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Reviewed by Charles Webb In 1986, in West Berlin, brilliant neurosurgeon Dr. Kenzo Tenma makes the fateful decision to save the life of a young boy named Johan. Nine years later, Dr. Tenma learns that his former patient is tied to a series of serial killings. Now, on the run for murder, the doctor must not only clear his own name, but must also stop the charismatic young monster's series of murders. Having watched the first volume of this series I wonder if its creator, Urasawa (of 20th Century Boys fame) has read MW by Tezuka. Thematically, both works are similar: a man loved and respected by the community learns that a decision from his past has created a killer. In both cases the protagonists drop out of their lives to find charismatic, mad dog killers and learn subsequently about the darkness within themselves. In the case of MW - named for a deadly nerve agent that drove its antagonist to homicidal insanity – Tezuka went for a mad, pulp thriller propelled by sex and murder against the backdrop of American interventionism and government irresponsibility in the 70’s. With Monster, Urasawa shoots for something more understated, set against the fall of the Berlin Wall and the generally low-key adventures of its hero who wanders from location to location attempting to learn more about the mysterious Johan. The recently release box set contains the first 15 episodes of the 74 episode series, following the good doctor from his rise to prominence to his professional downfall. It’s a bit drier than the back-of-box copy would suggest, but not boring. The first episodes in this package deal with institutional politics at Dr. Tenma’s hospital and the hand wringing that goes into his decision to save a child’s life instead of that of the local mayor. Given the pacing of these early episodes, the viewer mostly hears about Johan as opposed to seeing him. It does make him seem like something of a vague threat to Dr. Tenma. As a result, the stakes feel less concrete and Tenma’s journey feels slightly under-motivated. Dr. Tenma feels guilty about potentially unleashing a murderer upon the world and he fears that Johan’s actions are his fault – but Johan’s actions in the present are less clear than the ones he committed in the past, again, making the character feel more like a ghost than a presence in the actual story. Still, Dr. Tenma is an interesting character – his struggle is with his commitment to the preservation of human life while knowing that when he finally meets Johan he might have to kill the young man. It’s a fascinating conflict that I’m interested in seeing play out over the next volumes. On the technical side, Madhouse Studios visualizes the manga with results that are simple and basic, but effective. The character design in some ways feel like a throwback to 80s-style animation (appropriate to the story, itself created in the late 80s and early 90s). Suffice it to say that the studio provides solid visuals for the work. A note – the volume receives a slightly lower grade than I would like given the way that it’s presented here: besides the rather Spartan presentations of the special features (lots and lots of text) the collection of episodes actually ends mid-storyline. Not at a cliffhanger, mind – it literally ends in the middle of a story and it’s confusing that the follow-up episode wasn’t included in this volume. It’s an unfortunate omission that otherwise mars a very good set. Review copy provided by VIZ Pictures. If you liked this review, be sure to check out more of the author’s work at Monster In Your Veins Interested in writing for MangaLife? We're always looking for talented reviewers and columnists, so drop us a line! Charles Webb Editor-in-Chief, MangaLife.com |
1 September 2010
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