Samurai Crusader

Samurai Crusader: The Kumomaru Chronicles (Japanese: 王立院雲丸の生涯, Hepburn: Ōritsuin Kumomaru no Shōgai) is a Japanese manga series written by Oji Hiroi and illustrated by Ryoichi Ikegami. It was serialized in Shogakukan's Weekly Shōnen Sunday from July 1991 to March 1992, with its chapters collected in three tankōbon volumes.

Samurai Crusader
Volume 1 of Viz's Samurai Crusader
王立院雲丸の生涯
(Ōritsuin Kumomaru no Shōgai)
GenreAdventure, historical[1]
Manga
Written byOji Hiroi
Illustrated byRyoichi Ikegami
Published byShogakukan
English publisher
ImprintShōnen Sunday Comics Special
MagazineWeekly Shōnen Sunday
English magazine
DemographicShōnen
Original runJuly 3, 1991 – March 11, 1992
Volumes3

In North America, the manga was licensed by Viz Media, which serialized it in their Manga Vizion magazine in 1995.

Plot

The story follows Kumomaru, a Japanese samurai who travels to Europe during the 1930s and becomes embroiled in a plot to steal the legendary Japanese sword Kusanagi. While in Europe, Kumomaru befriends Ernest Hemingway and Pablo Picasso and attempts to stop Major General Kamishima and his Nazi allies from conquering China.

Publication

Samurai Crusader is written by Oji Hiroi and illustrated by Ryoichi Ikegami. It was serialized in Shogakukan's Weekly Shōnen Sunday from July 3, 1991 to March 11, 1992.[2] Shogakukan collected its chapters in three tankōbon volumes, released between January 1 and April 1, 1992.[3][4] Media Factory re-released the manga in two bunkoban volumes on April 5 and May 2, 2003.[5][6] Media Factory released a complete edition on December 22, 2006.[7]

In North America, the series was licensed by Viz Media, which serialized it in their magazine Manga Vizion in 1995.[8] Viz Media published the three volumes of the series between August 5, 1996 and December 6, 1997.[9][10]

Volume list
No. Original release date Original ISBN English release date English ISBN
1 January 1, 1992[3]978-4-09-123701-9August 5, 1996[9]978-1-56931-130-1
2 March 1, 1992[11]978-4-09-123702-6April 5, 1997[12]978-1-56931-164-6
3 April 1, 1992[4]978-4-09-123703-3December 6, 1997[10]978-1-56931-236-0

Reception

In Manga: The Complete Guide, author Jason Thompson wrote: "Author Hiroi Oji (Sakura Taisen) delivers a satisfying, big-scale historical adventure story that reads like a mix between an Indiana Jones movie and a 1980s Hong Kong film. Artist Ryoichi Ikegami is in fine form throughout, with great action scenes and precise period detail. Seasoned Ikegami readers who’ve been through the torrid likes of Crying Freeman and Offered will notice that the thrills here stop just short of a PG-13 level of explicitness. Still, it’s nice to have a straightforward Ikegami adventure yarn that doesn’t require hiding the pages from plain sight from time to time".[1] Katherine Dacey of The Manga Critic praised the series for its art, stating: "No detail goes overlooked; even the most inconsequential characters’ clothing is meticulously rendered, and the street lamps in every city are drawn with such care as to distinguish a Parisian boulevard from a Shanghai corner". Dacey howerver, criticized the series for its dialogues, explaining that they "feel more like policy discussions than real arguments, despite Ikegami’s best efforts to stage the scenes as dramatically as possible". Dacey concluded: "Perhaps the best way to summarize Samurai Crusader‘s appeal is to say that it has all the virtues of Crying Freeman and Wounded Man — crazy action scenes, sexy leads, mustache-twirling villains — without the copious nudity and sexual violence that can give even the most committed manga fan pause".[13]

References
  1. Thompson, Jason (July 3, 2012). Manga: The Complete Guide (Kindle). Del Rey Books. pp. 1056–1057. ISBN 978-0-345-53944-1.
  2. 週刊少年サンデー　王立院雲丸の生涯 昭和雄雲録(池上遼一　／　広井王子) (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Archived from the original on August 2, 2019. Retrieved August 1, 2019.
  3. 王立院雲丸の生涯 其ノ1 天の巻 (in Japanese). Amazon. Archived from the original on October 24, 2020. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  4. 王立院雲丸の生涯 其ノ3 天の巻 (in Japanese). Amazon. Archived from the original on October 24, 2020. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  5. 王立院雲丸の生涯　１ (in Japanese). Kadokawa Corporation. Retrieved October 25, 2020.
  6. 王立院雲丸の生涯　２ (in Japanese). Kadokawa Corporation. Retrieved October 25, 2020.
  7. 王立院雲丸の生涯 (in Japanese). Kadokawa Corporation. Retrieved October 25, 2020.
  8. Sevakis, Justin (January 4, 2016). "Why Did Shonen Jump Succeed In America? - Answerman". Anime News Network. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  9. "Samurai Crusader: Kumomaru Chronicles". Amazon. Archived from the original on October 24, 2020. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  10. "Samurai Crusader: Sunrise Over Shanghai". Amazon. Archived from the original on October 24, 2020. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  11. 王立院雲丸の生涯 其ノ2 天の巻 (in Japanese). Amazon. Archived from the original on October 24, 2020. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  12. "Samurai Crusader: Way of the Dragon". Amazon. Archived from the original on October 24, 2020. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  13. Dacey, Katherine (July 9, 2011). "The Best Manga You're Not Reading: Samurai Crusader". The Manga Critic. Archived from the original on September 11, 2011. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
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