Vagabond by Inoue Takehiko

[Kaiten]

he seems to have achieved that, no?

re: art, the first page is very distinctively Vagabond, as Inoue was always fond of using brushes and watercolor like that. For the next few pages I felt the lines got thicker, is all.

but can you all see the Musashi face close-up spread??? Beautiful

He is certainly closer and seems to be seeking something deeper than strongest beneath the sun, but he does not seem to have reached that point yet. He may have even regressed a bit. At the beginning of the chapter he seemed to intent on testing his own strength once again, like before the war with the Yoshioka.

Not yet, as Kaiten stated above he seems to have realised that there's something that's just as important to him as the sword....Otsu.

I think that is the first important breakthrough, he needed a higher ideal to fight for. He is not yet like old man Yagyuu, he still does not have the confidence to inspire fear without even raising his sword. Musashi has defined himself by the sword for so long he has nothing else to derive confidence from.

[Josef K.]

he seems to have achieved that, no?

re: art, the first page is very distinctively Vagabond, as Inoue was always fond of using brushes and watercolor like that. For the next few pages I felt the lines got thicker, is all.

but can you all see the Musashi face close-up spread??? Beautiful

The guy already is redefining manga art form the whole black pens and stuff, so it is expected of him. Brushes might be the thing more mangaka turn to, he is such an awesome experimental artist.

Yeah, really realistic, the beard, the scars, the bruises, gah it is just so captivating that all you can do is stare!

[Doraku]

The guy already is redefining manga art form the whole black pens and stuff, so it is expected of him. Brushes might be the thing more mangaka turn to, he is such an awesome experimental artist.

Yeah, really realistic, the beard, the scars, the bruises, gah it is just so captivating that all you can do is stare!

The new chapter's art seems more "wild" compared to his previous drawings, and I like that. I never thought that Musashi and his dark aura would blend superbly if it's drawn by brush.

Any information when chapter 302 will be released?

[Josef K.]

The new chapter's art seems more "wild" compared to his previous drawings, and I like that. I never thought that Musashi and his dark aura would blend superbly if it's drawn by brush.

Any information when chapter 302 will be released?

There probably will be differences in the art, but I think it may also be because of the scan quality that has improved over the years, it is more clean and detailed, with pages being bigger and such.

The new releases as of the last chapter are monthly.

[Mifec]

http://mangastream.com/read/vagabond/41318216/1

Enjoy

[raDar]

Hmmm... I quite enjoyed this chapter though nothing much happened concerning the plot. This just made me smile, seeing how changed Musashi was for the better. And that Iori kid is adorable, I wonder if he's gonna be in the story longer.

Was that new logo really written in alphabet? Or was it MS' edit?

[Kaiten]

Remember: wrap chapter 302 discussion in spoilers for 24 hours. Spoiler tags are no longer necessary Monday morning

In real life Iori was Musashi's second adopted son. His introduction is very important, as he will provide the stability and security Musashi has been seeking. That is what was meant by "a blade of pain found shelter and became power". In Japan, where Musashi is a national icon, it would be assumed that the audience would instantly recognize Iori, the reason Inoue did not go into much detail. In reality Musashi adopts Iori ten years after he fights Kojiro.

[TheMoa]

It's so good to have some regularity back on the releases... I just hope that Inoue keep it going until the end

[Kaiten]

Hopefully that end will not come for a long time. I hope he at least shows the first Gonnosuke fight, if not the second, before Musashi fights Kojiro.

[Josef K.]

So shortening the original story in order to finish the manga? Well, I can not say that it will kind of be a loss if drastic cuts are made, but it can not be helped it has slow pace with it being monthly now. But I think even monthly series step up, depends on the pages, some go around 30, some go over 50 and manage to pull off a full concept story.

[Kaiten]

I have not read the original book, I am not sure if the story has been shortened or not. The order it happened in real life is different, that is all. The same is likely done in the book as well, which is a fictionalized account of his life.

[TheMoa]

Yeah, at least one Gonnosuke fight would be the ideal, since he did introduce the character. But at this point I just want a flow in the series, even if it means an early finish. All the hiatus hurts the work(and more importantly, it piss me off! haha), what is shame since it's a great manga.

[raDar]

Actually, I think Inoue's hiatuses are one of the most just hiatuses I've seen in the manga industry. The man writes and draws with all his best. Whenever he loses his mojo and somehow gets frustrated, he stops and rest until he could find the motivation in working again instead of continuing to write but suck at it (which most authors do). And he admitted it's a lot harder to work on Vagabond compared to REAL since it's easier to get inspiration from the streets of Japan (unless he could time travel back in the Edo period). The shifting to monthly could work well for him, since it's less likely for him to get burned again so fast and it will give him less pressure on deadlines and all.

[baboysai]

Man, I'm wondering if I were in Iori's shoes (slippers?) waking up to witness a sword exercise on the water performed by THE Musashi. awesome...

[Kaiten]

Just wait, he is not even the legendary Musashi yet, still little more than a feared ronin. At some point he will be retained as a samurai and prove himself on the battlefield.

I almost feel like Musashi is more excited to find Iori than Iori is to find him. Musashi still has not referred to himself as Musashi, but as Takezou. Iori holding onto the tree, crying for his father was such a moving scene. I am glad he found Musashi and glad Musashi found a family, something to care for other than the sword.