47 Ronin by Stan Sakai and Mike Richardson

Amazing book! A truly great comic by an artist at his best.

Yeah, awesome work!

I wish I knew the story beforehand, as I'm a little lost already as to who's who.

I guess this is what it's like to read American superhero comics for the first time?

So, is Richardson writing it? I've been a pretty big fan of Mike Richardson's writing, ever since his woefully forgotten "Boris the Bear" and "Wacky Squirrel" serieses

Yes, Richardson is writing it. Wow, I had forgotten those old series completely. I can picture the characters, but nothing about the stories. I think Richardson has written some other stories since then, too, but nothing is coming to mind immediately.

Speaking of my poor memory, David, welcome! Were you on Comicon once upon a time, or somewhere else? Your name rings a bell, but I can't quite place it.

DavidRecine wrote:

So, is Richardson writing it? I've been a pretty big fan of Mike Richardson's writing, ever since his woefully forgotten "Boris the Bear" and "Wacky Squirrel" serieses

Yikes, I had forgotten about those books too.

I finally got around to reading this, and it is quite good. But I do prefer Usagi Yojimbo.

Just read the last issue. What a great series, I highly recommend this and I'm looking forward to when it comes out in trade,

I did enjoy 47 Ronin, but then the latest collected volume of Usagi Yojimbo came out, which I enjoyed even more. And one of the things that I preferred about it was that in cases where seppuku was an option, characters decided to live, instead. I know it's another culture, and honor makes life worthwhile and so on, but I just prefer stories where characters choose to live.

Or when they do choose to die, as has happened in a few Usagi Yojimbo tales, that choice has usually been built up and established and dramatized so that western audiences can understand it better. Having read this version of 47 Ronin, I'm still not really sold on why anybody had to die, and why that was anything other than a tragedy as opposed to an act of heroism.

I have never heard anyone compliment Mike Richardson as a writer. Granted I only know him through Dark Horse promotions, but just reading compliments for his writing is so strange...

ChrisW wrote:

I have never heard anyone compliment Mike Richardson as a writer.  Granted I only know him through Dark Horse promotions, but just reading compliments for his writing is so strange...

Chris,
I've never read anything by the man, before this. I don't know anything about him actually, I have no axe to grind with him and have no idea if I should have one or why anyone might have one.

I would imagine it was not a difficult task to do a good job writing these comics with so many things going for it: Amazing art, an artist who is a very good writer, a beloved time-tested pre-existing story, and and Kazuo Koike as an editorial and cultural consultant. It must have been like trying to stay afloat in the shallow end of a pool with a life jacket and two life rafts.

I recommended the book because I enjoyed the book, yes I actually read them. I am familiar with the legendary story, from several sources. I found it a compelling comic, with great art. Stan Sakai drawing humans was refreshing and nostalgic, the beautiful clean line, and expressive composition of Stan Sakai at his best, invoking a young Will Eisner in its expression and humanity.

I hope you'll give it a chance.

I'm not saying he isn't a good writer.  I'm just saying it's like if Jeanette Kahn or Terry Stewart or Martin Goodman wrote a comic book and people were complimenting the writing.  People didn't compliment Bill Jemas' comics after all. I've never heard anybody compliment Stan Lee as a great auto mechanic. It would be really weird to read rave reviews of Stan Lee's world-class ability to rebuild an engine block.

ChrisW wrote:

People didn't compliment Bill Jemas' comics after all...

I dare say there was a very good reason for that. His writing was not the kind of writing one compliments.

All I said was

ChrisW wrote:

I have never heard anyone compliment Mike Richardson as a writer.  Granted I only know him through Dark Horse promotions, but just reading compliments for his writing is so strange...

Chris I think you may be reading more into what I wrote than than what I wrote. No deeper meaning was intended. It was just a comment, and a humorous one at that. Well, obviously not successfully humorous, but they can't all be winners.