Phoenix

This review is spoiler free.

Ever since I had discovered Osamu Tezuka during my high school years he has remained an unending source of fascination for me. The sheer amount of works he created, the way he helped shape genres as we see them today, it never ceases to impress me. With the recent success of MAPPA’s adaptation of “Dororo” it would appear that there is a renewed interest in his creations. For someone coming in for the first time I can imagine how overwhelming it must feel to see how many manga and anime he had done. Where does one begin? Many people would suggest series like “Black Jack” or even “Astro Boy”. For those looking for a more adult orientated manga a lot would recommend “Buddha” or “Adolf” as his best works. For me the answer is simple, I would direct someone to “Phoenix”. This is a manga that Tezuka considered to be his life’s work. He wrote it off and on from 1967 through 1988. It was created for the now defunct magazine COM which was geared at releasing manga that were considered more experimental. Among the people who have felt inspired by it is none other than Naoki Urasawa, who once said that it exposed him to the infinite potential manga carried as an art form. Upon visiting the Osamu Tezuka Manga Museum in Takarazuka guests are greeted by a statue of the Phoenix outside the building. Various stories within it have had anime adaptations, some of which were by acclaimed directors like Rintaro and Yoshiaki Kawajiri. While it may not have the same amount of name recognition in Western circles that “Astro Boy” carries, it is every bit a classic worthy of people’s attention.

The story to “Phoenix” is best described as an exploration of life, death, and man’s pursuit of greed. It is told in an episodic manner where each volume is a contained story. Tezuka takes readers from the past to the far future and back again with the Phoenix herself acting as the anchor that holds all the pieces together. These stories are Dawn, Future, Yamato, Space, Karma, Resurrection, Robe of Feathers, Nostalgia, Civil War, Life, Strange Beings, and Sun. When I first discovered the manga I had only wanted to read Future, which I loved. Recently I decided to return to it and read it in full and I was completely swept away. While in theory you can read the stories independently from each other, they are still intended to be read as pieces to a greater narrative. And when consumed as a collective whole it really leaves a strong impact. The final moments in Future become so much more resonant when you’ve already read Dawn. When you realize that the Phoenix has witnessed humanity making the same choices and mistakes through the years, yet still retains faith in their potential, it feels so powerful. Many stories involve humanity pursuing her for her blood in the hopes of obtaining immortality and many of them show how low people will sink to satiate their own selfish desires. Yet this isn’t a nihilistic manga. Tezuka very strongly believed in the dignity of life and explored it throughout his long career and “Phoenix” is the culmination of all of that. There are plenty of stories that tell a message about the value of life and it comes through as clichéd. Yet when Tezuka would do it everything felt so sincere. I believed it because he did.

Visually this is one of Tezuka’s most pleasing to look at works. This type of aesthetic isn’t common anymore, but I feel like there is so much charm to it. I have always loved his drawings and because this had been made across such a long period of time the reader gets to see how his aesthetic evolved. Someone might question if these designs could suit a premise like this, but it never feels at odds with the writing. He found a way to make it come together. The tone of the manga is something that maintains a great balance between satirical and dramatic. Some of the historical tales in particular have many comedic moments, but then he brings it back around to serious when he needed it to be. He would do this in other manga as well, “Buddha” and “Dororo” being great examples of this. But in “Phoenix” where you would think this changing tone and atmosphere could not work, it still does. It never reads as him failing to take the material seriously. If anything the occasional joke or parody comes across as him showing that there can still be a moment joy to be found even within a dark story. And the overall message he communicates through those stories shines through regardless of a few jokes. In “Phoenix” he explored themes of isolation, redemption, death, reincarnation, nationalism, the exploitation of religion, and corruption. Just as the story takes us to many locations and eras it also brings us many subjects to analyze. If you are somebody who’s impression of Osamu Tezuka is that of a man who strictly wrote for children with very simple themes I think “Phoenix” will come as a pleasant surprise and show you how far his work could go.

“Phoenix” is regrettably a project that Tezuka was unable to finish. The final story, Sun, was completed just a year before his passing in 1989. Many have speculated on where he was going to take it, but regardless what he left behind for us truly is worthy of being called his life’s work. His mentality behind the manga was to create something that told Japanese history in his way. He would take readers across time and to different worlds to experience his exploration of life and the human condition. And what he did with that concept is nothing short of spectacular. “Phoenix” is a manga that teaches the importance of life within the universe from the smallest organism to demons to aliens. It tells us that human life is not cheap. That to destroy life is a grave tragedy. But to prolong life beyond what nature intended can be a curse. That one’s actions in their life will have consequences for their descendants and future incarnations. It is a manga about how the cycle of life across time and space is a sacred force and that we should not think little of it. With this project Tezuka gave readers a manga who’s strength measures up to its incredible ambition. And while he couldn’t put a hold on his own passing, through his many works he has managed to resonate with readers far beyond his time. And he will continue to make that connection.