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4.46 AVERAGE
4.46 AVERAGE
(14/100) 2018 Reading Challenge
This is a lovely edition of what was a hard to buy series, comprising what were originally the first two volumes. I eventually caved & watched the Animè as I could not find the later volumes of the manga. This is slightly bigger than your average western manga volume but it allows the art work to be better appreciated & two volumes combined means more to read. I can not remember what happens so really looking forward to reading them all. This is a great example of how manga/comics are far more wide ranging than their stereotypical associations. The art work leans more to realism & we have a great psychological thriller that can hold its own with any novel/live action show. I always believed a great story is just that whatever the medium but a truly great Work will shine by playing to the mediums strengths also. This is very well done & I am looking forward to enjoying the story in its original version more (finances depending ✌🏼)
This is a lovely edition of what was a hard to buy series, comprising what were originally the first two volumes. I eventually caved & watched the Animè as I could not find the later volumes of the manga. This is slightly bigger than your average western manga volume but it allows the art work to be better appreciated & two volumes combined means more to read. I can not remember what happens so really looking forward to reading them all. This is a great example of how manga/comics are far more wide ranging than their stereotypical associations. The art work leans more to realism & we have a great psychological thriller that can hold its own with any novel/live action show. I always believed a great story is just that whatever the medium but a truly great Work will shine by playing to the mediums strengths also. This is very well done & I am looking forward to enjoying the story in its original version more (finances depending ✌🏼)
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
“It is true, we shall be monsters, cut off from all the world; but on that account we shall be more attached to one another.” - Frankenstein
_ _ _
Every time I finish reading Monster, I am overwhelmed. Overwhelmed with the scope of Urasawa's vision, with the intensity of the plot built up through every volume, and with the clashing human forces that undergo the utmost development. It is unusual for a mangaka to fully develop all of their characters and make them rounded (within a singular chapter, even--even the side characters)--but again and again, Urasawa shows that he has a critical eye when it comes to human interaction (much like Inio Asano). He is able to replicate and show what lies beneath the surface of every character. The mystery that drives the plot matters so much because human depth is at the center of it, and Urasawa refuses to play by any conventional rules that would otherwise make his story predictable and flat. This is a crime thriller that has risen to the top of the manga sphere and is riding the wave; Monster sets the bar undeniably high for all stories of its kind.
Within my original review of Monster, I talked about Shelley's Frankenstein, and how it relates to Monster. Looking back on that explanation now, I wasn't completely clear, so here is my more definitive take on that:
Frankenstein provides and lays the groundwork for Monster. This is clearest to me now more than ever, especially with the end of Monster freshly behind me. Without Shelley's story, would this manga exist? I wonder. But what makes Monster the superior work is that it doesn't lean upon Shelley to exist; it does not copy the plot of Frankenstein. Instead, Monster takes the world of the past and spins the basic cruxes of Frankenstein into its own weaving, incorporating Urasawa's masterful understanding of psychology, crime and history, ultimately creating a dark powerhouse product. Every volume is filled with fright, coldness, and yet counterbalanced by warmth and strength, too. As Inio Asano's Oyasumi Punpun looks at the underbelly of humanity on a smaller scale, Urasawa's understanding of this underbelly--his understanding of the Monster--spans a much larger, more tremendous world scope, with far more at stake. As I am partial to both mangas, I'd rather refrain from claiming which one did darkness better, and so I'll claim this: they both did them well, in their own unique fashions and flavors. Not only that, but Monster's villain might just be the best ever created, especially paired with the context of a post-WWII Germany. Steerpike, move over--there's a new force in town.
Urasawa also evokes the power of "art within art"--meaning, artwork within the story of Monster done by the characters having a striking effect on its viewers. To see, and then to feel for what we see...or to be reminded of long-forgotten memories when we see something--such simplicity, and yet, such power. Urasawa fully understands the depth of this human cornerstone, and thusly, the artwork for this manga is never without subtlety, never without passion behind it. Every chapter hammers home that what we perceive is essential by the extra attention Urasawa pays to each graphic. Much like Oyasumi Punpun's art, Monster's is also unique, and oftentimes will have a gothic artstyle to set the mood so well (another nod to Frankenstein). Its human portrayals will feel natural. And, much unlike the usual manga/anime style of caricature, Monster's characters are realistic. Japanese people look Japanese, and Germans look German. It's an exceptional fit.
Another thing to point out: Urasawa has fairy tales of his own design within the story, in the same vein as the Brothers Grimm. Unlike Walt Disney's renditions of the Grimms' tales, Urasawa stays true to the darkness found within the German brothers' stories. I believe Urasawa's choice of the Grimms' to base his own tales off of to be of no coincidence, as evidenced by the story of Monster. It is clever little additions like these that show Urasawa to be a mastermind, endlessly imaginative concerning every inclusion. He is able to make everything come together in the end, with no waste.
To what end, then, does the "Monster" fit into all of this? Why was this the chosen title? Is this "Dr. Tenma" going to create a creature, like Victor Frankenstein did? These questions were just a handful of the ones I entered with before my first reading, and emerged at the ending of with a feeling of uneasy completion. My questions were answered, if only to leave me marveling in shock at the dive into darkness I'd just experienced.
This was classic. This was Monster. An unforgettable masterpiece.
_ _ _
Every time I finish reading Monster, I am overwhelmed. Overwhelmed with the scope of Urasawa's vision, with the intensity of the plot built up through every volume, and with the clashing human forces that undergo the utmost development. It is unusual for a mangaka to fully develop all of their characters and make them rounded (within a singular chapter, even--even the side characters)--but again and again, Urasawa shows that he has a critical eye when it comes to human interaction (much like Inio Asano). He is able to replicate and show what lies beneath the surface of every character. The mystery that drives the plot matters so much because human depth is at the center of it, and Urasawa refuses to play by any conventional rules that would otherwise make his story predictable and flat. This is a crime thriller that has risen to the top of the manga sphere and is riding the wave; Monster sets the bar undeniably high for all stories of its kind.
Within my original review of Monster, I talked about Shelley's Frankenstein, and how it relates to Monster. Looking back on that explanation now, I wasn't completely clear, so here is my more definitive take on that:
Frankenstein provides and lays the groundwork for Monster. This is clearest to me now more than ever, especially with the end of Monster freshly behind me. Without Shelley's story, would this manga exist? I wonder. But what makes Monster the superior work is that it doesn't lean upon Shelley to exist; it does not copy the plot of Frankenstein. Instead, Monster takes the world of the past and spins the basic cruxes of Frankenstein into its own weaving, incorporating Urasawa's masterful understanding of psychology, crime and history, ultimately creating a dark powerhouse product. Every volume is filled with fright, coldness, and yet counterbalanced by warmth and strength, too. As Inio Asano's Oyasumi Punpun looks at the underbelly of humanity on a smaller scale, Urasawa's understanding of this underbelly--his understanding of the Monster--spans a much larger, more tremendous world scope, with far more at stake. As I am partial to both mangas, I'd rather refrain from claiming which one did darkness better, and so I'll claim this: they both did them well, in their own unique fashions and flavors. Not only that, but Monster's villain might just be the best ever created, especially paired with the context of a post-WWII Germany. Steerpike, move over--there's a new force in town.
Urasawa also evokes the power of "art within art"--meaning, artwork within the story of Monster done by the characters having a striking effect on its viewers. To see, and then to feel for what we see...or to be reminded of long-forgotten memories when we see something--such simplicity, and yet, such power. Urasawa fully understands the depth of this human cornerstone, and thusly, the artwork for this manga is never without subtlety, never without passion behind it. Every chapter hammers home that what we perceive is essential by the extra attention Urasawa pays to each graphic. Much like Oyasumi Punpun's art, Monster's is also unique, and oftentimes will have a gothic artstyle to set the mood so well (another nod to Frankenstein). Its human portrayals will feel natural. And, much unlike the usual manga/anime style of caricature, Monster's characters are realistic. Japanese people look Japanese, and Germans look German. It's an exceptional fit.
Another thing to point out: Urasawa has fairy tales of his own design within the story, in the same vein as the Brothers Grimm. Unlike Walt Disney's renditions of the Grimms' tales, Urasawa stays true to the darkness found within the German brothers' stories. I believe Urasawa's choice of the Grimms' to base his own tales off of to be of no coincidence, as evidenced by the story of Monster. It is clever little additions like these that show Urasawa to be a mastermind, endlessly imaginative concerning every inclusion. He is able to make everything come together in the end, with no waste.
To what end, then, does the "Monster" fit into all of this? Why was this the chosen title? Is this "Dr. Tenma" going to create a creature, like Victor Frankenstein did? These questions were just a handful of the ones I entered with before my first reading, and emerged at the ending of with a feeling of uneasy completion. My questions were answered, if only to leave me marveling in shock at the dive into darkness I'd just experienced.
This was classic. This was Monster. An unforgettable masterpiece.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced