When did you first start drawing Usagi Yojimbo?
(Amazing Heroes #187 Interview, January 1991) Interestingly enough, Usagi did not start off as a funny-animal series. It was kind of a historical book with real people in it, based on the life of Miyamoto Musashi, who was a 17th Century samurai. One day I just created a rabbit, and changed his name from Miyamoto Musashi to Miyamoto Usagi — bit I tried to keep the feel of the chambara [swordplay] comics, the Samurai comics, and I tried to keep it historically accurate — within reason. I’ve got Usagi sketches dated about 1982 — Nilson Groundthumper actually predated Usagi by about a year or so. But the early Usagi looks nothing like the present-day one. For one thing, he had a fringe of hair around his head, and he had heavy brows, kind of like what Nilson has now. Also, he was pudgier, darker looking. I kind of streamlined him when he made his first appearance, in Albedo #2. He’s constantly changing. When he orginally appeared he was four heads tall; now he’s more like five heads tal
