Join me each Sunday, as we explore and discuss a different gekiga artist and their work.General manga discussion is welcome as well.>what the hell is gekiga?Gekiga is a style of alternative manga that started in the early 1960s. It focused on mature or dark themes, in contrast to the humoristic manga for children (pioneered by Tezuka) that were the norm at the time.These works and their authors had great influence over manga as a medium, but would later mostly be absorbed into (or help the emergence of) Josei and Seinen publications.>tl;dr: adult oriented manga from the 1960s to 80s.
Last week we read about Kuniko Tsurita, a woman who was dealt a pretty shitty hand in life but didn't let that stop her from drawing exactly what she wanted.>https://desuarchive.org/a/thread/285042640This week we read from Shin'ichi Abe, a man who had everything handed to him from the get go and managed to ruin it with his own two hands.
Abe was born in 1950 into a wealthy family in northern Kyushu, and quickly took up drawing manga after being inspired by the works of Shinji Nagashima and Yoshiharu Tsuge.At age 20 he moved to Tokyo with his highschool sweetheart and future wife.Like Tsuge, he was a leading figure of "watakushi manga": stories inspired by the artists own life, and those of people around him (inspired, but not necessarily autobiographical)Most of the female characters in these stories are based on his wife Miyoko, and many scenes or locations are referenced from photographs he took himself.
>>285206404is Dororo gekiga?
>>285206912is*
>>285206792weak one. thanks op.
>>285207063We're only getting started!>>285206912I haven't read it, but if it's from 1967 and not a gag manga for children, then it probably can be described as gekiga.
>>285206912You probably wouldn't say that. Tezuka's later work like MW or Ningen Konchuki were intentionally written to appeal to the gekiga fandom. He ran a magazine called COM to directly compete with Garo (the home of gekiga). It is one of those things that makes Tezuka so impressive. That he didn't just 'get there first' but also was able to write in a plethora of styles for different demographics and create hits everywhere over decades of time.
As for the themes of these stories, I'll borrow an artsy phrase and call it "the pathos of a mundane human existance".For Abe, life is an experience of inescapable sadness, and his manga allowed him to confront that sadness by looking it directly in the eye.I suppose that's not exactly a sign of a stable and healthy mind.
>>285206540Damn bitch....You live like this?
>>285207552kek at bottom right
>>285206619You're not just a side piece!You're the girl he chose to have at his side!
>>285207573damn cucks
>>285207681meh, not sure about this one either. at least the old man was a cool guy.
>>285206661The great legendary tome of SEX.
>>285207681artists are not usually known to be stalwart pillars of mental fortitude.
>>285206725Any ideas on the musical reference?
>>285206792Thanks OPI wonder if his wife looked over his shoulder to make sure he portrayed her nicely.
>>285206404I hope you will cover Daijiro Morohoshi, he influenced Miyazaki and Anno.
>>285208658I'm adding him to my list, but his only work I've read is the Grimm Fairy Tales collection.
After some up and downs, in 1978 Abe joins the religious cult Shōkōhai, whose leader tells him to stop making manga and make babies instead. Luckily he's able to multitask and continues doing both.However the contradictions between the cults religious beliefs and his work as mangaka are affecting his mental health, and his heavy drinking doesn't help. Starting in 1982, he begins suffering from episodes of paranoid schizophrenia and is frequently sent to psychiatic wards.
>>285207360Thats sweet.
>>285207573>>285207598Weird-ass fetish
>>285209063>Luckily he's able to multitask and continues doing both>Luckilyfor him, maybe, for the rest of the world? doubt it.
>>285208576Classic alchie.
>>285208729Living her best life.
>>285208883>>285208904>>285208924>>285208955Perhaps an author can reveal too much about themselves.
>>285209063Its a shame he got sucked into that. His work does have a strong Tsuge vibe, you were right about that. Also reminds me of Hayashi Seiichi's work - Red Colored Elegy, for example. Pretty good. The morose sexualization is a vibe.
The man himself, at his wedding.>>285209376Apparently this is not based on the author's own tendencies, but on the guilt he felt from cheating on his wife once after coming to Tokyo
>>285209492He was pretty handsome. Definitely got some arthoe tail back in the day. I could see how feeling guilty about cheating on your wife and disrespecting her like that could roll into writing about shitty loser men that try to give their wives to better men.
Over the next 17 years he alternates between paranoid and religious delusions, heavy medication and drinking himself to an early grave, and his artistic output suffers for it.He stops drinking altogether in 1999 and manages to regain some control over his life, but this newfound clarity also forces him to confront the suffering his actions inflicted on those close to him, which plunges him further into depression and isolation.He manages to publish his manga and prose more regularly and to reconnect with his wife and children, but the damage is done as years of medication and alcohol abuse have left an impact on his artistic abilities and mental health.
>>285210419I'M SO META EVEN THIS ACRONYM
>>285210479Tough break. Getting over an addiction doesn't take you back to 'zero' after all. You're still in the negatives when it comes to life. It just gives you some stability to try and get back to even just where you started.
>>285209492The man himself, later in life.Remember to drink responsibly.
>>285212966>>285212986The classic sleepytime fuck.
A last story before sleep.
thanks OP.
And that's Shin'ichi Abe. Tortured artist, or self inflicted victim? You decide.I'd have liked to post stories from the different periods in his life, but unfortunately there's little of his work available in English. The stories I posted are all from 1971-1976.There are several collections of his work in French. Maybe one of these days I'll buy them to translate them into English.I hope you enjoyed it and I'll see you next week, for a closer look at the works of Susumu Katsumata.
>>285206404
>>285213043>breaking the skinVicious girl.
>>285217089That does sound comfy.
>>285217116>>285217135The new artstyle is cool.
>>285217321Thanks OPIt is easy to get lost on the road of life when you're the type to trend towards ennui and depression. His manga are good, so what more could you want from a guy?
>>285217321>Susumu Katsumatawiki doesn't list his works.
>>285222276Mangaupdates is the closest to a Wiki for manga that exists.
>>285222276But it does?https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/勝又進#漫画 >>285222364No.
