Lone Wolf and Cub (Japanese: 子連れ狼, Hepburn: Kozure Ōkami, "Wolf taking along his child") is a Japanese manga series created by writer Kazuo Koike and artist Goseki Kojima. It was serialized in Futabasha's Seinen manga magazine Weekly Manga Action from September 1970 to April 1976, with its chapters collected in 28 tankōbon volumes. The story was adapted into six films starring Tomisaburo Wakayama, four plays, and a television series starring Kinnosuke Yorozuya, and is widely recognized as an important and influential work.[3] Lone Wolf and Cub chronicles the story of Ogami Ittō, the shōgun's executioner who uses a dōtanuki battle sword. Disgraced by false accusations from the Yagyū clan, he is forced to take the path of the assassin. Along with his three-year-old son, Daigorō, they seek revenge on the Yagyū clan and are known as "Lone Wolf and Cub". Lone Wolf and Cub is considered to be among the most influential manga ever created.[4] It has been cited as the origin for the trope of a man protecting a child on a journey across a dangerous landscape. This is known as the Lone Wolf and Cub trope or genre, which has since inspired numerous books, comics, films, television shows and video games.[5][6][7]