Warning! Contains spoilers for The Elusive Samurai #111!One Shonen dance The series is shifting focus away from its original protagonist to turn its extremely unsettling villain into the manga’s new hero. that comic is Elusive Samurai by Yusei Matsui, author of Assassination Classroom. Until now, the story follows young Tokiyuki Hojo as he tries to regain his kingdom from the new ruling faction. But its latest chapter debunks this by casting The Elusive Samurai’s main villain in the role.
In chapter #111, translated by John Werry, When Hojo’s rebellion is crushed, Tokiyuki and his subordinates go into hiding. In the aftermath of the war, Emperor Go Daigo considers the manga’s final antagonist Takauji Ashikaga a rebel for killing his son. This led Takauji to lead his own revolt against the emperor, though still suffering heavy losses after The Elusive Samurai’s original heroes killed many of his best warriors. Initially, he encountered setbacks until he raised the morale of his troops in his chaotic charismatic way. However, after he finally begins to win some victories, the Emperor sends a new noble warrior capable of defeating Ashikaga’s forces, prompting him to search for new recruits at the end of the chapter. . All of this shapes Takauji as The Elusive Samurai’s new hero, which is shocking given how unsettling he is as a villain.
The Elusive Samurai frames its villain as a hero
Takauji Ashikaga may be a real person but The Elusive Samurai portrays him as an unsettling horror. When displaying ambition, Takauji often grows extra eyes or mouths on his face and he can also give power to his subordinates in heinous ways. On top of that, his great fate caused supporters to flock to him and bring him a considerable amount of success. Takauji is also a complete killer, ruthlessly killing his enemies and immediately forgetting about them afterwards. All of this makes him a surprising character when cast as a hero, but The Elusive Samurai both focuses the story on him and draws many similarities between Takauji and Tokiyuki.
Tokiyuki also raised his army’s morale in the same unconventional ways as Takauji did. He also had to endure the Emperor’s forces at first before defeating them. After he did that, new stronger enemies appeared and destroyed his army. Takauji’s uprising also follows a similar pattern, placing him in the same role as Tokiyuki, although somewhat compressing the events. It’s a fascinating parallel that forces the reader to consider whether Tokiyuki is truly justified in his attempt to rebel or just another charismatic puppet character like Takauji.
The Elusive Samurai makes readers question whether Tokiyuki is a hero
Based on history, Takauji will succeed in his rebellion and become shogun. If The Elusive Samurai goes down this path, Takauji will not only take the place of the hero of the manga Tokiyuki, but he will truly succeed when the heir Hojo fails. This will be an unprecedented victory for Shonen danceThe most disturbing villain will establish Elusive Samurai is the magazine’s most revolutionary series.
Mysterious Martial Artist #111 available to read from Viz Media.
