Lone Wolf And Cub Box Set

All six films in the iconic Lone Wolf And Cub/Baby Cart/Sword Of Vengeance are present here, along with the US hybrid version of the first two, Shogun Assassin, in a definitive box set that's a must for fans of the samurai genre. It's bursting with impressive extras, including trailers for all of the films, an extensive interview with graphic novel creator Kazuo Koike, and a detailed profile of Kenji Misumi, who directed four of the films, by his official biographer.

Vintage French documentary L'Ame D'Un Pere, L'Ame D'Un Sabre goes into depth about the background to the films and is full of great stories, with particularly interesting contributions from Baby Cart In Peril director Buichi Saitô. There's also a fascinating featurette about the martial art of suio-ryo, presented by an accomplished sensei with little time for modern nonsense like warm-ups or training with blunt weapons; and there's early silent documentary Sword Of The Samurai (which has no accompanying music but syncs really well to The Riddle Of Steel if you play it on a loop), looking in depth at the creation of a samurai sword.

Packing in literally hours of entertainment, this is a great collector's item and a real treat for those who have only seen Shogun Assassin and want to experience the unfiltered brilliance of the works behind it.