From Eroica with Love - Volume 1 (From Eroica with Love)

Rating:
Summary: The Best Is Yet To Be
Review: Hey, I thought I might have to write the first review of "Eroica", but I see Sharon Q's already done a fine job. So I'll just add a few cents' worth here and there...

First, like all the CMX manga published so far, this is physically a handsome piece of work: the gorgeous 70s-style artwork in particular is well reproduced. The translation isn't bad either, with none of the grammatical howlers, proofreading errors and just plain lapses in tone that Tokyopop is all too prone to nowadays. (I especially love that everyone keeps on saying "bloody" to emphasise that they're Brits - well, European anyhow).

However, like Sharon Q, I can't give this first volume more than 3 stars, mainly on account of the story. "Eroica" has been a cult in Japan and (through fan translations) in the West for decades now, yet it had a surprisingly wobbly beginning. The opening chapter introduces us to Dorian, Earl of Gloria, through the eyes of three teenagers who, for no very good reason, have acquired super-powers. Aoike also includes a would-be comic Japanese detective, Inspector Bannai, whose deeply unfunny antics are enough to discourage any reader. Add little touches such as the characters taking a detour through another of her manga, and you do start to wonder about Japanese female taste (this is a shoujo manga, if all those floating flowers and big starry eyes hadn't told you already). Things improve, however, when the sardonic, sexy and terminally repressed Major Klaus Heinz von dem Eberbach strides into the second chapter. Two of the annoying magical teens, and Bannai, promptly disappear from the story for good. Pretty-boy Caesar Gabriel, who at one point looked like becoming Dorian's love interest, hangs on into chapter three, then retires to bed with a headache and is never heard from again. The very last page of this final episode shows us the pattern of almost all the stories to come: Klaus and Dorian, after a series of intricate manoeuvres which have brought each of them to exactly the same point, delicately balanced against each other and waiting to begin the game - or is it a courtship dance? - all over again.

My only other gripe is to wish that CMX had followed Del Rey's lead and splashed out a little money on an introductory essay. After all, "Eroica" began appearing in 1976 - not many new readers will understand that Dorian himself was modelled on Robert Plant, the lead singer of Led Zeppelin, and that his sidekicks Bonham and the penny-pinching Mr James are caricatures of other band members. The political and social background, too, contemporary when Aoike used it, has receded into history: the Cold War, Bonn as the capital of West Germany, the fall of the Shah of Iran, Russia's invasion of Afghanistan and the resulting boycott of the 1980 Moscow Olympics, are half-forgotten now. But "Eroica's" fun, frivolity and romance have survived... starting in volume 2!

Rating:
Summary: Delightful and irreverent!!!
Review: I can't tell you just how much I truly adore this series. I bought it for the first time in Japanese nearly 20 years ago, and worried incessantly about the translation this might get when I heard it was being brought to the USA. Let's face it, some of the English adaptation of manga are so bad that I would rather not read them at all. I have actually tossed some of my English versions and kept the Japanese editions instead.

Thankfully, you will not need to do that with this terrific book. And I say that knowing that of all the volumes of Eroica, the first is the weakest in the entire series.

Eroica is a gem. Funny, smart, with a sly wit. Much better writing than you will find in most manga, as it was created at a time when manga were more story-oriented and less about flashy visuals.

Eroica is a flamboyant and out-of-the-closet-like-a-rocket gay thief and nobleman. In this volume, he runs across a group of young teens who have been gifted with supernatural powers. But who cares about them? They don't last long in this series and good riddance. The real tale gets told with the introducion of the handsome and uptight Major Klaus, Eroic's nemesis and true love...only Klaus is not a willing participant in the romantic tableu.

The sharp wit, clever plotting and good characterization make this series one of the best manga of all time. It has enjoyed a cult following in the USA for years. After a volume or two, you will be forever addicted. Forget about these modern manga with their limpid writing, overdone graphics and carbon copy characters! Eroica is the real deal, funny, sharp, and utterly delightful. Don't miss it!

Rating:
Summary: Right on!
Review: Though you may not realize it at first "From Eroica With Love" has had a cult following in America and Europe for DECADES!!!
In "From Eroica With Love" you can see the stories and characters tend to be better developed than contemporary shojou/shounen-ai/yaoi comics being brought to the US now, not relying quite so much on cookie cutter plots and characters.
For example, the first story, "1000 Kisses", is an elaborate set-up to introduce the reader to Dorian Red, Earl of Gloria, in an unconventional way. In it we meet the Earl and discover that he is something of a sensualist and will do whatever he can to get what he wants, and what he wants is to possess beautiful things. He does this with the aid of a group of highly trained, beautiful male followers, committing art thefts across the globe and signing them with the titular calling card "from Eroica, with love". It seems nothing offers Dorian Red a challenge until he spies a beautiful young man and decides that he must possess him!
In the stories following, the Earl of Gloria meets his nemesis in the form of German Nato agent Major Klaus Heinz von dem Eberbach, a serious young officer who is not swayed by Dorian Red's charms. The Earl can't resist a challenge!

These stories are written with many laughs and powerful moments of passion and some very striking art!
There is a lot to "squee" over for the younger fan and the older fan will appreciate the more densely packed storytelling!
I STRONGLY urge fans to BUY THIS BOOK and discover why Eroica has been a cult classic for over twenty years!

The translation is quite good on this and so is the touch up production work and publisher CMX can be very proud of that!
Why only THREE stars then, you may ask? BEcause! This is only the FIRST volume and the comic hasn't found it's tone yet and there are better stories yet to come in this title!