check ok guys)
December 28, 2017
The series keep getting better, this is the best installment yet. For those not familiar with the setting the story is based on a medieval-themed Japanese style kingdom only it’s full of mystic arts, magic and steampunk theme. The volume can be read as a standalone although It is advisable to read the previous volumes to get an idea about the four members of the group.
The story this time around is more personal, involves the toughest fight Okko’s group has faced, it’s a personal vendetta and it does look hopeless and grim for them. Little more juicy titbit of their past and origins are reviled.
The art which was already a highlight of the series shines brighter, with clear panels & bright colors. The art is refreshing as it’s very different from the earlier volumes as the geography and setting are different. Also, the previous volumes were mostly at night times or in rooms or caves, saturated with color themes of Red, Blue, Green to denote the time of the day, luckily this time around most of the action is on bright clear days. Earlier volumes, each of the panel were cramped with too many minute details and items, shifting focus from the story to the art itself. This time around the author has been able to keep the detailed artwork but removed the clutter for a smoother storytelling.
Really looking forward to the next volume.
The story this time around is more personal, involves the toughest fight Okko’s group has faced, it’s a personal vendetta and it does look hopeless and grim for them. Little more juicy titbit of their past and origins are reviled.
The art which was already a highlight of the series shines brighter, with clear panels & bright colors. The art is refreshing as it’s very different from the earlier volumes as the geography and setting are different. Also, the previous volumes were mostly at night times or in rooms or caves, saturated with color themes of Red, Blue, Green to denote the time of the day, luckily this time around most of the action is on bright clear days. Earlier volumes, each of the panel were cramped with too many minute details and items, shifting focus from the story to the art itself. This time around the author has been able to keep the detailed artwork but removed the clutter for a smoother storytelling.
Really looking forward to the next volume.
August 28, 2019
Brilliant storyline. And in a fit of serendipity (i'm so glad to at last be able to use that word!) this connects marvelously to Peter Watt's Crysis: Legion.
The Bunraku warrior in this cycle of Okko has a made to fit Bunraku suit giving him extraordinary powers. In the end he proves to have been dead physically a long time before his ultimate demise, as if the spirit has kept going all of it's own.
Similarly, the main character in Crysis dons a Nano2 body armour with superhuman capabilities. The wearer and the machine become increasingly connected, as well as with the previous occupant, known as the Prophet.
Intreagueing
The Bunraku warrior in this cycle of Okko has a made to fit Bunraku suit giving him extraordinary powers. In the end he proves to have been dead physically a long time before his ultimate demise, as if the spirit has kept going all of it's own.
Similarly, the main character in Crysis dons a Nano2 body armour with superhuman capabilities. The wearer and the machine become increasingly connected, as well as with the previous occupant, known as the Prophet.
Intreagueing
August 2, 2022
The third collected volume of Okko is good, but the story is so full of violence and supernatural elements that it feels a bit over-stuffed at times. Hub's artwork is as wonderful as ever, and that's the real reason to read in the first place, but the convoluted story does weigh the work down at times, and makes this volume less rewarding than the earlier cycles of water and earth.
April 24, 2024
Excellent volume. This is the best, most complicated plot of the series. However, the art suffers a bit as the writing comes to the fore — there is less opportunity to introduce new settings and characters, as the story requires careful buildup in a fixed location. This kind of tradeoff between art and writing is common and a matter of taste, although, for the visual medium of comics, it’s better to favor the art.
Several threads converge here in the valley of the winds. First, there is a sick girl whom Okko has come to heal. Second there is a Ronin who seeks revenge on Okko. And third there is a demon hunter who has come for Noburo.
The way these threads interweave is clever and filled with suspense. The role of the orphaned ronin is particularly well done, with an unexpected twist.
SPOILER
In that he saves Okko from death, enemy becoming ally, not out of friendship, but to preserve the opportunity for revenge. The tension is built sky high as Okko, Noburo, and Noshin all face mortal peril from a spindle-limbed killing machine (great design) while tempests rage in the heavens. (The depiction of wind, through rippling fabric and waving trees, is highly effective.)
At one point, Hub uses an unreliable narrator to depict Okko decapitated. This kind of subjective viewpoint, reminiscent of Rashoman, is something you don’t often see in comics. Here, it is skillfully employed to enhance suspense.
A lone blemish is the abrupt ending — I would have rather seen an all-out battle between the demon hunter and Noburo & Okko. Instead Tikku defeats the beast with a possessed shamisen, which was cheap.
The tale wraps up with quick conclusions to the stories of kite boy past and kite boy future. These have a nice resonance and a bittersweet austerity that hit just the right note.
Several threads converge here in the valley of the winds. First, there is a sick girl whom Okko has come to heal. Second there is a Ronin who seeks revenge on Okko. And third there is a demon hunter who has come for Noburo.
The way these threads interweave is clever and filled with suspense. The role of the orphaned ronin is particularly well done, with an unexpected twist.
SPOILER
In that he saves Okko from death, enemy becoming ally, not out of friendship, but to preserve the opportunity for revenge. The tension is built sky high as Okko, Noburo, and Noshin all face mortal peril from a spindle-limbed killing machine (great design) while tempests rage in the heavens. (The depiction of wind, through rippling fabric and waving trees, is highly effective.)
At one point, Hub uses an unreliable narrator to depict Okko decapitated. This kind of subjective viewpoint, reminiscent of Rashoman, is something you don’t often see in comics. Here, it is skillfully employed to enhance suspense.
A lone blemish is the abrupt ending — I would have rather seen an all-out battle between the demon hunter and Noburo & Okko. Instead Tikku defeats the beast with a possessed shamisen, which was cheap.
The tale wraps up with quick conclusions to the stories of kite boy past and kite boy future. These have a nice resonance and a bittersweet austerity that hit just the right note.
December 27, 2025
The first two books of this quartet were amazing -- following the travels of the titular ronin and his demon-hunter companions: a consistently tipsy priest, his young novice, and a masked oversized warrior who seems to be able to regenerate. Set in in a feudal Japanese-inspired setting, the first book took place largely on and around water, the second in mountains, and in this book moves to a land where divine winds are crucial to the silkworm harvest.
The story here has two major plots with a third subplot. Our heroes come into this new land to discover that the daughter of the local ruler suffers from some kind of arrive. As they enter, an unstable young man who lives in a shack challenges Okko to a duel, saying that the ronin killed his father a decade ago. Brushing him aside, the group seeks to cure the princess, however a mysterious massive mechanical warrior challenges our hero to a duel to the death. As in the other books, there's a fun mix of action and magic -- although with far less sneaking around than the others.
Unfortunately, the storylines here aren't as interesting or complex as the first two books. Those had lots of interesting supporting characters and threads to pull on, but here we basically get a crazy kid, an old noodle vendor, and a villain whose motivations are kind of basic. However, what makes this series special is the artwork -- absolutely gorgeous in creating a sense of place, with incredible attention to detail in each panel. Where most books treat backgrounds as empty spaces that the reader's eyes will gloss over, this has stunning amounts of interest, with servants, decor, and texture lurking at every edge. Although a notch down from the previous two in the series, still very much worth the time.
The story here has two major plots with a third subplot. Our heroes come into this new land to discover that the daughter of the local ruler suffers from some kind of arrive. As they enter, an unstable young man who lives in a shack challenges Okko to a duel, saying that the ronin killed his father a decade ago. Brushing him aside, the group seeks to cure the princess, however a mysterious massive mechanical warrior challenges our hero to a duel to the death. As in the other books, there's a fun mix of action and magic -- although with far less sneaking around than the others.
Unfortunately, the storylines here aren't as interesting or complex as the first two books. Those had lots of interesting supporting characters and threads to pull on, but here we basically get a crazy kid, an old noodle vendor, and a villain whose motivations are kind of basic. However, what makes this series special is the artwork -- absolutely gorgeous in creating a sense of place, with incredible attention to detail in each panel. Where most books treat backgrounds as empty spaces that the reader's eyes will gloss over, this has stunning amounts of interest, with servants, decor, and texture lurking at every edge. Although a notch down from the previous two in the series, still very much worth the time.
April 6, 2018
Nice story. I enjoyed very much the bunraku character. A mighty antagonist. The art is very good: loved the attention to details. On the writing part, I think there are some dialogues that were unnecessary... it's like they forgot that the images are part of the storytelling in graphic literature. I enjoyed the use of Japanese culture and mythology. Overall I think this is a good story with good art and I'm interested in the other books (this is the first I've read but it's not the first in the series).
December 21, 2022
French artist Hub continues to impress with fantastic artwork. Magical Japan of 1180 with demon hunters and ronin as well as Bushido - what more does one need? This issue was a bit of a shocker. I'm still not clear how or if entities can die in this world. The Sake soaked Monk conjures "Kami" when they get in trouble, and it's not always certain what the "kami" will do - they're capricious spirits. But it's told from the viewpoint of an orphan fishmonger who is studying to be a monk, which means you have a novice's viewpoint and voice guiding you.
March 20, 2018
I love Okko series and I really enjoyed reading The Cycle of Air. The feudal Japan meets fantasy lore is strong here, dialogues got better, story (and all the side-stories) is perfect, complex but not complicated. I really liked the narrative on this book (the events narrated from "different witnesses"). It really helped to create tension in non-annoying way and I loved it. This is my favourite Okko story so far.
February 23, 2020
I am enjoying this graphic novel series. The story lines are on point! Okko and his companions go to save a queen's daughter from a demon and all heck breaks loose. Okko has two individuals trying to kill him and the masked Noburo. It was a lot of fun to read this one. My only problem is I am not sure if there are any more books. I am having trouble finding more. Oh nooooo!
July 16, 2019
Huh? Didn’t he get his head chopped off? I’m so f**king confused??????????????? They literally showed the panel where his head got chopped off, right? Did I see something wrong? Then later they show him laying there all hurt and not missing a head? I don’t get it! 🤔🧐🤨😤
March 29, 2024
Opět to má skvělou atmosféru fantasy Japonska. Je to vyvážený mix napětí, humoru a šokujících momentů. Je v tom cítit Japonská krutost i osudovost. A taky je to krásně nakreslené. Zkrátka je to dobré pokračování. Těším se na další d��ly.
June 5, 2025
A little better than the first two installments but there is just something about the flow of the story that’s unsettling. The art is forever great and the writing will just be whats its gonna be. What’s impressive is the constant progression of better, even if its slight.
3.2✨
3.2✨
July 9, 2017
Okko/ Hub spielt weiterhin an der ersten Liga europäischer Comic-Kunst. Tolle, detailreiche Bilder, interessante Charaktere und eine spannende, verwickelte Geschichte.
May 30, 2018
Another interesting plot line, although sometimes a little hard to follow. The art is great but I wish some of the pictures were larger.
November 1, 2018
Exquisitely drawn and colored, Okko: The Cycle of Air is another installment in the complex world of demon hunting. Samurais, yurei, talking samisens, blood feuds... It's all in here.
June 11, 2020
Wow !!!! Le meilleur cicle de la saga !!
August 7, 2020
The story and characters are page turners, and the illustration is beautiful, this series is easy to like.
July 1, 2022
Still digging it. The art alone is a 5 for me.
December 16, 2024
Strong sense of place and character with excitement and verve in compelling story.
July 10, 2018
This story is getting better all the time, HUD’s artwork is truly amazing and the development of back story in this graphic novel really enhances the main character.
June 14, 2016
(English review below the French)
On a presque oublié que Tikku s’est rejoint à Noburo, Noshin, et Okko pour retrouver sa sœur, Petite Carpe. Maintenant tous les quatre traversent le pays Pajan, en donnant aide où possible ; cette fois-ci, c’est en exorcisant les démons qui hantent les gens. Quant à Tikku, il continue à apprendre le mysticisme du moine errant Noshin. Ils arrivent aux terres de la dame Marudama, ancienne amie d’Okko. Sa fille est soit possédé soit hanté par un démon ou autre chose, et Noshin est chargé de la libérer. En plus, le passé d’Okko revient, portant des vedettes anciennes et peut-être mortelles pour lui.
En voyant bien les cadres, il y a quelquefois des pistes au sujet de ce qui va arriver en scène prochainement, ce qui enrichit l’histoire. Alors ce n’est pas une bande dessinée à glisser sur les images !
L’air est insaisissable. Ce n’est qu’en observant les mouvements des vents que l’on peut comprendre les pulsations du monde qui nous entoure. – page 89
We’ve almost forgotten that Tikku joined up with Noburo, Noshin, and Okko in order to find his sister, Little Carp. Now all four of them travel the country Pajan, helping out where they can: this time, it is by exorcising demons who haunt people. As for Tikku, he continues to learn the mysticism of the errant monk Noshin. They arrive in the lands of the Lady Marudama, an old friend of Okko. Her daughter is either possessed or haunted by a demon or something else, and Noshin is charged with saving her. What’s more, Okko’s past is coming back to haunt him, bringing with it old and potentially fatal vendettas against him.
Looking closely at the frames, there are sometimes clues in regards to what will happen soon, which enriches the story. So this is not a story to skim over the images!
Air is elusive. It is only in observing the movements of the wind that one can understand the heartbeat of the world which surrounds us. -- page 89
On a presque oublié que Tikku s’est rejoint à Noburo, Noshin, et Okko pour retrouver sa sœur, Petite Carpe. Maintenant tous les quatre traversent le pays Pajan, en donnant aide où possible ; cette fois-ci, c’est en exorcisant les démons qui hantent les gens. Quant à Tikku, il continue à apprendre le mysticisme du moine errant Noshin. Ils arrivent aux terres de la dame Marudama, ancienne amie d’Okko. Sa fille est soit possédé soit hanté par un démon ou autre chose, et Noshin est chargé de la libérer. En plus, le passé d’Okko revient, portant des vedettes anciennes et peut-être mortelles pour lui.
En voyant bien les cadres, il y a quelquefois des pistes au sujet de ce qui va arriver en scène prochainement, ce qui enrichit l’histoire. Alors ce n’est pas une bande dessinée à glisser sur les images !
L’air est insaisissable. Ce n’est qu’en observant les mouvements des vents que l’on peut comprendre les pulsations du monde qui nous entoure. – page 89
We’ve almost forgotten that Tikku joined up with Noburo, Noshin, and Okko in order to find his sister, Little Carp. Now all four of them travel the country Pajan, helping out where they can: this time, it is by exorcising demons who haunt people. As for Tikku, he continues to learn the mysticism of the errant monk Noshin. They arrive in the lands of the Lady Marudama, an old friend of Okko. Her daughter is either possessed or haunted by a demon or something else, and Noshin is charged with saving her. What’s more, Okko’s past is coming back to haunt him, bringing with it old and potentially fatal vendettas against him.
Looking closely at the frames, there are sometimes clues in regards to what will happen soon, which enriches the story. So this is not a story to skim over the images!
Air is elusive. It is only in observing the movements of the wind that one can understand the heartbeat of the world which surrounds us. -- page 89
February 13, 2017
This really was a great story and as always the art remains fantastic, and in fact seems to get better with every Cycle. Hub truly is an amazing storyteller. I personally would've liked to have had a bit more of an explanation in to Noburo's origins. In fact, we don't even know how this group got together in the first. That said, I'll probably get those answers in the future volumes. Really enjoying Okko so far, it's great.
June 19, 2012
Another awesome entry in the Okko saga, packed with lots of action and gorgeous visuals.
My only complaint is that the big 'reveal' moment where the main antagonist is destroyed isn't really explained (or maybe I just missed it). Not enough to detract from the story, but enough that I'm left feeling like there's a hole in the story as a result.
My only complaint is that the big 'reveal' moment where the main antagonist is destroyed isn't really explained (or maybe I just missed it). Not enough to detract from the story, but enough that I'm left feeling like there's a hole in the story as a result.
January 5, 2015
An old rival hunts down Okko and his team of demon hunters for one of their most dangerous missions ever. The story in this volume is tense as most of the regular characters are put in the way of mortal danger with a realistic threat of death. I was excited by the unexpected twists of the story. The art is beautiful as usual. Worth a read for comics fans.
March 7, 2020
Les tomes sont courts mais prenants et bien que les personnages ne nous soient pas toujours très sympathiques de part leurs actions, on ne peut s’empêcher d’être captivé par eux et de vouloir les suivre dans leurs aventures. Enfin, les dessins et les couleurs sont superbes et retranscrivent parfaitement le Japon et son folklore.
June 20, 2011
Pretty, and cool to read.
May 11, 2012
Thankfully this volume answered my cry for more character development.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews