In the aftermath of a strange earthquake, an entire elementary school vanishes, leaving nothing but a hole in the ground. While parents mourn and authorities investigate, the students and teachers of find themselves somewhere far away?somewhere cold and dark... a lifeless, nightmarish wasteland among which their school stands like a lone fortress. As panic turns to terror, as the rules start to fall apart, a 6th-grade boy named Sho and his friends must try to survive in a hostile new world...
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About the Author
Kazuo Umezu was born September 3, 1936 in Wakayama, Japan. Umezu, who started drawing professionally in the 1950s, is considered the most influential horror manga artist ever. His many horror and sci-fi/horror works include Nekome Kozo ("The Cat-Eyed Kid", 1967-1968), Orochi, The Drifting Classroom (1972-1974), Ultraman (a manga adaptation of the TV series), Senrei ("Baptism"), My Name is Shingo, The Left Hand of God/Right Hand of the Devil, and Fourteen. His popular gag series Makoto-Chan (1976) and Again prove that Umezu is also an accomplished humor cartoonist. (He is also a musician.) Umezu's weird style, incredible ideas and sometimes terrifying imagery have made him a fixture of Japanese pop culture, and his work has been adapted into movies, anime and collectibles.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Why So Long For Such A Great Title?,
By
This review is from: The Drifting Classroom, Vol. 2 (Paperback)
Manga-ka Kazou Umezu has been making Japanese comics for decades. One of his most famous properties is The Drifting Classroom, first published in Japan in 1976. In 2006, VIZ Media (American huckster of all manner of Japanese medium) began the publication of a newly adapted English translation of this title. The question remains: why did it take thirty years?In brief, the story surrounds the horrific set of circumstances behind which an entire Japanese school building vanishes, leaving no sign but a crater in its passing. The reader (dare I say, audience?) watches through the eyes of two main characters - sixth-grader Sho Takamatsu, and his widowed mother - from either side of the disaster. As Sho and his classmates wonder what has happened to them, the school building being the only remaining structure to be seen in a desolate, sand-filled world reminiscent of Frank Herbert's Dune, Sho's mother grieves the loss of her only son in what appeared to be a tragic explosion which took the lives of all 862 occupants of Yamato Elementary. This second volume of The Drifting Classroom, Vol. 2 unleashes a rapid-fire assault on the imagination. While the first book developed the characters of Sho, his mother, and a select few classmates - as well as introduced the major plot device - this volume begins what promises to be a fatalistic barrage on the senses of the characters, and thus the readers, in close succession. Whereas Volume 1 begets the promise of unimaginably horrible things to come, Volume 2 begins to deliver. As the gravity of their plight begins to set in, the adults of the book (the stranded teachers and school staff) begin to lose their touch with renowned-Japanese civility, sanity, and - for some - life itself. And as reality shifts, the terrified students begin to lose their lives, as well. And this all occurs within mere hours of the fateful event! Fantagraphics' Comics Journal describes the series as "Lord of the Flies on amphetamines." Volume 2 brings truth and validation to this observation. Mr. Umezu's artwork in this volume is solid, though somewhat dated (not that this is such a bad thing), and looks a little awkward during certain scenes of frantic movement (for example, when a student is running, the pose looks decidedly superimposed over a Manga-esque backdrop, rather than to create a flawless illusion of fluid motion). This phenomenon in The Drifting Classroom, Vol. 2 is, however, less obvious than it was in its predecessorand does nothing to detract from the horror of the book's tale. So, why did it take thirty years for such a unique, cutting, powerful Manga to be released in North America? It is impossible to answer definitively, but there might be something to the suggestion that the subject matter was simply too disturbing in the past, somehow too real, even in its speculative fictional realm, for the North American audience. That is to say, the gentle reader knows and accepts that a building cannot simply vanish for no reason... however, if one could accept such a stretch in the reader's known reality, then The Drifting Classroom could easily become quite a traumatic study of human nature. And, backed by the devastating events of 9/11... ...Maybe the underlying concept wasn't so far-fetched, after all?
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Improvements over the last volume,
By animate ~ "Rob" (Fayetteville, NC) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Drifting Classroom, Vol. 2 (Paperback)
When I reviewed the first volume, I believe I noted that the pacing seemed somewhat 'off' at times and had a tendency to lag---no more! This second offering of this psychological gore rollercoaster picks up from the exact frame we were left with at the end of Vol. 1.The children, now distraught and fearful for their lives, have come together (a bit too quickly I might add) and shielded themselves from the madness and death that captures most of the teachers. A crazed lunch worker hunts Sho and the rest of the school while protecting the entire school's food supply; greedy and mad, he kills several students and injures more. When the children realize they can venture out into 'the sandbox', things get even stranger and this quickly becomes an action comic. Fast reading, and not for the faint of heart. I recommend this to anyone of age. Kazz works his magic again, and while I don't think THE DRIFTING CLASSROOM is a particularly strong title yet, I can see where it might be heading--right into my favorites list for a long, long time. Mildly recommended.
5.0 out of 5 stars
just as good as the first one,
This review is from: The Drifting Classroom, Vol. 2 (Paperback)
this one was great. the kids are getting restless and more and more violent.... the adults are all dead except fop one. and he is a JERK.. keep on reading this series.
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