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12 June 2013 1 Comment

Twinkle Twinkle

Author: Kaori Ekuni
Translator: Emi Shimokawa
U.S. publisher: Vertical
ISBN: 9781932234015
Released: May 2003
Original release: 1991
Awards: Murasaki Shikibu Literary Prize

Kaori Ekuni’s novel Twinkle Twinkle was the first of her works to be translated into English. Ekuni is both a bestseller and a literary award winner in Japan. Initially she wrote poetry and children’s stories before beginning to write for a more general audience. Twinkle Twinkle, originally published in Japan in 1991, was her debut novel and earned Ekuni the Murasaki Shikibu Literary Prize in 1992. Also in 1992, Twinkle Twinkle was adapted into a film directed by Joji Matsuoka. The novel was translated into English by Emi Shimokawa and published by Vertical in 2003. (Twinkle Twinkle was actually the first book ever to be released by Vertical.) Despite being a well-known and admired author in Japan, before reading Twinkle Twinkle I was unfamiliar with Ekuni and her work. After reading Twinkle Twinkle I sincerely hope that more of her writing is translated. Currently the only other novel by Ekuni available in English is God’s Boat.

Shoko and Mutsuki married four months after they first met, much to the delight of their respective parents who feared that their progeny would never find someone to spend the rest of their lives (and hopefully have children) with. Although Shoko and Mutsuki are pleased with their arrangement, each is hiding a secret from their new in-laws. Shoko is an alcoholic and emotionally unstable while Mutsuki is gay and continues to see his long-term boyfriend Kon. Shoko and Mutsuki care for each other, but their marriage is one of convenience more than anything else. They are each free to live their lives how they choose while at the same time are able to keep up appearances for their families. It seems like a perfect marriage as long as they can prevent their parents from discovering the farce. But during their first year together things begin to unravel. Neither Shoko or Mutsuki quite realize what all of the consequences of their marriage might actually be.

Each chapter of Twinkle Twinkle alternates between Shoko and Mutsuki’s individual perspectives. It’s a great technique that lets readers see both sides of their relationship and how they view each other. It also allows a glimpse into the newlyweds’ internal states of being. Throughout the novel it is clear that both Shoko and Mutsuki deeply care about the other. They’re not exactly romantically involved and they may not be having sex together, but they both want the other to be happy and work to make that happen. It’s not always easy, though. Both of them have habits that either baffle or annoy the other and they’re not always sure what to do about it. As Twinkle Twinkle and the first year of their marriage progresses Shoko becomes increasingly unstable—anxious that she isn’t able to adequately fulfill her role. As for Mutsuki, as wonderful as he can be, he’s unable to ease Shoko’s fears; his kindness often makes matters worse.

Twinkle Twinkle is a very peculiar love story between two incredibly imperfect people. But it’s Shoko and Mutsuki’s faults and flaws that make the novel as effective as it is. No marriage is perfect and even a fake one takes a tremendous amount of effort to maintain. To make matters even more complicated there’s Kon, who at times is on better terms with Shoko than he is with Mutsuki. Kon is extremely important to both of them as well as to the story itself. Together Kon, Shoko, and Mutsuki form an intense triangle with relationship dynamics crucial to their development as people and to the development of the novel. Twinkle Twinkle is fairly light in its tone and is immensely readable, but Ekuni still manages to pack several hard-hitting punches into the narrative. Personally, I loved Twinkle Twinkle. It’s one of the best novels that I’ve read recently and I can easily see myself reading it again.

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5 May 2013 Leave a Comment

Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin, Volume 1: Activation

Creator: Yoshikazu Yasuhiko
Original story: Yoshiyuki Tomino and Hajime Yatate
U.S. publisher: Vertical
ISBN: 9781935654872
Released: March 2013
Original release: 2005

Before Vertical’s 2013 release of Yoshikazu Yasuhiko’s Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin, Volume 1: Activation, I never had a particular interest in Gundam. I’m certainly aware of the original 1979 Mobile Suit Gundam anime series and the massively influential franchise it spawned, but beyond a basic understanding I’m not especially familiar with the metaseries. But while I may not be a Gundam fan, I am a huge fan of Yasuhiko and his manga; that is the primary reason I decided to give The Origin a try. The manga is a retelling of the original Gundam series. Yasuhiko’s involvement was critical to the visual development of the anime, so it’s interesting to see him return to the story. Viz Media originally began releasing The Origin in 2002, but canceled the series before it was completed. Vertical’s release of the The Origin is based on the Japanese collector’s edition which began publication in 2005. With color pages, a hardcover, essays, and glossy paper, it’s easily one of the highest quality releases of manga in English in recent days.

In the year of Universal Century 0079, the space colony Side 3 began its war of independence from the Earth Federation. As the self-proclaimed Principality of Zeon and the Earth Federation fought, half of humanity’s total population died. For the last eight months the opposing sides of the conflict have entered into an uneasy truce; violence could erupt again with very little provocation. Unknown to the civilian population of the Federation’s Side 7 colony, a new weapon is being developed by the military stationed there in the hopes of tipping the balance of the war. The Gundam mobile suit is the most highly advanced and powerful model to have ever been created. The Principality isn’t about to let this pass unchallenged; its reconnaissance mission quickly turns into an attack on Side 7 and its people. The colony is destroyed and the survivors flee, pursued by one of the Principality’s most notorious and feared commanders.

Yasuhiko’s color illustrations are a marvelous addition to Activation but his black and white work is just as impressive. The pure white of flashes and explosions is a striking contrast to the blackness and quiet of space. Yasuhiko’s line work is delicate but conveys the destruction and devastation of battle as well as the immense proportions involved in the conflict and the power driving it. The action sequences are dynamic in their intensity and danger. Debris, chaos, and detritus leave a visual impact that enforces the sense of desperation felt by those caught in the wake of the attacks. Yasuhiko makes it quite clear in Activation that there is a very real threat to people’s lives. The consequences of war are terror and death no matter who claims to be in the right. Activation and the tragedy that unfolds at Side 7 is only the beginning.

After reading only the first volume of The Origin, I am convinced that the complete tale will be an epic an multilayered one. The world-building is fantastic and the scope of the story has tremendous depth. In addition to the larger overarching conflict between the Federation and the Principality are the smaller more personal conflicts between the characters as individuals. There is the clash between the military and the civilian population of Side 7 as they are forced together just for the chance to survive. A younger, less experienced generation is thrust into leadership roles when their predecessors repeatedly fail them. Sacrifices and growth are demanded from those who in an ideal would should have never been asked. Activation is and exciting and engaging beginning to The Origin. I am looking forward to the next installment in the series, Garma, a great deal.

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8 March 2013 Leave a Comment

Edge

Author: Koji Suzuki
Translator: Camellia Nieh and Jonathan Lloyd-Davies
U.S. publisher: Vertical
ISBN: 9781934287385
Released: June 2012
Original release: 2008
Awards: Shirley Jackson Award

Although Edge is Koji Suzuki’s eighth novel to be translated into English, it is the first work of his that I have had the opportunity to read. Suzuki is best known for his horror novel Ring and its numerous adaptations. Edge is also a horror story of sorts, although of a very different kind. Koji has described the novel as “quantum horror,” which caught my attention. I was intrigued by the thought of a thriller inspired by science. Noticing that the novel included a four-page bibliography didn’t scare me off. In fact, it made Edge even more appealing to me. Originally released in Japan in 2008 (and then again in a revised edition in 2012), Edge was translated into English by Camellia Nieh and Jonathan Lloyd-Davies and published by Vertical in 2012. Vertical was also the English publisher of Suzuki’s previous seven novels.

Eighteen years ago, Saeko Kuriyama’s father disappeared without a trace, leaving behind only the love of science and critical thinking that he instilled in his daughter. Those skills have served her well as a journalist. Now she has become involved in investigating a case that hits very close to home for her: in Takato, Japan an entire family of four, the Fujimuras, have mysteriously vanished from their home, seemingly without reason or cause. Japan isn’t the only place where people have gone missing without explanation. As more and more cases are brought to light, Saeko and the other people with whom she is working are able to begin to piece together some theories. The patterns they identify are troubling at best; the underlying laws that bind the universe together seem to be falling apart. When even the scientific experts are terrified by what’s happening, what hope does the rest of the population have?

Edge starts out strongly with a lot of promise. The prologue introduces the missing persons phenomena and the startling discovery of the change in the value of pi. The thought of the very fundamentals of mathematics and the laws of physics shifting just slightly and the resulting implications that would have is intriguing and fascinating to contemplate. Unfortunately, it takes Suzuki nearly three quarters of the novel to tie the prologue back into the main narrative. During that time Saeko is dealing with her own personal problems while she is investigating the disappearances of the Fujimuras, finding strange connections to other mass disappearances. While this is going on Suzuki also introduces a quite a few plot threads that don’t end up going anywhere. Sadly, I found much of Edge to be a bit of a slog to read.

At times, Edge reads like a layman’s introduction to higher level physics, mathematics, astronomy, evolution, and other scientific concepts. Personally, I found it all to be very interesting, but not particularly compelling as a novel. Still, it is the science-influenced horror which is the novel’s strength. As Edge approaches its climax, Suzuki reveals a very intriguing explanation for everything that is happening. As one of the characters states, even the “coincidences all had significance.” But then Suzuki abandons the science in favor of pseudo-science and the supernatural which comes out of nowhere and makes little sense within the context of the rest of the story. I actually felt a little betrayed. Ultimately, I was left both frustrated and disappointed by Edge. It started with such great promise but ended in such a confusing mess. I’d still be willing to give another of Suzuki’s works a try, but Edge doesn’t inspire a lot of confidence.

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2 February 2013 Leave a Comment

Message to Adolf, Part 2

Creator: Osamu Tezuka
U.S. publisher: Vertical
ISBN: 9781935654445
Released: December 2012
Original run: 1983-1985
Awards: Kodansha Manga Award

Osamu Tezuka’s manga series Adorufu ni Tsugu was my introduction to Japanese comics. Initially published in English by Viz Media in five volumes under the title Adolf between 1996 and 1997, the series is now available from Vertical in two hardcover omnibuses under the title Message to Adolf. The second omnibus, Message to Adolf, Part 2, was published in 2012 and collects chapters eighteen through thirty-six of the manga. In Japan Adorufu ni Tsugu was first serialized between 1983 and 1985. Tezuka went on to win the Kodansha Manga Award for the series in 1986. I am absolutely thrilled that after being out of print for so long the series is once again available in English. I was also happy to discover after reading Message to Adolf, Part 1 that the series was just as good if not better than I remembered it being. I looked forward to re-reading its conclusion a great deal.

Forced to join the Hitler Youth and forced to kill, Adolf Kaufmann is no longer the innocent boy he once was. Despite being half-Japanese, he has quickly climbed the ranks of the Nazi elite, even becoming the personal secretary of Adolf Hitler for a time. Although his indoctrination is nearly complete, he is still plagued by guilt over the deaths he has caused. Back in Japan his best friend Adolf Kamil, a Jew, has come into possession of documents proving Hitler’s Jewish heritage. Guarding the information with his life, the time has come to try to find a way to reveal the secret to the world in an attempt to take the Nazi party down. Those documents will bring Adolf Kamil and Adolf Kaufmann together once again, along with the Japanese journalist Sohei Toge.

One of the things that makes Message to Adolf work so well is that Tezuka expertly combines his historical fiction with historical fact. Placing his story within the context of the Second Sino-Japanese War and World War II (and eventually the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as well) emphasizes the realism of the tale. Tezuka’s message in Message to Adolf is not a subtle one: the manga is inherently anti-war and anti-prejudice. A major theme is that war, hate, and extreme ideology are not only destructive but ultimately pointless. This is poignantly captured in the development of the character of Adolf Kaufmann who loses everything—his friends, his family, and even himself—as he strives to achieve the ideal that he has been taught is right. His downfall and undoing and the atrocities he and others commit in the name of justice and patriotism are as tragic as they are harrowing.

Message to Adolf is an impressively complex and layered narrative with several storylines that weave in and out of one another, sometimes overlapping and sometimes standing alone. Plot threads and characters introduced early on in the series return again in the second half, often in unexpected ways. Events that at first appear tangential are later pulled back into the main narrative. But as complicated as the structure of Message to Adolf is, Tezuka is in complete control the entire time. It is easy to follow and easy to be swept up in the epic tale. Message to Adolf is understandably bleak; it does deal with a dark period in history after all. Moments of light appear only to be repeatedly crushed. But ultimately, Message to Adolf leaves a hope that human beings can change and can do better. It’s not free of problems, but I honestly believe Message to Adolf is one of Tezuka’s best and most compelling series.

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24 January 2013 1 Comment

Sakuran: Blossoms Wild

Creator: Moyoco Anno
U.S. publisher: Vertical
ISBN: 9781935654452
Released: July 2012
Original release: 2003

Sakuran: Blossoms Wild by Moyoco Anno was initially serialized in the manga magazine Evening between 2001 and 2003 before being collected into a single volume in Japan in 2003. The English-language edition of Sakuran was published by Vertical in 2012. It’s a physically beautiful volume with a foil color and retaining Anno’s color pages. The previous manga by Anno to be released in English, the final volume of Sugar Sugar Rune, was published in 2008. Four years later, I was thrilled to finally have more of Anno’s work available in English. Except for her short manga “The Song of the Crickets,” collected in the anthology Japan as Viewed by 17 Creators, Sakuran is currently the only historical period piece by Anno in English; her other manga all take place in contemporary settings. Although I’m only now getting around to actually reviewing Sakuran for the Moyoco Anno Manga Moveable Feast, I was very excited for its release.

Kiyoha is one of the highest-ranking courtesans in Yoshiwara, the pleasure district in Edo. She hasn’t always held that position, though. Bought as a young girl by Tamagiku House, Kiyoha began her service as a maid but her good looks and cleverness made her an ideal choice to become an apprentice courtesan. Kiyoha’s willfulness and lack of social graces prove problematic and her attempts to escape Tamagiku lead to her being severely punished. Life in Yoshiwara is an extremely difficult one and the women who live there have very little control over their own existences. Kiyoha, like so many of the other courtesans, is both admired and hated. It’s a harsh world. Every glimmer of hope, as few of them as there are, is accompanied by sadness, heartbreak, and tragedy. And yet Kiyoha perseveres.

Sakuran is one of the most realistic and honest portrayals of sex work in Edo-era Japan that I’ve come across in manga or in fiction in general. No doubt Sakuran is sensual, but the brothels and the lives of the courtesans haven’t been glamorized or romanticized. The story is almost matter-of-fact in its presentation. There is explicit sexual content in Sakuran, which probably shouldn’t be too surprising considering the manga’s subject matter, but Anno handles it very tastefully. Even though the women in Sakuran are largely powerless, forced to work within a system not of their own choosing, they are also incredibly strong. Becoming a high-ranking courtesan had its benefits but also carried with it a tremendous amount of responsibility. Supporting their houses and those who served them was often a thankless job.

Before reading Sakuran, I had never seen any of Anno’s color work. I am very glad that Vertical kept the color pages for the English release of the volume because they are gorgeous. Some might find Anno’s art style to be ugly, but it is also exquisitely elegant. I love it. I’ve always been a fan of Anno’s distinctive artwork, but Sakuran is particularly arresting visually. Anno has an interest in fashion and Sakuran allows her to really let loose. The attention she gives to the details of the elaborate kimono and intricate hairstyles and their accessories is stunning. Sakuran is a beautiful manga. It may only be a single volume, but that also means it’s more immediately accessible than her longer series. Sakuran is one of Anno’s more serious and sophisticated works, but I also think it’s one of her strongest overall. Simply put, Sakuran is marvelous.

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