The Eastern Edge

Vagabond 32 come out today with another outstanding cover.
The subtle difference in Musashi's expression on this cover compared to previous ones almost tells the story of his development by itself.
Musashi's expressions and demeanor have softened considerably over the last few years of the comic as Musashi matures and begins to realize who he is and the gravity of the things he has done. Inoue's ability to express that through the art alone is awe inspiring.

In fact, if you look back at all the graphic novels you can almost tell the entire story of both Vagabond and Inoue's progression as an artist just through the covers.

Take a look!

Takehiko Inoue's progression as an artist over the last decade is stunning and it's all there in the pages of Vagabond. Inoue is also sticking to what he said a couple years ago about ending Vagabond. You can actually feel the story moving in that direction. He most recently has said will end Vagabond within the year 2010. I will be very sad to see it end, but watching him steer the story toward the final act has been fascinating.
Even more than Musashi, I've been captivated by Kojiro's story. Only an artist of the highest quality could depict a deaf, mute character in a comic so expressively and with so much emotional depth. The only word Kojiro has ever spoken is "Jisai", the name of the man who raised him from infancy (Inoue better tell us what happened to him, dammit!).
Inoue has never cheated by giving Kojiro an inner monologue or adding narration. Inoue just draws it and you feel it. I don't think it's a stretch to say that Kojiro could be one of the best comic book characters ever!

The road to the end is going to be unbelievable! It's a shame that North America will barely notice, because I have no doubt the end of Vagabond will be the comic book event of the year in Japan!