Tag Archives: shonen sunday

Cross Game MMF: No Character Left Behind

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This is it – the final day of Cross Game posts from Manga Widget. I hope that you’ve enjoyed all the content here, and all the other blogs contributing to this month’s Manga Moveable Feast. Special thanks go out to our excellent host, Derik Badman at The Panelists; if you haven’t visited the site and seen all the content, now is your chance.

Today, I wanted to focus on something a little less like a footnote, and more like a stray observation about Adachi’s style of story development. One of the things that makes Cross Game such an interesting and involving read is its character development – and not just the development of a few odd characters who make up the bulk of the action in Cross Game. We see Aoba develop and get to experience Ko’s coming of age, but Adachi has plans for all of his characters.

In the first volume, Nakanishi, one of the players on the Portable team, is shown angrily fighting the high school team. This isn’t important to the story, other than these thugs from the high school team and their antics are Ko’s stated reasons for not joining the baseball team. I feel that Ko’s statement doesn’t have a whole lot of validity – he doesn’t have to show Nakanishi after a fight, his hands bloodied, his range barely contained within the panels of the page. But he does, and develops Nakanishi as a character. We know that he hates injustice and bullying, and that he has a hot temper.

One of the interesting characters that Adachi spends quite a bit of time developing is Senda, a boy in Ko’s class who fancies himself a pitcher and makes it onto the Seishu team only to later be kicked out and put on the Portable team. While at first, this character is merely a source of comic relief for readers and a source of irritation for Ko and Aoba, he suddenly becomes something more – he becomes part of the team. We get to see a great interlude in the third omnibus that shows how Ko and the baseball team spends their New Year holiday. Senda spends the day out trying to find people to hang out with, and finds out after he comes home that the team has been over to hang out, and has since left. This development shows us what Senda is – an insecure boy who hides his fears and anxieties under a mask of boastful confidence. Again – not a necessary detail for the story of Cross Game to continue, but a detail that helps readers connect to the characters presented in Cross Game.

All this character information is presented in a show, not tell sort of style. Adachi is adept at showing readers things that help them connect the dots; his character development is certainly one of these things.

This character development is unlike anything in other shonen or shojo manga, and solidifies Adachi’s place as a great author and entertainer. Because of his attention to detail and focus on the development of his entire varied cast of baseball-playing high-schoolers, Cross Game transcends its Shonen Sunday background and can, if even only for small moments, change from a form of entertainment into art. And we are much the richer for it.

MMF: Cross Game and Mono No Aware

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Welcome back to the Cross Game Manga Moveable Feast. This week, the manga blogosphere is doing its best to feature Mitsuru Adachi’s stellar sports manga, Cross Game, and already there has been some terrific writing, especially at The Panelists, where Derik Badman is hosting this month’s festivities. There is a lot of wonderful writing that comes out of each month’s MMF, and I love to dig into it and learn from it. Case in point -
earlier this week, David Welch at the Manga Curmudgeon explained some of the reasons why he loves Cross Game. (This article is excellent reading, by the way, and I recommend it to all of you).

As I was reading through his article, I realized that he had used a term I had not seen before: mono no aware. The phrase comes from Japanese literature, and I was curious what he meant by it. As I read and learned, I found that I too was impressed and moved by the series’ use of this literary device, but up until that moment in time, had not properly considered it or defined what it did for Cross Game. What is mono no aware, and why is it so important to Cross Game?

Mono no aware (物の哀れ) or literally “the ah-ness of things” or more accurately, “the sadness of things” is a literary device that most likely arose during the Heian Period around the same time that The Tale of Genji was written. It is a mixture of Shinto and Buddhist thought; a Shinto expression of beauty and awe (aware) regarding the instability and impermanence of life (mujo). The form of this idea that we discuss today was developed by Motoori Norinaga (1730-1801), a Japanese studies scholar who postulated that mono no aware was the essence of Japanese culture. Interestingly, this aesthetic is echoed in the writings of Virgil, a Roman scholar who uses it in The Aeneid and calls it lacrimae rerum, or “tears for things.” The express idea in this aesthetic is that we marvel at and mourn the fact that life is constantly changing, and that moments in time are fleeting.

Cross Game is, with all its baseball trappings, a book about loss and the way that people interact with that loss. It is no surprise then, that Adachi uses mono no aware actively throughout Cross Game. The loss of Wakaba is the key instigator for this – the main characters, Ko and Aoba, are still dealing with her loss, and reflecting on that makes them keenly aware of how quickly time passes. In relation to Wakaba’s drowning it seems, we see many scenes that use mono no aware around bodies of water – the local stream, the municipal pool– each reminding both that the time prior to now was fleeting and full, and that it is now gone, and that the same is true for the present. Ko and Aoba both struggle to come to terms with their loss, and this is part of what makes Cross Game such a wonderful read.

Adachi is not the only mangaka who uses mono no aware to good effect. Kozue Amano, writer of Aqua and Aria, uses it heavily in her work, as does Kaoru Mori, the author of Emma and recently released The Bride’s Stories. But reading Cross Game, I find myself in a state of melancholy. I marvel at each chapter and contemplate the very fleeting nature of life and our experiences in it. Cross Game embodies mono no aware and makes it personal for me; it is that personal interaction that makes Cross Game such a joy to read.

Manga Widget Investigates, MMF-Edition: Katsu!

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Hey folks! We are postponing this week’s Rescue Me! post in lieu of a MMF license request. Please check back in next week for more Rescue Me! content.

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As hopefully you know, this week is the Cross Game Manga Moveable Feast, a monthly celebration of manga that lasts an entire week. For May, we are celebrating Mitsuru Adachi’s critically-acclaimed Cross Game, a Shonen Sunday manga published from May of 2005 until February of 2010. Derik Badman is hosting the MMF at The Panelists website, so check back there every day this week for more Cross Game content. Cross Game is 17 volumes long, and is being published in an omnibus format in the USA – seven of the 17 volumes have been released so far, the first translated omnibus volume consisting of the first three volumes, while the second two omnibuses are two volumes long apiece.

Mitsuru Adachi is a sports writer, primarily. He has worked in other genres, such as history and fantasy, but his major area of expertise is sports manga, which is why we haven’t seen too much of him the USA until now. Being a sports manga writer is sort of a kiss of death in the publishing industry in the USA – manga like Prince of Tennis and Eyeshield 21 are not popular in the USA, even though they do very well in Japan. This difference comes from the  audience differences between the two nations – in Japan, manga is for everyone, and caters to people of wide tastes and hobbies. Shonen Sunday and Shonen Jump target kids in junior high and high school, and manga in Japan has a much higher penetration rate than here in the USA. And, to be blunt, many of the people who read manga in the USA are not sports-oriented, and don’t enjoy reading about sports.

Cross Game has shown us that even when an author focuses on a sport, they can still manage to tell other stories. Adachi is especially adept at de-emphasizing action and the very meat-and-potatoes scenes that make most other sports manga tick – instead, he focuses on character interaction and emotion, and lets the reader fill in the blanks when it comes to action. It’s a very slick presentation that features a sport, but does not emphasize it above all other things.

Despite his perceived limited scope, it is my opinion that Mitsuru Adachi is one of greatest mangaka in Japan, rivaling Rumiko Takahashi in skill and popularity. His work is allegoric yet heartfelt, and maintains a pace and scope of storytelling unmatched by other mangaka. It seems like a tragedy that more of his writing has not yet made it to the USA, and I think that this is a problem that Viz Media and its parent companies need to rectify, so I’m making a suggestion for Viz Media‘s next Adachi release – Adachi’s 2001-2005 series Katsu!.

Katsu! is a boxing manga about a young man, Katsuki Satoyama, who joins a boxing gym to meet a girl Katsuki Mitzutani that is in his freshman class. After training a bit and sparring, he finds out that he has a latent talent for the game – and comes to discover that he is the son of a pro-boxer. The series features Adachi’s signature every-man main character and the feisty female co-lead who gives him headaches, but this time framed around the sport of boxing.

I’m sure that other people interested in Adachi would like to see his other major baseball series, H2, released in the USA, but I think that Katsu! is a much more reasonable series – like Cross Game, the series does not break 20 volumes (Katsu! is 16 volumes, Cross Game is 17). Both are more modern than H2, which ran for 34 volumes from 1992 to 1999, which isn’t necessarily a problem in art style, since Adachi has been pretty consistent with his art for the past 25 years, but I doubt that many publishers would want to start printing a 34-volume baseball epic that started print almost 20 years ago. Katsu! is a fine compromise and showcases Adachi’s ability to write about more than just baseball.

Part of what we doing an MMF is celebrate not only the story being told, but also the writer telling it. I think it is high time we let Adachi loose on American soil and get more of his manga translated into English. The stories are riveting, wonderful examples of how excellent comics can be, and Cross Game is only a taste of what he can offer to English-reading fans. Katsu! is a fine next step, and it is my hope that Cross Game does well enough to make other Adachi series viable for print in the US.

Review: Kurozakuro, Vol. 1

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Last week, we talked about Itsuwaribito, one of Viz Media‘s new Shonen Sunday offerings.Their second Shonen Sunday piece to gain stride in 2011 is not about interpersonal communications, but rather, about eating people. Or, well, something like that. The series is called Kurozakuro, and is a combination of suspense, horror, and action that has a surprisingly philosophical twist.

One of my favorite shonen lead characters is what I like to call the “anti-shonen” character. He isn’t rough and tumble. He doesn’t have big dreams. He doesn’t have special abilities (at least, not any to begin with), and he isn’t really that interesting. Kurozakuro‘s main character Mikito is the definition of the anti-shonen hero, but other series have them too, like MAOH: Juvenile Remix and Arata: The Legend. Why is this character my favorite? Because it’s pretty easy to connect with him, and when things get weird, we get to see him deal with issues in a more realistic fashion.

Mikito is constantly getting roughed up. When bullies want his money, he caves. When his friend in school accuses him of not standing up for himself, he just smiles. Mikito puts other people ahead of himself, and for that, he is constantly tread upon. However, one night out on a river bank, a strange orb hides itself in Mikito’s bag, and during his sleep, Mikito swallows it. How strange!

Strange, because when Mikito wakes up, he no longer needs his glasses, has cat-like reflexes, super strength, and is very… hungry. His temper is unstable. He wants to commit violent acts against his family and eat raw meat. Not only that, but this once placid student is being hunted by members of an elite squad. What is going on?!?

The orb Mikito swallowed turns out to be an Ogre Seed, a powerful artifact that changes humans into a demon-like ogre. Now Mikito has to focus hard to control his rage and powers, lest he be hunted down and killed, or worse, attack his friends and loved ones. Pretty heavy, huh?

If taken at face value, Kurozakuro is a horror/suspense manga that involves a character who essentially has a psychotic breakdown due to a supernatural force, and now has to control himself or die. While it is a neat little concept, I like a more philosophical view of the series.

Kurozakuro essentially details the sins of freewheeling emotion. Mikito is told by Kurozakuro, his ogre self, that he should just let himself go, feel what he wants to feel, eat what he wants to eat, and do what he wants to do. If Mikito does these things, he will surely hurt the ones that he loves, and will probably end up dying for it. In a way, Yoshinori Natsume, the author of the series, is talking about the dangers of excess in human society. The ogre-like tendencies of Mikito could just as easily be Mikito’s gambling problem, his alcoholism or recreational drug use, his gluttony and poor diet, or any number or avarice-based vices.  The message, though, is clear. Base animalistic greed and impulse is something that needs to be controlled, or else dire consequences are sure to arise.

The series spends a lot of time in Mikito’s head, and I like that. As a psychological thriller, it is interesting to see what Mikito is thinking about certain situations. I also liked the way Mikito works through his problem. He wonders how he should deal with his problem, and while some of the answers to his question are a bit unsavory, they are realistic, and mirror what happens many times in the real world.

Another pleasant surprise was the dark art. Originally I was turned off by the rather humdrum character designs, uninspired backgrounds, and average screen tone. Natsume’s thick line-work and heavily shaded panels really emphasize the dark nature of the subject matter in Kurozakuro, which I was impressed by. I especially liked the scenes where the demon part of Mikito’s personality shows up with his tree of vice. The mixed media feel of those pages gives them an otherworldly quality, which is exactly on target with the way that I think they should be portrayed.

Although I like Kurozakuro, I cannot give a blanket recommendation for the series. The mystery of how Mikito will deal with his new personal demon is intriguing, but this is a series that could easily become far to heavy-handed, or descend into mediocrity if Mikito finds a way to permanently control his inner demon. Certainly this is not a book for younger children. Its frank discussions of murder and suicide are a sure indicator of why the series is rated OT. That and the whole “eating people” thing. However, if you like a good bit of suspense with your horror, like the philosophical parallels that Natsume creates with his storytelling, and can deal with some of the more “average” artwork I have seen from a Shonen Sunday release, then I whole-heartedly suggest you try out Kurozakuro.

This review is based on a copy of the book provided by the publisher.

Review: Itsuwaribito, Vol. 1

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Viz Media rolled out a few great new shonen series under their Shonen Sunday imprint in 2010. One Shonen Sunday imprint, Cross Game, a baseball manga by Mitsuru Adachi, made my Best of 2010 list for its excellent pacing and natural slice-of-life storytelling. In addition to the new series released in 2010, The Shonen Sunday imprint looks to continue putting out new work in 2011. Two new series recently were released as part of the Shonen Sunday imprint – the horror/action/suspense manga Kurozakuro (which I will review next week), and the historical action manga Itsuwaribito.

Itsuwaribito is a manga about lying, or more appropriately, about a chronic liar named Utsuho. After telling a group of bandits the truth about where he lived, one of those stereotypical “great shonen tragedies” occurs, and Utsuho vows never to tell the truth ever again. After an introduction to Utsuho and his background, he sets out on a journey to help people with his lying.

There are a few things that separate Itsuwaribito from other shonen manga currently on the market. The most recognizable is its penchant for violent action. Other shonen manga have a tendency to have violence, blood, and gore; series like D.Grey-man thrive on this sort of content. Most of these series are more serious in tone than Itsuwaribito, though. When Utsuho throws a bomb at a group of bandits, their deaths are shown pretty graphically as he shouts out a chipper, “I was lying!” to the dying fools. I am not necessarily saying the violence is over the top, but the depictions of violence in this book are at an extreme contrast with the personality of the main character, which makes the violence a little more unsettling.

Another interesting trait of Itsuwaribito is its use of companion characters for Utsuho. Although things aren’t very far along in the first volume, Utsuho only has a single companion, a fluffy talking raccoon-like pup called a tanuki named Pochi. He is adorable and his trusting attitude and naivety are a good foil for the jaded Utsuho. He is the star of multiple scenes, and his little side observations about what is going on in the story are funny and cute.

For a shonen story, Itsuwaribito holds its own fairly well in the first volume. Its introduction seems a little standard, but for a comic that has to make its name in a busy anthology like Shonen Sunday, you can expect things to be more or less the same in most introductions. Itsuwaribito delineates itself from other shonen manga quickly with its use of the lying theme and Utusho’s penchant for poisons, explosives, and other trickery make it more interesting than it really seemed like it would be at the beginning.

The art is fairly standard shonen fair. Yuuki Iinuma has an affinity for extra screen tone in his action sequences and panelling, but the result isn’t unpleasant like it could be. The line-work is pretty thin, which give Iinuma’s characters a sort of slender look, and also makes his villains a little creepier. The panel composition is also fairly good, and the book reads fairly easily.

One of the things I do not like about Itsuwaribito is Utusho’s constant confessions. He pulls off these grand fibs and deceits, only at the last second to say, “I was lying!” or, “I was lying about lying.” Part of what is interesting about a character that is a compulsive liar is that you never truly understand if what he says is true or not. A confession here or there will help keep you on the level with the character and give you a sense of his morals, but constantly seeing him confess takes a little wind out of his sail. Hopefully, as the series progresses, this will stop. I’d prefer the ambiguity.

While Itsuwaribito isn’t perfect, it is a fun comic, and it is easy to enjoy the convoluted tales that Utusho spins, and the cute fluffy woodland creature he befriends. If Iinuma adds a few other cast members, or introduces some sort of idealistic crisis to Utusho and his resolve to continue to lie, I think this could be a pretty regular read for me. As it stands, I am ready to pick up volume two when it is released in April of 2011.

Or maybe I’m just lying.

This review is based on a copy of the book provided by the publisher.