Monday, April 06, 2009
There's No Business Like Business Business
Man, Shaenon K. Garrity's Overlooked Manga Festival really is the gift that keeps on giving, isn't it? Further Googling for info on Section Chief Kōsaku Shima I ran across this link to one of Garrity's OMFs. Granted, there was only a tiny reference to Kōsaku Shima, but the rest of the entry was a goldmine. After pausing to note that Kekkaishi won the 2007 Shogakukan Manga Award for shonen manga (yay for Kekkaishi!), Garrity goes on to discuss an obscure, out-of-print book called Bringing Home the Sushi, which features samples from nine different business manga, including Kōsaku Shima. Garrity's description of Section Chief Kōsaku Shima only makes me want to read the series even more:
Well, it's probably a long wait until someone licenses Section Chief Kōsaku Shima (and all the sequels and prequels), so I did the next best thing: I ordered a used copy of Bringing Home the Sushi from Amazon for only two bucks! (OK, six bucks with shipping, but still...) Based on the sample scans Garrity shared this book looks like it should be a great introduction to the world of business manga. If it's something that sounds intriguing, there are still a couple Amazon marketplace vendors offering the book used for $1.98.
In the meantime, what other business manga is already available in English? The only ones I can think of are the "Project X" one-shots from DMP. I've read Cup Noodle and 240Z but I just realized that I've never read Seven Eleven. It looks like it's out of print, although Buy.com offers it new for just $8.99. I placed an order for it but it's listed as "Temporarily Sold Out," so who knows if I'll ever actually see it. Any other good (and readily available) business manga I should be checking out to satisfy my salaryman jonesing? (Wait, that came out wrong...)
Man, Shaenon K. Garrity's Overlooked Manga Festival really is the gift that keeps on giving, isn't it? Further Googling for info on Section Chief Kōsaku Shima I ran across this link to one of Garrity's OMFs. Granted, there was only a tiny reference to Kōsaku Shima, but the rest of the entry was a goldmine. After pausing to note that Kekkaishi won the 2007 Shogakukan Manga Award for shonen manga (yay for Kekkaishi!), Garrity goes on to discuss an obscure, out-of-print book called Bringing Home the Sushi, which features samples from nine different business manga, including Kōsaku Shima. Garrity's description of Section Chief Kōsaku Shima only makes me want to read the series even more:
...the incomparable, incredibly long-running Section Chief Kosaku Shima, a sprawling white-collar epic that's partly a realistic overview of contemporary business issues, partly a naked wish-fulfillment fantasy rife with heroic boardroom deals and beautiful twenty-year-old women who can't wait to get into the pants of aging, workaholic businessmen, and partly an incredibly depressing concept of a way for a man to live his life.Aaaaah! I have to have it!!!
Well, it's probably a long wait until someone licenses Section Chief Kōsaku Shima (and all the sequels and prequels), so I did the next best thing: I ordered a used copy of Bringing Home the Sushi from Amazon for only two bucks! (OK, six bucks with shipping, but still...) Based on the sample scans Garrity shared this book looks like it should be a great introduction to the world of business manga. If it's something that sounds intriguing, there are still a couple Amazon marketplace vendors offering the book used for $1.98.
In the meantime, what other business manga is already available in English? The only ones I can think of are the "Project X" one-shots from DMP. I've read Cup Noodle and 240Z but I just realized that I've never read Seven Eleven. It looks like it's out of print, although Buy.com offers it new for just $8.99. I placed an order for it but it's listed as "Temporarily Sold Out," so who knows if I'll ever actually see it. Any other good (and readily available) business manga I should be checking out to satisfy my salaryman jonesing? (Wait, that came out wrong...)
Labels: Comic Book Cravings, Kosaku Shima Week, Manga, Salaryman, Used Books
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