Review: The Influence of Manga on Japan

Author(s): VERN BULLOUGH

Review by: VERN BULLOUGH
Source: Mechademia, Vol. 1, Emerging Worlds of Anime and Manga (2006), pp. 173-174
Published by: University of Minnesota Press
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/41510888
Accessed: 12-09-2015 03:52 UTC

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endswithelegiacimagesofmushroom
clouds versity,
hasbasically
written
a history
ofadult
andbombblasts.Wecanreadily
inferthehu- manga.Shetraces
itssources
tothe1920swhen
manimplications
oftheseevents,
butwedonot classicAmerican
children's
comicssuchas Felix
If youcompare
see themdirectly.
thesefilms theCatandadultpolitical
cartoons
weretranswithexplicitly
realistic
films
suchas Saving
Pri- latedintoJapanese.
Soonafter,
a number
of
vateRyanorGrave
the
it
is
clear
that
associations
of
cartoon
,
of Fireflies
Japanese
independent
a senseofviolence
anddeathtothe andcomicstripartists
works
conveying
begantoproduce
audience
is nottheirfocalconcern.
Thesefilms on theirown.Thewriters
and illustrators
of
interms
ofout-of- someofthemorepolitical
"converse"
withtheaudience
ranafoul
onesquickly
control
ofthepolice,
buta morecautious
form
ofmanga
personal-social
dynamics.
in
Andit is relation
to this"conversation"continued
togrowdespite
andmedia
censorship
thatwemustthink
abouthowmusicfunctions control
World
WarII thatledtoa decline
during
Themusicneither inproduction.
at theclimaxofMetropolis.
werethrown
outof
Manyartists
in nor advancesthe action.The workbutmanaged
tosurvive
warparticipates
byproducing
characters
andeventsarewhattheyareinde- timepropaganda
forthemilitary.
In postwarJapan,a reinvigorated
pendentofthatmusic.Butthemusicplaysa
manga
rolein howweparticipate
in those appeared
atverylowcost,first
as picture
cards
significant
events.Thusto understand
howmusicworks, and thenin bookform.SincemostJapanese
wehavetomoveawayfrom
aboutthe couldnotafford
thebooks,distributors
rented
thinking
of
the
events
in
the
film
them
for
small
fees.
a
the
teen1950s,
represented
meaning
During
to
film
think
about
how
the
Tatsumi
invented
the
and,instead,
artist,
Yoshihiro,
begin
age
works
onandthrough
us.
termgekiga(dramatic
to
describe
the
picture)
Wedonotneedtohear"I Can'tStopLoving newgeneraofadultmangathatexplored
new
You"inorder
toknowthattheactioninMetrop- topics.
AsJapan's
economy
grew,
mangarapidly
olisis driven
love
and
loss.
That
is
inbetween
1956and1961in theform
by
easily
expanded
ferred
from
theeventsthemselves.
Butitis one ofweekly
Animated
magazines.
mangastories
to
know
and
on
television
became
new
a
form
ofpublicenthing
something, quitesomething
elseto feelit.Thesongallowsus to experiencetertainment.
were
Manymangapublications
loveandloss,notonlythatofthecharacters
in antiestablishment
andleftist,
a stancethatapthefilm,
butourown.It thusconnects
us with pealedtotheworking
classeswhowereitslargthedeepest
ofourpsychic
life.
estaudiencebutalsoledto considerable
critiwellsprings
Whatmorecouldoneaskofart?
cismfrom
theestablishment.
Fortheearlymanga,a singleartistboth
drewand madeup thestory.
As thenumber
The Influence of Manga
ofnewmagazines
thecreative
and
increased,
on Japan
publication
processesalso changed.Editors
a themeorstorylineandgaveitto
developed
VERN BULLOUGH
theartistto illustrate.
Thisarrangement
soon
Sharon.
2000.Adult
Culture ledtoa sortofoligarchic
ofmanga,
control
with
Kinsella,
Mango:
inContemporary
andPower
mostofthematerial
Japanese
Society. fivecompanies
producing
Honolulu:
ofHawai'i
Press.
in a variety
ofmagazines.
University
appearing
By1994
ISBN0-8248-2318-4.
thecirculation
oftheirtwelvemagazines
was
morethana million.
theactualreadHowever,
Sharon
whoresearches
at threetimesthe
Kinsella,
Japa- ershiphas beenestimated
emergent
neseculture
andsocialtrends
atCambridge
Uni- official
circulation
becausethemagazines
were

REVIEW
& COMMENTARY
173

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theso-calledMiwhenthe sorship,
especially
following
inexpensive
enoughto be discarded
killer
wasfound
where
a
serial
adto
be
wasfinished,
reader
Incident,
purchased
by
yazaki
only
Confronted
tohavemanypornographic
fornexttonothing.
ditional
readers
manga.
to
and efforts
ledtoincreasinglybyconsiderable
Thevariety
ofmagazines
publicconcern
establishment
the
the
art
censor
to
of
forms
diversified
form, manga
mangadesigned aprulesofself-regulation
wasa responded
lhe standard
audiences.
bydeveloping
pealtodifferent
of
thelow-circulation
some
runand
withoneepisodeofeach
withdrawing
weekly
magazine
to set
also
theattempt
There
was
wasthe adultmanga.
moreexpensive
Somewhat
ningstory.
with
the
ormore outa newagendaformanga
hadfifteen
cooperamangabook,whichusually
Kinsella
Interestingly,
episodesof one story.Sincethebookswere tionofthegovernment.
ofother
thedevelopment
been moreorlessignores
thathadalready
fromcartoons
compiled
andpornographic
manga.
expensesweremini- kindsoferotic
republishing
published,
toKinsella,
as
malandprofits
mangahasbeena maAccording
expanded
high.Readership
idenabouta newnational
inbringing
cameoutaimed jorforce
mangabooksand magazines
thatthegovernment's
Sheargues
forJapan.
withtitlesaimedat boys, tity
at specific
markets,
arose
withtheindustry
tocooperate
from willingness
foradults,
andstillothers
forgirls,
others
thata moreinclusive
a recognition
Somewere from
aficionados.
toliterary
businessmen
society
and
alienated
others couldintegrate
toappealtowomeningeneral;
political
formerly
designed
suchas thosethatcreated
ofwomen.Thesame socialgroups
audiences
to specialized
manga.
Withthisnewintegration,
wastrueforthoseaimedatmen.
mangafora time
new
intoa kindofrut,butitsoonfound
in manga settled
Kinsellais verymuchinterested
Publishers
to
frontiers
could
the
and
how
outsiders,
sought
conquer.
industry adjust
production
themesand illustrato furnish
Eachchange nonmarket.
in a changing
andthrive
Japanese,
Writers
camefrom
ofmanga.
andtopics. tionsfornewtypes
ofmethods
a rethinking
demanded
United
France,
For example,the forty-eight-volume
States,Belgium,
Germany,
manga Italy,
andSpain,and
was theUnited
norekishi)
ofJapan(Manganihon
Yugoslavia,
Kingdom,
history
nextstep
Theinevitable
overa four-year
period.Although otherssoonfollowed.
published
now
which
is
Shtarwas theartistillustratingwasexporting
Ishinomori
place.
taking
manga,
a newglobalroleforJapan.
academic
it,he reliedupona teamoffifty
spe- Thismarks
and has
Thebookis heavilydocumented
Theresultwasa series
forinformation.
cialists
somehavebeen
forusein manyillustrations,
as suitable
thatcametoberecognized
although
as the
in sizeandarenotas striking
reduced
thestateschools.
IfKinsella
isright,
andas originals.
remained
diverse,
mangaarea major
Manga,however,
thathave
thechanges
forresearching
otherau- resource
itbecamemoreandmoreacceptable,
new takenplaceinJapan.
tookto developing
thorsandillustrators
What
theestablishment.
thatchallenged
forms
"Lolita
terms
Kinsella
Complex"
mangafeatured
in the
The Shock of the Newtype:
a littlegirlheroineandwas developed
thatthe The Mobile Suit Gundam Novels
1980sbyandformen.Shemaintains
of Tornino Yoshiyuki
theincreasing
powerandcentrality
girlreflects
insociety
as wellas a contrary
women
ofyoung
PATRICK DRAZEN
infanwomen
desiretoseetheseyoung
reactive
Mobile
1991.
tothemale. Tornino
andsubordinated
1979;translated
undressed,
tilized,
Yoshiyuki.
Press.
CA:StoneBridge
erotic
andevenporno- SuitGundam.
ofthegrowing
Theresult
Berkeley,
1-880656-86-8.
ISBN
cenand
call
for
was
a
regulation
manga
graphic

& COMMENTARY
174 REVIEW

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