It's that time again to share my thoughts on some good manga. The first of two manga I want to write about today is a story drawn and written by
Oshimi Shuuzou. He's probably best known in Japan and the English manga community for his rather unusual story,
Aku no Hana (Flowers of Evil), which has proven quite successful enough to earn an anime adaptation in the near future (I was surprised to hear it was even licensed by Vertical). But enough about that, because I'm actually here to talk about a 1-volume long manga Oshimi recently put out back in 2011 by the name of Sweet Poolside.
Oota Toshihiko is a meek 7th grade boy who's teased for having an unnaturally hairless skin. Meanwhile, his female classmate Gotou Ayako suffers from having unnaturally hairy skin which she must shave everyday, despite being terrible at shaving. And by the 2nd law of manga-tropes, Oota accidentally walks in on Gotou shaving one day, and is then roped into helping her hairy classmate shave. Oh Japan, this is why we love your anime and manga.
So what makes this worth reading? Well, it's pretty much the go-to manga for those with a shaving fetish, a relatively uncharted territory even for doujins or H-manga in my experience. I think that partly has to do with Japan's "culture," (if you know what I mean) and in fact, Oshimi himself admits in the afterword that he was quite relieved to hear that some of his readers did find it erotic. Of course, that's not to admit I have a shaving fetish (I don't. Really.) but I always give props to stories that tackle something new, whether it's ground-breaking social commentary or boner-inducing fetish-fuel. And although the story's primary appeal is the shaving-fetish, Oshimi doesn't get too carried away as he prevents his characters from becoming mere vehicles for the fetish itself. The only real flaw is that despite the unusual premise, the actual plot is a little too typical for a light romance story. Then again, since the story is only about 140 pages long, the premise alone is enough to hold the reader's attention all the way through to the end.
In case you're wondering why Sweet Poolside is only ~140 pages long, that's because there's a ~40 page oneshot that's included at the end about a boy who has the power to see through clothing. It's a funny little story with a nice twist in the end, and the Umezu references are a nice touch as well. Hopefully some scanlator will pick this short project up in the near future.
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Now before I get to the 2nd manga of this post, I want to talk a little about one of my favourite mangaka, Yokoyama Mitsuteru. It's a real shame that while other influential shonen mangaka such as Tezuka or Nagai have gotten recognition outside their most iconic classics (Astro Boy for the former and possibly Mazinger for the latter), Yokoyama seems to be hardly known outside of Tetsujin 28 (also known as Gigantor in the States). The reason for this, I think, has to do with Yokoyama's "dry" style of storytelling, which heavily emphasizes plot over characterization, and is unable to resonate in modern-day fans of manga who are drawn to the medium in the first place by its potential for expressiveness. So while readers can sympathize more easily with Tezuka's characters who openly show sadness and loneliness, or get riled-up along with Nagai's characters with their expressive close-ups of intense rage, they might be at a loss as to how to feel about Yokoyama's characters, who rarely even have thought bubbles attached to them. I don't see this as a flaw, however, as I find his lack of dramatization lends way for a more honest and realistic air where characters don't seem artificially written to pull at my heart strings or to be entertaining. This is exactly why I love his historical manga. Whereas other historical manga will be written so that many events are dramatized so that the average reader can find "boring old history" to be interesting, Yokoyama stays clear from that and simply tells it like it is.
Now the reason I mentioned Yokoyama, of course, is because the 2nd manga I want to talk about is Babel II. A great shonen-classic of the 70s, the story is about a boy named Kouichi who discovers that his real identity is Babel the 2nd, the descendent of an alien named Babel who once ordered the construction of the mythical Tower of Babel. Once discovering his true identity, his latent psychic powers awake and, like any superhero, must now do battle with a supervillain named Yomi, who plans to take over the world. The premise itself seems very childish, as it rightly should be since that
is its target demographic, but there's something about this manga that still makes it a great read for even for older readers. And that something is the villain Yomi.
Although the manga is titled after the main character, the manga might as well be called Yomi because not only does he get as much screen time (or more accurately page time?) as the hero, but he steals the spotlight through his sheer competence, a quality so many super-villains seems to lack. There's no "catch-the-hero-and-explain-how-he-could-possibly-stop-my-plans" or "construct-elaborate-plans-to-kill-the-hero-after-catching-him" nonsense that you'd typically expect from a children's comic about villains that aim at world domination. He's always serious, professional, and would rather die before underestimating his arch-nemesis. In fact, he really can't afford to underestimate Babel II because the hero possesses 3 ridiculously overpowered servants, Lodem (can transform to anything), Ropross (giant Pteranodon-robot that can fly at supersonic speeds and fire rockets and sonic booms), and Poseidon (giant humanoid robot that's armed to the teeth, virtually indestructible, and can operate on both land and sea). Despite the odds being seemingly stacked against Yomi on paper, his resourcefulness and cunning manages to corner the hero many times and almost makes it seem as if he had the upper hand all along. Furthermore, where other super-villains won't bat an eye when their henchmen die, Yomi shows several instances of love for his men, who in turn, deeply respect him. The best example of this would be when he
willingly gives up a chance to destroy Babel II because Babel II has taken Yomi's henchmen hostage. Seriously now. That is one classy villain. So I salute you, Yokoyama, for creating a damn fine character who lets his actions speak far louder than any words can.
P.S. Go watch Imagawa's re-imagining of Tetsujin 28 in his 2004 remake if you haven't yet. It is absolutely fantastic.
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