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Bat-Manga!: The Secret History Of Batman In Japan (2008)

by Chip Kidd(Favorite Author)

3.76 of 5 Votes: 2

ISBN

0375714847 (ISBN13: 9780375714849)

languge

English

genre

Graphic Novels & Comics

publisher

Pantheon

review 1: It's really interesting to read a Japanese Batman. I know Japanese manga is a lot different from American comic books. The characters are thinner, everyone's younger, and there's always gotta be a giant lizard roaming around somewhere. Plus, this manga compilation was all vintage manga put together from the late 1930s, so it's interesting to see how little Japanese manga has changed over the years. :)
review 2: Endlessly fascinating and beautifully packaged collection of authentic Batman comics and collectibles from 1960s Japan. Author Jiro Kuwata doesn't use the typical "Rogue's Gallery"; he claimed he wanted something more "realistic" for Japanese readers, which is presumably why we see Batman and Robin fighting weather-controlling magicians, mutants, and yes... more, gorillas with genius-level intelligence. But I jest: this collection is less about "ain't Japan weird" orientalism and more about good old-fashioned Silver Age invention, unfettered from the bounds of realism and made fresh with the perspective of a wildly different culture and art form. It's little wonder that Grant Morrison is apparently resurrecting one of the more memorable Japanese villains, "Lord Death Man," for his current run on Batman Inc. Possibly best of all: the few pages of excerpts from even more bizarre Chinese comics of the same period. Bring on Bat-Manhua! less

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