15 March 2014 1 Comment

Real, Volume 3

Real, Volume 3Creator: Takehiko Inoue
U.S. publisher: Viz Media
ISBN: 9781421519913
Released: January 2009
Original release: 2003
Awards: Japan Media Arts Award

Takehiko Inoue is probably best known for his basketball manga series Slam Dunk. Now, I enjoy Slam Dunk quite a bit. However, it’s another basketball manga by Inoue that is my personal favorite—Real, which specifically features wheelchair basketball. Although Real and Slam Dunk both share some similar themes, Inoue’s approach in Real tends to be much more serious and realistic, which make sense as the series is intended for a more mature audience. Real began serialization in the manga magazine Weekly Young Jump in 2001. Later that year, Inoue would win a Japan Media Arts Award Excellence Prize for the manga. The third volume of Real was released in Japan in 2003. Viz Media published Real under its Signature imprint, releasing the English-language edition of Real, Volume 3 in 2009. Real is a fantastic series that starts strongly and only continues to get stronger with each volume.

Things always came easily for Takahashi and he naturally excelled at both school and sports. But now he is faced with one of the most daunting challenges of his life. The question is whether or not he will be able to meet that challenge. After being hit by a truck, Takahashi has lost all feeling in his legs along with his ability to walk. He is in complete denial about his condition and is convinced that with only a little effort he’ll be back to playing basketball in no time. Takahashi is in for quite a shock when he begins his physical rehabilitation and he doesnt’ take it well. Recovery, both mental and physical, will be a long and excruciating process and in the end Takahashi will never have the mobility he once enjoyed. Coming to terms with that fact and facing reality are the first steps that Takahashi needs to take in order to move on with his life, but they may be some of the most difficult ones to accomplish.

Although Takahashi is largely the focus of the third volume of Real, he is not the only one who is facing a significant crossroads in his life. Moving forward after a traumatic experience is one of the themes addressed in Real, Volume 3. Nomiya still feels incredibly guilty over the accident that he was in which caused Natsumi to lose the use of her legs. She, like Takahashi, has begun her rehabilitation. It’s a painful and exhausting process for the body, the mind, and the spirit. Seeing this, Nomiya desperately wants to change the direction his life is heading and to become a better person. This, too, is not an easy process. At this point in the series, Togawa serves as proof that these sorts of challenges can be overcome. Things certainly aren’t perfect for him and he still harbors intense anger and frustration, but even with a missing leg he leads a full life. However, it took hard work and effort to get to where he is now. Whether or not Takahashi will be able to do the same remains to be seen.

One of the things that impresses me about Real and Inoue’s work in general is his ability to create incredibly flawed characters who are still sympathetic. Takahashi in particular can be extremely harsh and unlikeable, but I still care about him and his situation. His tormented feelings over no longer being able to walk and how he believes that makes him a lesser person are counterproductive. But he is not the only person who shares them; others struggle with those types of feelings as well. Tamura, the captain of Togawa’s basketball team, has repeatedly expressed similar sentiments which either deflates the other players or pisses them off. (Togawa is particularly sensitive to this issue and has hauled off and punched Tamura at least once because of it.) Inoue’s adept handling of these concerns, while specific to the context of Real and its characters, is also more universally applicable. Almost everyone, no matter who they are, has experienced feelings of inadequacy and disappointment at some point in their lives. Real simply shows what can happen when that reality is faced head on.

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14 March 2014 2 Comments

Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom Pink

Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom PinkCreator: Milk Morinaga
U.S. publisher: Seven Seas
ISBN: 9781937867317
Released: June 2013
Original release: 2012

Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom Pink is the second yuri manga by Milk Morinaga to have been licensed in English. The first, and my introduction to her work, was her series Girl Friends. I quite enjoyed Girl Friends and so was looking forward to reading more of her manga, in this case one of her earlier series. Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom Pink was released in English by Seven Seas in 2013 in a single-volume omnibus edition. Morinaga first began creating the stories included in Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom Pink in 2003. In Japan, the earlier stories were collected into a single volume in 2006. However, Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom Pink was later released again in 2012 in two volumes that collected additional stories, including some that were previously unpublished. This two-volume edition of Kisses, Sighs and Cherry Blossom Pink is the one upon which Seven Seas’ omnibus is based. As such, the English-language edition of the manga collects nearly a decade’s worth of material into a single volume.

Nana and Hitomi were best friends who grew up together and attended the same elementary and junior high schools. Nana was looking forward to becoming a student at Sakurakai Girls’ High School, but that was when she thought Hitomi would be enrolling as well. However, Hitomi was accepted at Touhou Girls’ High School. Finding it too painful to continue to suppress her love for Nana after being rejected, Hitomi chooses to attend Touhou instead. Despite how close the two of them used to be, Nana finds Hitomi drifting away and she misses her terribly. But recognizing her own feelings is only the first step in mending their relationship as is begins to evolve into something more than just friendship. Similarly, several of the other young women at Sakurakai and Touhou are faced with their own first loves and crushes on classmates. It isn’t always easy to confess their feelings and falling in love with a person of the same gender often brings along challenges that other couples don’t have to deal with.

The stories collected in Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom Pink follow a vague chronological order, but many of them aren’t directly related to one another. They share the same setting and to some extent the same characters, but only Nana and Hitomi are the focus of multiple stories in the volume. I actually really enjoyed Morinaga’s structural approach to Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom Pink. Nana and Hitomi’s relationship provides a more developed, ongoing narrative, creating a framework which supports the supplementary side stories about their classmates and friends. Overall, I feel this gives the manga slightly more depth. Also included in Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom Pink is a diagram that visually shows how all of the different stories and characters overlap and are connected to one another. Although they are interrelated and occasionally make references to previous developments and chapters, most of the stories do stand perfectly well on their own in addition to contributing to the manga as a whole.

Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom Pink tends to be very cute, sweet, and romantic, which is not to say that every story is a happy one. I appreciated that some of the chapters in Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom Pink have touches of angst, sadness, and bittersweetness to them. Nana and Hitomi’s relationship, despite having its ups and downs, does have an ending that seems to tie everything up a little too easily and nicely, but I won’t deny that it made me smile. Morinaga also addresses some very real issues and concerns, such as homophobia, that are encountered by same-gendered couples, but many of the feelings expressed are relevant for any romantic relationship. The manga may be a bit melodramatic at times, but it is emotionally resonant. Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom Pink also incorporates a fair amount of humor. It’s a highly enjoyable and charming collection of short manga with likeable characters, a generally optimistic outlook, and a satisfying amount of realism to go along with its sweetness.

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12 March 2014 1 Comment

Indian Summer

Indian SummerAuthor: Mieko Kanai
Translator: Tomoko Aoyama and Barbara Hartley
U.S. publisher: Cornell University East Asia Program
ISBN: 9781933947556
Released: August 2012
Original release: 1988

My introduction to Mieko Kanai was through her short novel Oh, Tama!, the second volume in her Mejiro series. I enjoyed it so much that I wanted to read more of her work, which is how I came to pick up Indian Summer. Although Indian Summer was Kanai’s first novel to be released in English, and only the second volume of hers to be translated (the first being the short story collection The Word Book), it’s actually the third book in the Mejiro series. Each novel in the Mejiro series, though they share some of the same characters, settings, and events, largely stands on its own. While it isn’t necessary to read one novel to enjoy another, it may add some additional depth. After being serialized between 1985 and 1987, Indian Summer was collected into a single volume with some slight modifications in 1988. The English translation of Indian Summer by Tomoko Aoyama and Barbara Hartley, published by Cornell University’s East Asia Program as part of its New Japanese Horizons series in 2012, is based on the later 1999 Japanese edition of the novel.

Momoko is a new student at a university in Tokyo. She’s looking forward to leaving her home in the country behind and setting out on her own in the city. Unfortunately, her overbearing mother isn’t about to let her nineteen-year-old daughter live unsupervised and plans for Momoko to stay with her aunt Chieko instead. The arrangement is meant to be temporary. In a year, Momoko’s younger brother Jun’ichi is also expected to be attending a Tokyo university and their mother intends for them to live together so that Momoko can look after him. Momoko isn’t at all interested in either of these plans, but happily she and her novelist aunt get along fairly well with each other. Chieko has her quirks, as does Momoko, but the two of them are doing what they can to make the best out of a rather awkward situation and to appease Momoko’s mother. Although the arrangement isn’t ideal, life does go on for Momoko as she beings university, makes friends (her classmate Hanako just so happens to be a huge fan of Chieko’s writing), and deals with any of the other curveballs that are thrown her way.

The structure of Indian Summer is particularly interesting. The novel is primarily told from Momoko’s point of view, but her narration is interspersed with the essays and stories that her aunt has written. Generally they are somehow related to whatever is currently going on in the story, but they do break it up somewhat. Much as in Oh, Tama!, Kanai frequently makes references to other works of literature as well as cinema in Indian Summer. Although I know there were some references that I didn’t recognize, I was delighted by those that I did, such as an homage of sorts to Nobuko Yoshiya’s Hana Monogatari. However, enjoyment of Indian Summer doesn’t depend on familiarity with the works being referenced, some of which are Kanai’s own. In Oh, Tama!, Kanai mentions that the characters in her Mejiro series are all based on real people. Indian Summer makes it fairly clear that she herself is at least partly if not primarily the inspiration for Chieko.

In Oh, Tama!, Momoko, Hanako, and Chieko were side characters. In Indian Summer, their roles are very much center stage. Momoko makes a genuinely appealing lead. She’s self-aware, a bit headstrong, forthright, and very capable of speaking her mind. Indian Summer, like Oh, Tama!, is lighthearted and humorous, focusing more on the characters themselves rather than on a complicated or involved plot. Not much actually happens in the novel. Mostly it’s about a young woman expressing herself and even venting a little as she deals with the very normal events in her life. Granted, while the actual events aren’t particularly unusual, the characters in Indian Summer all tend to be rather eccentric in one way or another. As Momoko begins to experience life away from home, the novel explores themes of family, interpersonal relationships, sexuality, and gender roles in a very amusing manner. Indian Summer was a wonderfully delightful and witty read. I can only hope that more of the Mejiro series will be translated in the future.

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10 March 2014 8 Comments

My Week in Manga: March 3-March 9, 2014

My News and Reviews

Last week the Smuggler Giveaway Winner was announced. As usual, I took the opportunity to compile a list. In this case, I pulled together some of the manga licensed in English that feature assassins. And speaking of assassins, last week I reviewed Hiroaki Samura’s Blade of the Immortal, Volume 28: Raining Chaos which focuses on the confrontation between the remnants of the Ittō-ryū and the Rokki-dan warriors and the Mugai-ryū assassins. There isn’t much plot development in the volume, but there are some great battle sequences. I also reviewed Real, Volume 2 by Takehiko Inoue, which features battles of an entirely different sort. Real is a mix of human drama, tragedy, and hope as its characters deal with events in their lives beyond their control. It’s a truly fantastic series.

There was quite a bit of manga industry news and analysis last week. I’m particularly excited that Moyoco Anno will be a featured guest at TCAF! ICv2 interviewed Dark Horse’s manga editor Carl Horn (Part 1, Part 2). Deb Aoki took a look at the state of digital manga for Publishers Weekly. Vertical’s licensing survey is currently underway. Vertical also posted a little more information about past surveys and how they’ve been used. Sean Gaffney rounds up some of the recent licensing announcements at A Case Suitable for Treatment. Not directly related to the current state of the manga industry but still worth a read is Dan Mazur’s post about early shōjo manga.

Quick Takes

My Little Monster, Volume 1My Little Monster, Volume 1 by Robico. On the first day of school, Haru was suspended and he hasn’t been back since. As a favor to a teacher, Shizuku agrees to bring him his homework which Haru interprets as a sign of friendship. Now, much to Shizuku’s dismay, the two of them have become nearly inseparable. Because of Haru’s propensity towards violence and his almost complete lack of understanding as to what is socially appropriate behavior, some of the situations in My Little Monster can be extremely uncomfortable and worrisome. However, although they are often used as a source of humor, I was very happy to see that Haru’s actions were not romanticized. His tendency to lash out and physically intimidate others, whether out of fear or for some other reason, was not generally portrayed as a desirable characteristic. It’s completely understandable that some people are afraid of him. However, Haru’s naivety and earnestness can be very endearing. Shizuku, one of the few people who can seem to handle the volatile Haru, is an interesting character in her own right with both flaws and strengths. They are both social misfits in their own ways; I’m very curious to see how their relationship continues to develop.

Thermae Romae, Omnibus 3Thermae Romae, Omnibus 3 by Mari Yamazaki. If it seems like it’s been a long time since the last Thermae Romae omnibus was released, that’s because it’s been almost a year. Thermae Romae is a series that started out more like a gag manga, following the exploits of the Roman bath engineer Lucius as he somehow time travels to modern-day Japan and back after repeated near-drownings. With the second omnibus, the series shifts into a romantic comedy when Lucius meets Satsuki after becoming stuck in Japan. That ongoing plot continues through the rest of the series. Although there is still plenty of humor in the third omnibus, Thermae Romae takes a decidedly more serious turn when it looks like Satsuki and Lucius will be torn apart. Satsuki’s grandfather, an incredibly skilled massage artist (as well as a man who should definitely not be trifled with), plays an increasingly important role in the story. Thermae Romae is a great deal of fun. It has drama and romance and comedy, not to mention great art. The ending does feel a little abrupt, but Yamazaki notes that she hopes to write additional Thermae Romae stories that address some of the lingering questions that readers may have about the series and its characters.

Arakawa Under the BridgeArakawa Under the Bridge, Season 1 directed by Akiyuki Shinbo. The Arakawa Under the Bridge anime series is based on an ongoing manga by Hikaru Nakamura. Kou Ichinomiya lives his life following one very simple rule that has been instilled in him by his father: never be indebted to another person. So when Nino, a rather strange young woman living on the banks of the Arakawa River, saves him from drowning, Kou wants to repay the favor and move on as quickly as possible. Except, the only thing that she wants is for him to stay with her and so Kou finds himself obligated to move in under the bridge. There he meets the other residents of the Arakawa River, all of whom are not just a bit peculiar and strange. Though Kou is supposedly the “normal” one, it quickly becomes obvious that he fits right in and is just weird as the rest of them. I found Arakawa Under the Bridge to be highly entertaining and enjoyable in all of its absurdity. The series doesn’t have much of an ending, which makes some amount of sense seeing as there is a second season (which I’ll definitely be watching), but the anime tends to be fairly episodic so I wouldn’t necessarily expect it to have a definitive conclusion, either.

Like Father, Like SonLike Father, Like Son directed by Hirokazu Kore-eda. Ryota and Midori Nonomiya are stunned when they discover that their son Keita isn’t related to them biologically. Six years ago at the hospital where he was born, Keita was somehow switched with Ryusei, the son of Yudai and Yukari Saiki. Now the two families must decide how to handle the situation and whether blood ties are stronger than those of time. Ryota, who has his own father issues to work out and whose relationship with Keita wasn’t especially strong to being with, is having a particularly difficult time, but his wife is struggling tremendously as well. The members of the Saiki family tend to be a little more easy-going in comparison, but the situation is a challenge for them as well. And caught up in the whole mess are Keita and Ryusei, who have very little say in the matter. The revelation of the two boys being switched at birth disrupts both families, resulting in both joy and heartbreak as they grow to know each other better. Like Father, Like Son is a beautiful film about parental and familial love as Ryota learns what is important in life and what it really means to be a father.

The Wind RisesThe Wind Rises by Hayao Miyazaki. The anime film The Wind Rises is historical, biographical fiction, following the life of Jiro Horikoshi, an aeronautic engineer who designed fighter planes for Japan during World War II. Almost as much of the film takes place in Jiro’s dreams as it does in his waking life. At first, the designs of the planes in The Wind Rises are very fantastical but as the film progresses they become more and more realistic as Jiro makes his dreams a reality. There is an emphasis placed on the beauty of design and creativity, but this is contrasted with the ugly, destructive forces of war and the terrible applications of those innovations. His planes may have been beautiful, but their purposes were not, which begs the question—how much responsibility do artists hold over their creations and their use? The Wind Rises‘ answer to that question is left ambiguous. As with many of Miyazaki’s other films, The Wind Rises has gorgeous flight sequences and an anti-war sentiment. Some of the time skips were a little difficult to follow at first, and I think the film was a little longer than it really needed to be, but overall The Wind Rises was well done. It’s far from my favorite Miyazaki film, though.

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9 March 2014 1 Comment

Real, Volume 2

Real, Volume 2Creator: Takehiko Inoue
U.S. publisher: Viz Media
ISBN: 9781421519906
Released: October 2008
Original release: 2002
Awards: Japan Media Arts Award

Although I wouldn’t necessarily consider myself to be a sports fan, I have come to the realization that I really enjoy sports manga. Out of all of the sports manga that I’ve so far read, Takehiko Inoue’s wheelchair basketball series Real is the one that stands out for me the most. (Actually, Real happens to be one of my favorite manga series in general.) But it’s really more than just a sports manga. Yes, basketball is an important part of the series, but to an even greater extent Real is about challenges faced in life and how people deal with them. It’s a mix of human drama, tragedy, and hope that earned Inoue a Japan Media Arts Award Excellence Prize in 2001. The second volume of Real was first published in Japan in 2002 while the English edition was released in 2008 by Viz Media under its Signature imprint. Real, Volume 1 did a fantastic job of introducing the series’ main characters and establishing some of the themes that the manga begins to explore more deeply in the second volume and those that follow.

After his accident, Takahashi no longer has the use of his legs. Confined to a hospital bed and with very few visitors he has had to come to terms with his condition largely on his own. He had good grades and excelled at whatever he applied himself to, becoming the captain of his high school’s basketball team with ease. No longer having the ability to walk is a devastating blow to Takahashi and how he is viewed by others and by himself. It won’t be an easy process to compensate for what he has lost. It’s been five years since Togawa lost one of his legs to bone cancer and that’s something he continues to struggle with. He still has most of his mobility, but having a leg amputated brought his dream of becoming the fastest sprinter in Japan, if not the world, to an abrupt end. An extremely competitive athlete he has redirected his ambitions towards wheelchair basketball, now one of the few things in his life for which he has any enthusiasm. Nomiya has a strong love for basketball as well, but as a high school dropout he currently has no outlet for that passion.

A large portion of Real, Volume 2 is devoted to Togawa and part of his backstory. The series turns to his middle school days as he is discovering his love of running, struggling with his relationship with his father, and developing strong, lasting friendships. Immensely talented, it is crushing to know that Togawa will never achieve his dream even as everything seems to be going his way. Just as Takahashi is now being forced to admit his limitations, Togawa also had to deal with events in his life that were beyond his control. The interplay between their two stories in Real is handled extraordinarily well. The two young men have never met, their only direct connection at this point is that they both know Nomiya, but Inoue draws on the parallels between their experiences to great effect. Takahashi is at the beginning of his recovery while Togawa has made years of progress, but the challenges that they face are very similar. Their personalities and how they handle things are very different, though.

Parallels also exist between Togawa and Nomiya. They are both very focused and intense, taking any and all opportunities that they can to practice and improve their game. Even when Togawa, Nomiya, and Takahashi’s stories don’t directly intersect, they are all still very closely tied together. The second volume of Real is very much about beginnings and endings. After originally leaving his basketball team, Togawa has found new drive and inspiration that brings him back. Nomiya doesn’t have the option of returning to his old team and can only watch from the sidelines as his former teammates play their last game. As for Takahashi, he can’t even do that. His denial is slowly turning into agonizing despair as he comes closer to admitting to himself that his life will never be the same. Inoue captures all three of their struggles in a very realistic way. The story is emotionally intense without being melodramatic and the artwork is fantastic, making Real and incredibly effective series.

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