▪	RELEASED BY:		DOUBLEDAY
		▪	AUTHOR / ART:		SIKU
		▪	FORMAT:		ENGLISH / BW
		▪	PAGES:		224
		▪	RATING:		NR
		▪	RELEASE DATE:		01/15/2007
		▪	REVIEW DATE:		01/03/2008
		▪	REVIEWED BY:		CHRISTOPHER SEAMAN

I suppose it had to happen.  Like a certain chocolate and peanut butter treat- two great flavors brought together to make something wonderfully delicious- it was only a matter of time before someone came up with the idea of creating a copy of the Bible in a graphic novel format.  A manga format at that.  When we review any manga for this website, we always seek to accentuate the positive attributes of the respective publication in order to pique the curiosity of prospective readers and satisfy the commercial needs of the publishers, who have worked very hard and invested a lot of money into the creation and marketing of their titles.  As one may imagine, some titles will challenge reviewers considerably in this way.  Some titles will effortlessly inspire the reviewer to gush forth the accolades.  Other titles, like THE MANGA BIBLE from Doubleday, drawn by acclaimed British artist Siku, will challenge the reviewer differently again.  How can you say something new, believable and worthwhile about this story- the most widely published book in history? 

Well, as a reviewer, you can’t.  The Bible stands on its own for very good reasons.  We are not scholars, so a critical analysis of the text is not even appropriate here.  Instead, this review will concentrate on the marketing features that make it what it is- a manga styled graphic novelization of the Bible, distilled to its essence to provide the maximum visual impact for its readers, who will likely be young teens or adults. 

THE MANGA BIBLE has done well for itself in achieving the goal of taking this collection of stories and linking them together succinctly and coherently.  It opens with an interesting narrative hook, having Moses kick off the story of Genesis himself as a kind of lesson in the desert for the children of Israel.  This flashback opening works cleverly because it gives the creative team a chance to accelerate the pace of the narrative quickly from the beginning, as befits the manga style.  To respect the wishes of those who wish to read the source material, little blurbs containing the text locations in the Bible, and an explanation of how to read the entries are included.  Thus, dedicated readers can have both handy to peruse.

The story of Moses is joined at its proper place and related as a combination of personal narrative and third person exposition when the action steps outside his frame of reference.  We then continue through the rest of the Old Testament and the New Testament at a breakneck pace, covering the wars, trials of faith, growth of belief and of course, the epic story of Jesus and His disciples on their journey through the Holy Land at the birth of Christianity.  It is all here.  It is expertly linked together and tastefully presented to give readers the essence of the story while not dwelling on the kinds of details that only slow down the plot of a manga story. 

Powerful images from the pen and mind of Siku dominate the pages throughout.  For example, the storied confrontation between Christ and Satan is set against the backdrop of Gotham itself- New York City.  The figures are drawn in willowy, lanky forms that blow like the wind across the page, giving visual form to the breathtaking pace of the story.  The look of the book crackles hip and cool from the cover- illustrated with hot reds and oranges showing warrior types that are posed in such a way they could just as easily be samurai as Biblical figures- to the interior, where whole pages of frames are cut like shots from an old sword and sandal epic movie made in Cinerama.  Close ups, silhouettes, white space and toning are all handled simply but masterfully by Siku, making this one startling adaptation of the Bible. 

Certainly, it has attracted a lot of attention in Britain, where its publication by Hodder & Stroughton created a sensation.  Dr. Rowan Williams, none other than the Archbishop of Canterbury, (for the benefit of you Americans, he is the head, next to the Queen, of the Church of England), has said of THE MANGA BIBLE, “This is an exciting new venture.  It will convey the shock and the freshness of the Bible in a unique way.”  Indeed, he does not exaggerate.  THE MANGA BIBLE reminds us that the intrigue, wars, super heroic figures, doomed love stories, crackpot leaders and whackjob prophets that pack our evening news and entertainment have many, many precedents in the Bible, and far from being a tired and stuffy old book full of ‘thees’, ‘thous’ and other arcane elements, the Bible is one wicked piece of writing. 

The updating of the language only makes the relevance of the stories more easily appreciated.  The younger readers who will encounter this work may be very pleasantly surprised when they get into it to find much they can relate to between the stories and their own lives.  This, of course, has been what pastors all over have been looking for in trying to bolster the ranks of the church in the 21st century.  They will likely find in THE MANGA BIBLE a powerful enticement to bring new members to the church.  If this book is as successful in North America as it has been in Britain, get ready to see more faith based manga appearing in the future.

IN SUMMARY:
THE MANGA BIBLE takes the greatest book of all time and zips it up to a whole new level with slashing, powerful artwork, hip snappy dialogue and a raw, jiggy jittery attitude that makes you remember why this is the most widely published work in history.  This could be the first shot of ink in a revolutionary age of faith based manga.  Indeed, let there be light!