Vagabond Vol 7-9 Discussion | Ft. Philip Chase

Thank you ‪@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy‬ for joining me!
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[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

Thank you for another fun and enriching discussion, Merphy! Vagabond has a strong hold on me now, and I'm excited to continue in the series!

[@R7dman]

Love hearing your thoughts in these!

[@heatth1474]

Just want to say: your pronuntiation are actually good! Like, not perfect of course, and if you were actually learning the language I wouldn't call it "good" either. But I believe that the most important thing when reading foreign names is to sincerely try to get it right, and to me it is clear this is what you did.

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

@@heatth1474 Thank you!

[@R7dman]

Absolutely loving these discussions! Some comments: As you guys have mentioned, identity is a major theme in Vagabond. You have seen three characters who have renamed themselves, reborn as a means to escape their trauma. Takezo -> Musashi Matahachi -> Kojiro Shinnosuke -> Inshun What’s really beautiful about this trend in the Hozoin arc is that we get to see a complete character arc in Inshun, a foil to Musashi who has lived through a very similar life. Inshun embraces the trauma he had been ‘covering up with sand’, which is what allows him to keep moving forward and has that ‘weight lifted off of him’ as Merphy called it. The In’ei flashback with Yagyu & Kami’Izumi is incredibly important for understanding the main messages Vagabond is promoting, it’s quite unclear for where you guys are now but I do advise you remember that flashback 🙏🏽 Really glad to see you both enjoying Vagabond.

[@merphynapierreviews]

thank you so much!

[@hian]

As a man who grew up with the legends of Musashi and his writings, I find that in these days where the conversation on masculinity and manhood rages on the internet, I see in retrospect what a huge influence he had on me and my own image of myself for the better. And probably how much it has helped not being pulled down by a lot of the toxicity that humans can so easily get trapped up in. I'd go as far as to say that he's one of the better rolemodels for men(and women) can aspire to, and I love how well he's represented both in Vagabond and the novel- That the true measure of humankind is found in the pursuit of transcending the worse angels of our nature through introspection, discipline, seeking connections through unshakable honesty and by looking at the world with sober eyes. Being a good man, or woman, isn't about accruing and using power to shape the world to our liking, but to become both a cliff and a harmonious force that can exist with integrity of mind and heart in the midst of tumultuous circumstances. If Musashi represents anything, it is that.

[@nikgokuhil]

My interpretation of why they couldnt move is like two equally strong wild animals, just waiting for an opening, trying to read the opponent, waiting for them to make a mistake, to loose focus for an instant. Its a battle of spirits Musashi earlier was too blinded by himself. It was always I or me with him. If he faces an opponent it was his way to just hit harder, hit faster, just channel into his own ego and have that tunnel vision. He sensed his own aggression in bloodlust in others. For the first time he could see Inshun, he could see the world

[@KalleVilenius]

Will Usopp, I mean Matahachi, ever become a brave warrior of the sea? The name he now carries is more important than you know.

[@valenaugur5315]

Loved the discussion, as always. This section really sticks with me as we get to see what I think Inoue is really trying to say with the story, in a brief glimpse. The artistry and spirituality in display in the conflict between Inshun and Musashi really elevates it to a whole new level of storytelling compared to everything that comes before. Inshun and Musashi have switched roles in their rematch, and watching In'ei and Agon reflect on their relationship with Inshun is something that's really beautiful to see unfold. The rest of the Yagyu arc is also really stellar so I'm excited to hear y'all's thoughts once that concludes. I never stop wondering this phrase when reading the series: "What does it mean to be truly strong?"

[@kris1123259]

Not an expert on this, but I do know that Kojiro Sasaki (Matahachi 's alias) is another legendary samurai that dueled Musashi several times throughout his life. He is definitely a protagonist

[@oscarchavezavellan2738]

I would say this manga is about the two of them, around the starting of the second half of the manga he gets so many chapters focused only on him

[@josiahbravo1649]

I really look forward to these reviews after I finish each book. This manga seems perfect for my life right now. Teaching me so much about myself and I even started mediating again because of this manga and really coming along as my own person. thank you guys for reviewing this and even giving me more insight and noticing things maybe I glossed over. have a great 2024 and I’ll be back when I get my next volume in the mail 👏🏽

[@yiShxng1996]

I love Vagabond, and the conversations between you two. But I'll say that i could listen to both of you discussing about anything!

[@nerd_mus]

I started reading this manga because I saw it in this channel so much and I'm loving it! I got carried away and I'm at volume 12 already so I'll wait to listen to your discussions

[@damiboo3640]

Quick correction, Musashi only strikes Inshun once, as a counter move to the ear splitting spear cut, which knocks Inshun unconscious. The "beating" is shown to be him striking the ground repeatedly in a quick flashback when Musashi wakes up and talks to In'ei before Inshun wakes up. In'ei calling him a beast is a response to Musashi losing that zen mentality that won him the fight in the first place, but Musashi still isn't actually murderous in his beastliness. It strengthens the value of the fight knowing it started with a long standoff and ended in one move, but done avoiding all the surface level stuff of most shonen and even some other seinen manga.

[@christoferkaltsas3282]

I think he did beat him after

[@wumbojet]

You mentioned visions of a parental figure being a commonality is manga, and that is completely true. Although the figure envisioned does not have to necessarily be parental in nature, those visions tend to be, or at least they're of a mentoral nature. Visions, nightmares, and actual hauntings of a mentor figure are a very common way to represent trauma in manga, which in my opinion is an excellent device that i don't understand is not more commonly used in other mediums.

[@Dougeb7]

Hey, enjoyed the discussion! Glad you and Philip decided to continue collaborating on videos. See you on the next one!

[@adecs1422]

7:54 I always love when Merphy lags and Philip just nods lmao. Idk if she also lags for him but it's funny anyways

[@neppc5612]

When you’re done with vagabond, you should discuss one of Urasawa‘s manga next!

[@newturn77]

I am having a blast with these discussion, I do agree with Philip in thinking that Musashi was able to see through Inshun’s flaw which he was unaware of previously, due to his inability to look at the larger picture and his own bloodlust he was preoccupied with thoughts which muddled his mind, remembering takun’s advice of focusing not just on a single leave or a tree but the entire forest and also the teachings of Inei lead to clearing his mind and reaching a state of awareness which gave him the strength that Inshun noticed and made him wary of insight.

[@chasonelledge1788]

You mentioned Berserk here and im sure youve said but is there any plan to read through and disscuss it? Harder to get into but Berserk is one of the greatest stories of all time

[@TheTenguwarrior]

14:20 Fun fact: Name changes are quite common in Japanese society. Not so fun fact: In the past it was quite common to number ones child like: Shotaro (first son), Futaro(second son and Mitsutaro (third son) only years later with five or even later when the parents could be sure that the child survive it would receive a "real" personal name

[@heatth1474]

To be clear, name changes *were* quite common in Japanese society. Like, important samurai changed their name half a dozen time to signify important milestones and what not. Nowadays not so much.

[@mattkemp8877]

Oh nooooooo life is still in the way and I am falling further behind on Vagabond!! Currently waiting on Vizbig#3 to arrived (delayed) then I will have 1-5! My plan is to read Inoue's first manga SLAM DUNK before getting into his magnus opus Vagabond. Very excited :)

[@mattkemp8877]

PS: looking forward to catching up on these discussions when I dive into the books! The Vinland Saga videos were fantastic

[@farhantanvirmondal6758]

Slam dunk is my favorite of inoue's work

[@minicooper1432]

“real” is lowkey his best work but they’re all great, hope you have a good time reading 🙏

[@carlosdanielcalderonmontoy3723]

Like ALL of Inoue's works are fucking GOATED💯: Slam Dunk, Real and Vagabond.

[@hotsake7819]

After you both get caught up with Vagabond it would be fun to see you do a buddy read of the original Musashi novel

[@Dwish305]

Great discussion as usual, thank you.

[@Leonzannanera]

I dont like to compare Vinland Saga and Vagabond too much but i have to say Vinland is a lot more straightforward in what it wants to say than Vagabond, and in these discussion i feel the analisy and discussions are really paying of even more with Vagabond, can't wait for the future volumes

[@preacherpk2824]

Are you all aware this manga is based off the novel “Musashi” by Eiji Yoshikawa? It’s a good book. I read it before the manga not knowing they were related and was pleasantly surprised when I realized that the manga was an adaptation.

[@annaaquitaine4225]

They are aware, Phil mentioned it a couple videos back.

[@jellojalloh5486]

Loving these!!!

[@notrixamoris3318]

Merpy you need to one up philip when it come to thumbnails...

[@merphynapierreviews]

I could never compete with him!

[@notrixamoris3318]

@@merphynapierreviews aww man. Oh well please read the promised neverland and my hero academia...

[@thecrackshow9402]

Is there a video of your berserk opinion? Couldn't find it

[@torcheditz]

1st