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Animesque: The nuclear mind

» ‘Akira’ explores urban decay and the nuke

www.theotherpress.ca

 

Adam Tatelman
Staff Writer

OOOS8 |

I: the dark days of the

1980s when animation was
considered mere childish
entertainment, Japanese anime
appeared and proved that

animation could bea form of art. : °
: James Dean—Rebel Without a

: Cause jacket and all. Wannabe

: biker Tetsuo looks up to Kaneda
: asan idol, but despises always

: playing second fiddle to him.

This was accomplished with a
specific formula that’s apparent
ina lot of the “golden age” stuff
to date: cyberpunk setting,
detailed animation, gratuitous
violence, and meditations on
consciousness or technology,
with bonus points for blunt
metaphors regarding nuclear
devastation.

Hiroshima and Nagasaki
are, understandably, major
turning points in Japan’s history:
once-proud conquerors laid
low by ill-used power and all
that. As such, there is a lot of
Japanese fiction that deals with

the concept of the selfish pursuit : P®
: friend, and maybe get a date

: with Kei, one of their higher-
: ups.

of power that cannot ultimately
be controlled. It’s where the
concept for Godzilla came from.
In Akira’s post-post-
apocalyptic future of 2019, after
destruction by a mysterious
explosion and subsequent Third
World War, Tokyo has been
rebuilt into a towering neon
obelisk. Protest groups and

: creepy cults clash with a corrupt
: military government. Wayward

: youth take to the streets to

: wage high-speed gang wars on

 Souped-up motorcycles.
Amidst the chaos are the

: : Capsules, a gang made up of

: teenage reform school students
: with serious anger issues.

: They’re led by Kaneda, who acts

like a hot-blooded, Japanese

During a fight with rival

: gangsters, Tetsuo comes into

: contact with a shrivelled,

: childlike being that possesses
: inexplicable psychic powers.

: Having escaped from the local
: military-industrial science

: institution, the creature is

: scooped up by the army along
: with Tetsuo, who begins to

: develop powers of his own.

: Kaneda throws in with the rebel

protesters in a bid to rescue his

As Tetsuo becomes

: intoxicated with his psychic

: power, his inferiority complex
: explodes, and so does most of
: Tokyo. Japan just can’t catch a
: break, it seems. Now idolized
: bya group of nutcase cultists,

: he no longer has to grudgingly

: rely on Kaneda’s protection. The
: military tries to stop Tetsuo, but
: like in the Godzilla movies, you

: know how that goes.

Akira’s greatest strengths

: lie in its visual storytelling and

: the quality of its animation.

: Every scene is absolutely packed
: with detail that provides a wider
: context for the world of Neo-

: Tokyo. The twisted childhood

: imagery of the fever-dream

: sequences Tetsuo undergoes as

: his powers begin to manifest is

: Slenderman levels of disturbing.
: The soundtrack is a little

: maudlin, but creates a grandiose
: atmosphere otherwise marred

: only bya subpar dub.

Although the Kaneda/

: Tetsuo conflict is compelling, the
: second half does feel swamped

: in destruction. Plot points like

: the history of the AKIRA project
: and the ironic end of the corrupt
: government officials get lost in

: all the commotion, which makes
: it difficult to suss out the anti-

: war message.

The show manages to end

: ona hopeful note. Even after all

: of the devastation, the wayward

: youth may have a future. Akira

: may not bea great film, but it

: is worth watching for anyone

: who wants to retrace the steps of
: animation’s journey towards the
: status of art.

 

 

Image from HDWPapers.com

 

Comic Corner: Not quite novel

» ‘Wool: The Graphic Novel Omnibus’ review

 
  

Brittney MacDonald
# Life & Style Editor
M lifeandstyle
Fy) @theotherpress. ca

0000

Fe those keeping up with
trends in science fiction,
Wool by Hugh Howey probably
sounds familiar. The lengthy
novel was an instant smash
hit among readers. The book’s
success prompted Jet City
Comics to endorse a graphic
novel adaptation. Though
good, the graphic novel does
not completely live up to the
standard set by the book.
Adapted by writers Jimmy
Palmiotti and Justin Gray, Wool
takes place in a dystopian future

: where mankind is struggling to

: survive after the apocalypse. The
: world outside the human colony
: is terrifying and dangerous, so

: much so that even the thought
of venturing out is punishable

: by exile.

The narrative of the graphic

novel follows the book pretty

: closely, and as a fan of the book
: I definitely appreciate that.

: Discussion of the plot is a little

: difficult, however, because part
: of the charm of Howey’s writing
: is the constant plot twists. You

: never know what to expect,

: which makes both the book and
: the graphic novel adaptation a

: page-turner.

The art by Jimmy Broxton

reminds me a lot of Lazarus,
: in that it was good but nothing
: really stood out as amazing—

: just really consistent. This isn’t

: necessarily a bad thing, as it

: makes the overall aesthetic of

: the graphic novel really pleasing.

However, there were a

: couple of things that were lost

: in translation. Since the original
: novel is so long, the adaptation

: felt a little rushed in comparison.
: was also a little disappointed

: that the characters all looked a

: little white-washed and didn’t

: reflect the full racial diversity I

: had imaged when reading the

: book.

I would definitely

: recommend this adaptation if
: youre a fan of the book. If you
: haven't read the book, then

: I'd recommend checking that
: out instead of picking up the

: graphic novel.

 

"Art by Jimmy Broxton via The International Comic Expo