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Reviewed by Michael Deeley Madara is a teenaged boy living in a world ruled by the evil king Miroku. Madara was found floating down a river in a lotus blossom. He was badly mutilated. The village blacksmith Tatara crafted mechanical replacements for Madara’s missing body parts. When the village is attacked by one of Miroku’s generals, Madara unlocks the full power of his “gadgets”. He defeats the beast, but Tatara dies. Madara then discovers natural ears have replaced his artificial ears. Tatara reveals that Madara’s real body parts were divided amongst Miroku’s eight generals. Killing them will restore his original body. Madara embarks on a journey to Miroku’s castle. He’s forced to bring along Kirin, Tatara’s granddaughter. Along the way, they encounter an evil rabbit named Jato, and another boy made of “gadgets”. I want to like this book. It has a lot going for it. The saga of a young man taking a journey that will force him to grow up is classic. I like the twist with Madara’s search for his real body. Every time he regains a body part, he loses a mechanical power. I also get the feeling this story draws inspiration from Japanese mythology and folklore. Madara is also fulfilling an ancient prophecy that could lead to the end of Miroku’s rule. The concept has a lot going for it. But there are too many flaws. For starters, Kirin is a little bitch! When Madara can’t activate his gadgets in battle, she explains how only she can unlock the energy that powers them. She taunts him while he’s fighting for his life against a giant lizard-man! Maybe that was supposed to be funny, but I just find it cruel. Second, it’s not clear exactly when this story takes place. People are living in primitive conditions, but has access to advanced technology. Is this the result of an ancient land conquered by a more advanced race? Or is it the broken aftermath of a future apocalypse? This hi-tech/lo-tech combination just doesn’t make any sense. Worst of all, the story throws out a lot of references to lands and peoples the reader doesn’t recognize. There were many times where I didn’t know who or what they were talking about. The art is about average for manga. It’s not very complicated or detailed. The art seems to rush from action scene to action scene. Many times I was left wondering where people went or what was going on. Tajima and Otsuka wanted ‘Madara’ to be like an American or European comic. As a life-long American comics reader, I can say they’ve successfully captured two American qualities: The left-to-right page format, and the emphasis on stylized violence over craft. Comment on this review of Madara v1 on the Manga Life Forums. |
6 October 2009
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