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Feb. 24th, 2010 11:47 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
skygiantsOkay, so between yesterday and today I have read Volume 7 of 20th Century Boys and Volume 1 of Pluto, which makes this Let's Talk About Naoki Urasawa Day over here.
In news that is unsurprising to anyone, Twentieth Century Boys continues to be my favorite Urasawa series. (Whyyyy is there only one volume every two months ;_; My life, it is tragic.) This volume did not make me shriek quite as much as the last one, but the story is pretty clearly continuing to build to awesome!![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
elspeth_vimes, you were right, I love Kyoko KIND OF A LOT - a little bit spacy, kind of self-centered in a teenagerish way, but also clearly really smart when she puts her mind to it! And a guitarist fangirl, which is going to be really interesting in context, one suspects. I really hope she gets to meet up with Kanna in the next volume. *_* (But where was Kanna in this volume? And Little Cho? AND YUKIJI? I mean, not that The Adventures of Otcho and his Manga Artist Sidekick were not awesome as well.)
In more plot-relevant news, it was pretty obvious that Friend was not going to turn out to be Sadakiyo, not just because that would be way too early a reveal, but also because it was patently ridiculous how much Fukubei was trying to make it All About Him. "AND he got your sister pregnant, Kenji . . . BECAUSE HE WAS MAD AT ME!" The logic does not quite work there. I also facepalmed at Kenji hesitating to kill the-guy-he-thought-was-Friend because . . . HE'S KANNA'S DAD! I mean, it makes total sense for Kenji, because he's Kenji, BUT STILL. Also, I loved many aspects of the confrontation scene (Kenji and Maruo singing in the car: BEST) but I really, really wish that every character had not taken the time to stop and try to send Yukiji home. HOW MANY TIMES must she prove that she is more badass than any of them? How many times!
(Also: Mon-chan. :( :( :()
The first volume of Pluto I just finished on the subway this morning, and I am a.) really fascinated by the worldbuilding and interested to see where it is going and b.) really, really torn about whether to stop and go read the Astro Boy story it's based on, or, alternately, read all of Pluto, go find the Astro Boy story, and then read Pluto again! (It's only eight volumes or so . . . so it won't take that much time! Um.) So far, the story as I read it - completely unspoilered by any context - appears to be about a mysterious killer who is taking out famous/influential robots, and the robot detective who is investigating the case. The part that fascinates me is the range of robots we see and their integration into society - some of them look completely human and some of them don't at all, but regardless of their appearance they can marry, hold paid jobs, adopt children. (I kind of loved Prizefighter Robot and his five million adopted kids, I'm not going to lie.)
It does keep throwing me, I'll admit, how similar the character designs are to some of the designs in Monster. I don't have this problem with the art in 20th Century Boys - while it's totally recognizable Urasawa and there is some overlap in character designs (Kanna and Nina, anyone?) most of the main cast look different enough that I'm not jarred - but with Pluto I keep forgetting that I'm reading a totally non-Monster story and being like "HEY AN UNDERGROUND JAPANESE DOCTOR IS THAT - no. No, that's definitely not." It doesn't help that it's set in Germany. Though I do love the thought that Urasawa puts into drawing his futuristic cities. And also, into everything, because, let's face it, it's Naoki Urasawa.
In news that is unsurprising to anyone, Twentieth Century Boys continues to be my favorite Urasawa series. (Whyyyy is there only one volume every two months ;_; My life, it is tragic.) This volume did not make me shriek quite as much as the last one, but the story is pretty clearly continuing to build to awesome!
elspeth_vimes, you were right, I love Kyoko KIND OF A LOT - a little bit spacy, kind of self-centered in a teenagerish way, but also clearly really smart when she puts her mind to it! And a guitarist fangirl, which is going to be really interesting in context, one suspects. I really hope she gets to meet up with Kanna in the next volume. *_* (But where was Kanna in this volume? And Little Cho? AND YUKIJI? I mean, not that The Adventures of Otcho and his Manga Artist Sidekick were not awesome as well.) In more plot-relevant news, it was pretty obvious that Friend was not going to turn out to be Sadakiyo, not just because that would be way too early a reveal, but also because it was patently ridiculous how much Fukubei was trying to make it All About Him. "AND he got your sister pregnant, Kenji . . . BECAUSE HE WAS MAD AT ME!" The logic does not quite work there. I also facepalmed at Kenji hesitating to kill the-guy-he-thought-was-Friend because . . . HE'S KANNA'S DAD! I mean, it makes total sense for Kenji, because he's Kenji, BUT STILL. Also, I loved many aspects of the confrontation scene (Kenji and Maruo singing in the car: BEST) but I really, really wish that every character had not taken the time to stop and try to send Yukiji home. HOW MANY TIMES must she prove that she is more badass than any of them? How many times!
(Also: Mon-chan. :( :( :()
The first volume of Pluto I just finished on the subway this morning, and I am a.) really fascinated by the worldbuilding and interested to see where it is going and b.) really, really torn about whether to stop and go read the Astro Boy story it's based on, or, alternately, read all of Pluto, go find the Astro Boy story, and then read Pluto again! (It's only eight volumes or so . . . so it won't take that much time! Um.) So far, the story as I read it - completely unspoilered by any context - appears to be about a mysterious killer who is taking out famous/influential robots, and the robot detective who is investigating the case. The part that fascinates me is the range of robots we see and their integration into society - some of them look completely human and some of them don't at all, but regardless of their appearance they can marry, hold paid jobs, adopt children. (I kind of loved Prizefighter Robot and his five million adopted kids, I'm not going to lie.)
It does keep throwing me, I'll admit, how similar the character designs are to some of the designs in Monster. I don't have this problem with the art in 20th Century Boys - while it's totally recognizable Urasawa and there is some overlap in character designs (Kanna and Nina, anyone?) most of the main cast look different enough that I'm not jarred - but with Pluto I keep forgetting that I'm reading a totally non-Monster story and being like "HEY AN UNDERGROUND JAPANESE DOCTOR IS THAT - no. No, that's definitely not." It doesn't help that it's set in Germany. Though I do love the thought that Urasawa puts into drawing his futuristic cities. And also, into everything, because, let's face it, it's Naoki Urasawa.
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Date: 2010-02-24 06:27 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-02-24 06:31 pm (UTC)I thought the robot with the composer was a little bit sledgehammery as far as the composer's backstory went . . . but I loved the actual robot and wanted to give him a hug! And the ending scene for that arc, man. :( :( :( (But I will cry way harder if Jovial Prizefighting Robot dies.)
Also, I know I have been reading/watching too much Fullmetal Alchemist, because all throughout those chapters I was going "so clearly he is pretty traumatized by Ishval - I MEAN NO WAIT WRONG MANGA."
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Date: 2010-02-24 06:39 pm (UTC)--I just read the fifth volume of FMA, actually, and I am kind of really looking forward to getting to the Ishval bits >.> TRAUMA IS INTERESTING, WHAT CAN I SAY.
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Date: 2010-02-24 06:44 pm (UTC)Oh man, dude, I cannot wait until you get to the Ishval stuff, it is so amazing and heartbreaking. I read the arc online, and then went out to the bookstore instantly and bought the volume and then reread it all over again because aj;lskdfj;lds!!! When Major Armstrong is making you cry, you know the mangaka is doing something right.
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Date: 2010-02-25 02:46 am (UTC)And yeah, Epsilon looks a lot like Johan. You get kinda worried when you seem him around tons of kids, even though he is sweet and looking after them.
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Date: 2010-02-25 02:56 am (UTC)Augh, he works with kids? ASSOCIATION DNW. D: D: D: But I trust in Urasawa to make it work.
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Date: 2010-02-25 03:01 am (UTC)HE ADOPTS WAR ORPHANS. It's actually really sweet and adorable and touching once you get past the character design issue. But for a while there it is hard not to be very nervous.
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Date: 2010-02-24 07:00 pm (UTC)I just love the Otcho + Manga Artist subplot. *_* SO MUCH. Even if I really miss Kanna. Kyoko's fun, though.
I knew you would love Pluto! (I also had several "Ishbal -- no, wait, Persia" moments, btw.) The whole robots/humans thing is super-interesting to me, and I'm very carefully not reading/watching Astro Boy until I finish Pluto, because SPOILERS OMG.
Prizefighter Robot is fantastic! And I shall say nothing more at all because I finished volume four and I don't want to blab anything. ;)
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Date: 2010-02-24 07:07 pm (UTC)Me too! I love how much of a dork the manga artist is, and how every time Otcho does something he is like "THAT IS TERRIFYING and oh man really cool I am taking notes for my next storyline RIGHT NOW."
Mostly I am really curious about how the worldbuilding differs between the two; it looks like the character introduced at the end of actual Volume 1 is in fact Astro Boy, and I want to know what he is like in the original! But I will try and restrain myself. (I suspect I will have several more Ishbal NO WAIT PERSIA moments before I'm done. *rueful*)
Clearly I will just have to catch up! :D
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Date: 2010-02-25 02:43 am (UTC)AND I AM GLAD YOU LOVE KYOKO, I just think she's a great idea for a character, and she gets some pretty damn awesome stuff. And she just makes me grin. I mean, of course that famous picture of the fearsome Kenji Faction just looks, like, totally fake. Duh.
The whole thing with the guys wanting Yukiji to stay back does bother me, but not all that much, since I just assume they're all acting on the same reasoning which stopped Kenji from contacting her initially- if things go to hell, the only person who could possibly protect Kanna and see that she gets raised properly is Yukiji. The guys just aren't that good!
God, I cannot wait for volume 8. It has some of the absolute best scenes in the series. (And yes, Kanna and Cho will be joining Kyoko, God, Otcho, and Otcho's manga-ka fanboy for volume 8.)
AS FOR PLUTO. Man, I think too much about that series.
I only really hit a problem with Pluto's character designs in two cases that turn up later on- Epsilon (who looks like Johan wearing a Nina wig, but who is actually good!) and Principle Ban (who looks exactly like Dr. Reichwein, since Urasawa had already used Tezuka's character design of Ban as the basis for Reichwein). The rest of the important cast feels individual enough to me. Though I do admit that I found it hilarious that of the supporting characters he had to choose from do base the perspective flip around, of course Urasawa chose the German cop.
My favorite thing about Pluto is probably the detail that Urasawa lavishes on it. He may only need to draw it for one particular scene in which two characters have a highly significant conversation, but he has fun with and puts thought into what the Bathroom of the Future is like. And then there are details like Gesicht's body language.
I agree that the North No. 2 arc is pretty heavy-handed, but I more than forgive it for that since it introduces a lot of pretty important themes (the 39th Central Asian conflict, how robot emotion is perceived and reacted to, work vs. what a robot might want, deconstructing an unsympathetic human) strongly and in a contained space so as not to drag the pacing down.
I am also amused by the fact that you're getting reminded of Fullmetal Alchemist, since FMA keeps reminding me of things in Pluto. XD
...I also feel obliged to mention
...I have tl;dr'd enough now. >.>
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Date: 2010-02-25 03:00 am (UTC)And that is because Kyoko is AMAZING. I have such a thing for characters who come off as ordinary/silly and turn out to be saner than everyone else.
And yeah, I understand the Yukiji reasoning - I would not mind it so much if she was not also The Only Girl in the group, you know? But since it is it plays out in ways that are more problematic. It is true that there is no one else at all competent to raise Kanna, but still.
- !!!!! seriously all together? HOW AM I GOING TO WAIT TWO MORE MONTHS FOR THAT
*cough*
Anyway, as for Pluto - I am already terrified of the Johan lookalike @_@ The cast mostly feels individual to me too, but I keep getting these niggling reminders that they look almost like this-person or that-person from Monster and I am supposed to be identifying them! And then I have to remember that no actually, I'm not.
The detail really is gorgeous. And since rereading your post I am going to make a note of looking out for Gesicht's body language!
Yeah, those chapters read very much to me like they were saying Here Are Some Themes To Keep In Mind. Which, I trust Urasawa to have them play out in fascinating ways, so I'm okay with that! And again with the Fullmetal Alchemist parallels. *laughing* You know, somehow I find it unsurprising that both of these series appeal to both of us. I'M JUST SAYING.
. . . . . thanks Urasawa. D: *preps box of hankies*
THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS TL;DR ABOUT URASAWA. *cough*
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Date: 2010-02-25 03:22 am (UTC)Her being the Only Girl is why it does still bother me.
They are all in the same volume at least? And the stuff with Kenji in 8. Ohgod why isn't it out yet. ;_;
EPSILON IS NICE, REALLY. HE IS THE PACIFIST ROBOT. Who looks like Johan. >.>
Yeah, the Themes get much more in-depth treatment later on, but it's kind of nice to be alerted to them in a concentrated effort that's wrapped up quickly. And I have to admit, I just kinda love North no. 2.
I am looking forward to you getting to some of the bigger FMA parallels, so we can talk about them! And you know, somehow I am also unsurprised.
...Pluto made me cry. It was the first time I'd cried at a work of fiction since I read Otherland for the first time. I had gone over 3 years, Urasawa!
OKAY, MAYBE NOT, BUT I TRY (http://roboterpolizist.livejournal.com/1989.html). >.>
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Date: 2010-02-25 04:17 am (UTC)This is why I keep wishing that we saw more of Yukiji's lawyer friend from the first volume or so. She could totally join in the Good Fight!
THAT'S GOOD ENOUGH. *waits impatiently for APRIL*
North no. 2 is well-deserving of love! I am fascinated by his character design - the robot helmet-face with the hints of a human-looking face underneath. There is so much there.
*eyes the 39th Central Asian Conflict* I think I'm starting to see some of them set up already . . . but I am excited to get to more! And dive into dorky overanalysis about FMA parallels, yes. >:D >:D
Secretly, Urasawa is a supernatural being whose powers are fueled by the tears of his readers. :( It is the only explanation!
*dives to seeeeee* Oh man, I am fascinated - both by the range of robot experience you are talking about (I am REALLY EXCITED to get to see more of that in the series! I knew I was going to love it from our first sight of Robby's wife) and by your thoughts on Gesicht! And learned/developed emotions and empathy, which is something I find really interesting.
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Date: 2010-02-25 04:33 am (UTC)Oh, she comes back! Setsuko has not given up the Good Fight! I love her.
why so far away, April?
Ooh, yes, I love that particular design. There are some other robots with variations on it, I really enjoy watching (...reading?) them.
Japan: Providing you with Deeply Significant Wars in Deserts.
...Then, for the sake of Urasawa's survival, I have no choice but to make more people read his works!
oh god Robby's wife. ;_; I, er, think a lot about Gesicht. I have to in order to be able to play him at all, he's one of the hardest characters I've ever picked up to get right. A lot of that difficulty comes from just how much emotion he's learned and just how much of that he'll show, so that aspect in particular is one that I pay a lot of attention to and which has come to fascinate me. >.>
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Date: 2010-02-25 03:33 pm (UTC);_;
why so tempting, scanlations? STOP THAT SELFThis makes me more curious than ever to look at the original and see how many of the designs were included there and how many Urasawa came up with out of his own head.
Japan: Working Out Issues From WWII By Way Of Iraq War Analogies For Great "War Sucks" All Around! (This is a over-glib analysis and one that actually probably requires, like, a thesis. Or a book. But I have seen it said, and agree, that FMA is one of those series that reminds you that Japan did commit atrocities in WWII and I suspect Pluto may be another one. And I think the trends of perspective-on-war that I have been seeing in (very self-selected, not comprehensive, disclaimer disclaimer) Japanese media, as opposed to Western media, are kind of fascinating. tl;dr ANYWAY.)
OBVIOUSLY. It's a hardship but I feel you're up to it.
I knoooow oh man. :( All the more heartbreaking because she is designed to look cheerful. And, well, I think that is fair! I am kind of massively impressed with you for picking him up RP-wise at all - it is definitely one of those things you would have to be thinking very carefully about at all times.
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Date: 2010-02-26 04:51 am (UTC)I have no comment. I admire your willpower. ...I just don't have it.Oh, man, the character design differences can bring up some really interesting questions. But I still encourage waiting until you've read all of Pluto to read the original arc, because Urasawa is just so good at suspense.
Pluto doesn't deal with the commission of atrocities nearly as much as FMA does, to be honest. It does have some very strong pacifistic themes, though. Which is very much in keeping with Tezuka, who was very anti-war. (Someone has to have written about this, it's such a great topic...)
...I might have gotten a text yesterday which read "I'm reading 20th Century Boys and it's amazing and all your fault." It made my day.
Her character design is so cute! Her role is so heartbreaking!
I do enjoy the challenge, I admit. Gesicht demands so much intellectual engagement!
Also, um, I have been wondering, do I need to hurt people at the Post Office for their failure to deliver letters?
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Date: 2010-02-26 06:07 am (UTC)Well also all my scanlation-reading time is going at the moment to FMA, since I am still behind where I am in the new anime at the moment.I think I am going to follow your advice! Because yes, he is. :D
Someone must have. And once again I am full of sorrow at not having access to academic databases! - you are still in college, you can look this up!
Hee hee that is an awesome text to receive. >:D There is nothing quite like the joy of successful enabling.
Intellectual engagement is a lot of fun in the right circumstances! And I feel RPing Gesicht is totally the right circumstances.
. . . no. *sheepish* You need to hurt me, for being a failure; I have your letter sitting on my table at home and have been forgetting to mail it. BECAUSE I'M AWESOME. I will send it after this weekend!
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Date: 2010-02-26 10:15 pm (UTC)A NOBLE CAUSE. ...How far are you then? I just finished chapter 83.I must look at my academic databases soon, then!
I love being an enabler. It is a good life.
♥
I could never hurt you! BECAUSE YOU ARE AWESOME. I just have a distrust of the post office which I sometimes seek to indulge in.
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Date: 2010-02-26 10:24 pm (UTC)I'm only at 71 in the manga! But the anime episode that came out this week covers up to 83, so plot-wise I think we are at pretty much exactly the same place, aka TIMESKIP lk;jaksdf. I am trying not to get ahead of the anime, since I'm having fun being surprised every week, but it's catching up to the manga pretty fast . . .Isn't it just? The not-so-secret real reason I keep up with my booklog: all the enabling it allows. >:D
<3!
I am an awesome...ly terrible friend! Blaming the post office is generally legit but in this case I must take all blame upon my own shoulders. :(
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Date: 2010-02-27 05:40 pm (UTC)I'm taking the "I will watch more of the new anime after I'm all caught up with the manga" approach. I've seen the first 5 episodes. ...And I watched 10 just to see how well they'd pull it off. >.>We are happy to be enabled by you!
Your noble assumption of responsibility just makes you more awesome.
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Date: 2010-02-27 06:19 pm (UTC)That is also a valid approach! And one I might have gone with if I didn't have a weekly watching buddy, but as is it's more fun to be surprised together when new episodes air.
. . . . and what did you think of how they pulled 10 off? IT'S RAINING
*beams serenely*
I will learn from my mistakes, at least! And be swifter and more responsible with my letters henceforth. :D
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Date: 2010-02-27 11:21 pm (UTC)Watching buddies are indeed wonderful!
I thought the episode rushed the events, to be honest. And the death itself seemed more melodramatic than in the manga.
Truly, an inspiration to us all!
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Date: 2010-02-28 06:33 pm (UTC)Yeah, the early episodes kind of rush a lot of the things that happen - I think it's because they're trying to get past the events covered by the first anime. (That's the other reason I like doing anime first and manga second, really - because then I'm never disappointed by what happens in the anime or what they couldn't fit in, and the manga just has EXCITING BONUSES!)
However, the "it's raining" scene I will always love, and have my heart hurt at, and also crack up at simultaneously.
*strikes a pose!*
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Date: 2010-03-01 02:31 am (UTC)This is true. (And that is a very good approach! I like the anime, but I would probably appreciate it more if I weren't getting annoyed at things it leaves out. >.>)
It is worthy. So worthy.
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Date: 2010-02-25 06:16 am (UTC)I never actually watched Astro Boy, so I'm impressed the story has grabbed me as well as it has.
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Date: 2010-02-25 03:36 pm (UTC)I continue to be so curious about the tones and themes of Astro Boy - I am sure they are hugely different from the ones that Urasawa is bringing to the table.
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Date: 2010-02-25 03:52 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-02-25 09:45 pm (UTC)