Customer Reviews

Blame! Vol. 1

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

It's a bit pointless to review just one volume of a serialized manga, particularly one like this that really develops its continuity over its entire length. This can be a problem with manga books because if you like a series, you'll end up spending something like $100 or more to get the whole story.

In Japan, I've heard, they have Manga Cafes in which one can sit and read tankouban (as these collected volumes of previously serialized material are called). But a story like BLAME! deserves to be owned because of 1) the complexity of the storyline, and 2) the striking dark beauty of the artwork.

One of the things I enjoy most about Blame! is the way Nihei (trained as an architect) manages to create sublime images of calamitous, anarchic architectural spaces that are by turns claustrophobic and cavernous. And the substantial emotional impact of these spaces (the entire story, thus far, takes place within an oppressively infinite INTERIOR space) comes across magnificently even on these relatively small pages.

The story and characters are engaging as well, and in a way that binds them tightly to the space that surrounds them. Nihei succeeds in visualizing and "narrativizing" philosophical concepts about the interplay of (in)organic technologies and human(?) biology that rivals or even exceeds (or maybe it's just in a totally different dimension from) Shirow Masamune's (Ghost in the Shell) most interesting work - only without the "sexy" cyborg crotch shots on every page. And Nihei also achieves this without relying on tons of words on the page. His art speaks volumes - the linework is paradoxically crisp and filthy at the same time, and his sense of pacing is unparalleled - a breathtaking balance of panel-dense and show-stopping splash pages.

Lucky for us, there's alot more of Nihei's work currently available in Japan - just waiting to be translated for us English speakers (including a sequel to Blame! called Net Sphere Engineer).

When manga was first getting imported to the US market, you could pretty much trust that everything that hit the stands was decent, since the first books to get translated were the cream of the crop. Then, we started to see the real diversity of titles available in Japan, and, unfortunately, with diversity also comes a certain level of mediocrity.

Fortunately, there are still treasures out there for those willing to look for them, and BLAME! is one of those treasures. With unique artwork, a sinister and cryptic tale unfolds slowly before you and captures your attention in a way few manga can these days.

The first volume just misses the five star mark simply for the slow ramp-up, but it's worth it. I equate this first volume with the very first of Stephen King's Dark Tower books - it's a necessary intro, albeit a little clunky.

I've been interested in BLAME! ever since I found an art book on an import website. After readint through the volumes in Japanese, I must say I wasn't let down. This series is easily one of my favorites. Unfortunately, It also takes a while to get going.

The ten volume series tells the story of Killy as he wanders through the what was once the earth, and now is a gigantic city known as the megastructure which grows out of control. Despite it being a city, few humans are to be seen due to an infestation of beings known as Silicon Creatures (essentially cyborgs). Killy seeks the net terminal genes, or an individual who has them, in order to restore ballance to the city. He thus faces the perils of the megastructure armed with a superhuman constitution and a small pistol that punches holes two feet in diameter through whatever it hits.

What really sets BLAME! aside from many other manga is the unusual art style. Though it still contains the general feel of most Japanese comics the characters never seem to focus their eyes, which can be hard to get used to but adds to the lonely, hopeless atmosphere of the story. The also has a rather messy style, which may appeal to some but not to others. The factor that elevates the artwork though are the environments. From great bridges to monolithic towers the backdrops are truly masterpieces in their own right. The detail and depth is simply unmatched.

Unfortunately, the series suffers from a slow start, and thus the first volume is not up to par with the rest of the story. The artwork is still in its early stages, and visually improves as the series progresses. There are no monumental plot shifts in the story either. It's really more of an introduction. The story and artwork also appeals to only a limited audience, due to a story that requires a lot of thinking to fully understand (though perhaps not in this volume). Still, if you're looking for something unique with an art style that stands out and a story to match, BLAME! offers something that breaks away from the conventional.

Tsutomu Nihei's "Blame!" is a masterpiece. I've previewed the entire series before it was licensed in the United States and was amazed by 3 things:
1) the art - it's breath taking
2) the story - so many twist and turns! And,
3) the originality,
Blame! is a journey story at it's core. It's the story of Killy's quest to find a carrier of "net genes," but it carries a much greater depth than that. I'd tell you, but it would spoil the ride.

In this first book we are introduced to Killy, the main character who carries a very unique and powerful gun; the Cyborg race; Cibo, a female scientist turned adventure; the Guardians, an enigmatic force; and the terrible Safeguards among many others.

Blame! is 10 volumes long, each ~ 300 pgs. Tokyo pop is slowly releasing a new volumes every 3 months starting in August of 2005.
If you enjoy more than of the following, you will surely also like "Blame!:"
1) cyber punk novels (Neal Stephenson, etc)
2) good art
3) strange, but beatiful, stories
4) comics

For more information, read R. Gage's review.

Bilame is at once horrifying, disturbing, transcendant, and sublime. The monolithic subterranean cityscape that serves as a backdrop for the story inspires a pervading sense of oppressive grandeur and silent malignancy. Likewise, the bizarrely jabbering and deformed monstosities that haunt the depths of its concrete labyrinths are truly the stuff of nightmares. The sheer scale of the city dwarfs the few humans to no more than crumbs or specks.
Nihei's rough and expressionistic style bleeds raw emotion onto the page with savage scratchings and spatterings of ink, bringing to mind Piranesi and the etchings of Rembrandt. The storytelling is exceptional - novel camera angles heighten the drama and quick, sharp action sequences punctuate extended intervals of isolation. All in all Blame is a thoroughly entertaining and horrific read.

The series BLAME! goes beyond typical Manga. It is just an amazing class in drawing architectural spaces.
Tsutomu Nihei drawings are not the typical manga style, but he uses lots of high contrast ink work and most of the time the characters are set in impressive strange architectural spaces. They are beautifull, do not talk a lot and fight strange robots, while looking for some sort of lost original genetic material. It is a dark tale of things going completely wrong in the future.
This is the only Manga series I decided I needed to have.

this is quite possibly the best "comic book" ive ever read.
not only is it very interesting in general, it has great imagery. if you like sci-fi, action, or just something different this might be for you. its actually rather thought provoking as well. visually its fairly amazing, and overall its rather unique. it has a mood and feel all its own.

Blame! the manga from Tsutomu Nihei, is a crazy, dark, futuristic thriller. Full of tons of ambience and atmosphere that will leave you feeling like you are in the dark future. This can be directly contributed to the fact that Tsutomu started his career as a architect. His buildings are vast and edgy. When one sees his sprawling complexes they can actually imagine these buildings of the future. A great find for anyone who loves futuristic sci-fi. It's on the gory side at times, but nothing more than what the gritty future he provides would be. If your a manga fan at all pick it up.

I'll have to check out the second volume to form a full opinion of this series, but if this first book is any indication, I'd do well to pass on it.

Nihei's background is architecture, and it shines beautifully in BLAME! Unfortunately the artwork doesn't transcend into the characters and action sequences. The action is sloppy and scattered, the panel transition is disjointed and difficult to follow.

There's virtually no dialogue in this volume at all, so add that to the confusion and you've got a fairly weak title.

There are some interesting ideas in this series though, a world consisting of thousands of levels of metal corridors and chasms being the coolest of which.

Worth a look, but that's about it.

The text font was unbecomingly juvenile and was too reminiscent of American comic books. The diction of the translation was just as bad. The final result has the childish wording clashing with the complex art quality. The former wins out.