Path of the Assassin

Author: Kazuo Koike
Artist: Goseki Kojima
Publisher: Kodansha
English Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
Review Type: Manga
Status: Completed
Genre: Seinen, Historical, Martial Arts, Mature
Volumes: 15
Vintage: 1978-1984



Synopsis

Path of the Assasin follows the famed Suppa (ninja) Hattori Hanzo Masanari as he is chosen to become the protector and vassal for the Matsudaira clan's future leader, Motonobu, who would eventually grow up to become Tokugawa Ieyasu, head of the Tokugawa clan, and the man responsible for unifying Japan, ushering 200 years of peace during his rule as Shogun. Our story takes place from both protagonists' humble beginnings, and still in their teens; Hanzo then 15 while his master (still known as Matsudaira Motonobu) was 16. While both showed promise, they are still inexperienced and learning about life the way most teenagers do. After a faulty first meeting, master and servant quickly become friends. The relationship between the two quickly transcends the master-servant demographic, and poetically described as 'Lifelong Friends, with the Same Dreams, Striving to Grow into a Rising River.' The quality of their relationship is unforgettably crystallized by Hanzo's fulfillment of a challenging but enticing task Ieyasu sets him, which was to demonstrate how to make love to a woman, which neither youngster has ever done.

Path of the Assassin in essence encapsulates the lives of both Hanzo and Ieyasu as they begin their long and arduous path towards the unification of Japan, and the problems and people they encounter, as well as the women they meet and love along the way.



Chibi's Path of Comments

There was this computer game I used to play endless hours on my PC growing up. It was basically a strategy game based on feudal Japan, and the aim of the user is to get the daimyo he's in control of to conquer all the fief (provinces) in Japan to complete the game. That game was called Nobunaga's Ambition, and was released by Koei in 1989. It being historically accurate gave me insight to how Japan was during the 1500s, and I grew familiar with all the characters (actual daimyos during the time), playing it over and over, and when the company released a sequel, which was more of an upgrade in terms of graphics from monochrome to VGA (damn this sounds really prehistoric), I played it over and over again. So given the knowledge of how Japan's history was during the feudal era, I came across Koike and Kojima-san's historical epic, and quickly rushed to pick up a copy.

I was initially hoping to read more about the namesake of the game I used to be so fond of, which was lord Oda Nobunaga, who actually was the one who laid the groundwork before passing away, giving Ieyasu the opportunity to capitulate and unify Japan. But I was honestly impressed with Koike-san's portrayal of both Ieyasu and Hanzo (Hanzo actually appears in the second Nobunaga's Ambition as one of his generals), giving us a feel of a buddy movie more than an intense political historic drama. Although the politics is abundant throughout the series, he also does balance it out with a few amusing moments and lots of ninja-on-ninja violence.


My favorite aspect of this manga was learning more about the ninja. In other mangas we either get a fictitious view of what a Suppa organization, but in this series we get an extremely accurate view of what they do exactly, and their code of honor. Ninja have long been popular in fiction and especially in American pop culture, but there is very little known about their rumored existence in reality. The ninja code, as it begins to be examined in this manga, is similar to the samurai code in some ways, but in others it is quite different. In short, without giving away too much, there is a level of secrecy about the very existence and performance of ninja that is vital for them to successfully perform their duties, unlike samurai, who perform their duties in the open for all to see. Like all of Koike and Kojima-san's stories, this comic provides a highly engaging, historically accurate look at this period of time in Japan, showing us just what it was like for the Japanese people at that time and teaching us more about the culture.

We are first introduced to Hanzo in the very first chapter of the series, and we are shown why Hanzo was chosen over his brothers to shadow Motonobu (I address him as Motonobu from here on because this is before he changed his name). He has skills that exceed his brothers’, despite the fact that they are grown men. As the story progresses, we meet Motonobu. He is not as mature as Hanzo, probably because of the Hanzo’s extensive martial arts training, but as the story progresses, I became aware that Motonobu is more honorable than I had originally thought. He is young and foolish in many ways (realistically, he’s probably just a bit more like an average 16 year old than Hanzo is), but he does have a samurai heart, and Hanzo realizes this early on as well. The two characters begin to forge a close friendship without even really intending to.


As the story progresses throughout the later volumes of the series, we do get to witness the advice Motonobu seeks from Hanzo for ideas on his new name, and we get to see how their paths towards maturity, although vastly different, would still have very much the same outcome on certain issues. Several well known historical figures of feudal Japan do make an appearance throughout the series, such as the famous Tiger of the Kai Takeda Shingen, Oda Nobunaga, and also a few of the famous generals of the era. We often see how Motonobu relies on Hanzo, from political advice to mundane things such as making his wife happy, further cementing their friendship to be more than that of a master and his vassal.

There is a slight learning curve to this series, however, as readers who are unfamiliar with Japanese history might have problems in recognizing the characters as they are introduced, where more Japanese readers would automatically be able to identify as they are welcomed into the fold of the series' plot. Certain events would also confuse and bewilder the readers who aren't well-read in Japanese history, but in my opinion this is part of the fun. Doing research as you read through the series makes it all the more enjoyable given Japan's colorful and violent history during the feudal era, and it certainly educated me in more parts than most in Japanese culture and tradition, apart from its history.


In conclusion, Path of the Assassin is a more mature story told by the incredible duo of Koike and Kojima-san, and also a kind of a Japanese history lesson in pictures. The only qualm I have on this series is that maybe Dark Horse should have provided a historical overview on some of the events in the manga, to steer the uninformed in the right path and to also give them an accurate understanding of the story. I do think that the duo has surpassed the epic Lone Wolf and Cub with this one, and the plot kept me on the edge of my seat from the start till the end. A must read for history buffs and samurai manga fans alike.



Chibi's Review


Storyline: 5/5
Character Development: 5/5
Art: 3/5
Originality: 4/5