Impressions of the Gunslinger Girl manga
Jan. 16th, 2006 12:16 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
athenaltenaFirst off, one of my best purchases of the year. Art is great, story top notch. And I love how with most Japanese artistic expressions I've had exposure to it's very unapologetic on its subject matter. It doesn't really attempt to explain itself, maybe because in Japan there isn't the same type of criticism that American authors and directors often recieve for delving into anything even remotely controversial (the stir over Brokeback Mountain is a good example) while the attitude in Japan seems to be, "If you don't like it, don't read/watch it." A good attitude, in my opinion.
Now onto the manga itself: It is very similiar to the anime, although I'm tempted to say I like the manga a tad more. I understand that both were going different directions for different audiences, and while both did it very well the manga style fits my tastes a bit more. The action is more fast paced and the girls a bit more human (I recall in the anime several instances of Rico, Triela, Henrietta and Angelica going rather zombieish several times. The manga cuts that out, and has them act much more like little girls even in battle (recalling a scene of Angelica and Rico talking casually after shooting up a car with a survivor thinking how screwed up the world is) and just act much more their age than the anime.
Triela still has the maturity and grace that makes her my favorite girl, but she's a bit more human and adolescent in the manga, something that only really showed through in episode 4 of the anime (Bambolla) and showing much more doubt in her abilities than the anime version. She's still the guide, but a bit more like a little girl and, in my opinion, cuter and more likeable.
Elsa is also a subject that differs greatly. The anime had an entire episode building up her eventual murder/suicide with her handler, but the manga barely covers her at all, and while the implication is the same it isn't treated with the same severity as the anime. It still points to future conflicts for the girls and the suggestion that their handlers are their entire world and drive to live, but the mood about the entire thing is different.
Lastly, Angelica. In the manga she still has problems, but so far does not appear to be dying. Her memory problems as far as I can recall haven't been addressed yet either, so it could be that they were invented as an anime subplot (then again I still need to get mangas 1 and 2, only currently having 3, so I'll see if that's true.
*End Spoilers*
I'll definately follow it further, but either way it is one of the top anime/mangas I've ever come across and a good use of money.
Now onto the manga itself: It is very similiar to the anime, although I'm tempted to say I like the manga a tad more. I understand that both were going different directions for different audiences, and while both did it very well the manga style fits my tastes a bit more. The action is more fast paced and the girls a bit more human (I recall in the anime several instances of Rico, Triela, Henrietta and Angelica going rather zombieish several times. The manga cuts that out, and has them act much more like little girls even in battle (recalling a scene of Angelica and Rico talking casually after shooting up a car with a survivor thinking how screwed up the world is) and just act much more their age than the anime.
Triela still has the maturity and grace that makes her my favorite girl, but she's a bit more human and adolescent in the manga, something that only really showed through in episode 4 of the anime (Bambolla) and showing much more doubt in her abilities than the anime version. She's still the guide, but a bit more like a little girl and, in my opinion, cuter and more likeable.
Elsa is also a subject that differs greatly. The anime had an entire episode building up her eventual murder/suicide with her handler, but the manga barely covers her at all, and while the implication is the same it isn't treated with the same severity as the anime. It still points to future conflicts for the girls and the suggestion that their handlers are their entire world and drive to live, but the mood about the entire thing is different.
Lastly, Angelica. In the manga she still has problems, but so far does not appear to be dying. Her memory problems as far as I can recall haven't been addressed yet either, so it could be that they were invented as an anime subplot (then again I still need to get mangas 1 and 2, only currently having 3, so I'll see if that's true.
*End Spoilers*
I'll definately follow it further, but either way it is one of the top anime/mangas I've ever come across and a good use of money.
