Over at the new Comics Journal website, Ken Parille posts a lengthy, elegant analysis of Moto Hagio’s “Bianca,” the first story in A Drunken Dream. Parille pays special attention to Hagio’s use of nature imagery and Hagio’s unsparing critique of adult behavior — a critique that Parille aptly characterizes as “The Natural Child vs. The Cultured Adult.” On a first reading of his essay, I’m not 100% persuaded by his interpretation of the text, but came away with a renewed appreciation for the way Parille writes about sequential art; he’s one of the few critics to give Hagio her due as an artist, to look past the “galaxy eyes” and floral patterns to examine the consummate skill with which she composes her panels. There doesn’t seem to be a feed for “Grid,” Parille’s column, but make an effort to follow it — he’s always worth reading.
Also of interest at TCJ is Chris Mautner’s new review of Bakuman; like David Welsh, Mautner is fascinated by the very meta-ness of the story, and can’t quite decide if the authors are playing it straight or poking fun at the manga industry. [The Comics Journal]
Grab a knife and fork! The next Manga Movable Feast will be held from March 20th through March 26th. Linda, a.k.a. “Anime Miz,” will be the host; Kozue Amano’s lovely sci-fi series Aria will be the main course. [animemiz's scribblings]
Sean T. Collins sits down with manga-ka Yuichi Yokoyama (Travel, New Engineering) to discuss Yokoyama’s latest project, Garden, due out from PictureBox on May 4th. [Robot 6]
Found via @remoteryan‘s Twitter feed: Gurafiku, a gorgeous Tumblr site devoted to Japanese graphic design. Expect a mixture of new and vintage movie posters, magazine covers, and illustrations. [Gurafiku]
Chris Sims compiles a list of the “11 Most Hilariously Unlicensed Pieces of Bootleg Super-Hero Merchandise.” In a word: whoa. [Comics Alliance]
File this under Least Surprising News Story of the Day: The New York Times and The New York Daily News are reporting that Julie Taymor will no longer direct Spiderman: Turn Off the Dark. The show is expected to go on a brief hiatus in April, re-opening in May with a revised book and score. [Robot 6]
As concerns the Manga Moveable Feast I have an old review of Aria volume one would that be able to be submited?
Your best bet is to follow the link and ask Linda herself. In past MMFs, people have linked to or re-posted older reviews, so I can’t imagine that it would be a problem. The discussion won’t get underway until the end of next week, so you have plenty of time.
The Toy feature seems to pull from a Cracked article the day before http://www.cracked.com/article_19056_the-15-most-unintentionally-hilarious-bootleg-toys.html , but Sims digs up some nice additions.
Parille’s review was especially interesting because it was a turn-around on a story he’d previously had a negative reaction to. I like how he addressed some other reviews too.
Mautner has managed to sell me on the sexism in Bakuman being satirical, but like he says, it could be them having their cake and eating it. Overall, I think the criticisms the series makes are a little to dry to not have a condescending edge to them.
I liked Parille’s approach to the material, too; that he went back and re-examined a story that had been beaten to smithereens by other critics was refreshing to see; that it changed his opinion of the story was even more exciting. I do wish he’d talked a little bit more about “Bianca” in its Japanese historical context, but on the whole, I thought it was a great piece, and exactly the kind of thing I expect from The Comics Journal.
I saw the cracked bootleg thing too, but how can you beat “Pocket Monica” and “The Naruto”? And I’ve seen on failblog a few times “Demon Donkey” for “My Little Pony”. Ripoffs are priceless! The House MD/Quake M with Pikachu however is the most puzzling of them all. And there is an entire website dedicated to it? Must bookmark!
Thank you for that enjoyable link
You’re welcome! I might actually pay money for “Demon Donkey.”
After living in NYC, counterfeit capital of the US, I’ve developed a special appreciation for knock-off culture. What amazes me most about these examples are the ones that almost get it right, but then whiff some small but essential detail. I think “Robert Cop” was my personal favorite!
Right, Sims brought up enough new content that I wasn’t trying to pull a red card, just point out more funny.
What I want to know is where on Earth do all the things on that backpack appeal to a crossover demographic enough to justify producing that backpack? That has to be one of the raddest places on the planet.
I didn’t interpret you comment that way, Jade; Sims himself put a link in the article indicating where he’d found some of those treasures. Link-blogging keeps the Internet afloat!
And wow, that backpack… it’s kind of mind-blowingly awesome in the way it crosses boundaries, isn’t it? I’d almost be afraid to use it, though; I can’t imagine what it might say about me!
It could only have been better if they’d transposed Hugh Laurie’s face onto Pikachu.
Katherine and Jade,
Thanks for your positive comments. I think that there’s a lot going on in Hagio–and I’m glad that I resisted my first response and returned to the story.
It inspired me to try to look a little more objectively at what I read too. Thanks!