The Punisher: Shadowmasters #1 (October 1989)

Ninjas are cool. The masters of the silent kill. Experts in disguise and infiltration. They can come at you from anywhere, and they seemingly have superhuman powers. And in the 1980s, the ninja captured the imagination. A seeming evolution of the 1970s mania for martial arts, 1980s ninja-mania was an all sorts of media. Comic books were no exception. 

The Marvel Universe had dealt with its fair share of ninjas in the 1980s, mainly thanks to Frank Miller's Daredevil work and Chris Claremont's X-Men work. But another character also had his fair share of ninja madness: The Punisher. And that was primarily due to the influence of Carl Potts.

Potts was a man of many talents. He was an artist, a writer, an inker, and most notably, an editor. He joined Marvel's editorial staff in 1983, working on numerous books. He also helped discover many talented names like June Brigman, Art Adams, and arguably the most famous of his discoveries: Jim Lee. He raised the Punisher to a premier character. He still wrote on occasion, and in the Punisher's book, he introduced the Shadowmasters, an ancient ninja clan.

The Shadowmasters were born out of a pair of interests Potts had: Japanese history and World War II. Potts himself is half-Japanese, and in their origin miniseries, he told a tale that spanned generations from the end of the war to the then-current 1980s, a tale of the titular ninjas as they clashed with a secret group dedicated to bringing about the restoration of the Japanese Empire. So, how did this battle start? Let's find out in Shadowmasters #1!

The cover is a Jim Lee and Frank Cirocco piece, and I think it's really cool. You have a ninja in white with a monster mask fighting some soldiers in snowy hills. The night skies really help put the ninja front and center, as if it's telling you "This is the guy you'll be reading about here".

"Shadows of the Past"
Writer: Carl Potts
Penciler: Dan Lawlis
Inker: Russ Heath
Colorist: Steve Oliff
Letterer: Jim Novak
Editors: Al Milgrom, Marc McLaurin
Editor: Tom DeFalco 

The story begins on August 6. 1945 in Japan. On 8:15 AM, the United States dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima. Another bomb is unleashed on Nagasaki, driving Imperial Japan to surrender, formally ending World War II. And from there, the American occupation of the country begins, lasting until the 1950s. It's here we meet a Captain James Richards. 

"And whatever you do son, don't ask for the fugu."

He is assigned to oversee the government of the mountainous Iga Province. Nowadays, it's part of the Mie prefecture. While being driven there, Richards is informed by his driver Sergeant Dewey that this province has many legends. Most notably, that a race of shadow warriors live here, powerful people who are half-man/half-demon, with mighty magical powers. Considering this is the Marvel Universe, it's certainly plausible that there are actual magical half-demon people there.

It does make a bit of sense that Iga would have such legends. Remember, Iga was the birthplace of the ninja. Ninjas love messing with people's minds. And again, this is the Marvel Universe. Ninjas having superpowers are a thing. Just ask Kwannon. Anyway, the two drive up to a group of villagers helping a woman. She was attacked by bandits, former Imperial Japanese soldiers who refused to accept the surrender and continue the fight. Richards and Dewey carefully put the woman in their jeep and take her to the nearest hospital in a village called Ueno. They arrive, unaware they're being watched.

"Those guys better not be messing with my weed garden."

This white-clad man watches the Americans very carefully, as part of his regular patrol of the town as its legendary guardian tengu. Shigeru Ezaki is the mayor of this village. While he did not share the dreams of Asian conquest that dwelled in the minds of men like Tojo, he isn't exactly a fan of Americans occupying the country either. But they're here, and his village needs him to lead. 

He spots a young boy in a growing crowd of curious villagers. This boy is his son Sojin. His mother was killed in an American bombing while she was in Tokyo. As Dewey and Richards take the woman to the village clinic, Ezaki secretly pushes the handbrake of their jeep, causing it to roll away. This sends the villagers into a panic, accidentally trampling and injuring Sojin...as the jeep barrels towards him. 

Thankfully, Captain Richards is a darn fast runner. It's close, but he's able to save Sojin from becoming a road pancake. 

Ezaki heads to a well, using a secret passageway to emerge from his home. He thanks Richards for saving his son's life. Richards is humble about it, pointing out that Sojin is a tough kid. Didn't even shed any tears. 

From here, a rather unlikely friendship is born. Ezaki and Richards hang out together, learning about each other's cultures. Richards helps Ezaki with his English (presumably learning Japanese himself along the way), and they attend traditional Japanese plays and baseball games. One day, Ezaki and Richards are discussing the village's security when they get some visitors.

"Candygram!"

The villagers have come baring gifts for Richards. It's not his birthday, they're just showing their gratitude for his help around the village. Richards is reluctant to accept the gifts, as (another showing of his humble nature) he's just doing his job. Ezaki convinces him to accept them, as it's a matter of honor. 

Later on, Richards is talking to a Japanese police captain, a Mr. Higashi. Higashi's men have been having some troubles finding the renegade Imperial Japanese soldiers that harass the citizens of Ezaki's town. Richards has been very reluctant to call in the Americans to help, as he has no desire to disturb this place with American presence any more than necessary, but if this keeps up...yeah. He's going to have to call them in. Higashi points out that the villagers are too afraid to speak, and some help hide them. Not to mention Iga is full of mountains. There are tons of places they can hide out. Richards gives them three days. 

That night, Ezaki is on patrol, and he finds a group of men near Richards's home.

"All our problems will be solved once we get that weed garden, gentlemen."

Looks like Ezaki found the renegades. They plan to kill Richards and Dewey. Knowing he can't warn Richards in time, he dons his tengu mask and takes matters into his own hands. 

Ezaki takes out one of the soldiers. The others fire at him, but he gets away thanks to the classic ninja trick of "throw a smoke bomb and leave". The leader commands two of the men to kill the Americans, and the others to take out Ezaki. The commotion gets the Americans' attention. And Ezaki himself proves to be a formidable force, taking down the soldiers. 

The leader's men manage to find Richards and Dewey. A firefight erupts, and Dewey gets a bullet, and so does one of the leader's men. Richards struggles with the other man. Ezaki spots this and gives his American friend a hand in the form of a throwing knife, hitting the hand of the man Richards is wrestling with. 

Ezaki moves to help Richards. The man takes the knife out of his hand. He tosses it at the tengu, but Ezaki, being a skilled martial artist in a comic book universe, easily catches it. Ezaki and Richards struggle with the surviving man. During the struggle, the man manages to knock the Tengu mask off Ezaki, allowing Richards to see his face. 

Richards and Ezaki manage to handle the men, and they discuss this "Tengu" thing. Ezaki explains that he is the last of a long line of warriors who protected this area. He's the last of the Shadowmasters, if you will. 

This puts Richards in an awkward position. Ezaki is technically breaking the law, as martial arts have been banned in Japan. I'm not sure if that was an actual thing during the American occupation of Japan, or if that's just something for this story. Either way, Richards is bound by his duty to report this. Thing is, Richards owes Ezaki his life. Despite this, he'll have to turn Ezaki in...when the morning comes.

Ezaki thinks through his options. He could kill Richards, but he has grown to genuinely like the man, despite his being American. He could grab his son and flee, but this village needs him. He heads out to a small wooded area and meditates on this.

A couple days later, Richards returns. He reveals that he had made a proposal to his superiors that they were all for: If Ezaki uses his skills to help hunt and deal with the renegade Japanese soldiers, then not only will his identity as the "Tengu" remain a secret (known only to Richards, his own superior, and on a "need-to-know" basis, basically) but Ezaki will also remain free. 

Not long afterwards, Richards and Ezaki get an announcement from Higashi. The renegades attacked the Nori family's farm. They slaughtered the family and burned the farm to ash. Ezaki accepts the offer. For the next several months, he uses his Shadowmaster skills to hunt and bring down the renegades. He whittles their forces down, but he also grows weary of this new role. Despite this, their commander, Kentaro Umezu, is not the type of man to give up. 

"We WILL get that weed garden, gentlemen!"

He sent some men to get more supplies, telling them to travel by day and stay on the rocky mountains to reduce traces. They follow Umezu's orders, but they're clearly rattled by Ezaki's activities.

However, Ezaki is a ninja. Ninjas are masters at adapting. Ezaki may prefer striking by night, but he can work days. He creates some traps, like an avalanche to disarm the soldiers of their rifles.

"Oh man, Honda here owed me money!"

Two of the surviving soldiers continue on with their handguns out. One finds a piece of white clothing, believing that Ezaki is wounded.

One of the soldiers is bitten by a viper that Ezaki found earlier and put on a string. And the other gets a small knife to the chest. Ezaki finds another surviving soldier under a log from the avalanche. Ezaki..."recruits" him for some messenger work. The soldier gives Kentaro the message: Cease your activities and the Tengu will leave them alone. The war is over. It's time for a new Japan to rise from the ashes of the violent past. This causes a lightbulb to go off in Kentaro's head.

He now has a new plan of attack: Blend in. They will build covers, new lives, get themselves in high positions, use their connections and cunning to subtly steer Japan back to the Imperial past.  

I enjoyed this comic. In fact, I think the Shadowmasters miniseries is a hidden gem in its own right. I liked seeing Ezaki and Richards becoming friends despite the war and the gulf of their nationalities and cultures. I think Ezaki is a pretty cool guy, defending his home and being an awesome ninja. It was fun seeing him take down the tyrannical Imperial Japanese holdouts, and Kentaro is quite a terrifying villain. It's not hard to see a man like him easily get influence in a post-war Japan. Another nice touch is Richards finding a way for Ezaki to continue his work as the Tengu while accomplishing his mission, showing his smarts.

I also liked the art. Lawlis and Heath make some nice detailed art that is rather expressive and is good at storytelling. I don't remember seeing Lawlis's stuff in other comics, I wonder what else he's done.  

If you want to read this for yourself, I recommend tracking down the 2018 trade paperback The Punisher: Shadowmasters. It's a hidden gem that needs more love, in my honest opinion. Thanks for reading this blog entry! If you liked it, show it off! Take care of yourselves and each other! See you next time!