After all, it’s been done over and again. It’s a common enough use of the genre that one might even consider it boring to talk about. And Invasion of the Body Snatchers could alert its audience to the insidious creep of subtle ideological evolutions, whether in the face of communist utopianism or crass commercialism. The Time Machine could prompt its audience to remember to value literature in the face of emerging mass entertainment options. Gattaca could help alert its audience to the value of the natural individual in the face of the future’s promise of a better genetics. 1984 could prompt its audience to reevaluate the pervasive role of the government in shackling liberty for the sake of security. It wasn’t until I was bored at the library one day and happened to find the first volume on a shelf that the scales tipped.Īnd now I wish that Urasawa would adapt all of Tezuka’s works.Īs is spoken of near ad infinitum, one of science fiction’s greatest conceits is the ability, through its speculative technologies, to engage the mind in such a way that contemporary issues are seen in new light.

I had so little interest in the character or in a reimagining of one of his more famous episodes that even the promise of Naoki Urasawa’s stellar storytelling chops wouldn’t lure me out. I didn’t know enough about Astroboy to be a fan or otherwise. But I do not find myself able to dive into his stories for the sake of those stories-I’ve always got to have an ulterior motive, usually one associated with academic appreciation.īecause of this, giving Pluto a chance was a hard sell for me. As an archaeological window into the development of the form, yes. As the comics form has evolved and storytelling grown into using a more mature set of tools, I find myself unable to appreciate Tezuka as story. They are so deeply products of their times that they appear quaint and stilted-to me at least (I’ve spoken before of my trouble with attempting to escape my biases).

I think I may be too far divorced from the period of his innovation to view the works as fresh.

Beyond a hard-won affection for his Buddha, I haven’t come to take much enjoyment from the other books of his I’ve sampled. I haven’t actually been a huge booster of the works of Osamu Tezuka.

Pluto manga 1