(no subject)

[telophase]

While I have discouraged people from purchasing Ral Grad due to the extreme fanservice that's fanservicey in a way that tends to make my right eye twitch a lot, I bowed my head to the power of the dark side Obata Takeshi's art and got Ral Grad volume 1 from Amazon. I AM HELPLESS IN THE SIGHT OF OBATA TAKESHI.

So now I am reading it so you don't have to.

The main character is Ral. A powerful Shadow - Grad, the Blue Dragon - entered his body at birth. To prevent Grad consuming Ral, Ral's father the King had him raised in total darkness - without light, there are no shadows. Ral is tutored through the wall of the egg he's trapped in by Miss Mio, who notably fails to teach him about girls, and also manages to strike up a partnership with Grad. As the manga starts, a Shadow army is besieging the castle and Ral is released from his egg, naked as the day he was born, as a last-ditch attempt to save the castle.

In short order Ral whacks his father for imprisoning him, discovers that girls have some rather intriguing differences from boys, and fights the Shadows off. In that order. He spends a good part of the second chapter in the bath, getting attended to by a group of naked girls, being saved from a higher rating by strategically-placed steam, hair, and limbs, and talking with his dragon.

Ral does not actually wear pants until page 103.

Shortly after he dons pants, he sets off with Mistress Mio and what is probably the first of a scrappy band of adventurers to campaign across the continent and eventually defeat the current Shadow Queen. The Shadow Grad fled to the world of light to raise power and eventually defeat the Queen, who has ransacked the world of darkness and turned most of its inhabitants into slavering minions - quite literally, as they fight and compete for the chance to consume a strand of her hair and partake a little in her beauty - and who is determined to wipe out the human race.

Ral's motivation, however, is BOOBIESBOOBIESBOOBIESBOOBIES I FIGHT TO SAVE THE WORLD FOR BOOBIESBOOBIESBOOBIESBOOBIES. I am not kidding about this. He uses a slightly-differently worded version of that argument a few times.

I could probably get past Ral being obsessed with girls and boobs, as it is a Shonen Jump property he is a 15-year-old boy who has just had his hormones hit him with a mallet and has just discovered the existence of girls, and has most of his demands catered to because, well, he's got this ENORMOUS FREAKIN' DRAGON that he can control that scares the willies out of everyone. It's Miss Mio's wimpy "No, no, you shouldn't do that!" reaction to him ripping her clothes off and fondling her in public, and the overt evil sexuality that the Shadow Queen wields that grates my nerves raw.

There is a point where Miss Mio attempts to explain to Ral that no, you don't get to fondle the princess' boobs just because you save her, but I am afraid the lesson does not stick for long. Especially as the moral so far is that women's sexuality is a thing to be given to men as a reward for doing good deeds, and any woman who uses hers for her own ends is evil. Miss Mio gets to be the mother figure; after she establishes to Ral that he is not to rip her clothes off and despite the occasional regulation boob-grab, he ends up snuggling with her in a little-boy fashion at night, as she muses how sad it is that he has to sleep with a light on because after 15 years in the dark, he's frightened of it.

There are bits and pieces of a really interesting story here, i.e. one that hits my Cool Bits but so far it's failing to live up to that. Drawn really well, though.



Ral: What are these? *squeeze squeeze*
Mio: Th-they're breasts.


Ral: Have I embarassed you?
Mio: Yes, but it's my own fault because I didn't teach you about women.

Ral: So this is a bath? It feels great! Everybody's naked and scrubbing me from top to bottom. Heavenly.

Mio, finally showing some proper backbone after the castle is attacked during Ral's bath: Do you know how many people died while you were playing rub-a-dub-dub with those girls?

Kafka of the unfortunate haircut: Lady Mio, is Ral's main purpose to fondle bosoms?
Mio: Well, that's certainly a big part of it...

Ral: Kafka, if there weren't any women in this world, would you still be on the front lines?
Kafka: Don't be ridiculous! Of course!
Ral: You're weird. All men want to squeeze boobies. You're just trying to look cool by pretending you're above that.

Comments

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

I feel shamed at being more curious now...

I'd feel better if I knew he got punched for it, a gun pointed at him, or a hissy fit was thrown over it...

[telophase.livejournal.com]

So far it's been shown that his hypothesis that men fight evil for boobies is correct, even when the men concerned strenuously deny it. That could be funny, played the right way - and I have to admit that Kafka of the unfortunate haircut is mighty funny when he's offended - but the worse problem's that every time a woman is shown in charge of her own sexuality, it's in the service of evil. Mio's change from boob-bearer to mother isn't even at her own behest - she agrees to "teach him about girls", but he falls asleep before she finishes getting ready for bed. And that's the only scene, except for one played for laughs with maid costumes, that she's seen in a sexualized outfit - she goes back to her neck-to-toe (clinging, I admit) outfit afterwards.

(Edited for clarity XD)

[maxineofarc.livejournal.com]

It sounds awful, but I want to see this unfortunate haircut now.

[telophase.livejournal.com]

I think you are definitely someone who will see it when I say: it's a Norman knight's hairdo in the back with shaggy bangs across the front and two longer pieces in front of each ear.

[maxineofarc.livejournal.com]

That is unfortunate.

[the-z.livejournal.com]

Fanservice + Obata Takeshi

Yes, you have my full attention.

[telophase.livejournal.com]

Ignore all the dialogue, which is pretty much "BOOBIES BOOBIES BOOBIES BOOBIES!!" and just look at the art, and you'll enjoy it. :D

[the-z.livejournal.com]

Oh, you know me, I'll be giggling my fool head off at "BOOBIES BOOBIES BOOBIES BOOBIES!!"

I'm 12 :D

[telophase.livejournal.com]

I figure you'd be saying it. XD

It's just what I said above about women owning their own sexuality = evil that makes it annoying as hell, instead of a hysterical shonen romp. XD

[rushthatspeaks.livejournal.com]

I did like that she considered his powers, considered the situation, and immediately offered to sleep with him. This is so much more sensible than the I-could-not-possibly-do-such-a-thing-how-dare-you snit I had been expecting.

[movingfinger.livejournal.com]

So this is one of those "Raw, honest emotions and hard truths vividly expressed" kind of things, eh?

[telophase.livejournal.com]

*thinks about the 15-year-old boys she has known*
*thinks about many of the older-than-15-year-old boys she knows*

I would say ... yes.

[kyuuketsukirui.livejournal.com]

Apparently Ral Grad is only like 3 or 4 vols total, so I'm hoping his next series is a little, uh, deeper. XD

I am really enjoying Ral Grad, though, I have to admit. I've read the first two so far. It's always interesting to see the Japanese take on the typical western fantasy genre, though, and I love the art, and the gags are pretty funny. I'm easy. ^_^;;

[telophase.livejournal.com]

Yeah. I think it's mostly the typically-Japanese stereotype of the girls always taking the blame on themselves for things, and the weird mother-as-surrogate-lover thing that kind of creeps me out about that bit, and how she immediately melted into a compliant yes-dear person, instead of remaining a teacher to him.

Mind you, I can't say I wouldn't do the same thing if confronted with a GIANT SHADOW DRAGON that reeeeeeeally wants to touch boobies when mine are the closest.

[telophase.livejournal.com]

I knew it ran across two years in Shonen Jump, but I didn't know what months it started and ended in, so I had no clue how many volumes it was.


I wonder what Obata Takeshi is doing now?

[kyuuketsukirui.livejournal.com]

I poked around Wikipedia Japan last month and it seems he did one or two one-offs, but there was no info (at that time anyway) about anything more.

[telophase.livejournal.com]

How dare the man take some time off between series! He has a responsibility to me to keep me supplied with awesome art!

[thawrecka]

I'm torn between my deep and completely unchaste love for Obata Takeshi's art and my disinterest in reading BOOBIES BOOBIES BOOBIES for chapters on end.

[telophase.livejournal.com]

I suppose you could always track down the Japanese edition, assuming you don't read Japanese. XD

[thawrecka]

That is a most awesome idea.

[doinkies.livejournal.com]

He probably wants to find a story that doesn't have so many BOOBIES BOOBIES BOOBIES...:P

[rushthatspeaks.livejournal.com]

He's in jail for illegal possession of weaponry, last I heard.

[telophase.livejournal.com]

I vaguely remember something about a switchblade or butterfly knife, but I hadn't heard he went to jail for it. Huh. Hopefully he hasn't tanked his art career.

[celestriad.livejournal.com]

i remember reading a few chapters of this a while ago... the fanservice annoyed me so much that i stopped reading after around 7 chapters. :P i was trying to give it a chance to see if the story improved, and because of obata takeshi's art, but i couldn't do it. XP

[telophase.livejournal.com]

I'll give it at least another volume because of the art, and maybe to give me rant fodder, but I'm not expecting much out of it. XD

ral grad

[pir-anha.livejournal.com]

that's what i did. except now i read too much japanese for it to work anymore.

it is to weep. obata takeshi's art is so wonderful, but i have no idea in hell how he picked this writer to work with. it is the only manga by takano tsuneo i've seen, but i sure am not looking for more now.

Re: ral grad

[telophase.livejournal.com]

He probably didn't have that much of a choice? Or he was looking for a change from the intense psychological thriller genre?

ISTR that it comes from a video game, which makes total sense when you think about it.

ETA; Or maybe Shonen Jump paired a new writer with an established artist to give him a wider readership?

[tirwen.livejournal.com]

You know, I just so happened to be in the process of watching Bastard! when the other half picked up Ral Grad... Some striking similarities ;)

[telophase.livejournal.com]

Oh, god, Bastard!! XD The series that takes the most shounenest shounen evar and makes it EVEN MORE SHOUNEN!

When you compare the manga versions, Ral Grad comes off as ... actually, Bastard!! is more feminist, because while there's a hell of a lot of fanservice, the women get to own their own sexuality and smack down any man impertinent enough to get grabby.

[tirwen.livejournal.com]

Good point... plus some mostly naked men... ;p

[cyancat.livejournal.com]

I just wanted to say that this past Saturday I saw Ral Grad sitting on a shelf at Waldenbooks.

Well, after hearing your raving review, I just had to pick it up and buy it, along with telling the group of giggling Naruto fangirls there as well what it was all about.... Boobiesboobiesboobiesboobies. :)

I actually loved the book and can't wait for the next installment. Ral is a type of boy that you'd love to hate yet he preplexes you with his divine wisdom of saving tits-err all women. I was giggling outright at so many parts.

Though I think that I should tell you about a book that you should pick up since you got me to pick this up.
The title is "I, Otaku: Struggle in Akihabara"
Its a book that so much happens in the life of a boy suddenly turned into a blatant otaku that I can't possibly explain it without pictures, so go here --> http://www.gomanga.com/webmanga/index.php?series=iotaku&page=1
And read the first chapter.

Laughed so much while reading this and just as well, I am waiting for the next installment.
Thanks for the review!

[telophase.livejournal.com]

I just have a hard time getting past the whole "women's sexuality is only to be used as a reward for men" message, which tends to poison the fun for me. It's got points I would really like otherwise.

And not only have I read I, Otaku, I've reviewed it (http://telophase.livejournal.com/1119108.html). :)

[(Anonymous)]

Ah yes, I do understand your viewpoint in that. Women are not rewards for good deeds, but don't a lot of young boys these days believe that their efforts -sports and such- will somehow be rewarded with women sometime in their life?

And, of course you have read 'I, Otaku'. How very silly of me not to have remembered that.
I hope that you pick up the next volume in May as I have read that the next has to deal with Sota and Kenji getting tricked into working for a Yaoi book company, so I hope that they keep the liveliness going strong.

Thanks for commenting back!

[cyancat.livejournal.com]

Oops that was me.
Didn't realize I wasn't logged in. :)

[telophase.livejournal.com]

Yes, but you did notice that every woman who was in charge of her own sexuality, and who was not open to being groped randomly by any man who wanted to was portrayed as either evil or vicious and petty?