Manga Bookshelf

Discussion, Resources, Roundtables, & Reviews

Hinako Ashihara

My Week in Manga: January 17-January 23, 2011

by

My News and Reviews

The Manga Moveable Feast for Karakuri Odette finished up yesterday. I was pleased to contribute not one, but two posts this time around (three if you count my quick take of the entire series). This probably won’t happen very often, but we’ll see what I can do. My first post was an in-depth review of the first volume of Karakuri Odette. This is the second in-depth manga review for January, so I’ve met my goal for another month, hooray! I also took a closer look at the androids of Karakuri Odette to see how they measured up to Isaac Asimov’s Three Laws of Robotics. It’s kind of silly, but I had fun with it.

Did you get a chance to see the live-action Gantz film last week? Or maybe you just heard about it? Or perhaps you have no idea what I’m talking about? Regardless, there’s been an increased interest in the manga series it was based on, so I’ll be giving away a brand new copy of Gantz, Volume 1 by Hiroya Oku. The contest will begin this coming Wednesday, January 26 and will run for a week.

Quick Takes

ES: Eternal Sabbath, Volumes 1-8 by Fuyumi Soryo. I originally read the first four volumes of Eternal Sabbath from the library, but I liked the series so well that I picked up an entire set for myself. Shuro’s development as a character was particularly interesting. Incredibly intelligent and mature for his age, he is inexperienced emotionally and has to come to grips with this. And he isn’t the only character to grow and change throughout the series. The story itself explores some tough moral questions. The ending was a bit abrupt and parts of it were a little disappointing–Soryo probably could have used a couple more volumes finish–but I still really enjoyed the series.

Gantz, Volumes 1-5 by Hiroya Oku. The artwork is gloriously graphic and slightly disconcerting, but I do like it. However, there is bit more fan-service and misogyny than is necessary, although some of it is appropriate to the story. Gantz is dark. Gantz is violent. Gantz is edgy. It’s hard to say where Oku is going to go with the series and what the aim is or if there is some deeper meaning, but so far the examination of the human psyche is very interesting. The willingness that some characters show to participate in a deadly “game” that they don’t even understand is fascinating. I’ll probably keep with the series for a bit longer; I’d really like to know what is going on and there’s a lot of potential.

Sand Chronicles, Volume 10 by Hinako Ashihara. This is the final volume of Sand Chronicles which remains one of my favorite shoujo series. The main story ended with the eighth volume; volume ten is a side story that takes place when the main characters are in their thirties. They still struggle to accept and deal with their pasts which is not at all an easy thing. The emotional authenticity of Sand Chronicles has been one of its highlights throughout the series and the final volume is no exception. It provides a very satisfying conclusion (and continuation) to the series. The focus this time is on Daigo and it’s nice to see a bit more of the story from his perspective.

Under Grand Hotel, Volumes 1-2 by Mika Sadahiro. Incredibly intense, Under Grand Hotel is fiercely passionate and violent. Turn to a random page and you’ll most likely end up in the middle of a sex scene, but I was okay with that. Taking place in an underground prison, the manga is certainly a fantasy but a completely developed one. Sword is the shot-caller at UGH and Sen becomes his cellmate and lover for protection. At first it’s simply a convenient arrangement, but it soon becomes more. It’s not really a romantic love that is fostered, but instead the two men become mutually dependent upon one another and their lives are intertwined to such an extent that they can’t break free.

Departures directed by Yōjirō Takita. Departures won an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film in 2009, an honor that is well deserved, among many, many other awards. Daigo lands his dream job as a cellist just before the orchestra is dissolved. (As a fellow “failed” musician, I completely understand what he is going through.) He returns to his hometown and, mostly by chance or fate, becomes the assistant to an encoffiner. It’s a misunderstood a job that isn’t looked well upon, and so he tries to hide it from his wife and is unsure about pursuing it himself. Departures is a beautiful film that faces life and death head on without getting too heavy.

Gantz (World Premiere Live Event) directed by Shinsuke Sato. It was really unfortunate that they decided to screen this with an English dub rather than subtitles. Otherwise, the films seem to be a fairly decent adaptation of the manga so far and the visuals are great. The suits in particular are fantastic. However, for as much action and violence that is in the movie, the pacing seems to drag quite a bit. It also seems to be missing some of the intensity and edge present in the manga. I did enjoy Kenji Kawai’s score and the music was just the right mixture of creepy and driving. The actors did a fine job, particularly Kenichi Matsuyama, and I’m interested in seeing the second part of Gantz when it is released latter this year.

Sand Chronicles 3 by Hinako Ashihara: B+

by

From the back cover:
Sweet 16-year-old Ann returns to rural Shimane from Tokyo for the summer, eager to reconnect with her boyfriend Daigo. But will the allure of their close friends—wealthy brother and sister Fuji and Shika—sunder the romantic ties that have bound Ann and Daigo since they were 12?

Review:
I didn’t like this volume quite as much as the first two because it was missing that special feeling of nostalgia. Instead, it focused mostly on relationship and family angst, which was entertaining in its way, but didn’t elicit the bittersweet vibe that usually elevates this title above its fellows.

There was more focus on the Tsukishima siblings in this volume, which was welcome, as both of them separately tried to break free of the stifling mold their family has imposed upon them. Ann and Daigo begin by being worried about the Tsukushima in their town, but it’s probably only a matter of time until things escalate. I’m not really looking forward to that happening, since it will cause so much pain all around, but it will undoubtedly be interesting.

I’m also looking forward to farther down the line chronologically; will the series depict Ann in her early twenties, and follow right up to where she is as the story begins? That would be really neat.

Although these chapters here were not the best, the cliffhanger ending was pretty cool and I’m definitely looking forward to volume 4.

Sand Chronicles 2 by Hinako Ashihara: A

by

From the back cover:
Just when Ann has adjusted to life in the countryside—and even has a boyfriend!—her father invites her to live with him in Tokyo. Now she must choose between a father she hardly knows and a young man she is just beginning to know. But she soon discovers that they aren’t the only ones vying for her affections!

Review:
In a recent post on his blog, David Welsh said, “It’s entirely possible that Hinako Ashihara’s Sand Chronicles is less a great graphic novel for teens than a great graphic novel for former teens who remember the pointed moments of awkwardness and uncertainty of that time of life.” I kept remembering that comment as I read this volume, and I think it’s very true.

There’s a definite sense of “this was once terribly important to me and I wanted it to last forever, but now it’s all just a memory” about it all. This is bolstered by the way the story is structured—like a series of recollections and snapshots in time, with the shortest interval between chapters so far being six months. It induces strong nostalgia in me for those days—the me I was, the things I did, the people I used to see every day—and I think a distance of some years from one’s adolescence is required for that kind of wistful retrospection to flourish.

As regards the story itself, I really love both chapters included in this volume. In the first, Ann must decide whether to remain in Shimane with Daigo and her friends or to return to Tokyo to live with her father. The depiction of her divided loyalties and struggle to decide is very well done and I was impressed by how much of an emotional response the conclusion to the chapter provoked in me. In the second, the love triangle that’s been developing since the first volume gets explored. I really like that neither of the boys involved is an easy shoujo stereotype. One is more reserved than the other, but there are no fiery hotheads involved.

Seriously, y’all. Read this manga.

Sand Chronicles 1 by Hinako Ashihara: A-

by

From the back cover:
After her parents get divorced, Ann Uekusa and her mother move from Tokyo to rural Shimane. Accustomed to the anonymity of city living, Ann can’t get used to the almost overbearing kindness of the people in her mother’s hometown. But when personal tragedy strikes, Ann discovers how much she needs that kindness.

Review:
This was really good, with an original structure that made the story feel special. It started with Ann around age 26, packing and getting ready to get married and move overseas. A memento from her past triggered some memories, and the rest of the volume featured Ann at age 12, then at 14. The setting was also original, taking place in rural and snowy Shimane rather than an urban environment. The essence of a small town was captured nicely, and I swear the snowy scenes really looked cold.

The first story dealt with Ann and her mother in their new surroundings, with Ann meeting some kids her age as well as an old friend of her mother’s, who provided some background information. In the second, she and her friends went on a camping trip, which might sound like a set-up for lame filler, but which actually provided many good character moments. There were some things about the stories I didn’t like, like the predictable outcome of the situation with Ann’s mom in the first story or her obnoxious romantic rival in the second, but they were greatly outnumbered by the things I did like.

I thought it was interesting that the second chapter dealt in part with Ann’s menstrual cycle. That’s a topic I’d never seen in manga before, so it was pretty cool to see a character discussing it with her good friend and just boosted the realism of the series even further. There weren’t any wacky hijinks here, just an “honest girl with a strong will” making her way through some painful times while attempting to cherish each moment of life. I’m looking forward to the next volume.