Friday diversions: Constant Matsumoto

Those less familiar with manga often imagine a very specific kind of style when they think about Japanese comics. You know what I mean - huge dewy eyes, outlandish spiky hair, bizarrely prepubescent magical princesses, chins pointy enough to draw blood and so on. Nothing could be farther from the truth, and in reality manga offers more genres, more visual variety, and much more breadth than American comics by a longshot.

An excellent example of this is the artist Taiyo Matsumoto. Having spent a significant amount of time in France as a young adult, Matsumoto's manga is often described as having a heavy European influence, and a careful examination shows the influence of artists such as Moebius and Blutch. Matsumoto's work astounds me, and I sometimes find myself almost frantic to track down more of it. Disappointingly, his stories never seem to gain much traction here in the states and although there has been wide critical acclaim, sales don't seem to match up. One of his most challenging and unusual series, a post-apocalyptic manga titled No. 5 was cancelled after only two volumes (of a total of eight) during the height of the manga boom. While scanlations abound, the only Matsumoto work available in English editions are the mammoth, brutal Tekkonkinkreet (previously printed as three volumes and titled Black and White after the two main characters) and the poignant, brilliant GOGO Monster. I seem to recall reading somewhere that the entirety of No. 5 was legally available digitally, but lacking an eReader or a tablet, I have not investigated this.

For those curious and those unconvinced, I offer here a selection of Matsumoto's art. Some of these images are from scanlations while others are from Englis editions of his work that are easily available from any retailer. What I wouldn't give to see more of his stuff in English.

Matsumoto's art often shows a barely restrained physicality, with figures distorted by motion and violent movement. This is very apparent in his early mange Zero, a story about boxing...






I can't recommend Tekkonkinkreet highly enough. It is an extremely male-oriented story, so I do think it may not have the same relevance or power for a reader who has not been a little boy and not gotten their ass kicked (and both of those things are a part of my own life) but it is still a stunning piece of work. Originally published by Viz as a three volume set titled Black and White, the beautiful color paintings on the cover are what initially drew my eye...





While the omnibus Tekkonkinkreet edition did boast a more commercial cover, it's still a nice piece of art...



Offered here, without comment, is a selection of gorgeous chapter headers for the book, each page a bruised-knee and bloody-nosed wonder...















(The Moebius influence seems especially strong in the piece immediately below.)










For many artists, a graphic novel like Tekkonkinkreet would be the crowning achievement of a long career, but not for the relatively young Matsumoto. His next work, his first to be created with another writer, was the eight volume Takemitsu Zamurai written by Issei Eifuku. And if you thought the art in Tekkonkinkreet was good, look at the quantum leap forward Matsumoto achieved with the new work...




The black and white interiors are staggeringly beautiful. Matsumoto has moved away from an almost ligne claire pen and ink style to an emotionally charged and deeply expressive brush style...







As if that wasn't enough, Matsumoto continues to grow as an artist. His newest work, a manga titled Sunny, seems to blend the best influences of his pen and ink style with his brushwork for another intimate look at the lives of troubled children...






Again, what I wouldn't give to see some of this...any of this...published in English. I am desperately seeking a complete set of No. 5, regardless of the language. I know it's been published in Japanese, but I believe there are French editions of all eight volumes too. That would be ideal since I could actually hack my way through the French and get some idea of what's being said.

If you've made it this far, thank you for indulging me in my passion for Matsumoto. And if you liked it, take a look at Tekkonkinkreet and GOGO Monster, both of which are available in English and may even be at your local library.

Damn can this man tell stories.