Forum - View topicPhoenix (hi no tori) by Osamu Tezuka: which volume stands out more?
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#899085
Posts: 7 |
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Hello,
I recently became interested in classic mangas after hearing about Tezuka's Phoenix in a podcast. Given his reputation, and since people say that Phoenix is considered his lifetime's work, I naturally got really curious. So I've decided to give pick up a few volumes and give it a try. That said, I've still got an budget on this 'experiment', which is why I've gotta ask you guys for help: which volumes do you think are the most memorable? On a side note, for a newbie like me, which of his works would you recommend? thanks iosman Last edited by #899085 on Tue Sep 10, 2019 1:14 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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zawa113
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Well, having read the whole series, I can probably answer that pretty well. Of course, one of the key features of the series is that it can be read in any order and you can skip things without missing anything. I'll just go through each volume. I've also seen all the anime (the 2004 series adapts some stories at random), so I'll comment on that when I can.
Vol 1- Dawn Kind of standard, but still worth reading. I don't recall too much about this one though, so it's probably one of the more forgettable ones. It was in the 2004 series though (and apparently, there's a live-action hybrid, which I have not seen) Vol 2-Future An excellent volume, worth reading. The anime version (2004 series) is also quite good. Vol 3-Yamato/Space A pretty solid twofer, one past chapter and one future. The anime for both of these was pretty spot on and I enjoyed them a lot too. Vol 4-Karma Definitely a series standout and a must-read. It's also considered the highlight of the series as a whole. The anime version of it is SUCH a disappointment though, skips way too much, loses emotional impact, skip the anime on this one and read the manga. Vol 5-Ressurection A personal favorite for me, with lots of time jumping back and forth to connect the start to the end. The anime version (2004 series) of it barely even feels like the same story though. Vol 6-Nostalgia Easily the weakest of the series, imo. If there's any one I'd feel pretty comfortable just saying to skip, it's this one. I think there's a reason it's one of the only stories not adapted. Vol 7/8-Civil War/Robe of Feathers Pretty standard past story. I think Dawn was better than Civil War, so I'd probably stick with that one (it's also one volume, not two). Robe of Feathers is really short, the shortest of the stories, and while interesting, it's not worth going out of the way for. Vol 9-Strange Beings/Life Another great set of two, it's a somewhat slim, but powerful volume. I'd definitely try to get this one if you can. Strange Beings got an anime (2004 series) and that was pretty much a perfect adaptation in a single episode. Vol 10/11-Sun Another one of the best chapters, this is the only story that has both a past AND a future story at the same time. The 2004 series only adapted the past half of this story (arguably the better half), but you can't tell it's actually missing half of it anyway and it did a very good job with it. Vol 12-Early Works Another one you can skip pretty safely. This was made before the series proper and was kind of showing off some primitive ideas of it being a shojo series with immortal humans. So my recommendation would be to check out the 2004 series first (I think Media Blasters just re-released it on bluray, though the DVD shouldn't be hard to find second hand) as that is easily going to be the cheapest option and you get really good versions of 4 of the manga stories. If you have the budget, seek out Karma for sure (though it's easily the most expensive volume), and possibly vol 3 (unless you intend to go the anime route), 9, and 5. I would skip 6, 7, 8, and 12. If you get the 2004 series, 1, 2, 9, and 10/11 are optional (though the other story in 9 is good). If you need general Tezuka help, I'm also a big fan of all his works! I would recommend skipping a lot of the super early generic shonen stuff though, it's honestly not that good and I only have it all for collector's sake. There's a reason that he shoved all his early stuff to the end when he got the chance to publish all of Astro Boy (it was partly because he'd been burned before on getting the whole thing completely published and wanted the best bits out first. Dark Horse used this order for their printing, so they were NOT the ones who put it out of order). Dark Horse did release some cheap omnibuses pretty recently, I'd definitely look into the earlier volumes of those. The nice thing is, you can, in general, skip volumes with Astro Boy. Black Jack is another one you can skip volumes on (which is good because some of them are WAY out of print), but all of them are great, so grab any you see. For his more mature works, some of the highlights include Ode to Kirihito (released first as an omnibus, then as two volumes, no I do not have that backwards), MW, Message to Adolf, and Buddha. You can't skip any volumes with Buddha. For kids works, Unico is a must and Triton of the Sea is good too. For other things, there's the Osamu Tezuka Story, published pretty recently, and the GBA game Astro Boy: Omega Factor (released for the 2003 anime, but a legit good game in its own right AND a long list of all characters Tezuka. It's what got me into Tezuka. |
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