Review

A year or so ago, I read the first few chapters of Black Jack by scanlation since the original Viz editions are impossible to find. I was immediately hooked, so when I found out Vertical had licensed a re-release I put the first volume on pre-order right away.

This volume of Black Jack contains twelve one-shot stories. Most interesting are the "origin" stories of Black Jack himself: the origin of his career as a surgeon and an unusual tale of lost love. Tezuka’s medical knowledge comes in handy throughout; technical terms are constantly used and the surgeries are depicted fairly graphically. Although some of the storylines are a bit improbable (a supercomputer in 1970?), each offers an honest glimpse of humanity at its best and worst. Black Jack ultimately demonstrates Tezuka’s incomparable scope as a writer. It may not be the “best” Tezuka per se, but it’s definitely my favourite.

9/10

Comments

chibiyusa

Posted : 1 year, 1 month ago at Nov 16 17:21

Is it just me or are the exclusive limited edition hardcover editions really hard to find?

Added by spiegalr 1 year ago on 1 October 2008 09:18