Title: Akira.
Volume: 4.
Writer(s): Katsuhiro Otomo.
Illustrator(s): Katsuhiro Otomo.
Publisher: Kodansha Comics.
Format: Paperback.
Release Date: November 30th 2010 (first published July 10th 1987).
Pages: 392.
Genre(s): Manga, Science-Fiction.
ISBN13: 9781935429067.
My Overall Rating: ★★★★★.
Previously on Akira:
Akira (Vol. 1)
Akira (Vol. 2)
Akira (Vol. 3)
It has been over 30 years since Katsuhiro Otomo has stunned the world with his visionary six-volume manga, which also gave birth to one of the best animated movies of all time of the same name. By not only reforming the way stories are told through this medium, whether it is through the characters, the world-building or the artwork, he successfully creates a post-apocalyptic science-fiction filled with action, suspense, thrill, philosophy, religion, and insanity. While the first volumes were focused on building his universe and in meticulously teasing the reader by sending them on a rollercoaster of questions with no answers, this fourth entry sets its eyes on exploring civilization built from ground up, with the birth of religious concepts and beliefs in people, as they try and understand the world they live in.
What is Akira (Vol. 4) about? Following the tragedy that besets Neo-Tokyo at the end of the previous volume, the story now explores the city in ruin ruled by a godlike telekinetic superhuman child with the psychic juggernaut Tetsuo by his side as they establish the Great Tokyo Empire with fanatic acolytes ready to do anything for their ruler. In the meanwhile, several different rebel legions concoct a plan to stop Akira from maintaining absolute control over humanity and the answer seems to lie in the mysterious Lady Miyako who holds the key to everything. Through a myriad of revelations, the story thus trusts forward with engrossing theological ideas and delivers one of the best story arcs in this classic masterpiece.
This is exactly what I expected from this franchise and I’m delighted to see it so perfectly executed in this installment. With the ending in the previous volume, it was almost impossible to see where mangaka Katsuhiro Otomo would henceforth possibly go with the story. Thankfully, he begins the story as if he had hit the reset button on mankind while mysteriously keeping a couple of characters alive. With some incredible ideas based on religion and philosophy, he presents the established cults that now rule the city as well as the status of each individual within this society, from the one who plays God to those who worship him out of fear. Subtlety he also explores the lack of women and the sexual impulses of men hungry for pleasure and who would do anything to get what they want. The exploration of drugs and there use to repress our development is also brilliantly employed within the science-fiction context of this story. Simply said, mangaka Katsuhiro Otomo does an incredible job in taking the best elements of his series so far and clearly conveys awe-inspiring ideas but with all the chaos and destruction that he is known to incorporate in his franchise.
If you thought this would turn out to be another volume where there would be more questions than answers, think again. For once, this volume starts off by tossing the reader into a bottomless abyss as they try to figure out where they are and what is going. As the story progresses, several characters appear and the answers are gently handed over, exposing the history behind a lot of the stories supernatural elements, while maintaining a certain hallucinogenic and religious connotation that makes the ride trippy from cover to cover. In fact, the artwork sustains mangaka Katsuhiro Otomo’s incredible ability to draw the setting in all of its splendour, while still dragging the story through a chaotic slaughter that illustrates the epic scale destruction that comes with the bloodbath and gore. The attention to detail and the way each panel is drawn also allows for such an incredibly fast-paced adventure where the tension is constantly high and rising. While it is the fattest volume so far, the amount of dialogue is still relatively low yet so significantly absorbing and engaging.
Akira (Vol. 4) is a thought-provoking tour de force that revolutionizes the medium as it provides a devastating yet gorgeous portrayal of mankind’s rebirth and own undoing.
Thank you to Penguin Random House Canada for sending me a copy for review!
The movie adaptation is considered to be the most visually-stunning and revolutionary animated movie of all time! Have you seen it yet?
Roars and Echoes 
Wow, that sounds right my alley 😉 Though it looks like it might not be a good first entry into manga 😉
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I think you’ll find something in this series that’s worth your time. The first volume will always be the best way to start any series indeed. 😉
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Good stuff indeed! I had never thought about “lack of women”, as I had just assumed it was the manga-ka being Japanese in the 80’s. I’ll have to keep that in mind next time I read through it.
I am glad this never got tankouban’ized into those little books of manga like is typical today. This story is big and the artwork is big and it all needs a big book to hold it 🙂
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I know, right? I too jumped to conclusion and almost thought it was just the usual Japanese thing that you see in every manga series but this time around I felt like he actually gave it a purpose and inserted it in the story properly.
Oh man, it would be unfortunate if they ever make the volumes smaller. I like the volumes they’ve made for this and how it always ends on an insane cliffhanger too. Can’t wait for the next two volumes.
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I saw this back in the eighties. I had not seen anything like it, and was not really prepared. It was disturbing to me at the time. I am not sure what my reaction would be if I were to re-watch it. Perhaps I am more acclimated to the freakishness, now.
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I’ll definitely check out the movie once I’m done with the series (only two more volumes to go). Can’t wait to see how it looks, in all of its freakish glory!
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You have peaked my interest. I feel like I have seen these in the library before and walked by a thousand times. The premise behind it being after a WWIII gives it the kind of substance I enjoy.
I just checked overdrive and it’s not avail to me, will check our manga section in the library next time. That trailer though…intense!
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It’s definitely a nice post-apocalyptic story that allows it to explore some very fascinating ideas. It’ll probably be hard to find digitally unfortunately. I do hope you’ll get the chance to test it out someday, Scarlett! Thank you for reading! 😀
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The trailer looks phenomenal.
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Right? I’ll definitely check the movie out once I’m done with this series. Two more volumes to go.
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I think you might convince me to try some manga… Great review!!!
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You definitely should! I think I might have said that to you at each of the previous volume’s review hahah Akira is also a classic that is often studied for some University classes too. 😉
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I will start with Akira. I’ll look it up at my library today.
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I thought the movie was so deep and disturbing. Loved it! Haven’t read the manga yet but I expect just as good if not better 🙂
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I think the manga will give you even more to think about. I look forward to comparing it to the movie once I’m done with the series. 😀
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I think I say it every time you post a review on Akira, but I should totally start to read this, it sounds so good! 😱 As always, fantastic review 😊
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I’ll probably end up forcing you to read them once I’m done. You won’t be pardoned! 😛 Thank you, Caroline!
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I really dislike when a bunch of crazy religious people are thrown into the story. So I’m not thrilled about that… though I’ve always wanted to read Akira. I love post apocalyptic stories and this is an epic one. i did love the anime trailer! Wow they must have recut it. I agree from the the art you shared that I love his super detailed style that gives you the big picture!!
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The religious ideas is interesting since it remains the first source of true “science” for humanity and seeing it being born here was quite nice. I do hope you get the chance to try out this classic nonetheless. The art, the pacing and the story make this series a must! 😀
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I was shocked to find an anime I didn’t know was an anime, ha ha. I have seen Akira around as a manga, but never as an animation. I went to Anime Planet to see if my son had watched it, but he hasn’t. It is on his to-watch list though. I will see if he thinks I will like it after he watches it. I forget to check to see if he read the manga. I’m more likely to watch the anime anyway. Thanks for the heads up on this! 🙌🙌🙌
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Hahahah the anime movie was a huuuuge hit and really revolutionized the game. And the manga had a similar impact for the medium too. I definitely recommend it to anyone who enjoys post-apocalyptic stories in their mangas! Hope your son enjoys it and recommends it to you! 😁
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