A fantastic graphic novel that covers these and others (such as the bell warden's third son's sajinrai [1] in vol. 4) is Lone Wolf and Cub, which was written by

A fantastic graphic novel that covers these and others (such as the bell warden's third son's sajinrai [1] in vol. 4) is Lone Wolf and Cub, which was written by amateur Edo historians and effectively cemented them as legends of the manga community. It is a great work which inspired many others including Frank Miller's Sin City and Ronin, and Collins' Road to Perdition. I personally think that it is on par with Watchmen (arguably the greatest graphic novel, and one that tops most lists) - certainly no other works had the same impact. Perhaps because it is in black and white, very long, and originally in Japanese, it's nowhere near as famous. [1] "a blinding compound comprised of a mix of ferrous sand and strychnine nitrate"