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Wow! AKIRA really sucks.
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Diomedeskun
Member
border said:
The old Marvel releases had color added by Lea Hernandez (who did such... illustrious titles as Cathedral Child and Rumble Girls: Silky Warrior Tansy) specifically for the American release.
I remember for years a comic store in Atlanta that I frequented had books 2-6, but I never bought them because I couldn't find book 1. The color looked good, but the comics are still magnificent in black and white.
The comics have a bit of an isolationist theme to them,
especially the ending where Kaneda and friends declare Tokyo a sovereign state,
I'm pretty sure that I have the final issue of the Marvel Akira. It ends with
Kaneda & Company putting up a big banner that says 'Empire of Akira' or something to that extent
My main concern would be if stuff was cut throughout the Marvel comics run....How many pages in total is the regular manga? Marvel Edition was like 38 issues. Assuming 30-40 pages an issue that's like 1100-1500 pages. About right?
Did Dark Horse re-translate everything for their editions or just re-use Marvel's translation? Other than price/availability/hardcover is there a particular reason why I should go for theirs? I really liked having it in color...and a lot of the cover artwork is awesome. I'm not sure how much of that got included in the newer editions (certainly not the cover artwork in color).
Willco said:
Absolutely wrong. Without the innovations made in storytelling, character development, and emotionally driven stories, we would not have half of the movies we have today. Half of the good movies.
With 2001, Kubrick redesigned the sci-fi genre. Sci-fi didn't have to mean aliens fight humans, robots invade planets, androids mix with humans, etc. With the help of Arthur C. Clarke, Kubrick proved that the sci-fi genre could produce something that everyone could relate with and gave some real backing to the genre.
border said:
Okay, that sounds about right. I appear to have been deeply confused about the notion of the Epic Akira release being significantly edited.
It appears to be a revision of the Marvel translation. Here's an article discussing the Dark Horse translation with Dark Horse editor Chris Warner.
The article discusses some of the Marvel changes, namely the tendancy to shove in exposition into otherwise dialogue-free pages; this may have made sense for a standard US comic book release, but doesn't work so well for collected manga. Also, I'm a purist, so if Otomo intended Akira to be read in black and white, that's how I'd like to read it - but if you dug the color edition, hey, go for it. It just might be a pain in the ass to track down is all.
By the way, you can pick up the first volume of the Barnes and Noble hardcover edition for a mere $7 at their website. Alas, it doesn't look like B&N will be doing volumes 2-6, but it's a nice cheap way to pick up the first volume and see what you think of the Dark Horse edition.
FnordChan
Maybe I will just try the first cheap Barnes & Noble Edition and see if I like it. Issues of the Marvel comic are not that hard to hunt down on eBay. It's kind of funny to hear that Marvel was adding in exposition. I remember being frustrated as a kid because I would pay like 8 or 10 bucks for an issue of Akira, and but get something that would only take me 10 minutes to read because there was hardly any text. Guess they should have added in more 
"Marvel had a house philosophy that a comics story must have absolute clarity at all times. It wasn't enough that the actions be visually clear, but text also informed the reader as to what was going on at any given moment. We freelancers referred to this practice as "Explaino." This is in opposition to the tradition you see in many manga, including Akira, where you often have long passages without any exposition or dialogue."
----Chris Warner
No wonder someone brought up on Spider-Man and Marvel Comics is so frustrated by the vagaries of the Akira anime
"Marvel had a house philosophy that a comics story must have absolute clarity at all times. It wasn't enough that the actions be visually clear, but text also informed the reader as to what was going on at any given moment. We freelancers referred to this practice as "Explaino." This is in opposition to the tradition you see in many manga, including Akira, where you often have long passages without any exposition or dialogue."
----Chris Warner
No wonder someone brought up on Spider-Man and Marvel Comics is so frustrated by the vagaries of the Akira anime
Kai Dracon
Writing a dinosaur space opera symphony
:lol
I think a LOT of people are pwning themselves in this thread.
I do NOT happen to think Akira is the greatest anime and think it does have some issues from compression. Same with the first GitS movie. However, by the same token, some people seem to really REALLY despise having to think about things, pay freakin' attention to details, or have little to no appreciation (or even comprehension) of indirect storytelling and anything other than the most HAM-FISTO mode of presentation.
Honestly, I didn't have to look up a FAQ for Akira and GitS when I saw them. I got the friggin' point the first time through and understood most everything, even if I was confused for a few minutes by afformentioned compression issues. I don't consider myself any kind of super genius or master of subtle filmmaking. Is it really so hard for some people to ever think just maybe, they're being a bit clueless? Or just not trying to use their brain?
:lol
I think a LOT of people are pwning themselves in this thread.
I do NOT happen to think Akira is the greatest anime and think it does have some issues from compression. Same with the first GitS movie. However, by the same token, some people seem to really REALLY despise having to think about things, pay freakin' attention to details, or have little to no appreciation (or even comprehension) of indirect storytelling and anything other than the most HAM-FISTO mode of presentation.
Honestly, I didn't have to look up a FAQ for Akira and GitS when I saw them. I got the friggin' point the first time through and understood most everything, even if I was confused for a few minutes by afformentioned compression issues. I don't consider myself any kind of super genius or master of subtle filmmaking. Is it really so hard for some people to ever think just maybe, they're being a bit clueless? Or just not trying to use their brain?
:lol
I can respect the importance of Akira in that it really helped jumpstart the American 'Japanimation' thing, but as a movie standing on its own merits, I can't say I enjoyed it much. I vaguely recall falling asleep towards the end of the movie the first time I watched it. The animation remains spectacular to this day (some cheesey early-era CGI aside), and there's alot of really great action sequences, but there's certainly better stuff to have come out of anime. I actually kind of enjoyed the Ghost in the Shell movie, yeah, it can get kind of convoluted in spots, but it seems a great 'rainy day' kind of slow-paced movie to me. Plus I thought the music and the tank battle sequence were spectacular. Yeah, the Stand Alone Complex series is MUCH better.
Property of Jumpship
Banned
I dont know if this was posted already; really didnt want to read all the posts, but the manga was like 2000 pages long and they tried to make a 2 hour movie out of it. It really only makes sense if youve read the manga. That being said however, the new translation done by Pioneer clears up some of the confusion. BTW I have seen AKIRA at least 50 times, its my favorite anime ever. I know I suck now, but oh well.
You should try and find the trade paperbacks of the Epic Comics Akira instead. It collects all the issues into 10 volumes except for the last 8, you'll have to buy those seperately, but it cuts down in how many issues you have to buy seperately. They're pretty hard to find, but it is cheaper.border said:Maybe I will just try the first cheap Barnes & Noble Edition and see if I like it. Issues of the Marvel comic are not that hard to hunt down on eBay. It's kind of funny to hear that Marvel was adding in exposition. I remember being frustrated as a kid because I would pay like 8 or 10 bucks for an issue of Akira, and but get something that would only take me 10 minutes to read because there was hardly any text. Guess they should have added in more
From my understanding, Otomo wouldn't allow Marvel to colorize it until they showed him something that he liked. Akira became the first series (there were oneshots and graphic novels before) to be computer colorized and it looks really good.
I have a lot of issues from Epic and starting buying the Dark Horse books, but stopped because I didn't see enough of a difference in the story to buy the next books.
Plus, color really helps in understanding what's going on and it's pretty too. =P
Warm Machine
Member
Thing about Akira is that it gets off to a great start with the world, the bike gangs, and the politics, and then abandons it in favor of a telekinetic battle and an abstract ending.
All I got at the end was that the Akira project had to do with ameoba like duplication and replication on a large scale...which doesn't explain the big explosion nor does it explain the flashbacks or the final trip through the solar system (which I assume was tacked on).
It is never really explained in any realistic terms why Tetsuo gets the powers from the old kid in the opening. It remains a leap the audience has to take.
All I got at the end was that the Akira project had to do with ameoba like duplication and replication on a large scale...which doesn't explain the big explosion nor does it explain the flashbacks or the final trip through the solar system (which I assume was tacked on).
It is never really explained in any realistic terms why Tetsuo gets the powers from the old kid in the opening. It remains a leap the audience has to take.
Tetsuo was only selected as a canidate when he met the old kid. The powers came from the procedures that ramped up his psychic ability, which, as explained in the cabinet meeting scene and others, is what the Akira project was all about... obtaining the power psychic ability had to offer.
Warm Machine
Member
They also describe Tetsuo's initial contact with number 27, or whatever he was called, was what initially effected him and jump started the powers.
Where is the leap between the psychic powers and the power of ameoba energy?
Where is the leap between the psychic powers and the power of ameoba energy?
I read the manga my friend had, and it was good. I saw the movie before that and still understood most of it though. The end is really the only wierd part IMO. Otherwise, it makes sense. The only thing I ever had questions about was Akira's actual significance in the whole thing. He's referenced multiple times, but they don't ever explain it fully. But if you can't get that movie then forget about GiTS, which frankly sucked balls. Great animation, but what a piece of shit movie that was. Then again, I'm not a huge fan of the cartoon series on CN either. But Akira will always be one of my favorites. My first anime, plus Tetsuo's character was pretty cool. PEACE.
shattyboombatty
Member
Willco said:
You fail as a movie watcher. Akira is complex, so dont expect for something to be awesome just becasue it automatically makes sense.
Well, Im going to have to jump in with some quick thoughts on the thread and not the movie.
Basically it seems to break down into 4 camps.
1. Akira is teh awesome.
2. Akira is teh awesome if you have read the manga.
3. Akira is not teh awesome if I have to read the manga.
4. I want some dragonball z.
The correct answer is number 1. Why? Well, basically because the movie is in fact independent to the manga. I had to hit page down when I read some orientalist (see Edward W. Said) bullshit about manga being big "over there" and that being some kinda of justification for people using the manga to infer plot points in the story.
I think people who have studied film throughly, appreciate Akira the movie on several levels.
Plot wise it is a sci-fi extrapolation of the buddhist sense of mappo combined with nagging nuclear holocaust fears. While the DVD special edition tries hard to translate all the graffitti in the movie, most are rife with buddhist double meanings. Further, Akira/Tetsuo as psychic weapons out of control goes straight to the long tradition of weapons in military control that get out of hand. This is linked to several occurances in Japanese history and film - notable the atomic bombs and the US Censorship of Japanese film during the occupation. When you take these themes into account, and view them along with the concepts of bullying, coming of age, and each characters individual desires for power or complete lack their of, Akira begins to make sense.
Technically, Akira is one of the first animate films to get the way lighting affects a metropolis looks completely right. It is a beautiful work. Due to its budget, it is also one of the more animated Japanese features - it is kinetic in the way characters move. Also pay attention to the size of characters in relation to their surroundings. Akira does an excellent job of conveying size in relation to the characters.
Note: Hopefully that makes sense to people without an academic background in cultural/film studies.
Basically it seems to break down into 4 camps.
1. Akira is teh awesome.
2. Akira is teh awesome if you have read the manga.
3. Akira is not teh awesome if I have to read the manga.
4. I want some dragonball z.
The correct answer is number 1. Why? Well, basically because the movie is in fact independent to the manga. I had to hit page down when I read some orientalist (see Edward W. Said) bullshit about manga being big "over there" and that being some kinda of justification for people using the manga to infer plot points in the story.
I think people who have studied film throughly, appreciate Akira the movie on several levels.
Plot wise it is a sci-fi extrapolation of the buddhist sense of mappo combined with nagging nuclear holocaust fears. While the DVD special edition tries hard to translate all the graffitti in the movie, most are rife with buddhist double meanings. Further, Akira/Tetsuo as psychic weapons out of control goes straight to the long tradition of weapons in military control that get out of hand. This is linked to several occurances in Japanese history and film - notable the atomic bombs and the US Censorship of Japanese film during the occupation. When you take these themes into account, and view them along with the concepts of bullying, coming of age, and each characters individual desires for power or complete lack their of, Akira begins to make sense.
Technically, Akira is one of the first animate films to get the way lighting affects a metropolis looks completely right. It is a beautiful work. Due to its budget, it is also one of the more animated Japanese features - it is kinetic in the way characters move. Also pay attention to the size of characters in relation to their surroundings. Akira does an excellent job of conveying size in relation to the characters.
Note: Hopefully that makes sense to people without an academic background in cultural/film studies.
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