NEW MARUO BOOK: "RAMPO PANORAMA"

As some of you have perhaps already seen on my twitter or on the EnterBrain site, a new book was released by Suehiro Maruo this month in Japan! Unlike his last two works, this release is more of an art book than a proper manga. But like his last few published works, the theme of this collection is the world and works of the king of Japanese noir & macabre, Edogawa Rampo!

The book is titled RAMPO PANORAMA, and looks really stunning:


I've ordered a copy via my local Kinokuniya, and will be picking it up after work tomorrow. Full details on the book size/cost are all on the EnterBrain online shop. From my understanding (and hearing from Same Hat buddy Ho-Ling), the book includes the following things:

• A collection of various Rampo-inspired paintings, drawings, album art, etc. from Suehiro Maruo's long career.


• Sketches and designs from Maruo's work on The Strange Tale of Panorama Island and Caterpillar, his previous longer-form adaptations of Rampo stories.


• Maruo's third manga adaptation of an Edogawa Rampo story, a shorter manga this time of 踊る一寸法師 (Odoru Odoru Isshunboush - Dancing Dwarf).


• Nice art book paper stock and a great painted cover.

I'm not sure exactly how long it is or more specifics yet, but I'm planning to post pictures of this book over the weekend, once I've gotten my hands on my own copy! Have any of you seen the book in person? What do you think of it?

NEW MARUO BOOK: "RAMPO PANORAMA"

As some of you have perhaps already seen on my twitter or on the EnterBrain site, a new book was released by Suehiro Maruo this month in Japan! Unlike his last two works, this release is more of an art book than a proper manga. But like his last few published works, the theme of this collection is the world and works of the king of Japanese noir & macabre, Edogawa Rampo!

The book is titled RAMPO PANORAMA, and looks really stunning:


I've ordered a copy via my local Kinokuniya, and will be picking it up after work tomorrow. Full details on the book size/cost are all on the EnterBrain online shop. From my understanding (and hearing from Same Hat buddy Ho-Ling), the book includes the following things:

• A collection of various Rampo-inspired paintings, drawings, album art, etc. from Suehiro Maruo's long career.


• Sketches and designs from Maruo's work on The Strange Tale of Panorama Island and Caterpillar, his previous longer-form adaptations of Rampo stories.


• Maruo's third manga adaptation of an Edogawa Rampo story, a shorter manga this time of 踊る一寸法師 (Odoru Odoru Isshunboush - Dancing Dwarf).


• Nice art book paper stock and a great painted cover.

I'm not sure exactly how long it is or more specifics yet, but I'm planning to post pictures of this book over the weekend, once I've gotten my hands on my own copy! Have any of you seen the book in person? What do you think of it?

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, EDOGAWA RAMPO

Just wanted to give a quick happy birthday shout-out to one of my all-time favorite authors, Mr. Edogawa Rampo. October 21 marks his 115th birthday, and with the recent Japanese releases of Suehiro Maruo's manga adaptations of The Strange Tale of Panorama Island and Caterpillar, Rampo continues to be relevant and prevalent in Japanese popular culture.

Here was my tribute post last year, with a photo of his grave (marked with his birth name, Hirai Taro).



As it's already 10/21 in Japan, Google has marked the godfather of Japanese mystery fiction's birthday with a commemorative doodle:


I actually have that exact book (少年探偵団 - Shounen Tanteidan, Youth Detective Squad) sitting on my desk in front of me. I've been reading it slowly to try to get steeped in Rampology this month as I get back to work on Panorama Island.


Which was also made into a Japanese TV show:

With accompanying toys:


UPDATE: Same Hat friend Ho-Ling has just posted his translation of Edogawa Rampo's One Person, Two Identities. Check it out right here.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, EDOGAWA RAMPO

Just wanted to give a quick happy birthday shout-out to one of my all-time favorite authors, Mr. Edogawa Rampo. October 21 marks his 115th birthday, and with the recent Japanese releases of Suehiro Maruo's manga adaptations of The Strange Tale of Panorama Island and Caterpillar, Rampo continues to be relevant and prevalent in Japanese popular culture.

Here was my tribute post last year, with a photo of his grave (marked with his birth name, Hirai Taro).



As it's already 10/21 in Japan, Google has marked the godfather of Japanese mystery fiction's birthday with a commemorative doodle:


I actually have that exact book (少年探偵団 - Shounen Tanteidan, Youth Detective Squad) sitting on my desk in front of me. I've been reading it slowly to try to get steeped in Rampology this month as I get back to work on Panorama Island.


Which was also made into a Japanese TV show:

With accompanying toys:


UPDATE: Same Hat friend Ho-Ling has just posted his translation of Edogawa Rampo's One Person, Two Identities. Check it out right here.

CHAPTER 4 OF SUEHIRO MARUO'S IMOMUSHI

Four months, and four chapters of Suehiro Maruo's sick and exquisite Imomushi. Chapter 4 marks the conclusion of Imomushi, and was published in the September Issue of COMIC BEAM.


I was a bit sad to see the story end so quickly, but with such a short story as source material, Maruo was able to weave quite an interesting manga. Most of the substance and tension is stuffed into this final chapter, which is gorier and more violent than 99% of The Strange Tale of Panorama Island.

Maruo's adaptation of Imomushi pulls no punches in delivering Edogawa Rampo's bleak tale, though I have to admit the final moments of the story work slightly better in prose than manga form. That said, read as a complete manga, Imomushi is a steamy and great piece of upsetting work.

Check out my first post for details on the plot of Edogawa Rampo's short story, The Caterpillar.

CHECK OUT THESE PANELS FROM THE FINAL CHAPTER:

To celebrate the completion of the story, this month's Comic Beam came with a Imomushi folder :)


Things take a turn for the cruel and psycho-sexual immediately.


Three blind men in the street; all the secondary characters are super odd and malformed in this manga.


OUCH.


The doctor pays a visit, how will Tokiko explain what has happened?


Lt. Sunaga's descent into Johnny Get Your Gun-esque sensory deprivation


yurusu... yurusu... YURUSU!!!


That is what I call a moment of realization.


So goddamn good, Mr. Maruo! My hat is off to you on this panel.


Final moments.

Fans of this golden streak of Suehiro Maruo x Edogawa Rampo, fear not! The author's bio section in the back of the issue mentions that Maruo's next piece (serialized in COMIC BEAM) will be another Edogawa Rampo adaptation/collaboration. I wonder which short story it will be? The Twins? Red Chamber? The Finger?

I am guessing whatever Maruo chooses, it will be adapted another 4-chapter manga... with a book collecting it with Imomushi sometime early 2010 in Japan? That is just a guess though, we'll see what happense! Needless to say, I personally strongly hope that Imomushi will have the chance to see publication in English at some point in the future!

UPDATE: That was the fastest I've been proven wrong in a while. My buddy Monika posted in a the comments a link to a new release on the EnterBrain site. Seems I was wrong, they are releasing Imomushi as a standalone tankoban this month! 148 pages and the same size as their Panorama Island release. How cool- thanks Monika!! :) Time to send some emails!

CHAPTER 4 OF SUEHIRO MARUO'S IMOMUSHI

Four months, and four chapters of Suehiro Maruo's sick and exquisite Imomushi. Chapter 4 marks the conclusion of Imomushi, and was published in the September Issue of COMIC BEAM.


I was a bit sad to see the story end so quickly, but with such a short story as source material, Maruo was able to weave quite an interesting manga. Most of the substance and tension is stuffed into this final chapter, which is gorier and more violent than 99% of The Strange Tale of Panorama Island.

Maruo's adaptation of Imomushi pulls no punches in delivering Edogawa Rampo's bleak tale, though I have to admit the final moments of the story work slightly better in prose than manga form. That said, read as a complete manga, Imomushi is a steamy and great piece of upsetting work.

Check out my first post for details on the plot of Edogawa Rampo's short story, The Caterpillar.

CHECK OUT THESE PANELS FROM THE FINAL CHAPTER:

To celebrate the completion of the story, this month's Comic Beam came with a Imomushi folder :)


Things take a turn for the cruel and psycho-sexual immediately.


Three blind men in the street; all the secondary characters are super odd and malformed in this manga.


OUCH.


The doctor pays a visit, how will Tokiko explain what has happened?


Lt. Sunaga's descent into Johnny Get Your Gun-esque sensory deprivation


yurusu... yurusu... YURUSU!!!


That is what I call a moment of realization.


So goddamn good, Mr. Maruo! My hat is off to you on this panel.


Final moments.

Fans of this golden streak of Suehiro Maruo x Edogawa Rampo, fear not! The author's bio section in the back of the issue mentions that Maruo's next piece (serialized in COMIC BEAM) will be another Edogawa Rampo adaptation/collaboration. I wonder which short story it will be? The Twins? Red Chamber? The Finger?

I am guessing whatever Maruo chooses, it will be adapted another 4-chapter manga... with a book collecting it with Imomushi sometime early 2010 in Japan? That is just a guess though, we'll see what happense! Needless to say, I personally strongly hope that Imomushi will have the chance to see publication in English at some point in the future!

UPDATE: That was the fastest I've been proven wrong in a while. My buddy Monika posted in a the comments a link to a new release on the EnterBrain site. Seems I was wrong, they are releasing Imomushi as a standalone tankoban this month! 148 pages and the same size as their Panorama Island release. How cool- thanks Monika!! :) Time to send some emails!

CHAPTER 3 OF SUEHIRO MARUO'S IMOMUSHI

Another month, another creepy and disturbingly good chapter of Suehiro Maruo's fantastic Imomushi was released. Chapter 3 debuted in the August issue of COMIC BEAM, which came out in July and arrived at my local Kinokuniya last week.



Check out my first post for details on the plot of Edogawa Rampo's short story, The Caterpillar.

I heard from Moni again, it turns out that Chapter 4 is the final installment of Imomushi. It came out last week in Japan, and that issue of COMIC BEAM features a commemorative Maruo clear file insert thingy. Four chapters doesn't add up to a full-length book, so I wonder what Maruo has up his sleeve next. Perhaps another Rampo adaptation to publish together in a Panorama Island-length book from EnterBrain? Here's hoping!

ENJOY THESE PAGES/PANELS FROM CHAPTER 3:

Like in Panorama Island, the new chapter of Imomushi starts with parallels to Taisho spectacle and technologies to make its points. Here, Tokiko visits a fair featuring peephole painted scenes.


The peephole scenes depict events from famous stories and dramatized news accounts.


Subtle and disturbing scene of Tokiko encountering a used condom on her walk back to her home (and her disfigured husband Lt. Sunaga).


Trouble brewing on the home front. Maruo employs an interesting mix of formal panel layouts on some pages and broken, jagged flow on others.


DOSUN! The sound of a limbless man falling over and flopping angrily?


Many opportunities are taken to depict 1920s storefronts and urban life.


Don't try to look away from Sunaga's disfigurement.


Did I mention this comic is way more NSFW than Panorama Island? SEMI-METAPHORIC SEX FANTASY TIME.


DEVIL'S IN THE DETAILS


DEVIL'S IN THE DETAILS (part two)

I heard from my friend Moni that the September issue features the fourth and final chapter of Imomushi. This issue came out a few days ago in Japan, I should have it in my hands the second week of September :) It doesn't seem long enough to make up a book... I wonder what Maruo is planning for his next manga?

CHAPTER 3 OF SUEHIRO MARUO'S IMOMUSHI

Another month, another creepy and disturbingly good chapter of Suehiro Maruo's fantastic Imomushi was released. Chapter 3 debuted in the August issue of COMIC BEAM, which came out in July and arrived at my local Kinokuniya last week.



Check out my first post for details on the plot of Edogawa Rampo's short story, The Caterpillar.

I heard from Moni again, it turns out that Chapter 4 is the final installment of Imomushi. It came out last week in Japan, and that issue of COMIC BEAM features a commemorative Maruo clear file insert thingy. Four chapters doesn't add up to a full-length book, so I wonder what Maruo has up his sleeve next. Perhaps another Rampo adaptation to publish together in a Panorama Island-length book from EnterBrain? Here's hoping!

ENJOY THESE PAGES/PANELS FROM CHAPTER 3:

Like in Panorama Island, the new chapter of Imomushi starts with parallels to Taisho spectacle and technologies to make its points. Here, Tokiko visits a fair featuring peephole painted scenes.


The peephole scenes depict events from famous stories and dramatized news accounts.


Subtle and disturbing scene of Tokiko encountering a used condom on her walk back to her home (and her disfigured husband Lt. Sunaga).


Trouble brewing on the home front. Maruo employs an interesting mix of formal panel layouts on some pages and broken, jagged flow on others.


DOSUN! The sound of a limbless man falling over and flopping angrily?


Many opportunities are taken to depict 1920s storefronts and urban life.


Don't try to look away from Sunaga's disfigurement.


Did I mention this comic is way more NSFW than Panorama Island? SEMI-METAPHORIC SEX FANTASY TIME.


DEVIL'S IN THE DETAILS


DEVIL'S IN THE DETAILS (part two)

I heard from my friend Moni that the September issue features the fourth and final chapter of Imomushi. This issue came out a few days ago in Japan, I should have it in my hands the second week of September :) It doesn't seem long enough to make up a book... I wonder what Maruo is planning for his next manga?