Showa: A History of Japan explained

Ja Kanji:コミック昭和史
Ja Romaji:Komikku Shōwa-shi
Genre:Historical
Type:manga
Author:Shigeru Mizuki
Publisher:Kodansha
First:1988
Last:1989
Volumes:8

Showa: A History of Japan, known in Japan as, is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Shigeru Mizuki. An autobiographical work, it describes the author's experiences growing up during the Shōwa period. Mizuki served in the Japanese army, and his series is critical of Japanese and American militarism.[1]

Release

The manga was originally released by Kodansha as between November 1988 and December 1989.[2] [3] The manga was republished as Comic Showa-shi by Kodansha from August 1, to November 4, 1994,[4] [5] and a box with all the eight volumes was released on December 14, 1994.[6] An adaptation titled was written by Kōji Kata and published on August 19, 2004, by Iwanami Shoten.[7]

In February 2013, Drawn & Quarterly announced it would publish the manga under the title Showa: A History of Japan.[8] The company released Showa 1926-1939 in October 2013, Showa 1939-1944 in May 2014, Showa 1944-1953 in November 2014, and Showa 1953-1989 in September 2015.[9]

Reception

It received the 1989 Kodansha Manga Award for the general category.[10] In 2014 and 2016, respectively, the first edition and the fourth edition of Showa published by Drawn & Quarterly were nominated by the Harvey Awards in the category "Best American Edition of Foreign Material".[11] [12] It was also nominated at the Eisner Award in the category Best U.S. Edition of International Material—Asia in 2014 for Showa 1926-1939,[13] and it won it in 2015 and 2016 for Showa 1939-1944 and Showa 1953-1989 respectively.[14] [15]

Comics critic Paul Gravett elected Showa: A History of Japan the third best manga published in North America in 2014, asking "What a better way to tell an epic modern history lesson than in these multi-layered, accessible manga?"[16]

Ian Scheffler of the Los Angeles Times praised the "knack for narrative" and "ability to convey the mood of a nation" expressed by the author.[17]

Notes and References

  1. Book: Mizuki. Shigeru. Showa 1926-1939: A History of Japan. November 2013. Mizuki Publishers. 9781770461352. 7 April 2015. bot: unknown. https://web.archive.org/web/20140530084637/http://www.drawnandquarterly.com/shopCatalogLong.php?st=art&art=a4cb61ca4344d4. 30 May 2014.
  2. Book: http://iss.ndl.go.jp/books/R100000002-I000001949387-00 . ja:昭和史 : コミック 第1巻 (関東大震災～満州事変) . . August 3, 2014 . Japanese. 1988 .
  3. Book: http://iss.ndl.go.jp/books/R100000002-I000002020702-00 . ja:昭和史 : コミック 第8巻 (高度成長以降) . National Diet Library . August 3, 2014 . Japanese. 1989 .
  4. Web site: http://bookclub.kodansha.co.jp/product?code=185750 . ja:コミック昭和史（1）関東大震災～満州事変 . Kodansha . August 3, 2014 . Japanese.
  5. Web site: http://bookclub.kodansha.co.jp/product?code=185827 . ja:コミック昭和史（8）高度成長以降 . Kodansha . August 3, 2014 . Japanese.
  6. Web site: http://bookclub.kodansha.co.jp/product?isbn=9784069316715 . ja:コミック昭和史 全8巻セット . Kodansha . August 3, 2014 . Japanese.
  7. Web site: http://www.mizukipro.com/syuppan16.htm . ja:過去の出版物 平成16（2004）年 . Mizuki Production . August 3, 2014 . Japanese.
  8. Web site: Drawn & Quarterly Adds Shigeru Mizuki's Showa Manga . February 4, 2013 . . August 3, 2014.
  9. Web site: Products by Shigeru Mizuki . . July 11, 2015.
  10. Web site: Kodansha Manga Awards. Joel Hahn . Comic Book Awards Almanac. 2009-04-05.
  11. Web site: The 2014 Harvey Award Nominations Are Revealed . . . July 16, 2014 . August 3, 2014.
  12. Web site: One-Punch Man, Showa: A History of Japan Nominated for Harvey Awards . July 6, 2016 . Anime News Network . October 17, 2016 .
  13. Web site: Suehiro Maruo's The Strange Tale of Panorama Island Manga Nominated for Eisner Award . April 15, 2014 . Anime News Network . November 29, 2014.
  14. Web site: Shigeru Mizuki's Showa Manga Wins Eisner Award . July 11, 2015 . Anime News Network . October 17, 2016 .
  15. Web site: Shigeru Mizuki's Showa 1953-1989: A History of Japan Wins Eisner Award . July 23, 2016 . Anime News Network . October 17, 2016 .
  16. Web site: PG Tips No.41: My Best Comics & Manga of 2014: Year in Review . December 28, 2014 . Gravett, Paul . paulgravett.com . December 5, 2015.
  17. Web site: Scheffler. Ian. Review: Shigeru Mizuki’s ‘Showa’ draws a graphic portrait of Japan . Los Angeles Times. 2014-11-07. 2023-04-02.

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