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Reviewed by Barb Lien-Cooper As an adult who reads her share of manga and comics, I sometimes have a difficult time finding titles that “fit” with my tastes and needs as a reader. Back when I read comics, I did so because of imprints such as Vertigo, which appealed to mature readers, especially ones like me with a taste for suspense and horror. But comics have become rather repetitive and derivative in these days of mainstream “events”, franchise titles (i.e. titles based off of television, movies, or video games), and “alternative” titles that seem to me to be nothing more than what I term “plotless wonders,” odd slice-of-life style comics with no dramatic structure whatsoever. Manga appealed to me because of its infinite variety, its multitude of titles, and its fresh, original storytelling. Each manga is some manga-ka’s “baby”; a pet project they’ve worked on years to get right. That love and quality often shows in the best manga. But as an adult reader, many titles just weren’t for me. I don’t read much shoujo, in spite of my gender. And as good as many manga titles about teenagers are, I’m not a teen, so sometimes I felt a little left out. Fortunately, astute manga publishers such as Dark Horse and Viz started publishing manga for the “mature” audience out there. Look for the OT (older teen) and M for Mature titles and you’ll find quite a few. However, not all of them are good. Much like when I see the Mature label on many comics, all it means is that the storytelling is immature, but the body count is higher. Now, I’m not against blood or guts or even full frontal nudity if the story works, but I’m not fond of such things if they’re there to replace the story. So far, I’ve only found a couple of series that really, really fit my needs as an adult reader. The first one, not surprising, since I mentioned that I like horror and suspense titles is my much beloved DEATH NOTE. I’m also quite fond of OLDBOY and MAIL. The newest OT/Mature title that has really done it for me, which surprised me more than I can say is a slice-of-life-title/sports-manga entitled REAL. Now, as you may have gathered, usually I HATE slice-of-life comics. They bore me, they’re devoid of action, they almost never have any decent type of dramatic structure, and usually, they’re depressing as hell. REAL is different. Boy oh boy, is it different. REAL is the answer to the prayers of OT and Mature title readers everywhere: a smart, emotional (but never sentimental or trite), fast paced, compelling, incredibly well-structured, dramatic manga that draws you in from page 1 and makes you long for the next volume as soon as you finish the one you’re reading. REAL is a story of struggle, survival, and self-acceptance. It’s about finding your dreams after they’ve been crushed by fate. REAL is about wheelchair basketball. But it’s really about so much more. Manga creator Takehiko Inoue takes the story of survivors of terrible diseases and accidents and makes the whole enterprise a metaphor concerning rebuilding one’s life after fate turns cruel. It’s about whatever it is inside of us that goes through all the anger and depression and why did it happen to me? sort of questions, then finally accepts and moves on to whatever else we can get out of life. Maybe it’s courage, maybe it’s just the realization that life can either defeat us or we can work with what’s left after a major set back and try and make something of worth out of what we’ve got left. While this manga can be very sad, while it can be incredibly harrowing, I must tell you that it is never, ever, EVER depressing. For instance, even when we know a character in the series won’t live all that long, instead of the fact depressing us, we love that character for living each day to its fullest. I usually don’t go on much about art in manga or comics, unless it’s really good or really bad. In the case of REAL, the art is EXCELLENT. If some ignorant comics fan ever gives you one of those “all manga art looks alike and it’s all too damned cute” lines like I so often hear, pull out REAL. The realistic, athletic art is understated, yet absolutely perfect in sort of an East Meets West sort of a way. In REAL Volume Three, we meet Hisanobu Takahashi, a high school athlete who is crippled in a moment of foolishness. The guy had everything. Now, it’s a triumph even to stand. His story is a fierce one. Right at the moment, he’s not exactly feeling very heroic, to say the least. He’s not one of these movie of the week heroes who’s nothing but brave. He’s got a lot of anger and justifiable self-pity in him. And yet…and yet. There’s just something about the guy that tells me that he’s going to find a little hope. And then more. And then more. And then more. I’m looking forward to seeing him slowly but surely rebuild his life. Which leads to REAL Volume 4, about a former track star who is a little bit further down the getting hope and getting on with his life department. Kiyoharu Togawa was a track star who lost one of his legs, destroying all of his dreams of being a runner. He was going to go a long, long ways in athletics, you could just tell. Now, he’s often in a wheelchair. But, after a pretty severe battle with depression, he’s now as determined as ever to continue with athletics. He’s an amazing character. He’s not all noble or all good, but he’s resolute as hell about doing what he wants with his life. Your heart just leaps a little every time he gains a little more independence, every time he reclaims a bit of his world, every time he reaches a goal. In fact, in REAL, I think the guys in the wheelchairs are going to be okay. It’s the guy who ISN’T in a wheelchair but quit high school that I’m most worried about. He’s got no goals, no determination, no self-esteem, no direction in life…like I say, he worries me. As a side note, REAL makes a compelling case for staying in high school. To wit: stay in school because once you’re in the outside world, it gets really hard to find gyms to play sports in, teams to compete against, or even time to be an athlete. So even if you’re no fan of school, if you like athletics in the least, try and graduate. Oh, the series doesn’t preach at you, but when you see a character who wants to play basketball in this series but can’t because he quit school, you feel really, really bad for the guy and hope he finds his way. At the risk of repeating myself: REAL is REALLY special. While in totally a different genre, REAL is the best manga for OTs and adults I’ve read since DEATH NOTE. 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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