Forum - View topicREVIEW: The Legend of Dororo and Hyakkimaru Volume 1
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Lord Geo
Posts: 2683 Location: North Brunswick, New Jersey |
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I literally just read this book during lunch today, and I certainly enjoyed it as well. What's become a notable aspect of Dororo over the 50+ years is that every single adaptation & re-imagining does something different from those before it, which makes it always enjoyable to re-experience it, and the fact that Tezuka infamously never gave it a proper ending means that each adaptation can do its own thing for a finale.
In this case, I actually really like how Biwamaru has been made into a full-on part of the crew, as before he would just appear every now & then and help out, but otherwise had nothing major, character-wise. The one line Bandai has regarding Biwamaru's potential true identity is already way more than the character has ever been given in the past, and I'm interested in seeing what Satoshi Shiki will be doing with that. However, while this story is over half a century old, I still object to just casually giving away spoiler[Dororo's actual gender] in this review, as all versions of this story do use it as a notable plot point, and Seven Seas' translation purposefully maintains it in this volume (likely enforced by Tezuka Pro). Yes, it's a pretty obvious spoiler after all this time, and this volume already gives immediate indications regarding it, but it is just a nagging sticking point with me, since I love this series so much & ideally want newcomers to go into it as blind as I did when I first experienced this story with the PS2 game Blood Will Tell back in the early 00s. And, just to clarify, it's not revealing the spoiler itself that I object to, but rather that it's been given away in a review of the first volume, which is way too early to do so; that'd be like revealing Ashita no Joe's iconic finale in a review of the start of the series. Just wait until it actually happens, is all I'm saying. |
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Gina Szanboti
Posts: 11603 |
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Yeah I was kinda shocked to see that spoiler just thrown out there like it was nothing. That really needs to be marked at least, or the sentence changed to avoid the reveal while still making the point he wanted to make about figuring out what is true and what are lies.
Blade-licking thieves and villains are my spirit animal!  I would check out the podcast, but podcasts are not my spirit animal.
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ANN_Lynzee
ANN Executive Editor
 Posts: 3036 Location: Email for assistance only |
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Adjusted for spoilers!
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Lord Geo
Posts: 2683 Location: North Brunswick, New Jersey |
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Thank you! Looking forward to reading this as Seven Seas puts it out, and to what Grant will have to say about it as it continues, as well. |
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Multi-Facets
Posts: 258 |
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If there's a new manga available, does this mean a DVD or Blu-ray release of the 2019 anime is far behind? I'd be thrilled if I could own it.
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Nordhmmer
Posts: 1028 |
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...why? The original author never intended for her gender reveal to be some sort of hook to be dragged out,as he reveals her gender very early on. Dororo being a girl surviving as boy in that brutal setting was the hook. And in what version/adaptation is Dororo's gender dragged out?Heck the movie portrays her as a full grown woman. |
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Lord Geo
Posts: 2683 Location: North Brunswick, New Jersey |
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It's almost never revealed outright from the very beginning in any version of this story, except for maybe the movie, & even then it's still slightly coy about it. There's a difference between hinting at it with varying degrees of strength, which is what all the stories do in some fashion early on, and outright stating it, which is always saved for later on in the story to tie in to Dororo's backstory, which also is never told right away. Just because you could tell from the very beginning doesn't mean that it was actually revealed. Every single English translation of this story always refers to Dororo as "he" in the beginning for this very reason, including Seven Seas' translation here. Sure, the original Dororo is not a long manga by any means, but this is something that's never just blurted out within the first volume or first few episodes of any version of the story, because it plays a factor later on. If you think this isn't an actual notable plot point, then I'm sorry but you haven't really experienced Dororo. |
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BadNewsBlues
Posts: 6320 |
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Should use a better example since Joe on his stool is a pretty iconic image that you'll see at least once before you either read or watch the series. |
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Freyanne
 Posts: 216 |
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Grant D Clown
ANN Reviewer
 Posts: 39 |
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Sorry folks! It didn't even cross my mind to consider that a spoiler given the age of the work and repeated adaptations, that's on me. Thanks Lynzee for going back and adjusting.
And believe me, I would never wish my podcast on any poor soul - I don't blame you for avoiding it 
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