This is an eagerly anticipated or possibly dreaded volume. There is a great story showcasing the return of Lone Goat and Kid which really shows Sakai’s talent for portraying children. There is also a good standalone story with a great twist. But the star of the show is of course the Duel between Usagi’s sensei and a skilled swordsman that Usagi has come to respect and even consider a friend.

You know that someone is going to die and you don’t want them to. This is not a case of a showdown with good and evil. This is the meeting of two masters, neither of whom deserves to lose. Sakai’s building of tension, page after page, as the two men journey ever closer to their rendezvous is incredible. As the reader you are almost holding your breath praying that they will find some way to make peace or avoid the duel. But filled with Bushido Sakai does not back down and both men enter the duel leading to some of the most tense page turns in Usagi’s history…

Nothing less than a Double Thumbs Up!

170/195.

Tomorrow: Usagi Yojimbo: Volume 18 – Travels with Jotaro – Stan Sakai