Genre: Action
Range: Unrated, but is certainly 12+ appropriate
Price: 29.99 USD (softcover version)
 
The Batman craze of the 1960s didn't only touch the English-speaking world, but also captured the attention of Bat-fans in Japan. From 1966 to 1967 a serialized version of the Bat Man and Robin tales were presented in Japanese in the weekly anthology Shonen King. Writer and artist Jiro Kuwata is also interviewed for this gigantic presentation, and we learn that although he intended to incorporate the American style of hero comics in his version of Batman, his schedule didn't allow that kind of indulgence, and the result is still a Kuwata-style presentation.
 
Bat-Manga! is really two books in one. Along with hundred of pages of the manga painstakingly photographed for this glossy-paged edition, full color pictures of Japanese toys and collectibles are interspersed between chapters. This adds a dynamic spin to the final product, making it almost more like a coffee table book than a typical manga, and Bat-Manga! is certainly no typical manga, but my fear is the presentation outshines the true meat of the product, which is Kuwata's Batman stories.
 
When Bat-Manthropolist, Chip Kidd discovered the unknown-in-the-West publications in Shonen King a fire was lit beneath him to not only uncover the series, but bring it to English (kudos to translator, Anne Ishii). Not only had the Japanese Batman not been published in the US, but it had not been republished in Japan. Kidd worked with original printings and presents them just as they were found. That kind of authenticity is refreshing, and turning each page almost does feel like a presentation of a historical document. This is how Kidd wants us to see Kuwata's work, as he warns us in the foreword not all the stories in this collection are complete. The good news is that Kidd had uncovered enough more material to present a second volume, so readers can only hope that the couple incomplete stories will be finished.
 
So what of the stories? As a fan of modern Batman comics reading Bat-Manga! against the Batman R.I.P. arc running now, it is hard to see many similarities. But they are there. Like the modern tales, the real stars often are villains. It is interesting Kuwata doesn't put Batman up against any familiar faces. Kuwata's world involves a bit more sorcery, and spirituality, making for some foreboding baddies and for an interesting twist on the Batman lore we have grown accustomed to. The first one is Clayface, who is a clear send-up of Sandman, only he has he power to really transform his body into things like a giant mantis or a pterodactyl. The nicely-styled Lord Death Man is a villain who uses his undead status to get his way. (In classic form, the bad-guys are mostly after giant valuable gems). It is the final story of The Mutant that we see the most humanity from Batman.
 
Bat-Manga! makes for an interesting cultural exploration. A part of me wishes it was labeled "Volume 1" and I could know those incomplete stories would find resolution. This is a huge book that Batman fans and classic manga fan are going to want to get their mitts on, but it does feel like only part of the "secret history" Batman fans didn't know about. The presentation is impeccable, but after the fireworks of Chip Kidd's superb layout, read the manga. That's where the heart and soul of Bat-Manga! will be found.

8.5