Jul 23, 2024
I first heard about Vagabond from the Trash Taste Episode about masterpieces of manga that should be read. Garnt in particular had high praise for this and so I was excited and ready to read about it. As a seinen manga, the art doesn't restrict on topics it explores. This was crafted after the 1600s when the way of Bushido was very much alive and so was banditry, rape, debauchery, etc. It is a beautiful depiction of Takehiko Inoue's depiction of the great samurai and philosopher Musashi Miyamoto's life as he finds his purpose in life. If it were just the art and atmosphere of
...
the manga this would be a masterpiece but in my opinion, it falls short in many ways with the plot and honestly started to drag on. The early chapters are a quick fantastic read as we discover the animalistic nature of Takezo later renamed Musashi as his upbringing in the mountains and nature has made him a very inhuman being. His lack of humanity earned him the title of "Demon Child" as he learned to kill from an early age feeling no remorse as he lacked the development of human emotions. His character is contrasted by Matahachi the incompetent and pathetic secondary MC whose story we follow is filled with lies deceit and cutting corners all to achieve greatness on the same levels as Musashi.
My biggest complaint with Vagabond which I alluded to earlier is that I feel like it drags on and at some point shows violence where violence is not needed nor wanted. A good example is the massacre of the Yoshioka samurai after the death of the Yoshioka brothers. I felt like the death of the brothers was a fitting end to show the growth of Musashi as he accepted that he had become truly strong although I know others would disagree because they would probably argue that a final duel between Kojiro and Musashi is how the manga should end (spoiler the manga has not reached an ending and will probably never reach an ending which makes is one reason why I decided not to continue any further). He even considered leaving Kyoto and avoiding the 70 Yoshioka men because it was stupid and arrogant to do so but without a real explanation he decides to take them on. There was no meaning in that massacre, no philosophical lessons were learned, and no point was proven. He had already proven himself against fighting and slaying Yoshioka Denischiro, Yoshioka Seijuro, and Inshun Hozoin.
A true sign of character development would have been if he had escaped Kyoto and lived life with Otsu breaking away from the cycle of death and killing where he realized a fulfilling life was one where he was with the one he loved. Instead, the massacre was an event that seemed like it served only to be a plot point to a story that no longer had any direction. This is where I think a true masterpiece like Vinland Saga differentiates from Vagabond in that the story does not feel aimless. Something along the lines of Thorfinns "I have no enemies" moment was the revelation that I had been hoping to see from Vagabond, a story that at its core had been filled with nothing but killing and death in the journey to become one "invincible under the sun." I do believe this manga deserves high praise for its art but nothing more as I feel it lacks heavily in other areas that would make it deserving to be called a masterpiece.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all
