Wondering what all the fuss is about regarding Taiyo Matsumoto’s Tekkon Kinkreet? Well, then, IGN.com provides an overview of the series, recently collected by Viz in the 614-page Black & White edition:
Chances are you’ve heard about this book already. The hype machine has been hard and heavy to make sure that people know this book and anime are out there to be found. As with all things hype, we always proceed with caution, but it’s difficult to ignore the praise this series has already received. Paul Pope (THB, Batman Year 100) says “(Creator) Taiyo Matsumoto is a genre defying manga-ka with an approach unlike any other modern Japanese (or American) cartoonist.” As mentioned previously, Giant Robot’s Eric Nakamura calls Matsumoto’s work “a style that’s an evolutionary step of manga,” adding that “he diplays some of his European (art) training, fused with an indie comic style of imperfect lines.” [Viz Editorial Director Elizabeth] Kawasaki adds “I can’t remember the last time I read 600-plus pages in one afternoon. I couldn’t put it down.”
These are but a handful of quotes surrounding this book, and there are more than enough out there to make anyone believe this is the manga’s second coming. Is it manga 2.0? 3.0? It’s certainly a blending of what we’ve come to see as manga “conventions” with some of the style of Matsumoto’s Eurpoean artistic heroes like Moebius. Like his other work, Blue Spring, he paints an at-times honest and at-times surreal view of the urban decay going on around his central characters. “It’s powerful stuff,” adds Kawasaki. “It’s sad. It’s hopeful. It’s extremely violent. It’s a touching love story. And it’s a tale of survival.”
Unfortunately, I don’t have my copy of Black & White yet. Curse you, monthly comics shipments.
Related: Frames Per Second celebrates the release of the Tekkon Kinkreet DVD with three days of related content. First up, a gallery devoted to the look of the setting, Treasure Town, from reference photos to completed images.
