Underrated Manga: Devilman

[Angelcake the Fox]

Devilman!

Say that word anywhere in Japan (or any anime fan in general), and you'll get two different reactions: Glee, or disgust.

Devilman, like its creator Go Nagai, is one of the most controversial manga series ever produced. It is loaded with the kind of thing that the American religious right wouldn't like.

-Occultism? Check
-Demons? Check
-Nudity? Check
-Sexual innuendo? Check
-Heretical Biblical plot? Check
-Violence? Check! OMG CHECK!

This is one of the most violent manga ever created in the history of the medium. Torso rippings, decapitations, skewerings....you name it, its in here.

And the most shocking part about it is that this manga premiered in NINETEEN SEVENTY-THREE!!!!!

That's right, before Fist of the North Star, before Urotsukidoji:Legend of the Overfiend, this comic and its creator were repulsing, fascinating, and disgusting the population of Japan.

However, the controversy often overshadows the story, which is quite a shame. Despite the rather questionable content of his work, Go Nagai is as gifted a storyteller as Osamu Tezuka or Shotaro Ishinomori.

The story itself revolved around a kid named Akira. You see, Akira is a pure soul, meek and non-violent. However, something horrible is happening.

You see, millions of years ago, before humanity, the race that we call "Demons" walked the Earth. However, because of some great cataclysm, they were buried underneath the Earth. But now, they are coming back for some reason.

The only thing that can kill a demon, is another demon. So, in order for a human to kill a demon, he must become possesed by a demon, and be able to control it at the same time. This is exactly what happenes, as he is possesed by a demon named Amon. But because he is pure of heart, he is able to merge the best of both personatlities, Akira and Amon, and become Devilman!

The story is loaded with tons of plottwists, and there's no guarantee that your favorite character will survive the next page......or even if the good guys will win!

This particular manga is the ONLY Go Nagai manga available in the U.S. His other popular manga works, Mazinger Z and Cutey Honey, have yet to see the light of day here in America.

This title is available from Glenn Danzig's publishing company, Verotik comics, the people who brought you Death Dealer, Jaguar God, Sunglasses After Dark, and other such things.

Oh, BTW, in case I haven't made it perfectly clear yet, this comic, although originally designed and published in Weekly Shonen Jump for boys in Japan, is very violent, and has some VERY questionable material. So, keep this away from the little ones.

That being said, please enjoy this manga. It's one of my favorites.

[Shishio]

I absolutely love this manga.

And... Oh... my... god... Is it really available in English? Unedited? Have all the volumes been released yet? And how in hell did I miss out? (That last question is rhetorical, pay no mind to my self-hating ramblings.)

Since you seem fairly knowledgeable about manga, I would like to ask you about the Devilman continuity. I would greatly appreciate you answering my questions if you can.

First, how many Devilman manga titles are there? I know of the original 5 volume series of which you speak, Amon, which is written by Nagai-sensei and illustrated by Kinutani Yuu, and Neo-Devilman, which, if I remember correctly, is a three volume series of Devilman short stories done by various artists.

There is also Amon: Mokushiro, which started last year I believe. Any others?

And second, how do they all fit together? I have read Amon and the original series, and I can only conclude that Amon is a retelling of the original story. If this is the case, do you know why Nagai-sensei decided to do this? And if not, how does it fit into Devilman continuity? I am also curious to know how the other series fit together.

Thank you for your time.

[Angelcake the Fox]

I absolutely love this manga.

And... Oh... my... god... Is it really available in English? Unedited? Have all the volumes been released yet? And how in hell did I miss out? (That last question is rhetorical, pay no mind to my self-hating ramblings.)

Since you seem fairly knowledgeable about manga, I would like to ask you about the Devilman continuity. I would greatly appreciate you answering my questions if you can.

First, how many Devilman manga titles are there? I know of the original 5 volume series of which you speak, Amon, which is written by Nagai-sensei and illustrated by Kinutani Yuu, and Neo-Devilman, which, if I remember correctly, is a three volume series of Devilman short stories done by various artists.

There is also Amon: Mokushiro, which started last year I believe. Any others?

And second, how do they all fit together? I have read Amon and the original series, and I can only conclude that Amon is a retelling of the original story. If this is the case, do you know why Nagai-sensei decided to do this? And if not, how does it fit into Devilman continuity? I am also curious to know how the other series fit together.

Thank you for your time.

Yes, it is available in English from Verotik comics. Completely Unedited (which is no surprise, since pretty much all of the comics in Verotik publishing are....more or less, for mature audiences like Devilman.) Last time I checked, there are currently three volumes of the manga availabe.

As for Amon, that was the manga version of a recent OAV that retells the Devilman story. It was actually a pay-per-view event in Japan and broke previous pay-per-view records. The only reason I can think of Nagai-san redoing the original series is because he wanted to update the artwork for today's contemporary audience, or he wanted to add new plot elements that he wasn't previously able to use, due to censorship issues.

Let's see.....other Devilman manga.....

Well, there's the super awesome spinnoff, Devilman Lady (which is also 5 volumes long). This was also made into an anime that was loosely based on the manga, and is available from ADV as Go Nagai's The Devil Lady. Although this story has various plot elements from the original Devilman, it is a completely new and original story.

There's also the unofficial prequel to Devilman, the uncompleted Demon Lord Dante. Nagai used alot of ideas from this story in Devilman, including his signature plot elements, namely taking orthodox Christian doctrine and turning it on its ear.

There's also the VERY long sequel to Devilman, Violence Jack. This is a post-apocalyptic story that takes place a few years after Devilman. I'm not kidding when I say long: This manga is 9 volumes long, each of which are more than NINE HUNDRED PAGES per volume. That's EIGHTY-ONE HUNDRED PAGES altogether!

Together, Demon Lord Dante, Devilman, and Violence Jack form an unofficial apocalyptoc trilogy.

I hope that helps. Happy Devilman-ing.

[Shishio]

It does. Thank you very much.

I had heard of the titles you mentioned, but was not aware that Demon Lord Dante was related to Devilman. I remember having heard that Violence Jack takes place after Devilman, and features a freakishly large man who rules other through violence.

I have the Amon: Apocalypse of Devilman OAV, and it's decent, but a rather poor job was done on the subtitles... "I make you died", anyone?

I prefer the original story to the Amon remakes. I hate screwy continuities... It's almost as bad as the whole Record of Lodoss War OAV and series thing.

Anyway, thanks again.

Edit:

Oh, I forgot to mention, Cutey Honey has also been translated in English by Iron Cat studios. I think they are out of business now, and I'm not sure how much they translated, but I do have a Cutey Honey chapter published in the format of a Western comic book.

[Angelcake the Fox]

It does. Thank you very much.

I had heard of the titles you mentioned, but was not aware that Demon Lord Dante was related to Devilman. I remember having heard that Violence Jack takes place after Devilman, and features a freakishly large man who rules other through violence.

I have the Amon: Apocalypse of Devilman OAV, and it's decent, but a rather poor job was done on the subtitles... "I make you died", anyone?

I prefer the original story to the Amon remakes. I hate screwy continuities... It's almost as bad as the whole Record of Lodoss War OAV and series thing.

Anyway, thanks again.

Edit:

Oh, I forgot to mention, Cutey Honey has also been translated in English by Iron Cat studios. I think they are out of business now, and I'm not sure how much they translated, but I do have a Cutey Honey chapter published in the format of a Western comic book.

Demon Lord Dante isn't OFFICIALLY a part of the Devilman franchise. It IS, however, considered a prototype of Devilman, as alot of plot devices and the overall feel of the comic were taken over to Devilman. Also, if you read it (or view it) in a certain way, it can come off as a prequel (though, like I said, it was never finished).

As for Cutey Honey, the book your refering to is actually the 1990 REMAKE of Cutey Honey, not the original. Its good, over all, but the original is always best.

[Shishio]

Ah, I see.

When you said you thought three volumes of Devilman were out in English... Might have you meant issues? Because upon looking into it on Verotik's website, they seem to be publishing it in the Western comic format.

[Angelcake the Fox]

Merf!

Ah, yes. You're right. Sorry, my mistake!