manga list: Pluto (seinen)

Urusawa Naoki is one of the mangakas that really hit me in the spot. I know I've expressed something about his works before but I don't remember how thorough I gave my impression of it. Thinking, maybe I have expressed that over whelming "fuck you author you made me think, i love you" emotions I always have when I adore a work of fiction, but with a different titled book of his.

My only method of being a fan girl is common, again here I am going to express it by drooling over one of the afore mentioned mangakas work, and the focus is pointed out on one of the insanely coolest "doujin collaboration" I have ever encountered in my life as a netizen. PLUTO.

The manga has been listed in my head as one of Urasawas works that I needed to read, besides Monster and 20th Century Boys. I've actually started reading it multiple times but never got to finish it as I have the habit of having the best luck in deciding to read the manga in the wee hours of my desire to rest (or my body's sleep time clock). Recently I've just read and finished it, so far I've still got my feels for it albeit just expressing it lightly here.

Source

The story is set in the universe of Tezuka Osamu's famous anime/manga Astroboy, with a little real life tweaking from Urusawa. Thus I dub it as "doujin collaboration", its a real grand doujin with actually having a famous author approved to use the characters of a legendary artist.

Story goes that a murderer is out to kill the most advanced AI's known to man in their current time. Its trace cannot be subjected to man as there is no traces of and neither a robot for no robot has ever disobeyed one of the greatest laws it was built with. To solve this case a highly sophisticated robot named Gesicht from Interpol was assigned to solve it and the mysteries that will intertwine deeper in the story. Its a very emotional chase, not that action packed, but like Urusawas style, strikes a chord inside your belly by his method of story telling.

Like most of his works, he highly focuses on the development of each involved characters into something you can surely sympathize on a scale of familiarity. They dissolve each mystery and insecurity upon the slow progress of the case into fairly dissected emotions and philosophical theories. Meeting up to this point or getting choked up into dying before even solving the case, you'd be caught analyzing even for them the rational and sensible questions even you yourself can relate highly.

His style is not focused on the action packed sense and almost all the fight scenes are limited to a quick shot put battle. The longest was at the end which was tasteful as seeing everything was beginning to make sense and has now a clear path to tread on for an actual purpose to fight. This reminded me greatly of Dianne Wayne Jones method of writing. There are so many moments of build up and release but never to a point that it explodes on your face because a new build up was going to catch you just in case.

This method of writing is captivating to me, albeit I clearly remember forbidding myself to read Urusawas works due to it being emotional to a pin prick point ouch to my heart. Giving a reader as much small leeway when it comes to the climax is like a good sex, and I don't know why I compared that to sex but lets just say thats that.

I don't know much about the characters histories in Tezukas Astroboy universe so I have little to compare to, except of course for Atom/Tobio. Tobio was the only robot that I clearly know, or a wee bit well than the others, due to me encountering a series about him in my childhood days. And he is basically the famous of Tezukas success.

Tobio was one of the reasons why I wanted to read the manga, although I like Gesicht as well. I was captivated on how he was portrayed in the story. Clearly a great contrast to his counterpart in Tezukas universe. Honestly, I can blame Urusawas method as most of the action packed thrill of the universe was mellowed down. Still it gave me a satisfying taste when I saw that he depicted Tobio as a completely normal boy.

Normal in every sense. He was a caring brother and child to the elders. Respectful and generous if given. The desire to yearn has built in his system like a good child should. Over all he was too perfect as an AI but imperfect as a human being. Which was one of the main points of the story. Urusawa built the concept of the plot towards the identity of an AI that can copy a human but never be completely human because they do not have that one universal concept man is greatly known for. The irresistible urge to hate.

Robots cannot innately hate anyone unless they were programmed to, and of course even in this universe who would want to implant something explosive in the body of a bigger threat against anything living. Hate was the one thing that, by concept  of Dr. Tenma in the manga, would make a robot perfectly like a human. I quite agree in that, eventually it made me think if i compared a human specie against any creature from the category of the animal kingdom. Conclusion though, at some degree we are the same but for the reasons, which may contrast and greatly vary on occasions.

But implanting hate into a robots AI, is simply monstrous as it is clear in evident and even in fictional history that hate is the one thing that can burst human kinds bubble into a dwindling race of ashes. Running on it like an endless energy drink can bring the world or any creature into its end, especially if given the right kind of imaginative device of destruction. Something even the robot characters involved in the story shudder and regret the greatest upon their moment of death.

Clearly alot of people are aware of this, but are they competent and strong enough to fight one of the strongest and perfect imperfection of man called hatred?

manga list: Black Joke (seinen)

These days I opted myself to browse some manga's, which I often do and have been doing since my early college days. Spending those precious break time in the library to use the internet even for an hour or so just to read mangas online. I am not a very good supporter much of translation groups because honestly I don't have the guts how, see how unwilling I am to help them complete scanlations. In any case, however, I am truly grateful to them, so to the scanlators of Black Joke kudos to you.

Some days I try to see if I can find a good Seinen manga read, since I've loved those types of mangas. I also like the idea of browsing about ongoing or finished mangas in this genre for personal interests. So far it got me good, I stumbled upon one titled Black Joke by author Koike Rintarou and artist Taguchi Masayuki.

link here to read the manga: BLACK JOKE

The genre is a mix of Seinen, Comedy, Mature (completely mature but still sellable as something to the market that doesn't border itself to porn, I think, because Hentai shows every nook and cranny of a males phallus and a females oyster, here its just all...blurred out...okay so maybe its borderline Hentai in many levels), Action, and Martial Arts (yes those were the tags included in the site I read the manga from). Its about a future where the U.S.A. wasn't content to just leave the world to its peace and prompted to legally own countries that are sellable and profitable on so many levels, so they made Japan their 51st state. Yep, I'm guessing this was an action of sorts prior to the end of World War 2 and instead of Japan never giving up against America, they surrendered and succumbed to their poor striving state. OR they just got bought by one of the most misunderstood, well portrayed douche, hero of the world, country called America.

The whole setting is portrayed in an island not far from the mainlands of Japan named Neon Island (or Nihon, sometimes the groups who scanlates have different versions of how they tranlaste things). This island is an irreconcilable nest for sins, or just simply stating the Sin City of Japan. Here anything can happen, and honestly feels like any kind of good thing doesn't exist here, like churches or good kept households and stuff. Just plain old vent your sin out toilet pig sty, which so happens to not look like a sty but a highly engrossed rich city better than Vegas, baby (sorry it rhymes, can't help but add it in the end).

Prostitution is hell legal, on some respectable level. Gambling and black market trading is one of the main sources of income. The usual stuff you see in Mafia movies and the likes, only highly perverted in so many cases and scenarios. Plus all the guns and some crazy martial arts action you can find.

The flow of the story goes along the lives of a group of people that works for a Hotel owner magnate named Kousuke Todome who is the director of the Onsen Hotel, and some other mentionable characters that are either related to the main characters from the Onsen Hotel or the head triads working in the folds of the island. The whole volume is the exploits and missions they do for the sake of their jobs.

These two are the ones you often chase around, hey they get into the best troubles and jobs.
Talk about having trouble around, good thing they're the perfect combination of brawn's and brains.

Alot of considerable mayhem and upfront high in the sky lives living in he luxury of the churches so called Sins.

What I liked about the flow is my preference for just the most absurd action scenes in a Manga, comparable to the art style of Baki (and some other Seinen titles I've honeslty forgotten), the action scenes are honest and stylistic. All of which as an artist like me is a good reference. The muscle contortion, acrobatics, and even the impossible historical facts of the how or why of their techniques is just catchy for me.

Plus the gritty but trying to be suave perverted parts of the story is fine, its not over the top like the mushy fan service I often see but the type that is too open for the conservative mind. However, I can just say maybe its for a wee bit of adult fan service, eh? Well, it is an open world of sex and drugs, so what can you do about it but be obviously every where.

This manga is a good wait. Majority of the faces are obviously referenced from certain actors and actress which is catchy for me since I can imagine them in the role they are in the manga. Also there are several entertaining and engaging characters, often times exceeding their pre-scripted personalities which is quite a good balance. Down side I guess would be the history of how the place came to be. Its not well explained how or why on a level of historical basis, but thats just my preference.

she actually looks just like Kate Beckinsale!

Also its a generic Action Mafia Comedy themed manga, its got good classy scenes and absurd gritty ones. I'm not saying its lamely bad but its not overly exceptional, however I am basically praising this in art and somewhat in the composition of the characters and some scenarios.

If I were you, its best if you try reading it to enjoy some Action fun.