Before Edward Scissorhands and Scott Pilgrim, there was…
Dororo
Osamu Tezuka (w+a).Vertical, 2008. Three meaty volumes.
By Denise Liu
Read if you like: adventure epics, supernatural baddies, feudal Japan, gore, comparing the book to the movie, teen fiction, Eisner Award winners.
If you’ve ever been told to “respect your elders,” chances are that it came from the wrinkly mouth of someone older than thou. Such a statement should actually be followed by a really good reason, maybe “—because I built the emm-effing subway car you’re riding in” or “—because I invented time traveling and you won’t even believe how OLD I am. Would you like to see my Tardis?” In short, respect is given to those who deserve it and not just because you’re too damn stubborn to die.
Enter: Osamu Tezuka (1928-1989), dubbed the godfather of manga. It’s probably safe to say that his most recognizable work amongst North America audiences is Astro Boy but in recent years, quite a few English translations have appeared from Vertical including the highly acclaimed Buddha series and Apollo’s Song. These titles are not quite the clean robot fun of Saturday morning cartoons; for Dororo expect a healthy dose of gore, nudity, sexual themes, gender politics and political references. For a manga written in the 1960’s, that’s nothing to sneeze at. Read the rest of this entry »
