As Lucius continues his journey back and forth in time, he starts to question more of what he sees.
Creative Staff
Story: Mari Yamazaki
Art: Mari Yamazaki
What They Say
Whenever Roman architect Lucius is suddenly submerged in water, he always surfaces to find himself in the land of the “flat-faces,” a people whose appreciation for the public bathhouse matches that of even the mighty Romans! (Little does he realize that the land of his watery journeys is in fact the Japan of 1,500 years in the future!) Observing the strange practices of these foreigners has allowed Lucius to revolutionize the Roman bathhouse, and public opinion on his innovations-and on Aelius Caesar, the emperor-to-be to whom these marvels are attributed-soars. But those in the Senate maintain strong reservations about the suitability of the emperor-to-be, and they mean to cut off the flow of support at its source-Lucius!
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
The opening volume of Thermae Romae certainly dazzled and delighted with what it did in presenting us ancient Rome in the 130 AD range of years while also taking the character of Lucius and transporting him to different periods of time in Japan to experience modern hot springs and all the quirks and traditions therein. With some gorgeous looking designs to it and a great sense of pacing even if the general thrust of most stories were the same, it was a book that was very easy to get into and to experience. It was also helped ably by the creator’s text pages between chapters that covered various aspects of history on both sides of the coin and fleshed out the world very well, making it come alive all the more.
With the second volume here, which encompases the third and fourth Japanese volumes, we get a few more familiar stories before it delves into a longer arc that doesn’t complete here that begins to address some of the basic concerns many readers had. In the opening arcs, we get some very fun stories, such as the first one that has some senators conspiring to deal with Lucius in order to mess with the emperor, having him going to the foothills of Vesuvius in order to find a new special place to build a bath house for the emperor. While the emperor has no clue about this, it puts Lucius into contact with a number of bandits in the area, a few generations removed from the eruption of the volcano but still finding little to do in life beyond being bandits. The book provides an expected leap forward where Lucius gets the idea on how to take such a pefect location for a hot spring bath and to monetize it, to give the bandits and others in the area an opportunity to change the region and their lives. It’s overly simplistic of course, but there is a certain truth to the idea that it does work in these ancient times to change lives. It’s also fun seeing how Lucius and his stern and dominating personality can bring these bandits under his sway and to do what he needs doing.
Another story delves into his ongoing relationship with Aelius, who has gone north to do work for the emperor but finds himself ill of health in such a colder and less hospitable region. This has him asking Lucius for help, but he’s committed to a maintenance and resotation problem elsewhere for the emperor. But again, a trip across time introduces him to the concept of the small, singular barrel type bath tub and that allows him to create something that can be easily transported. Realizing that as an engineer all he works withis marble, which is hugely difficult to craft and transport, it changes his views once again on craftsmanship and opens up more possibilities when it comes to the designs that he can create.
What really won me over with this volume though is the start of a longer arc, following on the heels of the death of Aelius, as Hadrian asks him to watch over the son, Lucius, to guide him into being a proper ruler when Hadrian is no longer capable. The Engineer Lucius is all too keen to help and do what he can, but before it can get settled he gets sucked into the present day again. But unlike before, he’s not able to trip easily and get back, instead he finds himself stuck there in this world and this particular inn that he stumbled into. Because of his inability to get back – and boy does he try to force his way back many times – he finds himself in a brand new situation that he’s not sure how to deal with.
Enter Satsuki, granddaughter of the owner of the inn, who actually has a huge interest in ancient Rome and can even speak Latin due to her interest level. That allows her to comunicate with Lucius, the first time it’s been done easily in the series. She figures he’s just confused after a fall, since he believes he’s from ancient Rome and hasn’t figured out that this is the future. But she sort of plays along with it because of how much he knows and the conversations she can have, but slowly she starts to realize that there’s a lot more to him and his story. For Lucius, he begins to question more of the world around him and how things work, including electricity, and that works well to show his curiosity in a more drawn out way while being as detailed focused as he is. So many of his stories have involved him being so drawn to the bath experience that missing a lot of these things has been acceptable. But exploring this part of it now is definitely welcome, as is the slow building romance that’s occurring between him and Satsuki.
In Summary
With the first voliume of the series filled with what were originally one shot stories that turned into a series, Thermae Romae feels more fleshed out and structured here as Mari Yamazaki continues to advance time in the past and introduce us to more aspects of Roman life and what Lucius was up to with his postiion as an engineer with a reputation. The poltical and social class side of it comes into play several times and is done well to highlight it without going into crazy detail that’s not necessary, which we also get through Lucius’ view of people in Japan with each visit as their views on the world and how they live are simple so different. It’s not a huge clash of cultures, but a more nuance and careful one that’s without the bluster and all the more fun because it generally avoids the ridiculous aspects. With the story that starts here with Satsuki in the present, it leaves you really wanting more right away. Yen Press continues to do a fantastic job with this release, giving it the status and recognition it needs because it is such a well crafted and highly enjoyable work.
Content Grade: A-
Art Grade: A-
Packaging Grade: A
Text/Translation Grade: A-
Age Rating: 16+
Released By: Yen Press
Release Date: May 28th, 2013
MSRP: $34.99