ARC provided by NetGalley

Jack is a legendary samurai known throughout the galaxy and universe for his bravery, courage, honor, and skill with the blade. But Jack has been stranded in a strange future ruled by a demon named Aku, who has stolen the Rope of Eons and used it to alter time. And then destroyed it so that no others may have it. In order to return home Jack must recover the strands of the Rope, unite them together, and defeat Aku. Many challenges lie in his way and there are many threads to collect. But Jack is a samurai...and he will not rest until he returns home.

Samurai Jack began life as a cartoon on Cartoon Network, and one of the best cartoons around in my opinion. Jack is one of those shows that on the surface appeared to be just another fighting warrior type show that kids would like. But Jack and the show had a depth to them that attracted a much wider audience. Some of that depth is because unlike hundreds of other characters on TV, Jack has a sense of honor and doing what is right...even at a cost to himself. And Jim captures that sense of the character very well. Although the comics are short (much to short to be honest) Jack is still familiar as are the ways in which he navigates the challenges and the people he faces as collects the pieces of the Rope. My one wish would have been that some of the journeys lasted longer, as there were characters that I would not mind seeing. The one major issue with this volume, is that you do have to know the characters to understand who Jack is and why he’s trapped out of time. I really wish there had been a comic or two before this to relate some of what happened in the comics.

Andy’s artwork is gorgeous and captures the sense and essence of the cartoon well. The cartoon was ahead of its time with its animation style, and while it is replicated often today, it is difficult to capture the feel of it well. Andy does that though and like the writing, I only wish there were more of it in the stories.

If you’re a fan of the series then you’ll love this book. If you’ve never watched it before, do yourself a favor and go pick up a few of the DVDs. Then come back and read the book. You won’t regret it in the least. 5 out of 5 stars. ( )