A dish best served cold... The revenge of the forty-seven ronin is the famous story of samurai vengeance from feudal Japan. Briefly, Lord Asano, the daimyo of Ako, tries to kill Lord Kira, the chief master of ceremonies, in the shogun's castle in Edo during a visit of imperial envoys from Kyoto. The shogun handed down the sentence of seppuku, ritual suicide, to be carried out the same evening but only for Lord Asano. Some, but not all, of Asano's retainers found the punishment unjust and vowed to deliver Lord Kira's head to the grave of their lord. No one knows the full true story of the forty-seven ronin, but Eiji Yoshikawa weaves an exciting tale of the players on this historic stage. He tells a tale of the many players, their motivations and conflicts, and the series of events that affect Japan to this day. An early retelling of this incident was a puppet play titled Chushingura, which is translated as The Treasury of Loyal Retainers. Eiji Yoshikawa's The New Chushingura was serially published in Hinode magazine from January 1935 to January 1937.

The Forty-Seven Rōnin vendetta is one of the most famous incidents in Japanese history, but it is also one of the most misunderstood. John A. Tucker seeks to provide a credible account of the vendetta and its afterlife in history. He suggests that, when considered historically and holistically, the vendetta appears as a site of contested cultural ground, with conflicts, disagreements, and debates characterizing its three-century history far more than cultural unanimity about its values, virtues, and icons. Tucker narrates the incident as the historical event that it was, within the context of Tokugawa social, political, cultural, and spiritual history, before exploring the vendetta as conflicted cultural ground, generating a steady flow of essays, novels, plays, and ideologically driven expressions intrinsic to the course of Japanese history. This engaging, accessible study provides insights into ways in which events and debates from early modern history have continued to inform developments in modern Japan.

Japan's enduring national legend comes to comics! The tale of the 47 Ronin and their epic mission to avenge their wronged master epitomizes the samurai code of honor, and creators Mike Richardson and Stan Sakai have done justice to their story! Meticulously researched and beautifully illustrated, this collection of the acclaimed miniseries recounts this sweeping saga of honor and violence in all its grandeur. Opening with the tragic incident that sealed the fate of Lord Asano, 47 Ronin follows a dedicated group of Asano's vassals on their years-long path of vengeance! * From Mike Richardson (Star Wars: Crimson Empire) and Stan Sakai (Usagi Yojimbo)! * Tons of bonus art and behind-the-scenes extras! "If you're a fan of the samurai genre then this is a no-brainer... if you've never given it a chance then this is the perfect gateway book to the genre." —Comic Bastards "Stan Sakai makes Japan all the more exciting with this comic, and Richardson's narrative builds an epic tale reminiscent of Kurosawa's greatest films." —Graphic Policy

A classic tale that will captivate lovers of Japan, history, and epic adventure alike. Japan's most celebrated tale of chivalry, loyalty and revenge--and the basis for a Hollywood feature film starring Keanu Reaves--47 Ronin is the epic tale of a heroic band of Samurai warriors who defy the Japanese Emperor to avenge the honor of their fallen master. The story begins in 1701 when the noble Lord Asano attacks an official at court. His punishment is swift and harsh--the Emperor orders Lord Asano to commit ritual suicide (harikiri). His lands are confiscated, his family exiled, and his Samurai warrior brigade is disbanded--becoming Ronin or masterless, wandering renegades. While appearing to follow the Emperor's instructions, the 47 Ronin plot in secret for many years, biding their time until the moment to strike is right. Like the story of the Knights of the Round Table, the Ronin's deeds became legendary, iconic examples of courage, cunning and loyalty in an age when the Samurai were true heroes and honor was something worth dying for. John Allyn's vivid retelling, with a foreword by scholar and film advisor, Stephen Turnbull, presents this epic of Japanese literature in its correct historical context.

From 1600 till 1866 civil strife in public was virtually unknown in Japan; however, personal loyalty and self-sacrifice could at times rise above the samurai hierarchy to redefine Japanese culture. In 1703 former samurai avenged their lord in the most legendary raid in Japanese history. The story of the 47 ronin is a tale rich in emotion, precise planning, and flawless martial execution. This was the raid that turned Japan upside down. Lord Kira had brought about the death of Lord Asano, thus making Asano's loyal samurai into ronin (unemployed 'men of the waves'). In complete secrecy they plotted their revenge, and one snowy winter's night launched a raid against his mansion in Edo (Tokyo). The gates were broken down, and after the fiercest sword battle seen in Japan for over a century Kira was captured and beheaded. His head was washed and placed on Asano's tomb. The Shogun had now been placed in a dilemma. Should he reward the 47 Ronin for behaving more like true samurai than anyone since the time of civil wars, or should they be punished for breaking the strict laws about taking revenge? In the end the law prevailed, and the surviving 46 ronin committed a mass act of hara-kiri, turning them overnight into national heroes as the 'gods of bushido'.. The dramatic revenge raid of the Forty-Seven Ronin is the ideal subject for a Raids title. There is a very strong narrative and a wealth of illustrative material. As the raid occurred during the peaceful Edo Period there is scope for original description of the samurai's weapons and their personal & physical environment that is not seen in any other Osprey titles.

Here is the first historically accurate graphic-novel version of a legendary event in Japanese history. In the eighteenth century, forty-seven samurai avenged the death of their master in a plot involving over two years of secrecy. After succeeding in their mission, the masterless samurai all committed ritual suicide. The story, which is a national legend, remains a most potent example of Japan’s deeply rooted cultural imperatives of honor, persistence, loyalty, and sacrifice, and of bushido—the samurai code.

A fourteen-year-old serving boy finds himself surrounded by suspicion and betrayal as his master gathers a group of samurai to avenge Lord Asano's death.