Tokyo These Days, Volume 1

Starred review from December 1, 2023

Shiozawa, a veteran editor of manga magazines, decides he's fallen out of touch with the marketplace following the critical and commercial failure of his latest project, so he announces his retirement, effective immediately. Rudderless now that he's separated from the industry to which he devoted so much of his life, he passes time by conversing with his pet bird and working up the willpower to sell his beloved collection of rare manga volumes. He's determined to never have anything to do with the publishing industry again, but after a former disciple seeks advice on dealing with a tempestuous artist, followed by the unexpected death of an artist with whom Shiozawa worked early in his career, he's stirred to devote all of his savings to commissioning a final work and enlists a group of veteran artists, all of whom left the industry disenchanted or traumatized by their professional experiences, to help him create what he describes as "the perfect manga." VERDICT Matsumoto (Cats of the Louvre) offers a provocative meditation on the struggle to maintain artistic integrity while creating art for mass-market consumption.

Copyright 2023 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 15, 2024
This work from critically acclaimed and Eisner Award-winning mangaka Matsumoto gives readers a slow-paced slice-of-life story about the inner workings of the manga industry. When Kazuo Shiozawa suddenly quits after 30 years as a manga editor, he is hoping to atone for what he perceives as his failures after the cancellation of the magazine he ran. But the world of creating manga is not so easy to untangle oneself from, and Shiozawa is pulled back into the sphere of those he has worked with. Matsumoto's distinctive and dreamlike style carries this introspective look into the world of making manga, which can be thankless and laden with stress. Matsumoto's characters are well developed, and there's a hint of magic realism that buoys the story. Fans of Matsumoto's previous works or those who enjoy honest examinations of the manga industry will enjoy this.

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