For the manga and anime uninitiated out there, let's take a look at exactly what all the fuss is about. In this feature, jstyle examines the work of Osamu Tezuka,
Surely there must be more to manga and anime than anatomically implausible girls,
To shed some light on the matter jstyle examines the works of Osamu Tezuka along with multi-talented Melbourne-based artist, filmmaker, composer, performer and author From February 24 to April 29, the Art Gallery of New South Wales in Sydney will host an exhibition entitled Tezuka: the Marvel of Manga. The exhibition showcases the manga and anime creations of Osamu Tezuka (1928-1989), the artistic genius who laid the foundations for and is considered to be the father of modern manga and anime. Philip Brophy was the curator of Tezuka: the Marvel of Manga during its time in Melbourne at the National Gallery of Victoria and he shares with us his expert opinion on these surprisingly sophisticated and far from childish entertainment mediums.
Asked exactly what defines manga he says: "Manga is everything that comics are not. Manga can have a broad range of emotional, psychological, visual and dynamic elements, making it a formally complex art form and storytelling medium. It also has developed from centuries of ways in which Japanese art has blended the written word within the pictorial frame. Naturally manga are not only read by children in Japan as there is an amazing array of genres that separately target teenage boys and girls, as well as men and women. Despite the occasional outlandish storyline or setting, they generally contain real-life themes and often make deep and meaningful social commentaries. Everywhere you go in Japan you will notice people from all walks of life reading manga while eating in restaurants or riding on trains.
If a manga turns out to be popular then it often evolves into an anime, sometimes to the delight and occasionally to the displeasure of the original manga fans. The two industries are intertwined and sometimes an anime develops first with a manga to follow. Television stations are always eager to show popular anime, toy and merchandising companies create all kinds of manga and anime paraphernalia, computer software manufacturers create spin-off games and, as a result, well-financed animation studios can afford to employ well-known voice actors and actresses and also popular music artists and bands to write and perform feature songs. The manga-anime connection is of vital importance to the respective industries and cannot be understated. In this connection Brophy notes: "anime owes so much to manga: its framing, pacing, tonality, stylisation. The interplay between the two forms is best demonstrated by the unique ways in which manga - a still, printed medium - poetically distills sensations of movement, while anime - a moving image medium - often generates beautiful moments of stillness."
With the praises of manga and anime being reiterated by so many professionals in various fields of entertainment, we are led to wonder what might be amiss in non-Japanese comics and animation. "I think that, in comparison, Western comics can be over-designed and too illustrative, while western animation tends to be more and more obsessed with non-stop movement - especially CGI movies," notes Brophy. So how did Osamu Tezuka play such a vital role in creating these mammoth industries? "There are many groundbreaking aspects to Tezuka's work. I think the two most important are to do with his commercial success and his experimental innovations," Brophy says.
"Unlike so many artists who were not successful while they were alive, Tezuka achieved considerable success with a series of radical approaches either to the manga form or the manga market." Most famous for creating the manga and international smash-hit anime phenomenon Astro Boy, Tezuka produced an amazing number of works in his lifetime after becoming a comic artist and animator in post-war Japan. When asked exactly what was so innovative about Tezuka's works, Brophy said: "Especially to the western reader, Tezuka's work is refreshingly devoid of obvious story structure and development. His stories are sagas wherein characters can evolve and change in unpredictable ways. "Morality is never employed to suffocate the life energy of the story flow, and people and events are allowed to act out the best and worst of what can happen. Sometimes harsh, often tragic, Tezuka's most important theme is survival, which may indeed reflect his own feelings of having survived World War II."
Many manga and anime continue to be entertaining yet thought-provoking social commentaries that pay tribute to the spirit of Tezuka's legacy. In this continually dehumanised and mechanised world, fantasy and imagination maintain important places in human existence. As we struggle to come to terms with technology and the ever-changing world around us, manga and anime seem to offer a perspective, a form of release, self-reflection and hope to their respective audiences. Manga and anime may be hip and cool and laugh at modern society. They often present alternative philosophies while addressing contemporary issues. They can be artistically cute yet mentally challenging, funny yet serious, innocent yet lecherous, wholesome yet sensual, tender yet violent, or display these qualities simultaneously. Manga and anime are amazing fusions of reality and fantasy that have something to offer to everybody.
AnimeUNSW interview "direct vision into characters"jstyle visited an AnimeUNSW art picnic to chat with some of its members about their interests and to learn exactly why anime boasts so many overseas fans. -What started your interest in anime? Bogdan: I got into anime fairly recently, about two or three years ago, in high school and the first series I watched was Cowboy Bebop. I felt that animation in general provides a more direct vision into characters rather than just a reflection in an actor. Sam: The first anime I saw was Sailor Moon. At the time I was intrigued by its general atmosphere, plot, voice acting and music and I became interested in the whole medium of anime because it was something different. Edwin: I grew up with anime in Indonesia and came to Australia in '97. Doraemon was the first anime that I watched, followed by Astro Boy. One of the things I liked about anime was that, unlike conventional cartoons, you get to see more of a character's personality. Anime often allows you to enter the mind of its characters so you can become involved on a deeper level. - What is unique about anime when compared with non-Japanese cartoons? Bogdan: Personally I never got into Western cartoons that much because I thought most were silly and childish. The majority don't have very serious content, whereas anime targets all age groups. In Western cartoons events don't influence the future of a character very much but in anime the character remembers what happens to them and it plays a part in shaping them. Also in Western cartoons the good guy wins but in anime that's not always the case; sometimes they win but in the end it may be a shallow victory. Edwin: Anime has its subtleties; sometimes they try to be as real as possible while normal cartoons may just focus on storytelling. Some anime are very philosophical, like Serial Experiments Lain, and there are several levels you can watch it at; you can watch it for entertainment or you can watch it to really get your brain working. Anime tries to explore life and stretch it rather than, say The Simpsons for example, which is basically just satirical.
- Are most anime fans also manga fans? Sam: There's actually quite a strong connection between anime and manga because most anime are based on manga but sometimes you can have manga coming after anime as well. There's usually more plot and characterisation in manga and it's more intense because the medium is more compact. Personally I prefer anime over manga because I'm more of an audio-visual person. I like listening to the voice actors and I love to watch anime to learn Japanese. The voice acting is amazing but it has to have a good plot and characterisation, something most good anime do. Edwin: Sadly, the anime (dubbing/subtitle) translations in Indonesia are rather pathetic in my opinion, so I tended to be more interested in manga. I used to collect manga because they were cheaper and better than anime, although I haven't read much manga recently because it's hard to come by and expensive in Australia. -Why is anime is so popular with non-Japanese audiences? Bogdan: Perhaps its popularity in Western countries is partly because Japan's culture is so exotic, although in my opinion anime's appeal is that it focuses a lot more on character development than Western cartoons; something happens to a character in a cartoon or TV show here but it never gets mentioned again. Edwin: Another part of its appeal is that you get to know the characters and understand why they behave in a certain way. Villains have deep motives for doing what they do but in Western cartoons they are just evil for the sake of being evil. In some anime it's actually hard to distinguish who the villain is, such as in Princess Mononoke or Wolf Brigade. There's just a bunch of people with different ambitions. Sometimes the ambitions are misguided but you can't always label the character as evil. Sam: Anime is interesting because it's slightly deceptive; it's animated but the medium has a certain depth that I think can only animation can explore. Anime can be surreal and unrealistic yet it draws parallels to real-life issues and values. For more information about AnimeUNSW please visit Popular Manga and Anime
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Anime photographs provided by Madman Entertainment. For more information or to purchase many of the anime titles mentioned in this feature please visit  |
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