Ask John: Why is Go Nagai so Highly Respected?

Question:
I was wondering if you had any idea why it is that Go Nagai is considered one of the most significant figures in manga and anime, although he’s never had a single manga released commercially in the US (at least if he has, I’ve never heard of it)? It would seem strange that a man that has amassed such an enormous quantity of material would have had something released by now.

Answer:
I’m sure you understand, but I think it’s worth stating for record that the reputation of a Japanese creator isn’t based on or determined by his exposure or success in America. Naturally, the fame of a Japanese creator is determined by his or her impact on Japan’s anime and manga community. Go Nagai unquestionably deserves his acclaim as the influential creator of such classic titles as Cutie Honey, Devilman, and Mazinger, which revolutionized the fields of shoujo (magical girl), horror and giant robot manga and animation respectively. But while Go Nagai has always been tremendously prolific, his most highly regarded and significant manga works are all quite old, and are arguably significant more for their provocative themes and concepts than for their technical quality as comic art.

Native English speaking anime fans are most familiar with Go Nagai’s work by reputation, and through exposure to his anime productions including Mazinger-Z, Devilman Lady, Shuten Doji, Kama Sutra, Cutie Honey, Abashiri Family, Black Lion, Mao Dante, Iron Virgin Jun, Kekko Kamen, Violence Jack, and Oira Sukeban (Delinquent in Drag). Several of Go Nagai’s manga works have actully been published in English, but none of them very high profile. First Comics published an English translation of a full color 64 page Mazinger graphic novel back in 1988. Viz published the Go Nagai authored “Venger Robo” manga in 1993. Studio Ironcat published the Cutie Honey ’90 manga series. And Verotic Comics published a small sampling of the Devilman manga in English. But I think that the vast majority of Go Nagai’s manga has not been localized because there’s very little demand or interest in it among English language readers. Numerous vintage works by Osamu Tezuka have been published in English largely because of the reverence associated with his work. The original Lupin the 3rd manga series and Shotaro Ishinomori’s Cyborg 009 manga have also made it to America. But these handful of manga classics have been buoyed by associated anime series domestic releases, and even in spite of those tie-ins, don’t seem to have been particularly popular English language manga releases. Not to lay blame, but I think that the English speaking manga audience is simply more interested in contemporary titles than highly regarded and influential but very dated manga, such as much of Go Nagai’s canon. In response to that perceived demand, domestic manga translating companies seem to be prioritizing recent and contemporary titles over older classics.

Thanks to “amrchrd” for assistance in researching this article.