History Manga / LoneWolfAndCub

* HeWhoFightsMonsters: Ittō's blind quest for vengeance makes him suitable for this trope. Considering that he's willingly endangering his only child and is more concerned with avenging his tainted name than his [[StuffedInTheFridge murdered wife]], he may qualify as a VillainProtagonist. Near the end of the series he seems to get increasingly tired of killing (sometimes going so far as to shed ManlyTears after cutting down a few dozen people), but by then he's too close to completing his revenge to stop.

* HumiliationConga: Retsudo's schemes may have destroyed the Ogami clan, but Ittō manages to get some serious payback. Over the course of the series, [[spoiler: he kills ''every single one'' of Retsudo's children, even Retsudo's illegitimate son and daughter, slaughters all of the Kurokuwa ninja clan and, for a time at least, completely destroys the Shogun's faith in Retsudo to the point that Retsudo is publicly snubbed and beaten with a wooden tray by the ''Shogun himself'' at a very important ceremony (so important, in fact, that had it been ''anyone'' but Retsudo, the result would have been instant seppuku). Even after that, Ittō kills all of the remaining Yagyu forces and finishes by slaughtering every last one of the Kusa ninja that the Yagyu had spent ''generations'' planting into domains throughout the country. By the end of the story though, Retsudo has managed to win back the Shogun's trust and respect and he technically wins his duel with Ittō. If he hadn't allowed Daigoro to run him through with his spear, it would have ended in complete victory for Retsudo.]]

* PyrrhicVictory: Retsudo by the end of the manga has lost his prestige, his followers, his clan and all his children. He's [[spoiler:victorious against Itto]] but ultimately he's lost everything and sheds final tears when he recalls his kids.

* ThrowingYourSwordAlwaysWorks: lampshaded, explained and justified. It works because he is perceived as a ronin/samurai with at least some shred of honor, which he is not (he's an assassin), thus catching his opponents completely off guard.

* UnconsciousObjector: In the manga, [[spoiler:Ittō [[DiedStandingUp dies standing up]] while wrestling with [[BigBad Retsudo]] for a sword in the midst of their DuelToTheDeath. It gradually dawns on Retsudo that this has happened, so he lets go of the sword and steps out of sword range. After a number of beat panels, Ittō finally collapses]].

* WouldHitAGirl: Played straight. The manga doesn't try to hide the fact that [[DeliberateValuesDissonance women of the era were viewed as inherently inferior to men]]. However, many named female characters break the mold of their station and when they do, prove to be just as heroic, villanous and/or dangerous as most men. Ittō is GenreSavvy enough to recognize this. [[GreyAndGrayMorality Not that he has any qualms about killing a defenseless woman for that matter... or defenseless man]].

%% * NonActionGuy: Abe no Kaii.
* NotSoHarmlessVillain: Abe no Kaii. Despite being a DirtyCoward and NonActionGuy in a manga where badass warriors dropping like flies, he manages to survive for several volumes against ''both'' Ittō and Retsudo, and comes dangerously close to killing them.

* WouldntHurtAChild: Played straight and subverted. Most of the villains casually commit atrocious acts of torture, mass murder and rape. Either joyfully or by [[IDidWhatIHadToDo sworn]] [[MyMasterRightOrWrong duty]]. However, [[EvenEvilHasStandards nearly all of them draw their line at harming children]]. For this reason, villains are severely shocked upon realizing that Ittō puts his own son in harms way to get a tactical advantage in a fight and [[WhatTheHellHero commonly call him out on it]].

* AlternateHistory: There was a real life Ogami clan that disappeared from the historical record, followed by the extinction of the also real-life Yagyu clan a few decades later. The manga posits itself as a possible (albeit fictional) explanation for what may have happened to cause the extermination of both houses.

* AlternateHistory: There was a real life Ogami clan that disappeared from the historical record, followed by the extinction of the real-life Yagyu clan two centuries later. The manga posits itself as a possible (albeit fictional) explanation for what may have happened to cause the extermination of both houses.

* {{Animal Motifs}}: The Ogamis are wolves. Retsudō is a tiger. "Decapitator" Asaemon, the shogun's sword tester and one of the more noble samurai in the series, is called an eagle. Abe-No-Kaii Tanoshi, the poison taster and epitome of depravity, is called a worm.

There is also a spinoff series, ''Manga/SamuraiExecutioner'', focusing on Yamada Asaemon, the Shogun's sword-tester.

%% * BadassAndBaby: The Ur-Example.
%% * BadassAndChildDuo: Though in this case they are related.
BadassAndBaby/BadassAndChildDuo: An iconic example.

%% * RatedMForManly: Ittō especially.

* BladeOnAStick: Ittō has several concealed as railings on the cart. They can be wielded individually as nagamaki or the handles can be joined to allow them to be used as a naginata or a longer polearm. The latter are especially useful when he has to go up against cavalry and large numbers of enemy troops.