Adolf: A Tale of the Twentieth Century

Rating:
Summary: Quality Comic Paperback
Review: ADOLF: A TALE OF THE TWENTIETH CENTURY is about three people named Adolf during WWII- the infamous dictator, a half-German half-Japanese boy, and a Jewish boy. It seems that a potentially harmful document to the Third Reich has fallen into the wrong hands.

This is a historical work with fictional characters. I recommend this comic book to anyone interested in World War II, comic books, or Japanese magna.

The artwork is in black-and-white, but that does not detract from this masterpiece. There is a distinct Japanese style to the artwork.

This is the first book in a five part series. My only gripe is that the the most famous Adolf- Adolf Hitler- could have been featured in the book a little bit more. I am sure he will be in the other books- considering what the damaging information about him is.

Like I said, if you are interested in worldly events in that time period 1930's-1940's get this- now!

Rating:
Summary: Awesome spy story
Review: From the hype surrounding this I was expecting something kind of educational or with serious history. I was pleasantly surprised. This read as a good spy story.

The Adolf series proposes to tell the stories of three Adolfs. One is the historic Hitler. The other two are fictional. We start by following the story of Toge, a Japanese reporter in Berlin to cover the 1936 Olympics and to some extent our narrator through these stories. His brother is an exchange student living in Berlin. Toge receives a call from his brother about a secret that will throw Hitler out of power. When Toge arrives he finds his brother murdered. The police take the body but it never arrives at the station. When Toge tries to track down the body he finds that no one will admit to having met his brother and the police (who also have no record of the murder) claim that he must be making the story up. Through the first half of this book we follow Toge's search for information about his brother in Berlin. He wants to bury and avenge his brother, and gets caught up in something much bigger. Somehow the murder is connected with a murder of a Geisha six months earlier in Japan. Both victims had plaster under their fingernails. When Toge returns to Japan he continues to search for the truth about his brother.

Through this Geisha we are introduced to the next two Adolfs. One is the son of the prime suspect for the murder, a high ranking German intelligence officer stationed in Japan. The third Adolf is a Jewish German whose family is in Japan because that is a better place for them to live than is Germany. The two boys are the same age and are best friends, which bothers both families. Non-jewish Adolf doesn't want to go to school in Germany and take the career path that his father wants for him, because he doesn't want to be taught that jews and therefore jewish-Adolf are bad. Both Adolfs come to learn the horrible secret that can destroy Hitler and so they are caught up in the bigger story.

This is a really great and well paced story. I got pulled in and had to finish it. I had put off reading it because much of the hype I had heard about it made it sound dry and educational. It isn't dry. I'm sure that I learned something from seeing a telling of WWII from a Japanese perspective, but regardless this is a good story.

I highly recommend this book. Keep in mind that there are a couple of graphic torture scenes, a rape and a suicide (and book 2 gets much much worse). So don't give this to your fourth grader to teach them history.

Rating:
Summary: Unique Manga
Review: I have read Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind, Ranma and manyother mangas but Adolf is one in its own. What struck me first whenopening the covers was the artwork. Generally manga has a typical style to it. Big eyes, small noses, strange body proportions and several other features typically define it. Adolf is the same, yet different. It was created by the same artist as the internationally recognised Kimba the White Lion and Astro Boy. I, like many Australians, grew up on shows like these and typically associate the style of drawing, cartoony even by Japanese standards, with children's TV shows. The artwork in Adolf is almost identical to his previous creations and to see it utilised in telling a far more 'mature' story was quite difficult for me to get my head around at first.

That is not to say that the artwork isn't good. It is brilliant when compared with almost any other manga. It is just so different to the manga I'm used to. Anyone who has read other manga will see exactly what I mean when they pick it up. You can fully see Kimba behind everyone's eyes.

The plot of Adolf is as intriguing as the pictures used to present it. Conspiracies, kidnappings, murders, betrayals, Nazis, this book has everything and all in a believable setting. You won't see any large-breasted valkyrie priestesses from beyond space in Adolf like you might expect in other mangas.

There is nothing to really fault with the book apart from that fact that with all its uniqueness it is not entirely original. It is a good book and the plot has not been done in a manga style before but I see elements of a thousand fiction novels rearing their heads in this one. Admittedly though, this is probably not entirely the author's fault as the original Japanese book was written quite a few years ago.

Ultimately Adolf: A Tale of the Twentieth Century is an excellent reading experience but is certainly not in the same league as Miyazaki's 'Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind' for pure storytelling genius.

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful novel.
Review: In japan, Osamu Tezuka is known as the manga no kamisama, or God of Manga. And this much is definitely true. This story, The Three Adolfs, is long, wonderful, full, rich, complex, and better than many literary works I have read. From the moment you open the book, you can't tell it's very serious and important. And as you read, you will fall in love with this wonderful story. Here's one note: If you like this book, get some of Osamu Tezuka's other stories. Blackjack, Phoenix...the man made the greatest manga ever released.

Rating:
Summary: The first volume in a great, epic series
Review: Osamu Tezuka's, 'Adolf: A Tale of the Twentieth Century,' is the opening chapter in what will turn out to be an epic, sweeping tale of 3 Adolf's - Adolf Hitler, Adolf Kamil (a jewish boy growing up in Japan) and Adolf Kaufman (a half japanese, half german youth). Within this framework, Tezuka will spin a deep and moving story set against the backdrop of Japan and Germany during WWII providing both entertainment and fresh historical perspective of events during this timeframe.

Spanning 5 volumes and over 1300 pages readers will easily glide through each book thanks to Tezuka's sharp and easy-to-digest narrative along with his crisp black & white artwork. This series is highly recommended to anyone interested in graphic novels, excellent storytelling and WWII. Definitely start with this first volume and enjoy the rest of the tale over the next 4 books.

Rating:
Summary: In the same class as Maus
Review: The entire Adolf series by Tezuka is fabulous.The story revolves around a secret coveted document that proves that Adolf Hitler was in fact a Jew himself. Very well written from a Japanese Manga perspective.

Rating:
Summary: Tezuka's Masterpiece!
Review: This is the "GOD" of Japanese comics proverbial masterpiece. Tezuka was the pivotal force behind the rise of Manga in post-war Japan. He is responsible for most of the techniques and innovations that came about during the fifties and sixties. I've heard him refered to as the Walt Disney of Japan. ADOLF is the Japanese comics equivalent of WAR AND PEACE. Honing in on the three main characters, the three Adolf's, it nevertheless has a large cast of characters and Tezuka puts them through hell as the almost inevitable forces of war combine and attack each other throughout the world. Like all good historical novels it immerses the reader in the politics and events of the period. It also features a Japanese view of the events of WWII but without any miltaristic or nationalistic rhetoric.

Rating:
Summary: Tezuka's Masterpiece!
Review: This is the "GOD" of Japanese comics proverbial masterpiece. Tezuka was the pivotal force behind the rise of Manga in post-war Japan. He is responsible for most of the techniques and innovations that came about during the fifties and sixties. I've heard him refered to as the Walt Disney of Japan. ADOLF is the Japanese comics equivalent of WAR AND PEACE. Honing in on the three main characters, the three Adolf's, it nevertheless has a large cast of characters and Tezuka puts them through hell as the almost inevitable forces of war combine and attack each other throughout the world. Like all good historical novels it immerses the reader in the politics and events of the period. It also features a Japanese view of the events of WWII but without any miltaristic or nationalistic rhetoric.

Rating:
Summary: Serious Manga for adults
Review: This, in short, is the good stuff. An excellent eye-opener for those who think of the manga genre as black and white anime that doesn't move. This manga series is a very human telling of the story of WWII through the eyes of 3 men named Adolf.

The style will perhaps not appeal to those who are used to American style or even the more recent Japanese style but to those willing to give it a chance, the storytelling is fantastic. This edition is on pretty nice paper and is definately worth the money.

Rating:
Summary: Serious Manga for adults
Review: This, in short, is the good stuff. An excellent eye-opener for those who think of the manga genre as black and white anime that doesn't move. This manga series is a very human telling of the story of WWII through the eyes of 3 men named Adolf.

The style will perhaps not appeal to those who are used to American style or even the more recent Japanese style but to those willing to give it a chance, the storytelling is fantastic. This edition is on pretty nice paper and is definately worth the money.