 | | ▪ | RELEASED BY: | | VIZ MEDIA | | | ▪ | AUTHOR / ART: | | NAOKI URASAWA | | | ▪ | FORMAT: | | JAPANESE / B&W | | | ▪ | PAGES: | | 192 | | | ▪ | RATING: | | OT | | | ▪ | RELEASE DATE: | | 06/17/2008 | | | ▪ | REVIEW DATE: | | 06/11/2008 | | | ▪ | REVIEWED BY: | | SCOTT CAMPBELL |
Naoki Urasawa’s Monster is quite a well-renowned manga with a high standing. It was the winner of the 1997 Media Arts Festival Award for excellence, the recipient of the 1999 Tezuka Osamu Cultural Award, and the winner of the 2001 Shogakukan Award for best manga. If that isn’t a good manga resume, I don’t know what is! Johan is a cold and calculating killer with a mysterious past, and brilliant Dr. Kenzo Tenma is the only one who can stop him. Conspiracy and serial murder open the door to a compelling, intricately woven plot in this masterpiece manga thriller. In volume fifteen, dangerous men of influence hoping to exploit Johan's frightening mind for their own shadowy purposes are also hot on the ""monster's"" trail - and they're willing to use Eva, Tenma's ex-fiancée, to identify him. But what will happen to Eva when her assistance is no longer required? Will her only chance for salvation rest on the shoulders of the very man who's been hired to kill her? The art style of this series is very clean and mature – it never skips a beat when it comes to overall quality and attention to detail. It certainly comes off as something that most adults would be able to pick up and agree that it looked interesting – it could be a good stepping-stone into the manga interest for many curious adult readers – this series has that kind of potential to bring people in. That being said, of course the flow of the story is easy to follow through the visuals, as the visuals flow just as well themselves. The story is actually quite riveting in its way – it manages to keep you guessing, but never strays from making sense and revealing just enough of what we need to know to stay wholly, and completely interested in the outcome of each volume. The motivations of the characters are intriguing, and the pacing of the story is tuned in a way that really doesn’t allow you to put the book down until it is finished. It’s crime drama, but also so much more than that – it centers around a lot of human struggle, and the real fears of losing what can’t be replaced in relation to people, and loved ones. All in all, it’s an intelligent piece worthy of all the attention it gets here, and over seas – so read it, and find out why. A little bit about the Author for you: Naoki Urasawa has been a highly recognized and successful manga artist for more than twenty years. Creator of popular series such as 20TH CENTURY BOYS and YAWARA, Urasawa has been the recipient of numerous prestigious awards including the first Japanese Media Art Festival Manga Award of Excellence, the Osamu Tezuka Culture Award in 1999, and the 46th Shogakukan Manga Award. Naoki Urasawa's Monster has thrilled and entertained well over 25 million readers in Japan.
IN SUMMARY:
Monster manages a fine balance of action and thought-provoking content – it’s a true thriller because it is chockfull of thrills of all sorts. Throw a really mature and artist visual style into the mix and you’ve got a fine piece of manga entertainment at your fingertips – and Monster is just that! |
