Rating: 
Summary: Sword for Hire...
Review: I was already a big fan of the movies, so I was excited to read the manga (and original) version of the story of samurai Ogami Itto and his toddler son Daigoro. A sword for hire whose true identity is ultimately revealed, the first installment of this series tracks the "jobs" he takes and the violent encounters he often has along the way. It is also very well thought out with great storylines and you get a feel for the Edo time period. Even if you've already seen the movies, you will not be disappointed.
Rating: 
Summary: A good beginning to probable greatness
Review: I wasn't all that moved to adoration by this first volume but overall I was entertained and interested enough to pick up the second volume. Vol. 1's artwork is much more interesting than the story therein. The second volume is where the series begins to come into its own.
Rating:
Summary: A great manga to read.
Review: I'm a big fan of the Lone Wolf and Cub fan movies. They are some of the bloodiest movies I've ever seen, but they're fascinating at the same time with their interesting display of the Japanese people during the Edo period. However, I was dubious when I heard about the manga series. I assumed that the manga was based on the movie series (an incorrect guess), thought it was too small (I've had bad experience with small manga books, read my review of Gundam Wing #1 to see what I mean), and while flipping through it, wasn't immediately attracted to the artwork like I was with the Blade of the Immortal series. However, when I gave it a closer inspection, I found the artwork to actually be pretty detailed and well done if you just gave it a chance. ... So I bought it. And I most certainly don't regret it. The stories are great, the art is great, the characters are cool, the dialogue is interesting, the different challenges Ogami faces are all unique and interesting...everything about it is great. Since continuity isn't a huge issue with the series the way it is with other mangas, I don't have to sweat it if I don't buy the books in proper order. Another great thing to not just this volume but to the entire series is the Buddhist mythology, beliefs, and tradtions inserted into the story. If you want to learn about Buddhism, don't pick up a "For Dummies" book. Instead read this manga and see the role Buddhism played in people's lives, as well as learning plenty about meifumado, the six paths and four ways, and other parts of everday Buddhism.Last to mention, one of my favorite things about this series, that has brought it near and dear to my heart, is that it's portable...it's the perfect size that I can still read it, but it fits in my pocket and I can carry it with me anywhere. This is a great manga, and you won't regret buying it (as long as tasteful nudity, rare and minimalistic sex scenes, and incredibly gory and violent action).
Rating:
Summary: Striking
Review: I've been into manga/anime, off and on, for seven years now. During the course of being a fan, it has always been my intention to read the "Lone Wolf and Cub" series or at least to purchase and view the feature film adaptations of the 70's. The premise of the series: A widowed Ronin with a toddler son travels through feudal Japan working as an assassin for hire, appealed to me from the moment I first heard it. Though I had never been exposed to "Lone Wolf" prior, there was something immediately ominous as well tender and heartwrenching about the relationship between Itto (the Lone Wolf) and Daigoro (his Cub) that I felt was conveyed by the title and cover art alone. The manga, of which this is the first collected volume released in the U.S., makes good on this promise. In fact, this first volume serves to illustrate the incredibly close, deeply textured relationship between Itto and Daigoro and their forced symbiosis during their journey through hell. This first volume was excellent. The writing was impeccable, the translations seemed first rate, and the artwork effectively rendered what it must have been like to live in that era in that place in the world. The manga contains engaging characters on top of a vivid story told in brief, action-packed episodes involving the title protagonists. If there was one fault I could find with "Lone Wolf" it was that reading it gets quite confusing at times. While following characters, customs, and events that take place in an antiquated, foreign culture this can only be expected. Itto Ogami is as tough a protagonist as one could ask for and yet, as one reviewer has already stated similarly, the reader finds themselves constantly looking for Daigoro in the page pannels. It is Daigoro for which Itto lives and fights for and it is Daigoro that keeps the reader turning the pages. His character is almost always seen smiling and his innocent cuteness serves to augment his father's ferocity and violence. "A father knows his child's heart, as only a child can know his father's." Yet, as we are often reminded in the text, a cub is still the child of a wolf. Fear them both. Pick up this first volume.
Rating: 
Summary: Worth A Try, Even For Non-Manga Fans.....
Review: I've never liked Manga, but the hype got to me.... I remember the buzz from when First Comics was publishing Lone Wolf and Cub in the 80's, and the Dark Horse reprints, at $10 for 300+ pages was too tempting to pass up. First of all, the book IS really small, but it's such an attractive package that it really didn't bother me; I think you're getting great value for your money. At first I was put off by the fact that I had to keep flipping back-and-forth to the glossary, but I got used to it...I thought some of the stories were a little hard-to-follow, though. Too many Japanese names and titles, they had my head swimming! But at it's core, the story of a Father and his Infant Son on the road as hired assassins is riveting. (I can't really accept that Daigoro, the baby, is three years old...he seems more like one year old to me...) The final chapter, where the backstory of the duo is revealed, is heartbreakingly well-done. The art is not really my cup-of-tea, but it gets the job done. And how often do you see two men fight to the death because a baby urinated on someone's face...? Although a little murky, I will stick around to see what becomes of The Lone Wolf and Cub....
Rating:
Summary: Warmup for Rest of Series
Review: In the first few stories, the character of Ogami Itto is shrouded in mystery. At first his name is mentioned without any one realizing who he is. Its the last two stories that his background is fully disclosed. The first story is interesting because of the shadowly introduction of the Lone WOlf and CUb within the first couple of pages. My favorite from this volume are A FATHER KNOW'S HIS CHILD'S HEART AS A CHILD KNOWS HIS FATHER'S, BABY CART AT THE RIVER STYX, SUIO RYU ZAMBATTO, AND THE last two stories. Marvelous blend of action, historical ideass, and character development. Maybe not the best but a good way to become acquinted with what I think is the best Graphic novel series of all time.
Rating:
Summary: sequential art classic
Review: It doesn't really matter if you like Japanese comics or American ones, in this case... This is a book you should read reguardless. It really is a classic. For those of you who don't really dig the whole manga thing, don't worry. There are no big eyes, cute mascots, or bouncy schoolgirls in this series. The art is gritty, and the stories are dark. Some will stick with you for years after reading them, and the two main characters are unforgettable as well. There's a reason why this series has the reputation it does. If you have any interest in sequential art or comic books at all, and if you can stand blood, gore, and some dark themes, you should without a doubt read this series. You won't regret it.
Rating:
Summary: Pinnacle of the Genre and Art Form
Review: It was with child-like glee and excitement that I found Dark Horse was re-issuing the Lone Wolf and Cub series. Having first become aware of this historic series in 1981 w/ F. Schodt's seminal work, 'Manga Manga' I had to wait another ten years for the translation to be started by First Comics. At the time I collected those, I had no idea of the scope of the original series. 8000 pages in the original 1970's run?! Before First discontinued the series, stiffing us subscribers, they had only scratched the surface. To compound things, they did not follow the original order of the periodical. That, apparently, is now being rectified as Dark Horse has committed to 28 volumes at ~300 pages each. A few days ago I went out and bought the current 8 volumes in one fell swoop. The format has changed, the books are considerably smaller to mirror their last print run in Japan. The books are compact 6" tall, and must be held quite close to read. That does not detract at all. The story of the disgraced 17th century Shogun's executioner wandering the country as an assassin to endeavor to clear his family's name is a classic. His son Daigoro travels with him after the death of the mother, and provides an innocent life-fulfilling counterbalance to the bloody death dealt by the father. I cannot speak highly enough of this series, the artwork is monumental in its ability to capture mood, motion, and naturalistic quietude with nary a word spoken. The pacing of the fight scenes is remarkable. There is an austere beauty in the black and white treatment, coupled with an amazingly epic storyline, it adds up to a pinnacle of the genre. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: The defintive samurai manga series
Review: Kazuo Koike and Goseki Kojima's masterpiece of visual literature tells a compelling story of a honourable warrior in a cruel world. Itto Ogami, a ronin's ronin takes up the way of the assassin to avenge the treachery of a rival clan. Along the long journey to vengeance, the swords flash thick and fast as master swordsman Ogami leaves a growing trail of blood and corpses wherever he roams. Be warned that all the gory details of mortal combat are captured with little restraint. However, the gore is there simply to tell the story and Kazuo Koike to his credit never lets the stories descend into a mindless gorefest. The combat is gory, but the characters, the culture, and the background feel real as well. Unlike the first english version of this series (by First comics), the translations are much better done. While historical accuracy has to make way for dramatic license, enough is retained that brings to life the culture and people of shogun-era Japan. A big plus is the glossary and notes at the back of the book which allow readers unfamiliar with feudal Japan to gain a better understanding of the times the stories are set in. Complimented by a terrific cover by Frank Miller.
Rating:
Summary: The Road to Ronin
Review: Like many, I picked up on this manga because I have seen some of the films. These are the archetype of a whole genre of violent historical samurai films set during Japan's Edo period, when the Shogun rules the country. What makes the Lone Wolf tales unique is that his 3-year-old son accompanies the wandering Samurai. Daigoro is no ordinary child, but an active accomplice in his father's work as an assassin. Whether riding in his armed baby carriage, or holding onto his father's back in the middle of a battle, the boy is as capable of surprise moves as is his deadly father. In reading you will find that the episodes are loosely strung, almost in no particular order. Ogami Itto and Daigoro wander the Japanese countryside under a sign that reads 'Son for hire, sword for hire.' Not exactly heroes, they have a knack for turning the tasks they undertake for the good. The plots of the individual stories are surprisingly intricate and expose much about the character of life under the Shogun. While it often seems that father and son are acting independently to correct some perceived imbalance, it gradually becomes clear that Itto served as one of the Shogun's secret assassins for some 27 years before breaking with the Shogun, and is Japan's deadliest swordsman. Those of us who have seen the films will be a bit disoriented by the manga. The illustrated series is the original from which the films drew ideas, and the two do not always respect each other's time relationships. Unlike 'Blade of the Immortal,' another strong manga series set in the same time period, writer Kazuo Koike experiments more and feels no need to set everything in a strict order. And he is satisfied to leave questions dangling in the reader's mind. The artist for the series, Goseki Kojima works with a heavy pen in comparison to the work done 20 years later by Hiroaki Samura in Blade. Partly, this is the result of the small format chosen by the manga. Even so, his ability to capture the action of a sword fight and stretch out the tense moments in between is remarkable. In the final analysis 'Lone Wolf and Cub' and 'Blade of the Immortal' defy comparison. Each represents a high point in the development of the manga as a literary and artistic form. Nor should this be an either or decision. Readers will find much to praise in both.
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