Uncivilized Planet

This is a pretty interesting tale by Jiro Matsumoto, containing all of his trademark style and ambition yet lacking a little in the art, story and humour department compared to his other works. Yet the story is what makes the manga most interesting, even though it is a composite of conventional narrative beats, it's still a strange animal of its own and remains unique compared to other manga. Contrary to appearances this is not a sci-fi tale, but it is interestingly set during a vague war that Matusomoto continually returns to in nearly all of his manga, even throwing in a cameo appearance of twoof his best characters from his previous published manga. The backdrop in Uncivilized Planet looks a mix of middle-eastern and east European. Architecture and clothing styles look mildly Arabian at times and random extras populating the story look like gypsies, but fear not as there is no hackneyed allusion to modern day warfare in those regions, instead the war aspects remain universal in nature. The sci-fi aspect shows itself through continuous fantasies dreamt up by the main character to mirror his current mental state in the real world. It plays out like a humorous manga version of old American TV sci-fi, like Lost In Space. It gives the manga an extra spark that makes it stand out from the crowd, and it needs it because the entire manga at heart is a pretty simple and conventional tale of wanting to get the hell out of a backwater town. Uncivilized Planet lives up to its name. It's a dark depressing existence full of desperation and misery. The populace focused on in this tale live under occupation and resort to violence and sex to get through each day. It is under these circumstances we are dropped into the lives of Colo, Naomi, and Cookie. Three childhood friends who are actually a triangle with very sharp edges, as the two females detest each other and the witless indecisive meek artist Colo remains between them bearing the brunt like an amazing car test dummy. Although all three characters may not earn your sympathy or respect during the two volumes, what's interesting is how Naomi and Cookie in some ways begin the tale on opposite sides of a personality scale and throughout the story slide into the middle then onto the other side again. Their arcs ensure that even if you don't like their characters, you'll be fascinated by their development and find yourself feeling mixed emotions as to what you're meant to be feeling for them. At the end of the day, they're human beings under pressure of war and seeing them squirm and struggle against something greater than them is compelling, however depressing it is. Or perverted. Matsumoto's tales always have time to think up new ways to insert things into women, and this is no different. His previous manga handle sex much better than this through imaginative ways to move the story or affect the reader, but this time it feels more conventional (as conventional as Matsumoto can get considering the crazy sex here) and as a result it feels a bit tired and overdone. At least he remains able to create these scenes without it feeling too exploitative, in that he doesn't revel in the abuse of women but has these scenes as a ridiculously heightened way to convey utter despair, unflinching desire, and survival instinct. Uncivilized Planet is a decent coming-of-age tale that despite some shortcomings still emerges victorious in the end thanks to Matsumoto's ability to wrestle a satisfyingly emotional resolution out of all the sex and violence. The victory is so good you should hopefully feel a pang in your chest in the final chapters as each character's arc nears its end, proving that even when reigning in to convention, Matsumoto brings the goods when it comes to character, story and art.

To me, Jiro is one of the most important author in Japanese comic. Unfortunately, to the Japanese, Jiro is faux avant-garde, hence his sales number and empty trophy spots. You should read this is you really like Japanese comic and think it is a wonderful medium, worthy of being considered art. Who am I kidding, you are not here because you want to know if it's worthy buying and reading. You are here because you are either like me, a fan of Jiro works, or you have read it and wonder what people think of it. Personally, I think it is the most memorable of hiswork. Not because it's particularly striking, but because it's the simplest of the bunch. Let's quickly get through the art. Jiro's art seems extremely, lazy, raw, unrefined and even messy sometime. I think most people wouldn't have a problem with it. I quickly learn that Jiro wasn't trained in painting, he's in sculpture, which is surprising because his drawings seem like it would fit better on water colour, as shown by his cover illustration. If we talk about art evolution, there were barely any between this and later titles, but it is very striking and easy to follow. While Jiro later works are frame much better, this is by no mean condemning his earlier works such as this. It is beautiful on its own. I wont dissect the story and the symbolism, because it is up to you to interpret after all. I would, however, rant about my feelings reading this. After all, to me, a work of art either makes me feel emotions or makes my senses go numb. This definitely made me feel. The characters went through their arc, reacting in 2 ways to their current circumstance. They either endure and accept, or fight against circumstance by sacrificing their soul. The main character ended up keeping his soul through his delusions and inability to cope with current circumstances adequately. His friends didn't end well either, selling their soul. The setting for soul selling is both interesting and unsettling. It took place in a distinctly Eastern European setting, during what seems to be a Germans occupation. The characters are stuck there, both because of their circumstances and because of the occupation. The occupiers, however, are both the monster and the way out for the characters, but the monster requires a meal before it let you pass. I am a little shaken, consider how the author portrayed the occupied force. They were both cruel and sympathetic. While they shoot, rape, pillage and oppress, they also maintain order and have their own life before the war. Meanwhile, during and after the occupation, the people were portrayed as both traitorous, selling out to the occupier, and cruel, shooting them and hang the traitors, rape and pillage their owns. While the setting is Eastern Europe, I can't help but feel it parallels the occupation of China and Korea by Japan. I won't dwell on the war too much, because that's not really the point. The point is obvious really, the world is cruel, and we can only adapt to it, not fight it, hence the title. While Jiro can hardly be called a feminist, I do believe he is, at heart. He never shy away from women's suffrage, putting them on the fore front of his works, even if the works are packed sexual images that women will find repulsive. Not to mention his female characters are strong willed and always want to dictate their own fate, even if it is ill-advised. You can see he did not reprimand his friends for using their body, but merely from distancing herself from her friends and the other for cruelty. There's also a disconnect between his own happiness and his ability to create art. The main character was praised after he started to lose hope and coping with his imagination. Only when he had embraced the sorrow, the meaninglessness of life and existence, did he advance as an artist and had the courage and strength to step forward. I don't think Mikai no Hoshi is profound and not even Jiro's best work. In fact, I think as an anti-war piece of work, it's kind of weak. But, I think the passion that he put into this short story came through very clearly. For me, this is the best introduction to Jiro by far. It has all of his central theme without indulge in symbolism, fantasy and dream sequence. Every time after finishing it, I sat in silence for a while. It's not beautiful, but it makes a powerful impression that made me decide to sit down and write a review for it 14 years after I read it for the first time.

To be honest, I didn't know what to expect of this one at first sight, but considering its recommendations and synopsis, I could figure out it was one of those "niche" mangas. Written by Jiro Matsumoto, it tells the story of three childhood friends, called Nicolo, Cookie and Naomi. They live in an "uncivilized planet", where its natives are constantly at war, and guess what? They are just like humans! There you can see that this is just a metaphor for how humans are evil, and all those kind of stuff you read and watched in thousands of different medias. Nothing new here. The storystarts with Cookie dancing to strangers for some money, with Nicolo as a musical support (also as a slave, since she abuses him). But turns out that she does more than that to survive, which is selling her body in those kinds of ways you already know. Naomi, the third character, sells bread to make a living. However, when a opportunity of earning more was given by the army in power, she grabbed it with both hands. But turns out that the "work" was doing the same thing Cookie does. Not only that, but the general in charge of the military is a cringey pervert who likes harming the thousands of women there. The plot then shows their tragic story, and how the views they had in their childhood are not reality, once they became adults. There you can notice that this manga loves to show perverted h-scenes that add no purpose to the story, just for the sake of shocking and to make it seems like it has any deeper meaning. It is pretentious, pointless and annoying, and proves to be a waste of time, especially with its poor message wrapped in weak symbolism. You see, if this manga was honest with itself, and didn't try to be bigger than it actually is, then it would be something special. Another issue is its characters, which I mentioned previously. None of them ever stands out, and their novelty and few interesting traits wear off pretty fast. Add it to the fact that there is no such thing as a solid message, which makes the whole universe look loose and uninteresting as well. The closing of the story was the only moment that grabbed me. I really liked the climax, Naomi's conclusion came somewhat unexpected and fair. And right after it, Nicolo decides to leave town, but Cookie tries to stop him. They have a tough fight, he almost strangles her, and after coming to terms, they make a promise to meet again. Promise that Nicolo himself knew would never be fulfilled. After a couple of years, Cookie get married and becomes a mother, and Nicolo leaves city to find his way out there. The art is fine, it made the story atmosphere more depressing. It fulfills its job and works well in especific situations of the story. Sometimes the dark and gritty ideas make the plot immersive. But this doesn't mean much when the whole material isn't that appealing. In general, Mikai No Hoshi has a simple message, that could work if only the manga was honest with itself.

In my 'Fire Punch' Review, I said that 'Fire Punch' was the most underrated Manga on MAL. I've found at least two that exceed that one so far, and 'Uncivilized Planet' is one of them. So far I've only read two of Jiro Matsumoto's Manga, this and [i]Freesia[/i]. It seems many prefer the latter (and other Matsumoto works) for how unconventional it is compared to this one. I find this strange, however. While it is true that 'Freesia' has very unique characters and an interesting premise, 'Uncivilized Planet' has a far more unique setting and presentation. The World our characters occupy is futuristic and sci-fi inname only, mainly serving as a backdrop to the poverty the people live in. The manga is structured in such a way that the story is accompanied by an in-universe fictional tale from the mind of the protagonist Colo that often grants a glimpse into his mind. It reminded me of the pirate comic from 'Watchmen', but I think it may honestly be better executed here, especially in how it ties into the protagonist's psyche. The general character writing here is far better than I expected for such a short manga. There's a legitimate feeling of growth from Colo, and the two female main characters are developed well, both in terms of their character arcs and how our perspective changes on them. The fact that I mentioned one male main characters and two females may be setting off alarm bells in your head, but this is actually a good example of that trope. The two characters, Cookie and Naomi, are so fundamentally different in their relationship with Colo and their contrast is genuinely interesting. Even minor characters are well executed and feel integral to the story. The art is interesting. It's extremely sketchy, which I do think fits the run-down world, but sometimes it feels a bit inconsistent. Regardless, Matsumoto honestly has a mastery over use of light and shadow, even in its most minor uses. All of the characters look distinct enough, but their designs are down to earth, which fits this story well. Honestly a classic. Super underrated. As long as you aren't averse to overtly sexual themes and visuals, it's a great read. I'll give it a 8/10, but I could honestly see myself raising it to a 9.