What I've Been Enjoying Lately #3
Oct 14 - 20
Welcome back to my weekly newsletter, What I’ve Been Enjoying Lately. Alongside this newsletter, I’ve also written a review regarding the new anime adaption of Junji Ito’s Uzumaki. You can check out that article by following this link here.
Here’s what I’ve enjoyed from this past week:
1. I was looking through a friend’s manga collection, and among their books, the cover of Inio Asano’s Solanin caught my eye. My friend shared that this was perhaps their favorite manga, so of course, I had to check it out.
Solanin is a delightful and moving coming of age manga that revolves around a young woman in her mid-twenties and that of her friend group. Being in one’s early to mid-twenties is a fascinating time – you’re entering adulthood, considered an adult, and yet you’re not completely removed from childhood. Solanin beautifully captures that whirlwind of age, and the frustrating nature of trying to figure out your life at that time. I read the collected omnibus and devoured it over the course of two days. Solanin is an incredible read, and makes me want to check out more of Asano’s work.
2. I’ve been meaning to check it out for years, so recently I dove into the anime adaption of Nier: Automata - Nier: Automata Ver1.1a. Nier Automata is a role-playing video game that came out 2017 and is one of my all-time favorites. Coming into Automata blind, I was floored by the philosophical depths it boldly explores.
Nier: Automata Ver1.1a is a faithful anime adaption that essentially re-tells the story of the game. Not only has it been a joy to revisit the game’s story and various philosophical musings, the animation is also stellar. The animation was handled by A-1 Pictures, and not only does the show look pretty, the action choreography is sick as hell. If you don’t have the means of playing Automata, then this anime adaption is a great way to experience its incredible story.
3. Another anime I’ve been really enjoying is Hajime no Ippo. The story revolves around a young guy named Ippo who discovers boxing and decides to devote himself to training. When we first meet Ippo we see that he doesn’t have much self-confidence and is often the target of bullies; however, over the course of the story, as he works on his boxing skills, Ippo’s sense of confidence develops tremendously. The best sports stories always have something working for them on a thematic level than just the sport itself, and in Hajime no Ippo’s case, this is a terrific tale about committing yourself to a craft and the reward of consistent practice. While I don’t box, I’ve found Hajime no Ippo to be very inspirational to my drawing journey.
4. In anticipation of Sean Baker’s new film Anora – this year’s winner of the Palme d'Or – I’ve watched two of his movies. I’ve heard of Baker before – primarily through Tangerine and the buzz regarding its creation, being shot entirely on iPhones – but I hadn’t seen any of his films until this past week.
Of his filmography, I watched Tangerine and The Florida Project. The Florida Project stood out to me more for its various uses of symbolism, but ultimately, I enjoyed both films. While I’ve only seen two of his movies, it seems evident that Baker is interested in creating very human stories, and as mentioned by others, he’s interested in telling stories centered on marginalized communities (such as sex workers). I admire the grounded nature of his storytelling; the lives of Baker’s characters may be removed from our own, but not far enough to detach us from the experience of their struggles. Now having seen these two movies, I’m even more excited to see Anora when it comes out soon.
5. Kagurabachi, written and drawn by Takeru Hokazono, is like if John Wick and Jujutsu Kaisen had a baby. A revenge tale that weaves in many shonen tropes you know a love, Kagurabachi is a visceral action experience that will get your blood pumping. One of the manga’s big appeals is the existence of these very powerful magical swords, and for me, the depiction of these “enchanted blades” is super badass. The manga is currently 54 chapters long and still going, so now is a perfect time to dive in and read.
6. I’ve saved the best for last. I’m working on a larger essay about this, but in short, I’ve had a desire to rekindle my love for DC and Marvel. My frustrations with both are primarily with the movies - and all the capitalistic and consumerist issues that have come with them. Regarding the comics though, its been a while since I’ve picked up a DC or Marvel book.
Among today’s comic writers, Scott Snyder is one of my favorites. Along with his horror stories, I really enjoy his past run on Batman; so when I heard he was coming back to Batman, I thought, “what a perfect time.” With that said, I cannot emphasize enough how fucking awesome Absolute Batman issue one is.
It’s tough to talk about Absolute Batman without spoiling stuff, but so far, issue one contains some truly impressive overhauls to Batman/Bruce Wayne, as well as that of the Batman lore. At first, I was intrigued by the idea of Bruce being a civil engineer and not coming from money; this idea not only lands as cool, it also includes far more nuance than I anticipated. Absolute Batman is one of the most fascinating subversions I’ve ever read based on the iconic hero. In issue one alone, there’s so much at work that challenges and subverts our understanding of Batman lore; also, I love the changes made to Batman’s outfit and just how much more functional it is.
There’s major hype for Absolute Batman right now, so I’d run out and get your name down for a copy ASAP. With Snyder’s incredible writing and Nick Dragotta’s amazing artwork, Absolute Batman is off to a tremendous start.