Mw Osamu Tezuka

"Ayako": Osamu Tezuka Plumbs the Depths of Familial Depravity

Ayako is a graphic novel that is defined by acts of betrayal and moral degeneracy, with one of its major inciting incidents being an act that is spiritually if not literally incestuous. By the time this massive tome by master mangaka Osamu Tezuka is finished, even that taboo has been broken, along with all 10 Commandments and many, many other injunctions on civilized behavior. It is not an easy work to read by any means, wallowing in the depths of human depravity. The end effect is something like a multi-car pileup on the highway or the average reality TV show: it is awful and ugly, and yet you find it impossible to look away. Unfortunately, while the power of the work is undeniable, Ayako doesn't quite match up to some of the other epic-scaled Tezuka graphic novels that Vertical has translated to English and imported. Ayako is the epic tale of the Tenge clan, a former noble family fallen on hard times in the aftermath of World War II. Their second son Jiro returns to the ancestral family home after his service in the Japanese Army and a stretch in a prisoner-of-war camp. However, the fact that he allowed himself to be taken prisoner rather than dying an honorable death has made him something of a pariah to his father, the Tenge patriarch Sakuemon. The biggest surprise in store for Jiro is the newest addition to the family: the young girl Ayako, who is treated by the whole family as Sakuemon's latest daughter even though it quickly becomes obvious to Jiro that Sakuemon fathered the child with Su'e, the wife of the eldest Tenge son, Ichiro. Family secrets soon begin bubbling up, each more shocking and noxious than the last. Jiro's younger sister Naoko is revealed to be involved with the Japanese Communist Party, putting her in the crosshairs of the occupying American forces and their Japanese government enablers. Jiro worked for those same forces as an informer in the P.O.W. camp and is compelled to continue working for them afterwards, soon placing him on a collision course with Naoko. When events boil over and criminal investigations ensue, Jiro must take flight from the law. In turn, these events lead to a deeply ugly and upsetting decision to forcibly separate Ayako from almost all human contact, placing the name and reputation of the Tenge clan above her personal welfare.

Panel Borders: Medical Manga « “Panel Borders” & “Reality Check”

Continuing our month of shows about looking at portrayals of illness, medicine and caregiving in comic books, we’re examining medical manga in two talks recorded at last year’s Graphic Medicine conference at the School of Advanced Study, University of London. Maria Vaccarella talks about a German Manga about Epilepsy – Epilepsie? Bleib cool! Free sandwiches, AND some of Neil Gaiman’s favourite sweets!

More info at http://sussexcartooncounty.blogspot.com / www.cartooncounty.com

Manchester Comix Collective: BIG Drink ‘n’ Draw

This month we’re doing something a little more special than usual, the MCC and Sandbar will be hosting the first BIG Drink n’ Draw on the very first day of the Not Part Of Fringe Festival! As always the Drink ‘n’ Draw will be FREE to attend, and we’ll have the usual drawing games, FREE snacks AND pizzas, FREE comics at the Comic…

As part of the BIG Drink ‘n’ Draw we’ll have a LITTLE Comic Fair! We will have tables set aside for selling YOUR comics! We’ll have a few of table for creators with lots to sell and one communal table for anyone’s comics, minis or zines! Tables are FREE but limited, so please leave a comment to show your interest and I’ll be in touch! If you can’t make it but would like to sell your comics, please drop them off at Sandbar with a note saying “For the BIG Drink ‘n’ Draw”.