Cold Blood Samurai #1 Review

By Steven Seggerman

What do you get when you take The Last Samurai, turn Tom Cruise and the rest of the cast into reptiles, then mash it up with The War of Mice and Frogs? You get this unique twist on real and tumultuous times in our history.

We see the internal struggle for peace from our main character, who at this point they only refer to as “Gaijin,” which in Japanese is a somewhat derogatory word for “Foreigner.” Not a lot of action for a story involving samurai, but the storytelling elements are fantastic. I especially enjoyed the tales they weave into the narrative, but the names of the characters are too ridiculous for me to take seriously. Muscle-Saurus? Shogun Swollen Cheeks?

Published by Action Lab Entertainment, written by Massimo Rosi with art by Ludovica Ceregatti and colors from Renato Stevanato. Every one of these names did a fantastic job in creating this comic. Beautiful artwork, with vivid colors that pop right off the page. The design is very western, but they use Japanese for the effect text. It’s as if they aren’t entirely sure what they want the style to be.

Part of me wishes they had gone with more of a calligraphy paint stroke style, with backdrops that resemble an ukiyo-e print, much like that of the manga Vagabond. The style clashes with the setting, and with the characters already being a completely different species, I found it challenging to be entirely on board.

It’s a rocky start to be sure, and I’m not sure where I stand. I haven’t been entirely sold on the story or the style, but I’m definitely willing to read the next issue and see where this is headed.

For now, I would give Cold Blood Samurai 6 kimono-wearing frogs out of 10.

Rating: 6.0 out of 10