Monday, 21 October 2013
Manga in the 80's Pt. 12
Grey. Written and illustrated by Yoshihisa Tagami. Viz Comics published 9 issues in a monthly format, from October 1988 to June 1989 . The manga was originally published by Tokuma Shoten in the mid to late 80's.
One of my fondest memories was seeing a
poster on the wall of the 'Final Fronter' comic-book shop (sadly no
longer with us) this film size poster of Grey death with the iconic
two legged flying machines in the background, just looked like the
coolest Science fiction I'd ever seen (back in 1989)!
Set in the future when man's lust for
war has reduced the human population to small pockets of scattered
villages and the occasional town, with most of the high technology
lost or restricted to the general populous. Life is hard, living in
what for most is a ghetto, feeding from what others throw away. There
is endless war and the threat of attack from the next village or even
from your own 'Troopers' who defend the settlements and strike back,
because in this class system of society, if you're not a 'Trooper'
you're scum (class “F”)! There are even classes of troopers
class “E” up to class “A” (50% of all who start never make it
to a class ”D” trooper), with the promise of food, shelter and
safety from invaders in 'the City' being a class “A” entitles you
to become a citizen, and you are set for life! Killing the enemy and
destroying vehicles and machines of war advances you up the ranks!
We follow the chronicles Grey as he
becomes determined to survive after the death of his girlfriend
called Lips, carrying her dream of becoming citizen and living in the
city, is his relentless drive. As a trooper he is sent on mission
after mission, each one harder than the last. His uncanny survival
and being the sole trooper out of his squad to return from many a
mission marks him with the nick-name Grey Death as we witness him
becoming a ruthless killing machine focused on the next class rank!
From retro fitted WWII tanks and vehicles to power amour and Mecha,
and the realisation that humanity's fate is not their own, and that
there is a group fighting a resistance, Grey now seeks answers to the
endless battles.
[Note. The American author Harlan
Ellison mentions in his introduction to the manga of Grey, “it is
an important comment on how a society mad for war can debase and
chill its citizens. Grey is also a powerful statement about the
demeaning caste systems we create to keep others in their place.”]
[UPDATE: Collection of issues 1 to 9 now complete.]
GREY.
Issues 1 to 9.
GREY.
Volume ONE and Volume TWO.
A look back at GREY.
Gerard Jones Writer, "Confessions of a rewriter".
Gerard Jones Writer, "Confessions of a rewriter".
GREY, THE END AND THE BEGINNG.
[Note. The three page article at the back of volume one entitled “Confessions of a rewriter by Gerard Jones, can be quoted as saying “Ultimately, the story of Grey springs not from the characters but from the machine-dominated world in which they function.”]
Genealogy of Manga;
"GREY". Written and illustrated by Yoshihisa Tagami.
"HOROBI". Written and illustrated by Yoshihisa Tagami.
"FRONTIER LINE" Also Written and illustrated by Yoshihisa Tagami.
Notable adaptations in to animation;
Anime entitled; GREY: Digital Target. (December 1986, 75\80 minutes, Director Satoshi Dezaki).
[NOTE: On the 12th.September 1994, in the UK 'WESTERN CONNECTION - Film and Video Distribution' released a PAL VHS tape, with Japanese Dialogue and English subtitles of GREY: Digital Target.]
GREY Illustrations ART BOOK.
(with THANKS to Brain F. for finding this book for me.)
[NOTE: 1984's TV Series 'Super High Speed Galvion' sees Yoshihisa Tagami credited with the character designs. - a keen eye can see this, by the distinct style and shape of the characters noises.]
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