Comics I Like: A Page From Phoenix

On May 3, 2010 · 2 Comments

Barry: Oh wow. (Looks around, sees Jake.) Hey, Jake, look at this layout.

Jake: Oh? (Picks up book, looks at page.) Wow.

This is from “Space,” the fourth volume of Osamu Tezuka’s Phoenix series, originally published in 1969. The layout device, which on this page emphasizes the group coming together as a team but eventually emphasizes each character’s separateness, is continued for many pages of the book.

It’s hard to describe Pheonix, which I’ve so far read the first five volumes of. Each volume is a story that stands entirely on its own, set thousands of years apart from the other stories, some of which take place in prehistory, others in a science-fiction future — but through reincarnation, the same characters appear as different people in multiple volumes. The ambition and scope of some of these stories is jaw-dropping. If you’re going to read just one, I’d recommend Karma, which is the best one I’ve read so far (and, some people say, the best manga ever created).

(A lot of Pheonix would be rated “R” if it were a movie, due to occasional nudity and also some extreme violence at times, so if you’re a kid you should check with your parents before reading it.)


2 Responses to “Comics I Like: A Page From Phoenix”

  1. Josh English says:

    You’re right. Wow. It’s subtle so I missed it the first few times I looked at the image. It’s a great way to lead from panel to panel, especially in some of the modern stuff that’s difficult to scan.

  2. Josh English says:

    You’re right. Wow. It’s subtle so I missed it the first few times I looked at the image. It’s a great way to lead from panel to panel, especially in some of the modern stuff that’s difficult to scan.

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