Naoki Urasawa's Monster, Vol. 2 (Paperback)

by Naoki Urasawa (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Brilliant doctor Kenzo Tenma risks his reputation and promising career to save the life of a critically wounded young boy. Unbeknownst to him, this child is destined for a terrible fate. Conspiracies, serial murders, and a scathing depiction of the underbelly of hospital politics are all masterfully woven together in this compelling manga thriller. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

About the Author
Born in 2nd Jan. 1960, Osaka, Japan.

Graduate of Meisei University. Won New Manga Artist Award of Shogakukan in 1982 . Début : Return(1981)

Won the 35th Shogakukan Manga Award in 1990. Winner of the 3rd TEZUKA Osamu Award in 1999 by Asahi Newspaper, Grand Prix(by Monster)

Works list ; Master Keaton, Keaton's Zoology, The Dancing Policeman, Jigoro!, N.A.S.A., Pineapple Army, Yawara!, Happy!, Monster, The 20th century boys, Pluto --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Paperback: 216 pages
• Publisher: VIZ Media LLC; 1 edition (April 18, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1421501120
• ISBN-13: 978-1421501123
• Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #200,831 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in this category: (What's this?)

  #50 in

  Books > Comics & Graphic Novels > Manga > Mystery

• This is item 2 in The MONSTER / English Series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant, but a Little Slow, April 20, 2006

By	Antonio D. Paolucci "Collector of Entertainment" (Beaver Falls, PA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

(This review was written solely for vol. 2 of Monster, not vol. 3, where this review is also posted. I had no control over this; it was mistakinly posted as a review for vol. 3 by Amazon.com.)

Once I finished this second volume of Monster, I was amazed at how such a simple manga could achieve what this one did. The multi-tiered plot continues to get thicker, and the tension builds as the characters interact. Plus, the simple art style seems to add rather than take away, and in many ways legitimizes this story by taking away some of the exaggerated models found in most manga. And, as if I didn't have enough to make this good, the dialogue is top-notch and believable, which is key to me when reading manga as matching the words to the art is often mishandled, especially in translated manga.

The story, continuing from volume one, follows Tenma as he searches for the twin of the boy Tenma saved. But he's having a difficult time digging up information, and finding people to take him seriously. That's mostly because the twin does not have her memories from that time, and even goes by a different name... Later on, we also get to see how desperate Tenma becomes during his search for the killer of the families. He changes drastically, almost to the point of inhumanity, all in the efforts to stop a plague he believes he released on Germany.

To be honest, the continuing story in this volume slows a bit from the previous volume, which was slow itself. Though the first few chapters where Tenma searches for the twin is dramatic and in direct correlation with the last volume, it gets away from that when old characters are reintroduced and new ones are brought in. It doesn't make it bad in any way, but it seems to lengthen an already massive story, and it leaves me hungering for the third volume in this series so that things can get back to normal.

I can still recommend this manga above any other right now, though, as the story is as intelligent as I've ever found in manga. The technical details and nonchalant style of art doesn't weigh the plot down in any way, and the constantly building suspense makes you wish that they released graphic novels in larger formats (say four-hundred page hardbacks). To compare, Monster goes well alongside Death Note in terms of suspense, but because it has no fantasy elements, there is something about the horror in Monster that puts it above Death Note.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An elaborate, mature series, May 5, 2006

By	Hyde Chua "the h" (Singapore) - See all my reviews

Dr. Tenma, a neurosurgeon who finds himself caught in a moral quagmire, chose to execute what he believed was right when he ignored the hospital's orders and instead operated on a boy who had been shot through the head.

The series then brings us down a horrifying trail of serial murders as Dr Tenma goes down his path in search of the serial murder - the boy whom he resurrected. He accumulates clues and evidences, which ultimately point towards a greater, more horrifying social experiment.

While the series may be slow in pace, its intensive execution of emotions is well-played: there is enough time for transition between multitudes of emotions. This is important and lends the story depth, for as the story progresses, characters are fleshed out, like multi-faceted gems. Therefore, though it may be slow, it is certainly not boring; the psychological aspects of small characters bring to life the conspiracy and makes it a very real experience for the reader.

Urasawa's art is also competantly executed and highly dynamic in its own right.

The storyline itself brings us face-to-face with death and the darkest aspects of human nature. It goes beyond its genre and dishes out very poignant, but illuminating questions about human nature and what it means to be human.

If you are looking for easy entertainment, don't bother reading this series. On the other hand, if you want to learn more about life, finish this series. It is a ride through the kindest and the cruellest aspects of human nature, a ride which began and culminated with this fundamental question: The value of life.

4.0 out of 5 stars Urasawa kicks it into gear here., March 30, 2009

By	Robert P. Beveridge "xterminal" (Cleveland, OH) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Naoki Urasawa, Monster: Surprise Party (ViZ, 1995)

Urasawa really kicks Monster into gear in Surprise Party, its second volume. It's nine years after the events of the first book, and Tenma has stopped practicing medicine in order to track down Johan, the monster who gives the series its name. As the story opens, we're introduced to a law student in Heidelberg, Nina, who aspires to be a federal prosecutor. She starts getting anonymous love-notes via email, and her friends are convinced it's the cute new guy in class. But Nina's email address is only given to trusted friends... top-notch suspense here. Highly recommended. ****