Hige vs. Otaku

Evangelion Vol. 11

Volume eleven of the Evangelion manga tells the events of the first third or so of End of Evangelion, meaning the manga has decided to follow the film's continuity rather than the controversial TV ending. Its key differences lie in the minutia rather than any catastrophic deviation from the canon. But it's enough, as usual, to legitimise the manga next to its animated counter-part. These differences are mostly alternative methods of getting to the same point, and more often than not the manga actively neuters most of the disturbing aspects of the anime's finale.

For example, Kaworu's death doesn't end with that dramatic splash of water, and Shinji doesn't masturbate over a catatonic Asuka. In fact, in that particular scene, Asuka goes hysterical and attempts to choke Shinji (and rather bloody satisfying it is, too). But these modified moments don't hamper the manga's impact. Granted, they don't systematically wear your emotional state to tatters - one of the many perverse pleasures of the film - but they fit perfectly with the approach the manga has been taking from the outset. Sadamoto has been subtly doing it his way since chapter one, and even at this pinnacle stage he honours the small but important changes he's made.

In the manga Shinji has always been slightly stronger of will than the trembling wimp portrayed in the anime, and in these final moments his mental well-being is nowhere near the level of despondency as his film counterpart. The key reason for this, I think, is because manga Shinji's relationship with Kaworu never developed the same intense connection (with Sadamoto implying that his Shinji thought Kaworu to be a bit of a smug twat) so his death didn't drive Shinji to the same level of despair. This is refreshing in many ways, but it does a lot to undermine the subsequent events. Shinji's apathy as SEELE descend on NERV for the final showdown just doesn't have the same convincing sense of hopelessness as the film, and as a result we question why Shinji is refusing to fight when it was indisputable in EoE. The manga ends as the SEELE troops leave on their mission to assassinate the Children and I'm curious to see how Shinji reacts when they place a gun to his head. Perhaps he will beg for his life and Misato will save him earlier. I really can't imagine it working in the same way as its source; it would undo much of the unique approach Sadamoto has been working on from the start.

This was a very readable volume and the manga remains the perfect compliment to the anime. Sadamoto's art remains godlike and his reimagining of some key scenes holds all the dramatic poignancy of the anime while having enough personality to differentiate. My only wish now is that the manga's conclusion depicts Instrumentality as a combination of the event of the film and the TV ending, and builds a bridge between to the two, finally laying to rest the intense schism they've caused in Eva fandom. I'm also very curious to see if Rebuild has any affect on the manga. I doubt it will, but Sadamoto has dragged this thing on long enough for it to be rather serendipitous. Perhaps he'll continue it on to tell the events of the new films. How cheeky and irritating would that be?

The Manga Pull Part 1 (of 3)

I'm not joking when I say the pile of TO READ manga is intimidating large. So much so in fact I'm going to do a trilogy of these posts to catch up. Let's do it.

Naruto Chapter 317 Review

Summary
We open with Deidara and Akatsuki newbie Tobi confronting the aquatic behemoth Sanbi, also known as the three-tailed Bijū. Tobi shows trepidation over tackling it, suggesting Deidara should do the honours, but Deidara commands Tobi to prove his worth. Rather than take the opportunity to do so Tobi runs for his life exclaiming that Kisame should be dealing with water-types. A mounted Deidara labels this pathetic and readies a fish-like explosive clay model. It dives down to meet the face of the Sanbi and Deidara detonates, causing a massive spike of water that sends Tobi flying. We cut away to find Yamato meditating surrounded by nine torched idols and three piles of indiscernible powder. He pushes out his left hand to reveal the kanji ‘Za’ (‘gathering’, ‘position’) written on his palm. Kakashi enquires about how well the Kyūbi chakra suppression is going, calling Yamato by the name ‘Tenzou’. Yamato replies in the affirmative but requests that Kakashi calls him by the name Yamato rather than Tenzou. Meanwhile, Naruto and his numerous clones continue their training, attempting to split leaves and bickering amongst themselves over their varying success; one clone in particular is doing well with a leaf almost split entirely in two. Naruto asks Kakashi if anyone else in Konoha is able to alter the nature of wind and Kakashi confirms there is, but he’s probably busy playing Shougi (Japanese chess). We cut away to Shikamaru checkmating Asuma, deciding on his reward of a free meal after the next mission. Naruto rowdily appears and enquires about some assistance and Asuma decides Naruto’s payment will have to be a meal of Yakiniku after their next mission. Shikamaru exclaims annoyance at this and Naruto agrees regardless. Asuma pulls out two short-bladed weapons and reveals them as his chakra blades, which are forged from special metal that can channel the user’s chakra. He hands one to Naruto and asks him to do so and an aura of chakra appears around it. Naruto notes that it looks different from Asuma’s. Asuma continues the lesson by explaining that wind alteration involves splitting chakra in two and grinding them together to form a fine, sharp shape. Naruto disputes the merits of doing this to an already-sharp weapon like the blades and Asuma produces a practical example by telling Naruto to throw it at a nearby tree. He does so and Asuma throws his, with Naruto’s blade becoming lodged in the trunk and Asuma’s cutting through it neatly and causing a sizable crater of damage in a rock behind. Asuma explains that he limits his chakra use for safety and if he didn’t the blade could have easily gone through the rock. He continues to explain that in a fight with bladed weapons, the sharpest usually wins. He notes the wind affinity is a rare trait and explains that if Naruto requires any further assistance it will cost him a meal of Yakiniku for Team 10 each time. Naruto disappears to teach the troops his new insight and Asuma comments guiltily on the membership of Chouji in his team, to which Shakamaru shows irritated disdain. We conclude with Tsunade receiving bad news about the fallen Bijū and the presence of Akatsuki in the Fire Country. Tsunade demands they will not leave the country and calls for the dispatch of the new 20th Legion.

Crying Freeman Vol. 1 Review

He is Yo Himomura, deadly assassin for the 108 Dragons, the Chinese Mafia. But to the criminal underworld who fear him, he is known as Crying Freeman, the killer who sheds tears at the fate of his victims. Young, handsome, sensitive, an artist, Yo has been hypnotically programmed by his Dragon masters to kill on command: he cannot resist his masters'commands to kill, his masters cannot stop his tears of remorse.

It was quite a surprise to discover that Kazuo Koike wrote Crying Freeman. Before reading my experience with the title barely stretched beyond its ubiquity in the manga sphere and the fairly dire anime version from days of yore. After reading I feel that touch more confident in exclaiming The Manga is [generally] Better, as is the case eight times out of ten. Obviously not confident enough to remove the parenthesis and the additional disclaimer, there's too many exceptions to the rule, but in this case it's a dead cert. This is seminal work.

Kazuo Koike, for those who don't know, is best known for writing Lone Wolf and Cub; one of the most critically lauded and beloved mangas ever. For me, this adoration is based on cold hard fact. The twenty-eight volume epic offered countless examples of Koike's writing chops and mixed an acute degree of intelligence and knowledge with a mastery of dramatic tension. Conversely, my experiences with Ryoichi Ikegami, Crying Freeman's artist, are non-existent. Regardless, this first volume speaks more than enough of Ikegami's abilities as an artist. His depiction of anatomy is outstanding, and the manga makes brilliant use of this anatomical dynamism with breathtaking effect. There's little criticism to be had when considering the prowess of both men's technical abilities and this is what makes Crying Freeman a work of seminal quality.

Story-wise, Crying Freeman deviates greatly from the staunchly historical tone of Lone Wolf and offers something more character driven and modern (in an 1980s sense, at least). There's still mythology surrounding its characters, but the story of one man forced into dark practices and his consequential guilt is its main thrust. Generally speaking the characters in Crying Freeman don't deviate massively from the standard archetypes of fiction. The virtuous maid; the insidious, cavalier bad guy; the tragic hero. Much is accounted for and it goes a way in undermining the unpredictability of the story. This is less of an issue when you're dealing with a fantastic writer such as Koike, however, and the entire book remains utterly compelling from cover to cover. The plotting is mature and complex and its artwork reflects this effortlessly. Sometimes it can feel slightly campy, with its design and style betraying the time period it was written in, but this compliments the pulpy feel of the manga rather than undermining it.

The issue of graphic content is important when considering this title. The shrink-wrapping and parental advisory sticker speaks honestly of the manga's content rather than being a bloated attempt to look cool. There are a lot of pornographic scenes and the violence is brutal and detailed, but both cases rarely feel pointlessly gratuitous. They compliment the mature themes and strengthen the distinctly adult nature of the book. This is not written for kids and the 18+ rating is particularly justified in acting as a guideline.

Dark Horse have done their usual bang-up job of presentation and translation. Print quality is excellent, the original cover art is used, it reads from right to left. Everything manga aficionados want from their books is accounted for and done well.

Conclusion
As a first volume Crying Freeman doesn't fall prey to many introductory conventions. We get a strong love story that compliments the main plot thread rather than straining to add humanity to its explicit violence. Even the violence is seeped with guilt and remorse, removing much of the numbing mindlessness of it. Characterisation perhaps doesn't push the boat out much, but as an entire package it reeks of quality and sophistication. I'd eagerly recommend this to anyone who enjoys 'adult' manga and especially to those who adored Lone Wolf and Cub. If this kind of pacing and character development is maintained, there's no question that Crying Freeman will justify its elevated position of love and respect.

Naruto Chapter 315 Review

Summary
Kakashi finally reveals the plan to achieve his goal of rapid training Naruto. He explains that because shadow clones are actual physical entities of the user, they have the ability to act independently and bring back whatever they've learnt to the original once the jutsu has been released. Proving that it should, in fact, be a 'D' on his head-guard,  Naruto still doesn't quite understand. Kakashi demonstrates with a simple game of rocks-paper-scissors. After creating a shadow clone of themselves, Kakashi and Naruto run off into the forest together and do the deed while the originals look on. They release the jutsu, Kakashi asks what they were doing and Naruto, surprised, confirms they were playing a game. Sadly, poor Nar doesn't quite understand how this translates into beneficial training and Kakashi explains further. Due to the capability of relying information from the clone to the original, and Naruto's immense stamina that can produce a thousand clones, the time taken to train will be massively reduced - from twenty years to just a week, in fact. Kakashi reveals this is possible for Naruto and not himself because Naruto's chakra is twice as much as his own. And if Yamato can control the Nine-tails it could be over a hundred times more. Enter our lovely assistant Yamato. Kakashi continues the lecture by describing the five basic types of chakra: wind, water, fire, earth and lightning. Yamato adds that every person's chakra leans to a particular element and Naruto reviews Sasuke's affinity with both fire and lightning. Naruto's inclination is still unknown and Kakashi proposes a test, using a special kind of paper taken from the bark of a tree fed and nurtured by chakra for a prolonged time. When chakra is channelled with it in-hand, the paper reacts in a appropriate fashion (bursts into flames, turns into water etc) depending on the person's affinity. Naruto takes the paper and, after a dramatic pause, reveals that the paper has split in two. He's all about the wind.

Naruto Chapter 314 Review

No summary (in the traditional sense) this week due to home-ness and time saving measures. I've got a connection here but not on the maptop, so transferring data from one to the other is pretty laborious. My poor wee iPod shuffle is being worked to death with the Honey & Clover II episodes alone. I'd do it all on the connected laptop but it doesn't have the software I need and it doesn't belong to me, so I'd rather avoid annoying the owner and deal with the hassle.

So, another decent chapter this week. Hidan and Kazuku continue their crusade for Jinchūriki in the Fire Country and come across a monastery full of ninja monks. Weirdly, the character development this chapter switches to a stronger focus on Kazuku, who turns out to be a raging capitalist pig. Hidan, conversely, comes across as even more genuine in his religious beliefs and less of an obnoxious cock. It's refreshing to see a reversal in tone like this and it goes a long way in undermining the initial criticism over their flimsy characterisation, even if it is a little confusing. They've certainly grown into something more than I was cynically expecting and it fleshes them out nicely. I still don't like them, though. I think their role as 'destructive force' lacks the subtly I love from Itachi's 'implied menace'. They serve their purpose and all that, but it's just not what I want from a bad guy. That and we still don't bloody see the pair in action! We get yet another cut-away as they storm into battle with the head monk without the slightest hint of their actual powers. Again, this is probably Kishimoto being economical with his time and I suppose in the long run it will make their inevitable battle with Konoha/Naruto all the more special. It's an infuriatingly massive tease, though, and I'm sure if I saw some uber l33t move0rz etc. it'd be easier to appreciate them and their over-arching bad-assness.

Meanwhile, we get a typically drawn out introduction from Kakashi on this spangly new move he intends to teach Naruto. No new information is given other than it involves two techniques, both of which entail chakra manipulation of nature and shape. Kakashi likens it to creating the electric-like Chidori in methodology but suggests nothing of how or what. It's not massively disappointing, because immediately after we get a genuinely surprising and touching moment from Asuma as he visits the Hokage memorial site.

It turns out the 3rd (Sandaime) was Asuma's pops! The scallywag. I literally had no idea and I hope that was the point, rather than some blatant ignorance on my part. How this will effect future plot developments? It's hard to say. Perhaps the conflict between the new Akatsuki will cause unrest in the Konoha ranks and result in some dramatic revelations and exciting reshuffles. Asuma may even whip out some hidden bloodline techniques and live up to the awesomeness we've known he's had all along. It's actually quite tricky to reasonable predict what Kishimoto is up to with this. It's certainly intriguing, nonetheless. Plus: more Asuma~~ He just better not die. It is quite suspicious, isn't it?

We come back to the now-standard scene of total destruction and appropriate body count, and seemingly no Jinchūriki. Kazuku enforces his greed for money by scooping the fallen monk with the intention of collecting the bounty on his head and Hidan does his ritual thing again, exclaiming disgust at Kazuku's hypocritical time-keeping standards. A lone surviving monk hides in the wreckage with the intention of informing Konoha and the chapter comes to a close. I wonder how much time Konoha will get to prepare now Kazuku wants to make a few bucks on the side? And will it even matter? Part of me likes to think Konoha are special and will put up a better fight than the previous targets, but Kishimoto has always been eager to underpin the general equality of power between the villages. Also, we haven't actually seen the Ataksuki face an entire village before - just to the Bijū, who had no support. And reason suggests that with hindsight, Tsunade will pre-empt any kind of infiltration of the village by sending out a team to intercept. Perhaps this is where Asuma will factor in? Lots of interesting potential, as usual. Hopefully Kishimoto won't drag it out too painfully. All in all: another meaty, highly enjoyable chapter.

Naruto Chapter 313 Review

Summary
Nii Yugito stands attentive to the coming threat of two new Akatsuki: Hidan and Kazuku. Kazuku calls for a start to the battle and Hidan demands a pause while he prays. Nii reveals her plan of luring the two into a confined space and detonates three explosion seals, cutting off any means of escape. She swears on her name and title that she will defeat them and Hidan mocks her, explaining his irritation is something to be feared. Kazuku reminds Hidan not to lose control, explaining the objective is everything. Hidan arrogantly explains that his religion doesn't agree with half-measures, it preferring all out carnage than the current order to return Nii half-dead. Hidan then offers a compromise by suggesting Nii should simply allow them to capture her. Nii's response to this: Jinchūriki time. A battle ensues and the Akatsuki pair seems to struggle under the controlled power of the Two-Tales. Gaint scenes of destruction dominate the landscape as the fight continues, seemingly in Nii's favour. Hidan makes another lame joke and we cut away to Kakashi's hospital room. Before Asuma gets a chance to tell him something, Kurenai appears and takes Asuma away suspiciously, leaving poor bed-ridden Kakashi ever the more curious. We return to a scene of complete destruction. Hidan lies in the centre of some kind of religious symbol, impaled by a indiscernible black object (possibly a stick) with a pool of blood about his person. Nii is pinned to a nearby wall with both her hands skewered by a peg, hanging defeated and unconscious surrounded by blood or ritual painting, or both. Kazuku complains once again about Hidan's religious practices, labelling it time wasting, and Hidan awakes calling his comments sacrilege. Kazuku looks over the map exclaiming they have one more to capture, implying another Jinchūriki. This time in the country of Fire.

Naruto Chapter 312 Review

Summary
Kakashi continues to explain his plans for Naruto. He describes the creation of an ULTIMATE NINJUTSU that will give young Nar the edge. Uncharacteristically, Naruto has foresight and points out the issue of time, and their lack of it. Kakashi craftily implies he's come up with a solution, but before he can explain Team 10 crash into room and disrupt things. A tense moment follows as Shikamaru and co. notice Sai, whose previous introduction to both he and Chouji was strained at best. A change of scene and we see Tsunade dismissing a subordinate. Shizune describes the current Akatsuki movements, exclaiming they could show up on the boarders of Konoha at any moment. Tsunade admits to the trouble this could cause, but also acknowledges the advantage of being able to confront them. We come back to Kakashi's room and in the meantime Sai has explained away the previous misunderstanding, utilising that winning smile and friend-making jutsu. Ino sees her chance to sink her talons into a Sasuke look-alike and Sakura has a quick bitch in her ear, explaining he's nothing special. Asuma dismisses the six kids, offering a treat of Yakiniku-q while he has a word with Kakashi. Naruto complains about not getting all the information from Kakashi, who explains they'll talk later. Team 10 and 7 (minus a Shikamaru, who strangely excused himself from the post-mission chill out) chow down. Ino explains that she and Chouji should introduce themselves and as this happens, Sai anxiously deliberates over nicknames for the two. The F-word almost slips out before a sharp-witted Naruto gags him and strongly warns against it. Taking a more tactically generalised approach with Ino, Sai names her 'Gorgeous', much to Sakura's dismay. We cut away to an unknown Kumogakure nin being pursued by two Akatsuki members. The two introduce themselves as Hidan, something of a pimp with a large weapon (heh) and Kazuku, who describes their target as the 'two-tales', (which the scanslation notes has the ability to summon the undead), warning him to keep up his guard.

Naruto Chapter 311 Review

Summary
Sai sits in Konoha library reading up on how to interact with others, learning about honourfics and pet-names in the hopes he can become closer to his new teammates. Sakura arrives and notices his reading material, surprised at his interest in such things. She invites Sai to join herself and Naruto in visiting Kakashi, who is still bed-ridden in the infirmary. They go to meet a reflective Naruto, who continues to ponder over his encounter with The Princess. Sakura explains that she and Sai were at the library and Naruto dismisses such activity as pointless. Sakura takes her cue to launch a fullfrontal lecture in the time-honoured fashion and Sai interrupts, awkwardly asking if he could be apart of the conversation. He explains that the books he's read instructed that pet names are an effective way of gaining familiarity with those important to you and he admits he's finding it a struggle. Naruto shrugs it off as unimportant and Sakura is once again impressed by the consideration Sai is taking, and how different he seems from the first time they met. Then Sai reveals his petname for Sakura (the different translations came up with 'hag' or 'ugly' - you get the idea. I would've gone with the classic 'forehead' myself). Cut to Kohoha hospital. Kakashi enquires about the new teammate as both Sai and Naruto rub their sore faces and Sakura smiles brightly. He pulls Sakura to the side and quietly asks if the two boys have been fighting and Sakura quickly dismisses such thought, reassuring him of the general peachy-keenness in the group. The conversation quickly moves on to more pressing matters - those, of course, relating to young Sasuke-hime. Naruo and Sakura explain Sasuke's massive power spike and how Tsunada predicts that forbidden jutsu or some kind of drug may have been used to give him a boost. Kakashi explains that the only theasable way to capture Sasuke is to become exponentially stronger. Both Sakura and Naruto are at a loss at how to do this, and Kakashi explains he has been strategising while bedridden. It is simply a matter of Naruto becoming stronger; perhaps to the point where he would even surpass Kakashi (cue dramatic ending).

This Week's Manga Pull

Basilisk Vol. 1
The first of Delrey's mature output and a very swanky debut it is. Certainly worthy of the $14 price tag; they've really done themselves proud with the presentation. And Delrey already does a pretty damn good job with their stuff as it is. The manga itself is quite a little surprise, too. After the setup of the two warring ninja clans, ten verse ten etc. I was ready to expect quite an obvious, by-the-numbers action manga. Rather craftily, Basilisk subverts this and offers a lot of cool surprises. The sense of foreboding as the Iga clan operate behind the unsuspecting Oboro (new leader of the Iga clan) and her fiancé Gennosuke (new leader of the Kouga clan) is fun and brutal, and the countless special moves of the each ninja creates an exciting unpredictability in each fight. Of course, taking a more critical tone, this could also be labeled as laziness on Segawa's part, but the energy and creativity with which they're rendered is worthy of better. The artwork is where I'm unsure. It's not terrible by any means, but the use of photography as backgrounds really bothers me and there's something kind of grotesque about all the characters - even the 'normal' ones. This is more stylistic than technically bad, so I'm going to give it a chance to grow on me. Definitely an interesting start, at least. 

Nana Vol. 3
Urgh, the more I read Nana the more I become addicted. It's inevitable, silly of me to think otherwise. Paradise Kiss disappointed me quite a bit, especially after enjoying the scanslation of Kagen no Tsuki (Last Quarter) so much, but Nana has rebuilt my faith in Ai Yawaza and then some. As a dude, I can't pinpoint what it is. As a big gay, it's somewhat easier. But I wouldn't say it's that obvious. In many ways I still don't like the art style, with character necks and fingers still giving me the creeps, but the self-awareness and the strange honesty with the characters is so disarming and entertaining to read. The advent of an actual Sachiko character had me lol'ing in a rather grand way. The translation is also starting to grow on me, though I still worry about the heavy use of vernacular dating it badly. Ah well, I guess Nana is always going to be a product of its time with the fashion and stuff anyway.

xxxHOLiC Vol. 7
The artwork in this volume stuck out as especially gorgeous for some reason. Perhaps after the busy, (intentionally) repulsive interiors of Basilisk, xxxHOLiC's clean, eloquent layout seemed all the more beautiful. My attitudes toward CLAMP artwork have always been incredibly mixed, but both this and Tsubasa have really sold me on their versatility. Story-wise, volume seven is decent, though not comparable to the previous volume (which was a big fav of mine). We still haven't got a solid recurring plotline developing, but Domeki and Watanuki get some great character development this time around and it sustains the book nicely. Wakanuki's blindness mirrors Tsubasa's Syaoran/Fujitaka quite interestingly, but I'm unsure of how direct it is beyond the visual simularities. Part of me hopes that the crossover between the two titles explodes into something more vital and exciting, but bigger part of me wants xxxHOLiC to be its own manga and continue to be fantastic without Tsubasa's ever-looming shadow.

Naruto Vols. 30 - 32 (Japanese)
My first experience with importing tankobon. It turned out to be totally painless and not especially costly using amazon.co.jp. I think it worked out to about £5 per volume including P&P, and that's technically £2 less than the standard cost of translated manga here. Obviously they're in Japanese, but the abundance of translated Naruto on the Internet is almost silly. I actually had choice over which translator to use. Physically speaking, they're really nicely made. Each has a slipcover with colour artwork and then the actual book underneath has a red-ink variation. I was a wee bit disappointed to find no colour pages inside, but considering the pittance they actually cost it's to be expected. Having Kishimoto's modern line work as a hardcopy in my hands was worth it alone. Size-wise they're probably a centimeter smaller on each dimension than the American standard, and the print quality is as good, if not better than most American versions. There's lots of nifty Shonen Jump inserts for you to leaf through, too, which adds to the 'genuine' experience. If you've got the spare cash and the inclination, I'd recommend it. Apparently Yesasia is a good place to buy from as well as Amazon Japan, but I can't personally vouch for the former.

Still reading: Monster Vol. 3 (savouring it, expect proper review soon), Tsubasa Vols 8 & 9 (finally catching up with the release schedule) and Lone Wolf and Cub (my reading of which will be eternal and I love it).