Category: Manga

Ongoing Investigations: Case #052

Leave a comment

So I finally got around to building my Char Action Base over the weekend. I was quite surprised that it was in any way complex, I expected to just open up the package and be good to go. Not so. This is probably for maximum customability, there were more stickers in this kit than I think there were in the actual Zaku II Master Grade I built! Both stands can be put in many different positions as well as be lengthened and shortened easily. They are very thick so sturdiness seems in tact though trying to put the Zaku II at a 90 degree angle proved too much for it. In any case, the construction was rather quick and then came the ability to make Char’s Zaku look like it is flying through space! Watch out!

I don’t think that The Battle of Genryu: Origin is a bad manga though I am not sure it is a good one either. Our main character Jinnosuke has an unusual condition. Most of the time he is a normal clumsily high school student but every so often he get amazing bursts of athletic skill. We comes to find he has tremendous martial arts skill that lies dormant thanks to his family’s hypnotism. Jinnosuke’s older brother, Soichiro comes back determined to awaken this sleeping powerhouse. The fighting is fine and entertaining but not spectacular. Shoko Fukaki tends to use a lot of speed lines and the rest of the art work is serviceable but not outstanding. Jinnosuke is happy go lucky normally but his personality with the power is utterly ruthless. That dynamic is what will make or break this manga, but it is hard to tell which direction it is leaning here. I was somewhat saddened that even though Fusano, Jinnosuke’s girlfriend, is also a martial artist, she is really the utterly weak sauce love interest girl. The first book mostly set up Jinnosuke’s situation so how exactly the whole series is going to play out has yet to be determined so it’s hard to make a definitive statement. However, it’s not a series that is going to win over non-fighting manga fans but people who like martial arts might want to see how it develops.

Continue reading →

Ongoing Investigations: Case #051

Leave a comment

In preparation for seeing Frederik Schodt at Otakon, Narutaki and I decided to read The Astro Boy Essays. The title might say The Astro Boy Essays but this book is just as much a detailed look at Osamu Tezuka as it is a look at Astro Boy. The essays cover the production of Astro Boy as both an anime and manga, its effects on Japanese anime and manga, as well as on Japanese culture in general. The book also covers how Astro Boy was localized in the United States. Throughout Frederik Schodt gives us a look at the man himself, Tezuka. I now realize that many of the smart people who I consider well-versed on Osamu Tezuka are merely stating what they know from this book. My only criticism is that at times this is obviously a collection of essays written over the years. This means that some parts will be redundant as he has a tendency to repeat certain aspects in one essay to the next because all the essays were originally stand alone pieces. Still it is one of the definitive pieces on Osamu Tezuka and one of his most beloved and well-known creations. It is a must read for anyone interested in anime and manga’s history and one of its greatest contributors.

YAY! I got my copy of The Astro Boy Essays signed! After recently reading Dreamland Japan also by Schodt, which showcased a bit of Schodt’s friendship with Tezuka through his interpreting for him in the United States, I needed to pick up this collection of essays as well. Astro Boy and Tezuka are highlighted in his previous books, and some of the tidbits are the same, but the thinking of Tezuka and his own interactions with his creation are fully fleshed out in The Astro Boy Essays. It is written in a conversational manner and not bogged down with so many dates, facts, and figures as to come off dry. This is apparent in all of Schodt’s works and is the reason it is so accessible and a joy to read. The Astro Boy Essays also helped me appreciate that so much of the Tezuka library is finally being published in English. While I have not read much of the original Astro Boy manga, I soon will be. This was an all around quick but informative read that is necessary for anyone who appreciates the history of anime and manga.

Continue reading →

Manga of the Month: July

Leave a comment

Key to the Kingdom by Kyoko Shitou

Anything that even remotely looks like it could be high fantasy gets picked up by me this happens with varying results. However, with Key to the Kingdom it couldn’t have been a more worthy venture. This story starts perfectly and continues on with great vigor. Asta is the youngest prince, who has no desire to rule nor to hold a sword. So when the country’s rule lies in the hands of whoever can find the “key to the kingdom” it seems he will be able to leave his troubles in the hands of others. However, fate has other things in store as Badd, a retainer, drags him into looking for clues to the key’s whereabouts. Just as they start on their journey, arguing all the way, a Dragon Man appears on their path. It soon becomes clear that everything is not as it seems. A diverse cast emerges along the road as Asta resists but gets caught up in the complexity of the country’s history. The art is fluid even if it won’t be everyone’s cup of tea. It is a wonderfully put together shojo fantasy filled with action, politics, dragons, mystery, and friendship. And at just six books it is a great read!

Touch by Mitsuru Adachi

I always had an interest in reading the works of Mitsuru Adachi. He is one of the great artists of the manga community that everyone talks about but rarely see any mainstream love for in America. I was waiting for some spark to give me the motivation to take the plunge into one of his manga series. That spark was the Cross Game anime. After seeing a few episodes I was sold on Mitsuru Adachi’s abilities as a storyteller. I decided if I was watching Cross Game I would go into Adachi’s back catalog and read through Touch to compare and contrast the two.

Kazuya and Tatsuya are twin brothers who seem as different as can be. Kazuya is the younger, upstanding, responsible, and focused young man who excels at everything he does including baseball. Tatsuya on the other hand is a perverted, irresponsible, slacker who does not really excel at anything. Kazuya is extremely popular with the girls while Tatsuya is much like Ataru, he hits on any pretty thing that moves but always strikes out. They are both in love with their next door neighbor Minami Asakura but everyone feels that Minami only has eyes for Kazuya. After Kazuya makes a promise to take Minami to Koshien and seems a lock in to deliver it seems that Tatsuya does not have a chance. But there are hints that Minami cares for Tasuya and possible more than his brother. But it often seems Tatsuya is his own worse enemy in developing their relationship.

Adachi is a master of melding the highs and lows of sports manga with the highs and lows of a well-crafted shonen romance. He is extremely skilled at making likable and instantly engaging characters. Tatsuya comes off as someone to root for right out of the gate. As the series goes on he we see he is a much more complex character but keeps the same energy from when we first met him. Shohei Harada is without a doubt the best character in the series. I will bring up the fact that Adachi’s simpler and somewhat traditional character designs might turn some people off. That is a shame, Adachi is able to draw out powerful emotions with his designs whether it be joy, sadness, anger, or passion. Easily worth checking out by anyone who wants a solid shonen romance. Hopefully one day someone in the U.S. will pick up Adachi’s manga and let people see how good he can be.