Black Jack is possibly the most compelling and best written medical drama available on the market today- in any medium.
Creative Staff
Story/Art: Osamu Tezuka
What They Say
Black Jack is a mysterious and charismatic genius surgeon who travels the world performing amazing and impossible medical feats. Through highly trained, he freelances without a license because he disdains the medical establishment. This leads to run-ins with the authorities and unscrupulous, sometimes criminal, individuals. Because Black Jack keeps his true motives secret, his ethics are perceived as questionable and he is considered a selfish, uncaring devil.
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
When all hope seems lost and people are in pain beyond the reach of modern medicine they can reach out, if they can afford it, to a man shunned by the medical boards of the world even though they also can’t deny the skill he possesses. The adventures of Black Jack are largely episodic in nature so the stories collected in any given volume are varied in tone and method though Tezuka quietly and subtly embeds each one with a scalpel that cuts near the core of human behavior and reasoning, creating an opening for the reader to see into the soul of humanity.
This volume will present a variety of challenges for Black Jack’s patients as they will find that even with his skills at their peak he lacks the ability to save every life by himself and that they too will have to be participants in their own survival. Be it a father-son dynamic with their family’s history of war service, a man from a village that hates outsiders who has a dying daughter or a revenge obsessed man all will find that treatment is possible for the body but the wounds of the spirit lie beyond even Black Jack’s ability to heal.
Not that things always will go right for the surgeon himself though as he will face issues as well. While the threat of violence is never far from him due to his reputation it maybe most trying for him watching someone throw away his work that he has labored over. They say youth is wasted on the young, but when Black Jack turns back the clock for one man will he make the most of it or will the man waste what he has regained? Will Black Jack find that his services are welcome or will he be cast into the role of villain to a pair of boys when he is brought into help?
The volume also casts Black Jack into an unfamiliar role as he is placed in a situation where he may have to use his knowledge borne of his years of practice to solve a mystery that someone is willing to go to great lengths to conceal. And Black Jack won’t be alone in being in new roles as Pinoko finds she has a secret admirer at the bath house she visits with the doctor. But the biggest change of all may occur when Black Jack encounters a young man whose body reacts strangely when he sees Black Jack’s scar. When he is confronted by the man who thinks he is losing his mind Black Jack may find the one thing he has been most despite to discover yet has almost started to doubt exists- the existence of someone with skill equal to, if not greater than, his own. Is such a feat possible, or does such skill belong to God alone?
The continuing tales of Black Jack present a man who appears to be equal parts misanthrope given his intimate knowledge of human nature but also possibly the greatest sentimentalist of the age. Due to his skill he has earned the money to do whatever he could possibly want and remove himself from having to deal with people who would otherwise shun him yet he keeps practicing and will even wave his fees for those who manage to move his heart. Perhaps if everyone could move him the same way so he would be a monetarily poorer but richer in spirit man, but as he travels and works he will encounter those who will reinforce his cynicism as well as his hope. With these stories Tezuka works to give a portrait of mankind as a whole with its incredible capabilities for both good and evil as he creates characters to represents mankind’s reality rather than either a complete idealization or demonization of humanity.
In Summary
The latest volume of Black Jack from Vertical brings more of the stories of Black Jack as he encounters both those in need of his services and those who view his services with everything from disgust to an opportunity they can exploit. Through all the tales the doctor in black handles what is thrown his way and accepts his role as villain to some though he will not let others try to take advantage of him at the expense of the weak. Black Jack is a man who may not be what most think of when they think of shining examples of morality but he is a man who does not waver in his beliefs and who will not flinch even when faced with the ugliest things that humanity can reveal about itself while also open to be moved by its more noble aspects. Highly Recommended.
Content Grade: A+
Art Grade: A
Packaging Grade: A
Text/Translation Grade: A-
Readers Rating: [ratings]
Age Rating: 13+
Released By: Vertical, Inc
Release Date: October 11th, 2011
MSRP: $16.95
another great volume, can’t wait to read volume 17!