| Title | : | PLUTO: Naoki Urasawa x Ozamu Tezuka, Vol.1 |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 3770467574 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9783770467570 |
| Language | : | German |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 192 |
| Publication | : | First published September 30, 2004 |
| Awards | : | Prix Asie de la Critique (2010), Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize Grand Prize (2005) |
PLUTO: Naoki Urasawa x Ozamu Tezuka, Vol.1 Reviews
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I haven't actually been a huge booster of the works of Osamu Tezuka. 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. Phoenix, Adolf, Blackjack. They just haven't won me over. I think I may be too far divorced from the period of his innovation to view the works as fresh. 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). 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. As artifact, sure. As an archaeological window into the development of the form, yes. 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.
Because of this, giving Pluto a chance was a hard sell for me. I didn't know enough about Astroboy to be a fan or otherwise. I couldn't even be ambivalent. I was strictly apathetic. 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. 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.
And now I wish that Urasawa would adapt all of Tezuka's works.
As 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. 1984 could prompt its audience to reevaluate the pervasive role of the government in shackling liberty for the sake of security. 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. The Time Machine could prompt its audience to remember to value literature in the face of emerging mass entertainment options. 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.
It's a common enough use of the genre that one might even consider it boring to talk about. After all, it's been done over and again. What Urasawa does with Pluto, however, is of another level and to a-whole-nother magnitude. Rather than simply engage the mind through conceptual challenges, he affects the heart. And by working upon the seat of the emotional mind, he draws out a kind of empathy for non-humans who straddle the cole between personhood and non-personhood.
Pluto is foremost the story of the murders of several robotic AIs. These artificial intelligences struggle with balancing their self-awareness with the shackles of their programming. In a way, Urasawa may even be trying to tackle, in some remedial way, questions of liberty vs determinism—something all those with any interest in metaphysics must come up against at one point or another. From another angle, these robots' lives spell out the same conflict that MT Anderson homes in on in his wonderful Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing: the question of liberty and property; how can those who rally behind freedom, democracy, and liberty keep sentient beings as property.1
Where Urasawa excels so ably is in making his robotic characters so human, so other-than-human, and so worthy of compassion in either case. There are moments for several of these robots (whose narrative destiny, set in stone fifty years ago by Tezuka himself, is to be destroyed) at which the average reader may very well need to take a moment to regain composure. We are never not aware of these characters' non-human status and the fact that they are creations of man, but all the same they become valuable recipients of our cares and well-wishes.
And it is through that marvelous narrative inducement toward empathy that Urasawa sells his point home. He requires the reader to consider the what-ifs of his scenario. Ignoring plausibility for a moment, he not only raises the question of artificial personhood but also gives the reader a reason to care about that question. Adam Hines attempted something similar in Duncan the Wonder Dog, by actually giving personhood to animals; but as much as I laud Duncan as probably the pre-eminent work of comics fiction, I believe Urasawa pulls this particular thing off much more adeptly.2 It's difficult to balance the humanity and inhumanity of these characters in a way that makes them both comfortable and alien, but Urasawa succeeds. Pluto, against odds, is neither too heady nor too treacle nor even too plot-driven. And for a book structured as a detective thriller, that's some achievement.
The story Urasawa is adapting (Tezuka's "The Greatest Robot on Earth") features the seven most advanced robots in the world falling one by one to a new challenger, a mighty robot named Pluto. Rather than push Atom (adapted from Astroboy) to the narrative center, Urasawa tells much of the story through Gesicht, a Europol detective robot and one of the seven most powerful AIs on earth. (Urasawa, to lesser degree, moves the narrative around between the remainder of the other six robots.) Gesicht is investigating this string of robot-related murders. As the number of murders mounts, Gesicht draws closer and closer to discovering Pluto's identity—all while trying to reign in an apparent fault in his robotic memory.
Pluto is only eight volumes long and is therefore much more tightly plotted than either Monster (18 vols.) or 20th Century Boys (22 vols. and a short sequel). It's a good read and gives the reader opportunity to think about a number of fascinating subjects, all while carrying on a murder mystery/thriller. For a series that (at its most basic and dumbed down) is a book about a series of robot fights, Urasawa wisely shows very little actual robot-on-robot combat. He knows what's interesting and fighting robots is not quite that. Pluto is an investigation of emergent technologies, an investigation of the toll of contemporary international policies, and an investigation of the nature of the soul.
Notes
1. "These robots' lives spell out the same conflict that MT Anderson homes in on in his wonderful Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing: the question of liberty and property; how can those who rally behind freedom, democracy, and liberty keep sentient beings as property."
In one sense the question may be offensive, since with black people there is no question to their sentience and full personhood—while the question is still up in the air as regards the artificial intelligence. Still, within the scope of Anderson's work (taking place during the American revolutionary escapades), the same question is very much at stake for the people alive in that particular historical pericope.
2. "As I laud Duncan as probably the pre-eminent work of comics fiction, I believe Urasawa pulls this off much more adeptly."
Much of this is probably directly owed to the fact that we can much more easily imagine machines with self-aware intelligence and the capacity to communicate than we can mere animals.
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[Review courtesy of
Good Ok Bad] -
Solo acaba de despegar la historia y ya Urasawa ha logrado que una escena se me incruste en el corazón. Sigo leyendo, que la historia promete demasiado.
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Naoki Urasawa's writing is so detailed and amazing. I have been a fan of his ever since I read his Monster series (if you haven't do yourself a favor and read it or at least watch the anime). Pluto was a good read, as it is a very unique interpretation of Astro Boy. Keeping in mind I have never read the original or seen the cartoon, but I imagine with Urasawa at the reigns this is "mature Astro Boy." The series covers a lot of philosophical themes, especially with identity and what it means to be "human" and "can robots feel emotion?" I need to read more Asimov, as I have heard that he invented the three laws of robotics, which have been used in most stories that deal with robots. The first and most important law being that a robot may not cause harm to a human through action or inaction. This law drives the plot in "Pluto."
Based upon Osamu Tezuka's Astro Boy, "Pluto" reinterprets the story "The Greatest Robot on Earth," expanding it into an updated futuristic murder-mystery. The action centers around Gesicht, a humanoid detective robot in a future world where robots live alongside humans and some are even national heroes. At the beginning of volume one, we learn that the Swiss mountain guide, forest protector, and war veteran robot, Mont Blanc, has been completely destroyed while battling a forest fire. The next day a robot rights defender is found dead in his apartment. Confusingly, only another robot could have killed the extremely powerful Mont Blanc, but a robot could not have killed the human (because of the robot law). Gesicht is assigned to the case by Interpol and he tries to make sense of the strangely connected murders. A pattern emerges as more robot deaths occur: someone is killing the seven greatest robots in the world, of which Gesicht is one and putting horns on their corpses.
It's an excellent comic series even without it's connection to Astro Boy (which I liked). I have always loved Naoki Urasawa's art, its so complex and real. I also love that Urasawa uses the whole world in his stories, with a focus on Japan and Germany, not Japan alone as is the case with most manga. It's also much more realistic than most Japanese comics, making it a perfect introduction to manga.
What I found to be really intriguing was that the story's perspective focuses on a robot detective rather than Astro Boy himself. It gives the series an outsider's look and keeps the story fresh. The story starts as an investigation of murders and unravels a larger and much more sinister plot. Who is behind these murders? Is it really a robot, or could it be a human? I recommend this for anyone interested in SF manga or a fan of Urasawa. -
Wow. Kudos to anyone who can write about the destruction of a large, non-anthropomorphic robot -- one that hasn't even been introduced to the reader prior, moreover -- and have that be a moving scene.
If you're only familiar with the sort of manga that has giant pathetic eyes and shouty mouths and characters shedding beads of sweat -- this is the opposite of that. It is very expressive, but subtle. Feeling is expressed through facial features, tone of voice, small gestures. Like, y'know, in real life.
I did find it a bit odd that in this future with AI they seem to 1) not have anything like google and 2) that robots apparently replicate rather old-fashioned human gender roles (the wife robots may have jobs, but at home they are in aprons making meals and deferring their husbands). But this book was inspired by Astroboy, which I've not read, so the explanation may lie there. -
یکی از اعجابانگیزترین آثاری بود که چند وقت اخیر خوندم، داستان هیچی ازش مشخص نیست، وایب ترمیناتور میداد اوایل ولی بعد وارد مسیر عجیب غریبی شد، الآنم که عملاً شده «من ربات آسیموف»؛ خلاصه که هیچی نفهمیدم، مغزم ریکاوری کرد ادامه میدم
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Whoa this was intense, well told, and visually great. This is a wonderful start to what might be my favorite Urasawa series and that's saying something.
So this is a world filled with Androids living with humans. They are trying their best to get apart of humanity and learn about it, and maybe even become it? It's a mix of emotions and storylines that all come together well. The story is really about a robot named Gesicht, a detective, who is finding out why others like him are dying. Something, someone, is killing them. It's a mystery that starts to grow into touching stories about human and robots working together.
Good: The fights, the talking, the quiet moments all come together so well. Touching moments that made me smile, laugh, and want to cry for the characters work all too well. The pacing is great, slow, but not ever boring, and the characters really feel well thought out and crafted. This is by far one of the most intriguing mysteries I've read in awhile.
Bad: Some of the flashbacks can be a bit confusing at times.
Overall this is great, amazing, and well done. I recommend this to everyone looking for a new Manga should check this out. Urasawa is one of the best writers ever to hop on the manga train. A 4.5 out of 5. -
Another Manga, recommended by a friend. Definitely not what I expected. European setting, robots, a murder mystery, a bit of a superhero feel, a bit of crime noir. Interesting.
Act 1 : "Mont Blanc" (モンブラン)
A world were robots are part of everyday life, apparently mostly fulfilling service positions in society. A human is murdered and things unfold from there.
The first few panels are in colour and then we switch to black and white.
Act 2 : "Gesicht" (ゲジヒト)
We are exploring what an A.I. might experience, feel, dream... This is not bad.
Act 3 : "Brau 1589" (ブラウ1589)
Gesicht is a very likable character. And tragic—being a robot, but as an A.I. being so sad about the circumstances of his being.
We learn the meaning behind the name of this Manga! Interesting... ominous! Foreboding!
Nice build-up of suspense and tension. Well done.
Act 4 : "North No. 2 (Part 1)" (ノース2号前)
A future world. Robots have evolved. Humans... not so much.
Pretty tragic plot.
Act 5 : "North No. 2 (Part 2)" (ノース2号中)
Continuation of North‘s storyline in Scotland. I wonder where this is taking us and how it relates to the murder case and Gesicht?
Act 6 : "North No. 2 (Part 3)" (ノース2号後編)
Conclusion to the Norse/North #2 story. Now I know how this relates. Chapter 4 to 6 are another good piece of story telling.
Act 7 : "Brando" (ブランド)
The landscapes in the last three chapters looked a litte wishy-washy. Here we immediately come across some lovely detail...
Nice little story again, making robots appear human and more accessible. Followed by a little cliffhanger and a rather abrupt ending. Good post scriptum.
Bottom line, good story telling. Quiet introspection alternates with action and noise. Overall it made me feel melancholy.
Still pondering the artwork. It definitely has its moments. I am pretty sure I will continue this at some point. -
--Pluto: Urasawa x Tezuka, Volume 001
The Legacy of Astro Boy: A Discussion Between Naoki Urasawa and Macoto Tezka
Postscript, by Takayuki Matsutani, President of Tezuka Productions, Inc. -
This review is based on all eight volumes of the series.
As we are progressing further in a pretty dark future, the idea of artificial intelligence becomes more apparent and certainly recent pop culture has explored this through television (Westworld), cinema (Blade Runner 2049) and comics (Marvel's The Vision). No matter how high-tech these stories can be, they can all date back to the wooden puppetry of Pinocchio, something that is evident in Osamu Tezuka's Astro Boy, a character who in Japan is as popular as Mickey Mouse, as well as the aesthetic that later became familiar worldwide as anime.
Based specifically on a story arc from Tezuka's manga, Naoki Urasawa deconstructs the mythos of Astro Boy and tells a suspenseful murder mystery starring Gesicht, a Europol robot detective trying to solve the case of a string of robot and human deaths. Given its source material, Pluto allows the heroic mechanical boy Atom to be a secondary figure whilst the majority of the story lies on the shoulders of an adult robotic detective who is good at his job, has a loving wife and possibly has a greater agenda that he doesn't know.
One can't help but see the Watchmen influence throughout the manga, in that it begins with a murder, leading to an investigation where the subliminal messaging of the antagonistic horns is shown throughout, whilst the author looks at the conventions of a well-established genre and pull them apart in the pursuit of a philosophical discussion. Considering that the Isaac Asimov-ish future depicted here is a utopia where humans and robots coexist, there are still emotional scars from both sides based on historical war events, whilst there is an ongoing conflict.
As with Urasawa's other manga such as Monster (though not as lengthy), all eight volumes would often break away from the main narrative with chapters that would solely focus on incidental characters that might become significant later on. Not to sound clichéd, but sci-fi at its core should be about what it means to be human and Pluto understands this, as many of the cast – both biologically and mechanically – are wrestling with memories and emotions, which is what defines humanity.
In terms of the aforementioned themes, there is a sequence in the very first chapter where Gesicht visits the home of the wife of Police Robot PRC Model 1332, as the detective says that her husband Robby was destroyed in the line of duty. Despite this geometric-shaped robot can't show any emotion, she wishes to keep the memories of her late husband as they will what keep her going.
Under the given cooperation of Tezuka Productions, Urasawa has quite the treasure chest to display using the established cast from Astro Boy and finding new layers for them. Without my doubt, my favourite character is Uran, Atom's robot younger sister who can sense human, animal, and robot emotions. She may not have a great importance in the main plot, but her presence is uplifting and where the central themes are very apparent, especially during an extraordinary chapter where she meets a homeless figure who has a talent in street art, and shows how a friendship between two unlikely strangers can encompass many emotions.
Considering that Tezuka's Astro Boy is closer to a superhero narrative set within a futuristic setting, Urasawa's story is more of a gritty detective thriller that takes our hero into various areas around the world. Primarily drawn in black and white, this is a world that features fictionalised countries with cities that each have their cultural identity, contrasting the high-tech with the low-tech. Despite the potential spectacle of robot-smashing, a lot of the action is one through closeups of characters reacting to the devastating situations and that is suspenseful enough due to Urasawa's detailed facial expressions.
Throughout these eight volumes, Naoki Urasawa's Pluto is constantly evolving with plot twists and character revelations, whilst paying respect to the source material as well as finding new layers towards Osamu Tezuka's creations. -
Book blurb: The series is based on Osamu Tezuka's Astro Boy, specifically "The Greatest Robot on Earth" story arc, and named after the arc's chief villain. Urasawa reinterprets the story as a suspenseful murder mystery starring Gesicht, a Europol robot detective trying to solve the case of a string of robot and human deaths.
I'm not familiar with the Astro Boy series, but decided to give this completed manga series a try. It's set in a world where robot technology is so advanced that in the newer models, it's hard to tell them apart. Humans are divided along pro or anti robot lines, and a string of murders get the ball rolling. I really liked the artwork and the crime noir/ police procedural feel, but there were a couple of sections that dragged out way too long. -
Woah this was good. Great scifi detective noir type manga with a I Robot/Blade Runner feel. Probably one of the best manga Ive read.
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La muerte de Mont Blanc, uno de los robots más amados, será solo la primera de una serie de asesinatos que poseerán como característica que en la escena del crimen la parte superior de la cabeza de la victima tendrá objetos que se asemejen a unos cuernos. El detective Gesicht se hará cargo de estos casos y tratará de ayudar a los otros robots que pueden ser asesinados.
Es el primer trabajo de Urasawa que he leído y yo ya me estoy ilusionando mucho. No esperaba esta historia ni esta narrativa, pero me ha sorprendido los diálogos que crea y se sintieron bellos al leerlos, a pesar de que este volumen me transmite un sentimiento melancólico o triste. Lo que también aporta a esta emoción es el color de la hoja del manga, es de un color crema y creo que lo hace reconfortante de leer, de alguna forma cálido y no con la frialdad de las hojas blancas (no se si tenga sentido esto, pero para mí lo tiene). El dibujo es único, nunca había visto a personajes con esos trazos y rostros, también sus ojos se sienten muy impactantes sin llegar a que estén dibujados de forma detalladamente.
En esta sociedad los humanos y robots coexisten en total normalidad, ambos realizan los mismos trabajos y los segundos están a un nivel tan avanzado que pueden llegar a tener características muy similares a los primeros: tienen familias, realizan viajes por simple recreación, algunos físicamente pasan desapercibidos como humanos, etc. Pueden llegar hasta tener sueños, aspiraciones y emociones que solo parecen ser innatas en los humanos, pueden decidir por si mismos lo que desean hacer.
“But that’s why I want to learn to play, sir. I dont ever want to…go to war again...”
Siento que Gesicht puede llegar a convertirse en uno de mis protagonistas favoritos porque no se parece a ningún otro que haya leído; también esta el hecho de que es una persona adulta. Es alguien tranquilo y se preocupa por el resto (a él también le dolió la muerte de Mont Blanc), su cabeza está llena de mucho estrés, de eso estoy segura, debido a los sueños que tiene y los asesinatos. Me siento ya apegada a él por su aire desolador porque me produce la sensación de que es real y quiero ver si evoluciona en este sentido, tal vez que ese rostro serio pueda cambiar a uno con un poco más de esperanza.
Con otro personaje que me encariñe demasiado fue North No. 2, literalmente quiero abrazarlo y no fue necesario mostrar toda su historia porque el mangaka con un par de paneles tuvo suficiente para hacerme llorar.
Como ultima cosa quiero decir que Urasawa es lo máximo y te llega al corazón, y si bien me gustaría hablar del resto de personajes, no puedo porque serian spoilers y no deberían saber nada para leer este manga. -
WHAT IS IT ABOUT?
“Pluto: Urasawa x Tezuka, Volume 001” by Naoki Urasawa and Takashi Nagasaki is the first book in an eight-book science fiction manga series Pluto. The whole series is based on “The Greatest Robot on Earth,” the most popular story arc in Astro Boy series by a legendary manga master Osamu Tezuka.
In “Pluto, Volume 001,” detective Gesicht tries to figure out who - or what - destroyed the world’s most beloved robot Mont Blanc, killed a robot rights activist and left both victims with “horns” stuck in their heads. Whoever or whatever the killer is, he seems to be after the seven great robots of the world, which means that Gesicht himself is the target as well.
THUMBS UP:
1) Don’t be afraid of manga!
“Pluto, Volume 001” is the first manga I’ve ever read, and although I was kind of intimidated by the format at first (it’s not everyday I read a book from right to left), it’s actually not that different from usual comic books.
2) I am intrigued.
“Pluto, Volume 001” is a quick and engaging read. I kind of went into the story blindly but was pleasantly surprised: although I rarely read books about robots or even science fiction in general, I actually enjoyed the story and was touched by it. Admittedly, the first book feels more of a set up than a story by itself, but I am definitely intrigued to continue with the series.
3) Tribute to Astro Boy.
Since I knew absolutely nothing about Astro Boy, the inspiration of Pluto series, I found the interview with the creators of Pluto and some background information at the end of the book quite interesting, and I am even tempted to read the original story. However, you don’t really need to know the original Astro Boy story to fully enjoy Pluto series. In fact, reading “The Greatest Robot on Earth” beforehand would actually reveal some plot twist in Pluto, so I might wait until I am done with this series first.
COULD BE BETTER:
1) Not very realistic.
I don’t read science fiction often, but when I do, I prefer a realistic or at least logically explainable story. That being said, there is a lot of direct and indirect “robots are people, too” advocacy in the book, and even though the idea of future world in which humans and robots coexist is cool, the facts that robots can have family and children, eat food, feel, dream and even have nightmares seem a little bit far-fetched and beg for an explanation, which the author doesn’t bother to provide but rather expects the reader to just go with it.
2) Passive protagonist.
It might be too early to judge the story or the characters, but the protagonist, detective Gesicht, so far is quite boring. It’s true that we barely know anything about him, but it doesn’t look like there is much to know, and in general Gesicht seems more of an observer rather than a doer.
3) Static and colorless illustrations.
Don’t get me wrong, the artwork in Pluto is stunning, but it’s too static for a comic book. For example, although the entire story is written in dialogues, characters’ mouths most of the time are shut and the range of facial expressions and body movements is quite limited (though it might partially be explained by the fact that a lot of the characters are human-looking robots which, unlike humans, don’t make a lot of unnecessary movements). Also, I was very surprised that only ten first pages are colored and the rest of the illustrations are black and white. The colored pages look SO MUCH better…
VERDICT: 3 out of 5
“Pluto: Urasawa x Tezuka, Volume 001” by Naoki Urasawa and Takashi Nagasaki is more of a set up than a story by itself, thus I have a feeling that I need to read more than just the first volume to really understand and appreciate the series. Although I am not overly impressed by the protagonist and still have to wrap my head around the premise of humanlike robots, the story so far is engaging and touching, and I am eager to pick up the second volume. -
Ya de por sí conserva los elementos que hacen a Urasawa un maestro de la narración gráfica, del manejo del ritmo y de las expresiones con un virtuosismo inigualable; además siento que estoy entrando a un relato redondo, muy bien cimentado, y harto interesante. Estoy muy entusiasmado con apenas un volumen. Esta saga, de mantener este nivel, muy bien, pudiera ser el mejor manga que he en leído rni vida.
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I enjoyed this opening volume to the series, one I've been wanting to read for a while. This is a "later" series from Urusawa, beginning after Master Keaton and Monster. And I can tell that this is a more mature work...or perhaps a better way to put it is that the tone is darker (which I might be mistaking for more "serious"). What I mean by that is that in Keaton, there was a tendency to lapse into the sentimental every now and again. There's nothing wrong with that, but I tend to appreciate more a hard-nosed and stark kind of storytelling. I look forward to continuing this series.
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my physical copies arrived last night, and am I going on a read-a-thon the whole series today! you bet I'm.
great introduction as the characters develops smoothly, I've attachment issues with some of them already and my weak heart can't accept what's going on.
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North #2 is so dear to my heart :( just let him play some piano.
chapters 4,5,6 are craved into my heart. -
The man himself has done it once again. Wow, what a story.
It's impressive how Urasawa could take one of the oldest mangas like
Astro Boy and make it his own story so naturally. When Urasawa initially got the idea for Pluto in 2004, he met with Tezuka's son, Makoto, to discuss things and possibly change Makoto's mind, because Makoto was initially opposed to Urasawa's plans. After some persistence (and some drinks), Urasawa impressed Tezuka's son and obtained the rights to go forward and work on the story--under one condition: Urasawa had to do the entire thing in his own style. And he did.
It's pretty cool to think about: one of the best mangakas of our current time paying homage to the granddad of manga and anime, which, like many other mediums, has mostly deteriorated into mediocrity, with only a handful of creators out there continuing to complete works that are of quality. At the end of Vol. 1 of Pluto in an included note, Makoto Tezuka had this to say: "But now, I believe that manga is attempting to hold back a period of excess. The world of manga is beginning to develop a shadow...However, the expressive potential of manga is infinite. And room for development is infinite. Please, Mr. Urasawa. Please continue to create the kind of great works that will lead the world of manga. For the people of the past and the future. I'm looking forward to it." Strong stuff, eh? I believe Makoto Tezuka was right, even moreso now than a decade+ ago. And out of manga's growing shadow, there are still those that carry the torch of their predecessors who sought to make good manga.
In any other hands, something like Pluto would've flopped. What I like about Urasawa is his consistent treatment of his stories' themes, and the scope of his artwork. He captures anguish, horror, mysteriousness, fear, loveliness, and human warmth so well that his drawings tend to evoke strong emotion in you. I particularly liked how huge the world felt in this manga--the skyscraping buildings, the futuristic landscapes; all of it was so awe-inspiring. There are times when you've just gotta stop and sit for a while and take it all in, it looks so good.
As always, Urasawa's characters were a great deal complex, and this sort of complexity was contrasted well by the cyberpunk, noir-ish society. Robots, cyborgs, and humans, all mixing together in Urasawa's world, made for a very explosive, fun, and tragic cast of characters that kept me on the edge of my seat. And I couldn't help but be reminded sometimes of Urasawa's Monster when reading Pluto--there are certain characters that remind me of the ones in Monster, and certain names are even shared between them (so he must've been influenced by Tezuka long ago). I'm not sure whether this is a good or bad thing, as it could become distracting or confusing to think about a character from a different story, but the characters in Pluto all have enough difference to them to stand on their own.
Going off of that, there were some definite flaws in this manga, such as certain events happening a bit too conveniently, or things becoming somewhat convoluted at times. And, perhaps it was the limitations of using Astro Boy as the backdrop, or the pressure of delivering something that would honor Osamu Tezuka's manga, but compared to Urasawa's more original stories, I couldn't help but get the feeling that Urasawa was holding himself back sometimes. But, in the end, what Urasawa made was still true to his style, and you wouldn't even need to have read Astro Boy to enjoy this. And, clocking in at only 65 chapters, Pluto looks to be the shortest of Urasawa's more ambitious works, yet it is the punchiest, most action-packed one I've read. Whether it be sci-fi or realism, this man sure knows how to do a thriller.
Well, I'm glad that I finally got around to reading this. I wish I did sooner, because it was very impressive, and a lot more intense than I thought it was going to be going in. Great stuff, Mr. Urasawa. Keep it up. -
Another challenge, begins with another great series, this time it's Naoki Urusawa's manga Pluto
I just finished the Volume 1 of it. So a short review will be there, and similar shorts for each volume. At the end when I wrap the series up, it will be here itself, in the V1 that I'll post the full review.
Well I said that and couldn't stay true to my words, as I've already finished the manga, and didn't drop a volume by volume review as I said I would do, but rather I'll be doing an overall review of all 8 volumes once again. Will try to avoid spoilers as much as I can, unless you're like me, who loves spoilers a lot, so let's keep scrolling downwards.
Let's Begin....
The series is set in a Sci-Fi world, where humans co-exist along with robots and live a normal life. A thing that is going to be a norm in the real world in another 10 years or so. The story kicks off with a bang as an apocalyptic fire destroys a forest in Switzerland, along with a highly advanced robot called Mont Blanc, one of the 7 most advanced robots in the world, who is also killed. Before we, as readers are able to figure out anything, we're presented with another case of murder, this time involving a human, who sided with the reforms of the robot law. The only connection between the two deaths - placement of horns like protrusions near the victims' bodies. It becomes a race against time for the survival of the remaining 6 robots against this impending apocalyptic calamity. This forms the plot for the story
Talking about the story....
The story of the series is not as simple as just a race against time as the plot suggests, the story is multi-layered with many twists and turns. Although many events can be predicted, but the way those predictions come true, touch our hearts as readers.
The story begins on one morning in Düsseldorf, Germany, where Europol Officer Gesicht, is assigned with the case of both Mont Blanc and the other person killed for being part of the robot law reforms. Gesicht, just like Mont Blanc, is a highly advanced robot, who at a glance cannot be distinguished, whether he's a robot or human.
With the robot laws in place which state that robots are programmed in a way that they cannot kill humans, the case became a bit complicated. After a lot of investigation and various leads from friends, Gesicht arrived at the conclusion that the murderer was a robot named 'Pluto' which means, God of Underworld, according to the Roman mythology.
Figuring out that, the other 5 advanced robots including him and the people involved with the robot reform, he sets on a quest to not only warn the possible targets, but also try to nab Pluto and avert the impending disaster.
Characters...
Naoki Urusawa has a done a fantastic job with the characters. From their introductions, to their respective important appearances and even when certain characters are dying, have been wonderfully depicted.
As we all know, this story is an alternate spin-off for Astro Boy, so the main character, Astro Boy (in this series called Atom) makes his appearance towards the end of volume 1. Throughout the time, we think that Gesicht is protagonist, but it turns out, it's yours truly Atom. Volume 1 introduces us to North Mk II, a similar robot like Atom and rest, and explore his journey and past life for a while. Similarly, in the other volumes, the other robots like Heracles, Brando, Epsilon, Atom's sister Uran, everyone has a story to tell, which connect us readers so deeply that we become one with the characters. Forgetting, that these characters are not even human in their own fictional world.
Urusawa shows us a co-existing world, where it is very easy to generalize robots or humans for their actions. While most of the times, as readers, we will side with the robots, it's kind of a tendency an author creates and forces us readers to choose a side, making the other look bad, but in this series, we don't generalize the characters, as the stories of Dr. Ochanomizu, Dr. Tenma and Dr. Hoffman, including their inventions, which are the advanced robots, are enthralling to read. Even the character of Pluto, who actually is he ? When you'll find out the reason, you'll know how modern day villains are made out to be, kind of like broken heroes in themselves.
Overview, pros and cons, and art style....
Overall, the story has really been heart touching, the connection with all of the characters had been so deep, that their departure brought tears in our eyes. Who could have predicted, that such a dark, realistic spin-off of a light-hearted series like Astro Boy can be made, but Naoki Urusawa did it and gave us Pluto.
I would say the robots in this series, express their emotions in such a way that, they look more human, than we humans could ever be. Be it Gesicht exposing his frustrations or stress, or his wife trying to contain herself from breaking down, or a simple robot maid who mourns the loss of her dead robot husband, the feelings and the emotions, make these moments heartwarming.
Like at the end of each and every chapter or volume, I cried, it was very emotional.
Speaking about the pros, the balance between humans and robots is perfectly shown, what happens is, when you build a world, with more than one type of race (or species) you end up exploring it too much or going too deep that you forget about the others in the series.
Fortunately, that wasn't the case here, as the human and robot conflict, their history and clashes all were depicted properly
Speaking about the cons, I guess there was a case of identity crisis or mistaken personality, as after the revelations of Pluto, I was simply like, 'Who is who ?', there was a tad bit confusion regarding the characters, other than that the rest was sorted out.
Speaking about art style, it has been fluid and constant throughout the series, the art style made the characters larger than their lives as we were able to connect to the characters and empathize with them.
This story is actually an advanced version of the man-machine co-existence that we're going through, artificial intelligence and machine learning has grown a lot over the years, but not that much to reach the level depicted in the series, but that day is not far, as robots of such scale are already in design or being conceptualized.
In our day to day lives, we interact with such robots, in various accents and languages around the world, and these robots learn and grow, as the series constantly pressures that robots can't be perfect because they cannot lie.
As Science treads the thin line between a boon and a curse, a perfect robot for humanity would be dream come true, while a lying one can put an end to it, as it is said nobody's more dangerous in the world, than the person who believes in his lies.
The message that this series wants to give that co-existence is possible without violence, as a naive idea of a naive robot led to the entire build up of the story.
I would rate this series a 9.5/10. Definitely recommending to all, a must read series, do express your own opinions later. -
Pluto is a very hard to judge manga. On one hand it’s very mature in themes, on the other it’s full of convenient events and magic resolutions is a setting that is supposed to be a lot logic-based. But compared to the usual formula of most manga out there, it does a fine job leaving you with good impressions to the most part.
First of all, the story is a far more mature and dark version of Astro Boy, made by Osamu Tezuka in the 60’s and which so happens to be THE title that defined anime characteristics for all others to follow. In turn, Astro Boy is a far more dark version of the fairy tale of Pinocchio, a thing that Pluto does not forget to point out. The artwork is done by the same mangaka who did Monster and 20th Century Boys, so it will feel very familiar in pacing to those who know of his work.
Art: 10
The general artwork is in fact a work based on antithesis. Most robots and vehicles for example are drawn to resemble those in the original manga, thus they have a very retro feel to them. They sure don’t look as modern sci-fi like Ghost in the Shell usually depicts and instead have a very simplistic structure or anatomy. This is done purely to keep up with the retro feeling of the original and do not damage the overall. Human figures and most nature sceneries are otherwise quite realistic and very familiar in style of the mangaka. Many characters are in fact found in the original Astro Boy manga and were simply given far more anthropomorphic looks to make the drama easier to kick in.
Another antithesis are the characters themselves who are almost entirely children or adults. I’d be damned if there were more than 5 panels showing teenagers and those were just mooks. This is again done to show the tragic legacy the previous generation left for the next, a theme very vivid in most of Tezuka’s works. It sure creates a weird feeling, as manga are 99% overrun with teens.
In all, the art is splendid in being both detailed and retro at the same time, with the movements and the facial expressions being really vivid and emotional. The use of various cinamatics like shadowing someone’s face or using static noise during flashbacks also manages to build a constant feeling of mystery and uneasiness. I find no reason to not give this a full mark.
Story: 8
The story is again another weird antithesis. The themes it’s using are very mature and mind-blowing but at the same time the actual plot is full of magic resolutions and convenient events that simply do not allow you to really take things too seriously. Once again, it is done to maintain the naïve feeling all old stories had without forgetting to pass on various important life lessons to the reader. It works all right but sometimes you may facepalm at the way something is unfolded.
The story is rather too complicating to describe. It reminded me of various classics, such as The Watchmen (Pluto taking on the Seven Super Robots), Bladerunner (how robots and humans become harder and harder to tell apart), and even Neon Genesis (well, dr. Tenma is way too much like Gendo Ikari in personality). The whole Persian war was also a smart reference to the latest war in Iraq (Thracia is America, Darius is Sadam and there are imaginary robots of mass destruction thrown in somewhere). None of its elements felt original to me but as a whole the story is indeed interesting to follow through. It has many side stories going on at the same time and things are lokked upon through different points of view, creating a world that doesn’t feel like it’s revolving around just a few main characters.
The pacing of the story on the other hand is what may feel slow or childish at times, as there is a lot of mystery going around based on fringe science that nobody could figure out before it’s too late to prevent it. Also, many characters are killed or resurrected in quite convenient ways and that does feel like they are fooling with your intelligence. But if your suspension of disbelief is high enough, you can enjoy the thematics and the drama and leave the convenience aside.
The ending of the story will probably feel weak to most as it will unfold way too fast and dried up at some points, with most problems being resolved in just a few panels. Plus, the story will end without telling you everything. You are never told how that robot escaped, who was that teddy bear or how on Earth does a terraforming robot turn magma to ice in half a second. It’s just magic resolutions to get a somewhat happy ending.
Characters: 8
Plagued by those semi-realistic plot devices, the cast itself is somewhat bogged down, despite being quite interesting as far as backgrounds go. Each one of them has a backdrop that has shaped his or her personality and nobody feels like he or she is defined by some quirk or signature attack. Plus the way they interact with one another is plain gorgeous and there are no out of place changes of heart. Another interesting thing to notice is how most of the events are shown though the eyes of robots. Although there is a lot of death in the story, almost all of them are robotic. And yes, robots are treated as alive as long as they are sentient. The mangaka made a wonderful work at making you stare at a junkpile as if it’s a hill of corpses.
As it usually goes with mystery and sci-fi, most development occurs only through memory loss or memory manipulation. Although such plot devices are usually seen as weak, the way the story unfolds did a rather good work at excusing them though a lot of fringe science. It still feels weak but not as much as usual.
Enjoyment and Overall: 7
The blending of retro with modern storytelling is done very good and there are many interesting themes and characters to keep you interesting. The actual mystery of the story takes up a big part of whole and to be honest it ain’t done more seriously than in Monster or 20th Century Boys (you know, you read a thousand pages just to be told everything was magic nobody could do anything about in the first place). Plus, some poor plot devices and the rushed ending really damage the whole and prevent you from being eager to reread the whole deal. But it’s still amongst the better manga out there and really worths reading it for various reasons other than orthological storytelling. -
d a m n
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I really liked the story and artwork but the ending had me a little confused.
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Using volume 1 as a stand-in to indicate the whole series.
Pluto is a manga series of 8 books based on another manga from 1951 called Astro Boy by Osamu Tezuka. Tezuka is promoted as 'The father of manga' without whom Japanese manga would not exist. But more of that in a separate review.
The Pluto story line revolves around big robots. Pluto is a mysterious force which is destroying said robots worldwide. One of the most advanced robots is an inspector in the German police force and the plot involves him seeking out the mysterious force, Pluto, which comes in the form of a tornado, and trying to find out what it is and what its purpose is.
Pluto has lots of character and personality in the images, as well as clearly expressed moodiness and action. It is very atmospheric and a pleasure to read. Comparing the artwork with Astro Boy, it is incredible how far the artform has come in the last 60 years!
The robots in the story have families with wives and children. Atom, the most advanced robot 'good guy' is a boy robot (the Astro Boy of the original story). I spent quite a bit of time puzzling over the mechanism they might use in their technology of the fiction world for the child robots to grow up, but this was never revealed. I don't think they do. It is a snapshot world of 1950s futuristic 'perfection' where the heroes are all male and the wives and children are there solely to be looked after. But that is not a problem, it creates an atmosphere that works elegantly with the 1950s style story and does not detract.
It was obviously written with a German market in mind as many of the signs and posters in the background images are in German rather than Japanese. I do not know why I found that amusing, but I did.
I really enjoyed these books, the artwork is excellent, the story is quick-paced and considerably more complex than it first seems. The strange mix of 1950s society with futuristic robots is bizzare and intriguing. Altogether, a good read. -
I totally enjoyed it. I LOVE the sub-genre of science fiction futuristic detective stuff. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? Hells yeah. It's a genre that I'm always a bit at a loss of where to find new things to feed my addiction. I even love movies like Minority Report and that Will Smith one. So when I realized that Pluto was in fact a murder mystery, I was sort of overcome with glee. Here I just thought it had a cool cover.
It works under the premise that someone or something is killing off really powerful robots. The (robot!) detective assigned to the case thinks it might be a robot but only one robot has ever killed a human being, so... what's going on? I loved all the little backstory of the cool powerful robots (that get killed :\ ). The art is to die for and the storyline is really intriguing so far. I'm so glad I picked it up.
It's apparently a tie-in with Astroboy? But I know nothing of Astroboy, so I can't really speak to that at all. I just know that it was an awesome lunchtime read. -
"Grim 'n' Gritty Astro Boy" sounds like a terrible idea, but Urasawa and his team pull it off better than I could have hoped. They bring the characters and concepts of Astro Boy into a more "realistic" adult sci-fi environment, but they sacrifice none of Tezuka's essential earnestness and humanism in the process. The unsettling moments (and there are a few of those. this is from the guy who made "Monster" after-all) work because they aren't played for shock value and they don't make a mockery of Tezuka's original work. All the familiar Astro Boy themes - family, pacifism, free will, dignity - are explored in a straightforward manner, with no cynicism and no needless deconstruction. Now those themes are just being explored in a world where murder and war are very real, and happy endings aren't guaranteed. The artwork nods to Tezuka's classic cartoony designs while remaining contemporary. Plus there's a clever nod to
Black Jack, Vol. 1 for all the real nerds out there. -
Urasawa no me termina de entrar. Vengo de leer ATOM, la nueva precuela de Astroboy, reinterpretada, publicada recientemente por MIlky Way en España. Y la verdad es que leídos dos capítulos de Pluto, este palidece frente a ATOM. Buff, que pesado se hace, quizás sea por la lentitud, por el poco misterio, por que es un comic de 2004 y ha envejecido mal, no lo sé. Pero es bastante cutre toda la historia, muy trillada, y aun encima hay un halo de misterio pero de cuarta categoría.
No se que carajo le ven a este Urasawa porque ya van varios que me leo de él, y nada. Su misterio no me va. Su tono excesivamente serio, academicista si lo preferimos, sin chicha alguna de romance, sexo, comedia, tragedia, .... tantas cosas le faltan.
Tardé en acabarme el segundo tomo. Seguiré porque tengo comprado hasta el 5, a ver si mejora. -
Pluto is the story of an android police detective who is investigating the murder of an well loved and famous robot. In this first volume things are just getting started and there don't appear to be any real leads in the case as of yet. So far this is mostly character development and putting down the foundation for the story.
I admit that I am enjoying this tale although I am having some difficulty with the concept of androids living exactly as humans and who also appear to have feelings and sympathy. In other words they get married, have kids, form emotional bonds with employers... I keep having to remind myself that these people aren't really people, which begs an entirely new set of questions one of which is "Why act human?"
Moving on to Volume #2. -
I have not read Astro Boy but I still feel that he is a very iconic figure. Writing a new adaptation of an existing story is always either a daring endeavor by a fan or a cash grab attempt. This, thankfully was the former.
The brilliance of this book is that from the start, the writer have asserted that this is not a Astro Boy clone but in fact has its own life. In fact, We do not even see Atom till the last pages of the volume. That sends a strong message to the reader.
The world was already built by Ozamu, years before this book was even written and so won't discuss that for this book. But I fell in love with th3e characters right off the bat; especially Gesicht. -
** Series Rating 5-Stars **
Spoiler free series review on volume 8:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Reread. Definitely in the running for best reinterpretation of another author's story ever. Takes a story from the original Astro Boy/Tetsuwan Atom manga, generally lovable for its cartoony idealism, and re-imagines it in a gritty world of terrorism. Not quite Blade Runner style, but probably influenced. Very dark, neither cute, nor pretty, but very well done. -
Urasawa means: giant vertical imagination, crab bucket mentalities and evil vizier shit you hiss aloud at, hasty sentiment, 10 declarations per volume, gut punches, that nose on 20 characters. Bad things to good robots.
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No se si me gusta, es super raro este manga :/
