Archive for the ‘Manga Reviews’ Category
Codename: Sailor V, volume 1 – Manga Review
© Naoko Takeuchi
Artist/Writer: Naoko Takeuchi
Published in: 1993–1997 (Japan), 2011 (America)
American Publisher: Random House/Kodansha USA
Genres: shoujo, magical girl
Premise: A lively 13-year-old girl is given the power to transform into a magical girl and fight crime
Volumes: 2 (Japan), 1 so far (America)
Availability: Easily available on sites like Amazon and RightStuf.
Codename: Sailor V is both surprising and dull.
It’s the precursor to Sailor Moon, as well as its inspiration. Apparently, Sailor V was picked up for an anime adaptation, at which point the anime studio sat down with V‘s manga-ka Naoko Takeuchi to re-work Sailor V for the anime adaptation. The result was Sailor Moon. Takeuchi then began working references to Moon into V.
V is very much not Sailor Moon. It’s a traditional magical girl story containing only one 13-year-old magical girl, with a much lighter, goofier tone than Moon. It’s fundamentally a sitcom. Indeed, the heroine spends most of her time fighting crime rather than a long-form antagonist. While life lessons are dispensed, most of the story focuses on comedic misunderstandings and the protagonist’s silliness. There’s almost no larger story arc.
The art works; neither crowded nor sparse, it stays out of the way. Takeuchi’s characters do have a slightly elongated style common to shoujo.
Ed Sizemore pointed out that the artwork focuses on the clothing to an almost fetishistic level (my words, not his). While there is a lot of attention paid to this, it’s no worse than I’ve found in other shoujo works like Card Captor Sakura, and I chalk it up to many girls’ almost fetishistic attention to fashion.
So, the manga has a problematic dual problem. If you come looking for Sailor Moon, you’ll find instead a traditional magical girl comedy. If you prepare yourself for a magical girl story, you’ll find a very traditional magical girl comedy, with little to recommend itself beyond that.
7 Billion Needles, volumes 1-2
(c) Nobuaki Tadano
Artist/Writer: Nobuaki Tadano
Published in: 2008–2010 (Japan), 2010–2011 (America)
American Publisher: Vertical
Genres:
Premise: A girl is inhabited by a sentient alien creature, which is itself seeking a xenocidal creature that can take any human’s form.
Volumes: 4
Show x Show: It’s Boogiepop meets Degrassi
What are the themes? The high school girl protagonist has blocked herself off from those around her–for very understandable reasons, it turns out. Because she now is forced to seek out this creature, she is forced to come out of her shell.
The result is a combination of
How’s the art? Modern and
(c) Nobuaki Tadano
Does the art vary from chapter to chapter? Not noticeably. Tadano’s got a strong sense of character design.
How complex are the characters? The protagonist is the most dimensional, and Tadano manages an impressive feat. This is a story about a character’s internal life, which is expressed visually and externally. While there is a fair amount of monologue inside her head, Tadano follows the ”show, don’t tell” maxim closely.
How’s the plot? Pretty evenly balanced between action and quiet drama. The second volume, particularly, is much more about the protagonist’s past.
Can I show it to my Mom? Yep, and this should appeal to adults. It’s about teenagers, but it’s about universal themes.
Can I show it to my kid brother? Sure. He’d probably get a kick out of the action, though the relatively slow,
Can I show it to a
Does it have any memorable moments? Yes.
Availability: Easily available on sites like Amazon and RightStuf.
Usagi Yojimbo, volumes 1-2
© Stan Sakai
Okay, so technically Usagi Yojimbo isn’t a manga; it’s an anthro comic drawn in English by a third-generation Japanese-American.
However, it’s extremely Japanese, and uses manga pacing and stories.
Usagi Yojimbo tells the story of a ronin (master-less samurai), Usagi, in a world of anthropomorphic animals, such as rabbits, boars, and pigs. The small animals of this world are reptiles, so scenes are enlivened with 2-foot-tall apatosauruses.
These two volumes are entirely episodic. Other than a few recurring characters and a story that involves Usagi returning to his hometown, each volume contains a few stand-alone stories of Usagi’s adventures.
Usagi is a stereotypical samurai protagonist: pleasant, cautious, extremely skilled with a sword, and quick to moral outrage, with a strong sense of honor. As a result, the stories are more interesting than Usagi himself.
Some stories are comedic, others are serious, and some contain elements of both. Most deal with moral conundrums in some way. They feel very much like traditional samurai stories: ruffians threatening a village, overbearing lords, etc.
I was struck by how many Japanese language elements that Sakai put into the dialogue. Remember, this isn’t translated from Japanese. But the book is full of -sans and -donos. It certainly gives the book a foreign air, though I found it often unnecessary. Sakai does a fine job of getting across respect or familiarity without adding dialectical affectations.
The black-and-white art is clean and cartoony, with lots of round shapes and negative space. It’s a refreshing switch from the intense lines of manga and the crowded panels of American comics.
Phoenix, volume 6 – Manga Review
© Osamu Tezuka, Viz
Author: Osamu Tezuka
Artist: Osamu Tezuka
What’s he done? Astro Boy, Black Jack, Kimba the White Lion, Dororo, and many others
Volume published: 1971–1978 (Japan), 2006 (U.S.)
Genre: SF / drama / philosophical
Premise: Phoenix is Osamu Tezuka’s masterwork, several thousand pages of manga that explore the human condition. Volume 6 is a self-contained story that explores the old “Not If You Were The Last Person On Earth” chestnut.
Show x Show: It’s The Twilight Zone meets Survivor
Length: This volume stands alone
Is there a plot? Oh boy, yeah. The story keeps driving forward–one of Tezuka’s strengths–but remains easy to follow. This is partly thanks to the small cast.
How’s the art? Classic Tezuka, with a minimum of his trademark goofy comedy. Characters rarely jump through panel borders or otherwise break the fourth wall.
Does the art quality vary from chapter to chapter? Nope.
Is it philosophical? Very much so. This is the story of ordinary people forced to make very hard choices, and living with the consequences.
Moreover, it’s not preachy. Characters espouse different philosophies, and others reject or debate, but I never felt that Tezuka was telling me which one was right or wrong.
Can I show it to my Mom? As the characters struggle to survive, there’s a lot of nudity and, well, incest. If your Mom’s cool with that, go for it. It’s certainly good proof that manga is art.
Can I show it to my kid brother? Nah. It’s too heady, really.
Can I show it to a non-manga fan? Yes, though it may be a tough sell, considering Tezuka’s cartoony style. It’s perfect for an intellectual comic fan.
Availability: Readily available used from sites like Amazon.com and RightStuf.
BLAME!, with exceptions – Manga Review
BLAME! © Tsutomu Nihei, Kodansha, Tokyopop
While all of Tsutomu Nihei’s manga BLAME! was released in English, a few volumes have grown rare and expensive. As in, they cost a minimum of US $60 wherever I’ve looked.
So I’ve read every volume that I could buy for a reasonable price, meaning I had to skip volumes 4 and 6. Fortunately, it’s a slow-moving story, so I hoped I was skipping less-important volumes.
Judging by the ending, I was wrong.
Author: Tsutomu Nihei
Artist: Tsutomu Nihei
What’s he done? Biomega, NSE, and NOiSE
Published: 1998–2003 (Japan), 2005–2007 (America)
Genre: SF / action / thriller / dystopia
Premise: In a completely enclosed dystopian world where humans are under constant attack from biomechanical horrors, one man journeys through the superstructure in search of a human with the fabled Net Terminal gene.
Who thought it up? This is Tsutomu Nihei through and through
Show x Show: It’s The Matrix meets Mad Max
Length: 10 volumes, complete
Is there a plot? Yes, but it’s quite slow. This is mostly an action story, so many chapters are purely face-offs between Killy (our protagonist) and various random biomechanical thugs. The back-story is dripped out in occasional, one-off conversations, so if you’re not paying attention, you’ll get lost quickly.
That said, I had to skip a few volumes, so that certainly didn’t help my comprehension.
Moreover, Killy wields a pistol that causes massive damage with each blast. This is good and bad. In several fights, I was just waiting for Killy to pull it out. In others, the opponents either block his weapon or can regenerate, which creates interesting tension as Killy tries to bring his weapon to bear.
Are there any other characters? Killy meets Cibo, a woman scientist, who helps him by hacking into various computer systems. Cibo adds a layer of interest primarily through Killy’s protectiveness of her. There’s no romance here — BLAME!’s world is thoroughly asexual — but they show clear signs of caring for each other’s safety.
How’s the action? A bit confusing at times, but overall, exciting and always a little different. By the end of the series, most of the villains are just there to be defeated by Killy, but that’s intentional; he’s slogging his way through the final bad guys.
How’s the art? Weird, but intentionally so. All the biomechanical bad guys are Giger-esque, gross parodies of the human form.
Does it feel real? This is one thing I love about Nihei; his architectural background is clearly shown in his detailed artwork. Every location feels real. He also has a good feel for human proportion, though in this series, characters can stretch during action a bit more than in, say, Biomega.
Can I show it to my Mom? I wouldn’t. There’s too much violence (zombies with their heads blown off, weird mutants, etc.).
Can I show it to my kid brother? Pre-teen? It’s pretty violent (thus the ”Mature Content” sticker). Teen? Sure.
Can I show it to a non-manga fan? This is actually a pretty good candidate. It doesn’t have underage nudity or uncomfortable sexual situations, and it doesn’t use specifically Japanese language elements (honorifics, sailor fuku, etc.).
Does the art quality vary from chapter to chapter? Nope. But then, this is Nihei’s fourth manga series, so he’s got that down.
Availability: All but volumes 4 and 6 are readily available used from sites like Amazon.com.
Red Snow by Susumu Katsumata – Manga Review
© Susumu Katsumata, D+Q
Red Snow is actually a bit tough to write about, because it touches on experiences so alien to my own.
It’s about rural life in pre-industrial Japan. In this small town, life is the same as it’s always been. But new people are born and raised, and they each strike a little flame.
As a short story collection, Red Snow can’t be summed up; it’s a series of glances into small-town life. Most of the stories strikes a non-judgmental stance: this is simply how people lived, rightly or wrongly.
The one primary exception is the first story, focused on a young boy who’s observing a girl about his own age. She’s the daughter of a prostitute, and is treated poorly by the adults of the village. The children, of course, copy the adults. Worse, there’s nothing she can do about it, and she seems destined to follow her mother’s path. It’s touching and sad.
As with so many Japanese stories, one of Red Snow’s strongest themes is relationship to community. What you do privately is nobody’s concern, but letting that affect the community is a sin.
This intertwines with another theme: sex. It seems everyone is cheating on everyone else. And, again, that’s seen as fine as long as there’s no chance anyone will find out about it. Both sexes engage in this, too.
In fact, the title of the book stems from a story in which a girl loses her virginity. During a snowstorm, she waits inside a large log for her boyfriend to find her. Freud would have a field day.
Symbolism runs rampant in Red Snow, particularly in the more abstract stories about nature and intertwining relationships. It’s a refreshing change from the soap opera tone of the other stories.
Several tales include elements of Japanese superstition, and this is another area in which the book is so alien. Kappa and other strange creatures are woven into the story, with no attempt made to separate them from village life. At first, I felt jarred by this, then I realized that it was realistic: that’s exactly how these villagers related to kappa. As normal.
Perhaps that is Red Snow‘s greatest strength: it makes this alien world of pre-modern rural Japan real and relatable.
Artist/Writer: Susumu Katsumata
Published in: 1970′s-1980′s (Japan), 2009 (America)
American Publisher: D+Q
Genres: Slice-of-life, drama, adolescence
Volumes: 1
How obvious are the themes? Fairly subtle. This is a collection of short stories originally published separately over years, so the themes aren’t as clear as they could be.
How’s the art? Very 1970′s.
Can I show it to my Mom? Depending on how open-minded she is. There’s a fair amount of sex, implied or shown. At least none of it’s explicit.
Can I show it to my kid brother? Well, there is all that sex.
Can I show it to a non-manga fan? Definitely, though be aware that this is a gekiga title. It looks, well, very 1970′s.
Does it have any memorable moments? Quite a few, especially those dealing with small monsters and abstract representations of sex. I’m not kidding.
I’m implying that Red Snow is all about sex, which is unfair. It’s just a major theme.
Availability: Easily available on sites like Amazon and RightStuf.
Barefoot Gen, volume 2 – Manga Review
© Keiji Nakazawa, Last Gasp
Artist/Writer: Keiji Nakazawa
Published in: 1973–1985 (Japan), 2004–2010 (America)
American Publisher: Last Gasp
Genres: Shounen, war, documentary
Premise: Gen is a young boy unlucky enough to live in Hiroshima when the atomic bomb drops.
Show x Show: It’s Grave of the Fireflies meets Maus
Volumes: 10
What’s this volume about? The atomic bomb dropped at the end of the previous volume, so this volume focuses on the weeks immediately thereafter: radiation sickness, piles of corpses, and the fate of those who lived.
How obvious are the themes? Very. This is as clear as the previous volume; it’s very much a shounen title.
How graphic is it? Completely. Nakazawa’s cartoony style keeps it relatively abstract, thankfully, but you will see some unpleasant images here. That’s the point. The aftermath of the atomic bomb was hell.
Is it any less preachy than the first volume? Thankfully, yes. Gen has a lot more to do this time around.
What happens? Gen and his mother struggle to provide for themselves and Gen’s new sister in the rubble of Hiroshima. Gen goes in search of food, and is distracted by a young boy who looks exactly like Gen’s younger brother.
Distracted from food? Yeah, and it does seem odd. Perhaps Gen is a bit delirious, and/or traumatized, but he spends over a day on this side trek with this other kid. While that provides for an interesting diversion, it gets tiresome quickly. We know this kid isn’t his brother.
Is it only about the Japanese? No, and that’s one interesting thing: One of Gen’s neighbors is Korean, and a segment of this volume deals with how terribly the Koreans were treated during this period, being denied even basic medical care.
Can I show it to my Mom? Sure.
Can I show it to my kid brother? It’s probably too intense for him.
Can I show it to a non-manga fan? Yes; in fact I think this might appeal more to non-fans than regular manga readers. The art has an indie comics feel. You’d probably want to start with volume 1, naturally.
Does it have any memorable moments? Several, particularly those dealing with a family that Gen and his relatives live with near the end of the book. Hiroshima survivors faced a lot of rejection, partly due to understandable fears about radiation. Nobody knew if radiation sickness could be transmitted, so few people would spend more than a few minutes with Hiroshima survivors. Unfortunately, the scenes with this family are over-the-top; most of the family members are downright evil.
Availability: The entire series has been released in English by Last Gasp, and can easily be found on sites like Amazon and RightStuf.
House of Five Leaves, volume 2 – Manga Review
House of Five Leaves © Natsume Ono, Viz, Shogakukan, Viz Media
Artist/Writer: Natsume Ono
Published in: 2006–2010 (Japan), 2010–present (America)
American Publisher: Viz Media
Genres: Seinen, drama,
Volumes: 7, still being released in America
What about volume 1? See my previous review.
What’s the premise? Akitsu Masanosuke, our timid samurai protagonist, has fallen ill and is being tended by Goinkyo. We learn more about Goinkyo and several other characters’ backstories, which sheds some light on the origins of the Five Leaves. Anything further would be spoilers.
Does it still look weird? Yeah, even more so than in volume 1.
The atmosphere in this volume is even more quiet than the earlier one, as Akitsu remains
Is it confusing? The plot itself is clear, but the characters use a lot of nicknames. I had some trouble keeping track of them at several points.
Can I show it to my Mom? Sure. She might like the odd art and colorful cast.
Can I show it to my kid brother? Yep, but it probably wouldn’t do much for him. Lots of talking.
Can I show it to a
Does it have any memorable moments? Several. The story involving Goinkyo’s back story, and how that relates to several other characters, creates a tense, dark plot. The payoff satisfied my sense of justice, while remaining ambiguous enough to keep me thinking about the ethics of it all.
Availability: Easily available on sites like Amazon and RightStuf.
