Yoshiharu Tsuge
September 11, 2004 12:27 PM
I'd like to learn more about the Japanese comics artist Yoshiharu Tsuge.
Earlier today I went to an exhibition of Japanese woodprints and comics (I'm no manga fan, I went there for the woodprints). When I was there, I picked up a manga paperback. I couldn't understand any of it, but the faces, drawing style and general mood of two stories, by the same artist, fascinated me. I had to read them to the end even though I didn't understand them. This didn't look like the usual wide-eyed teenage manga.
When flipping through an English book on manga I recognized the artist: Yoshiharu Tsuge (I also recognized the signs on the cover of the magazine I've been reading: the paperback was Garo, apparently a legendary manga magazine).
Is any of Tsuge's work translated into English? I haven't found anything on Amazon or Barnes & Noble. Any web sites about him that you could recommend?
And what's scanlation? Is this fans scanning and translating manga on their own?
Earlier today I went to an exhibition of Japanese woodprints and comics (I'm no manga fan, I went there for the woodprints). When I was there, I picked up a manga paperback. I couldn't understand any of it, but the faces, drawing style and general mood of two stories, by the same artist, fascinated me. I had to read them to the end even though I didn't understand them. This didn't look like the usual wide-eyed teenage manga.
When flipping through an English book on manga I recognized the artist: Yoshiharu Tsuge (I also recognized the signs on the cover of the magazine I've been reading: the paperback was Garo, apparently a legendary manga magazine).
Is any of Tsuge's work translated into English? I haven't found anything on Amazon or Barnes & Noble. Any web sites about him that you could recommend?
And what's scanlation? Is this fans scanning and translating manga on their own?
And what's scanlation? Is this fans scanning and translating manga on their own?
Pretty much, the stuff on manganews is stuff that hasn't been licensed to be translated into English yet. Manganews list a couple titles that he was involved with might be translated by the fan group kotonoha but they apparently haven't started. Maybe they might do it maybe not. They seem to be distributing stuff via bittorrent here.
I amazed by the volume of anime and manga that's being fan translated, some anime series are digitized and subtitled within a day or two of appearing of Japanese television. Unfortunately it's the more 'popular' and 'current' stuff that gets translated first, so who knows if any of his stuff will get the scanlation treatment.
It looks like his stuff has been translated into French, which isn't unusual, manga and anime caught on in France before America so it's quite common to see some stuff translated into French first.
posted by bobo123 at 4:56 PM on September 11, 2004
Pretty much, the stuff on manganews is stuff that hasn't been licensed to be translated into English yet. Manganews list a couple titles that he was involved with might be translated by the fan group kotonoha but they apparently haven't started. Maybe they might do it maybe not. They seem to be distributing stuff via bittorrent here.
I amazed by the volume of anime and manga that's being fan translated, some anime series are digitized and subtitled within a day or two of appearing of Japanese television. Unfortunately it's the more 'popular' and 'current' stuff that gets translated first, so who knows if any of his stuff will get the scanlation treatment.
It looks like his stuff has been translated into French, which isn't unusual, manga and anime caught on in France before America so it's quite common to see some stuff translated into French first.
posted by bobo123 at 4:56 PM on September 11, 2004
This page claims that one of his manga, Nejishiki, was translated for The Comics Journal's 250th issue. I'd suggest that you start with this, as it should be available, and it seems to be his seminal work.
Here is a site dedicated to him. It's in Japanese, but it should be helpful if you decide to order Japanese editions of his work. From the "works" page, it looks like there are four major collections of his work: "Nejishiki, Kurenai Hana" ("Screw Style" and "The Crimson Flower"), "Yoshio no Seishun, Betsuri" ("Yoshio's Youth" and "Separation"), "Munou no Hito, Hi no Tawamure" ("The Incompetent Man" and "The Sun's Joke"), and "Arijigoku, Koya no Yado" ("Antlion" and "The Withered-Field Inn"). All the transations are mine, I've no idea if there's an accepted English title for these. Sasuga Books should be able to help you with ordering the Japanese editions, or you can get them from the Amazon.co.jp links above. If you need a translation of something on any of these pages, drop me an email.
On preview, CrunchyFrog beat me to the Comics Journal part...
posted by vorfeed at 4:58 PM on September 11, 2004
Here is a site dedicated to him. It's in Japanese, but it should be helpful if you decide to order Japanese editions of his work. From the "works" page, it looks like there are four major collections of his work: "Nejishiki, Kurenai Hana" ("Screw Style" and "The Crimson Flower"), "Yoshio no Seishun, Betsuri" ("Yoshio's Youth" and "Separation"), "Munou no Hito, Hi no Tawamure" ("The Incompetent Man" and "The Sun's Joke"), and "Arijigoku, Koya no Yado" ("Antlion" and "The Withered-Field Inn"). All the transations are mine, I've no idea if there's an accepted English title for these. Sasuga Books should be able to help you with ordering the Japanese editions, or you can get them from the Amazon.co.jp links above. If you need a translation of something on any of these pages, drop me an email.
On preview, CrunchyFrog beat me to the Comics Journal part...
posted by vorfeed at 4:58 PM on September 11, 2004
Thanks for your replies! Today I've read the story in The Comics Journal. And my city library had one small paperback with his comcis, called "Nejishiki" (I'm impressed). As it's in Japanese it's completely incomprehensible to me. I borrowed it anyway.
Maybe I should have said that when I posted my question I had already found out that his story "Screw Style" was translated in The Comics Journal #250 and that "L'homme sans talent" had recently been published in France. I asked because I expected that there would be much more of his stories available in the West and on the net – Tsuge seems to be one of the biggest names in the field of manga. Several times I've seen him compared to Crumb. In The Comics Journal he was even compared to Hergé. With all the manga fans on the net I thought there would be lots by/about him on line.
If you need a translation of something on any of these pages, drop me an email.
Vorfeed: do you read Japanese? I haven't got any questions right now, but if you don't mind I'll take you up on your offer and e-mail you some questions later on.
posted by Termite at 9:28 AM on September 12, 2004
Maybe I should have said that when I posted my question I had already found out that his story "Screw Style" was translated in The Comics Journal #250 and that "L'homme sans talent" had recently been published in France. I asked because I expected that there would be much more of his stories available in the West and on the net – Tsuge seems to be one of the biggest names in the field of manga. Several times I've seen him compared to Crumb. In The Comics Journal he was even compared to Hergé. With all the manga fans on the net I thought there would be lots by/about him on line.
If you need a translation of something on any of these pages, drop me an email.
Vorfeed: do you read Japanese? I haven't got any questions right now, but if you don't mind I'll take you up on your offer and e-mail you some questions later on.
posted by Termite at 9:28 AM on September 12, 2004
Vorfeed: do you read Japanese? I haven't got any questions right now, but if you don't mind I'll take you up on your offer and e-mail you some questions later on.
Yeah, I read Japanese. I'll be happy to help you out.
As for the lack of Tsuge stuff in English, the English manga market is like that. English-translated manga has been around for ten years or more, but the market didn't get big until very recently (two or three years ago). A lot of the classics are not just unreleased, but totally unknown to the majority of manga fans. To be honest, the manga market is still very much focused on titles that will be popular with teens... it'll be a few more years before the classics really start to be appreciated for what they are.
Tezuka's Buddha is finally coming out, though. It's expensive, at $25 per volume for an eight-volume set, but I would highly recommend it if you're interested in classic manga. Tezuka's Phoenix is great, too.
posted by vorfeed at 12:23 PM on September 12, 2004
Yeah, I read Japanese. I'll be happy to help you out.
As for the lack of Tsuge stuff in English, the English manga market is like that. English-translated manga has been around for ten years or more, but the market didn't get big until very recently (two or three years ago). A lot of the classics are not just unreleased, but totally unknown to the majority of manga fans. To be honest, the manga market is still very much focused on titles that will be popular with teens... it'll be a few more years before the classics really start to be appreciated for what they are.
Tezuka's Buddha is finally coming out, though. It's expensive, at $25 per volume for an eight-volume set, but I would highly recommend it if you're interested in classic manga. Tezuka's Phoenix is great, too.
posted by vorfeed at 12:23 PM on September 12, 2004
This thread is closed to new comments.
So, if you can find issue 250 of The Comics Journal, you're set.
posted by CrunchyFrog at 4:43 PM on September 11, 2004