Introduction, First Draft

Introduction

Japanese Comics, or Manga, are one of the biggest forms of storytelling in Japan. Used for both everyday reading and educational purposes, Manga occupies an extraordinarily large part of Japanese society and culture. Although, It was not until 1945, the year in which America took control of Japan after the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings during WWII, that the modern manga was born. From the initial small panel comics found in the newspapers and magazines in Japan, they developed into something much bigger due to the western influence brought in by the Americans. This included importation of western cinema and comics, and both had a major impact on artists at this time. It was in the years following the end of the war in which modern manga was developed and distributed in society, and integrated forever into Japanese culture. ‘They have taken the fundamentals of American comics, the relationships between picture, frame and word, and by fusing them with their own traditional love for popular art that entertains, have ‘Japanized’ them into a storytelling vehicle with its own distinctive form.’ (Gravett, (P) 2004, pg. 10) Manga is now the biggest form of media in Japan, larger than Television and Film. In Japan, most animations, live-action films or television programs derived from a narrative in a manga. (Gravett, (P) 2004, pg. 5) But how is it that manga developed so quickly from small comics in newspapers, to millions of books sold worldwide? The answer to this question begins in 1947, when one artist created the first ever manga book, pushing Japanese comics into the next generation. This artist, also known as ‘The God of Manga’ was Osamu Tezuka. It is known across Japan that ‘without Dr Tezuka, the post-war explosion in comics in Japan would have been inconceivable’ (Gravett, (P) 2004, pg. 24) The scale of the boom of comics in Japan was due to his innovations in both comics and animation, and they ‘continue to influence both platforms to this day.’ (Gravett, (P) 2004, pg. 24) It was Tezuka who led the way in transforming Japanese comics, and this was all due to his passion for manga, as well as being strongly influenced by western influences such as ‘Walt Disney and the Fleischer Brothers’ (Koyama- Richard, (B) 2007, pg. 148). He was the first manga artist to take advantage of a major shift in Japan after the war. Because of strict censorship laws in place, artists had no expressive freedom, however after the war, Japan lifted these laws, which enabled Tezuka to use his imagination and express himself freely in his creative field. It was this expression and freedom that separated Tezuka apart from the comic artists at this time, as his imagination led him to experiment with different techniques and styles to create something new and unique. ‘He led the way in transforming manga’s image through the sheer range of genres and subjects he tackled, his nuanced characterizations, his kinetic layouts and above all his emphasis on the need for a compelling story - one that was unafraid to confront the most basic human questions of identity, loss, death and injustice.’ (Gravett, (P) 2004, pg. 24)