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Moriarty’s One Thing I Love Today! Speed Racer Mach GoGoGo Manga Box Set!!
Hey, everyone. “Moriarty” here.
It’s totally worth the three exclamation points in the headline. I’m in love with this thing. So in love that I’m going to hurry so I can go finish reading it. Seriously! Read faster!
I found it today by chance while I was browsing a bookstore. I was picking up more of those Doc Savage reprints I started collecting last year. “Kenneth Robeson” is such a Pulp God, a machine-gun of a writer, and reading his collected works, still just a fraction of the 180-something Savage novels he personally wrote, I am exhausted by the amount of invention. He’s creating the reality of Doc and his friends wholesale, page after page after page of it on deadline. Stud. Total f’ing stud.
So that’s why I was in the store. Hunting down more of those. And in addition, I found something else that I took with me to my next appointment, where I had a chance to open it and look at it and decide, oh, hell, YES, I am in love with this thing today...
Innocuous enough at first glance. Big white box with a very... very... VERY... distinctive M on the cover. And you realize the white box has some subtle curves, that it’s not a cover, but a hood... to the Mach 5...
On the spine, it’s the immediately recognizable SPEED RACER logo, with MACH GoGoGo underneath. THE COMPLETE ORIGINAL MANGA. TATSUO YOSHIDA. And BMP PLATINUM at the bottom.
And as you turn it over, examine the top, the sides, the bottom, the back... it’s lovely. It’s a collector’s cover, something you display. I cop to falling for the cover itself. I judged the book by it. Totally. I’m not a huge manga fan. I enjoy some of it. I am amazed by some of it. I think some of it is crap. It’s a lot like any other storytelling format... great artists use it to publish great art.
I don’t really think MACH GoGoGo is great art. But it’s white-hot pop art, and the first thing I’ve noticed is how much more I respect the Wachowskis right now. The physics in this manga are exactly the sort of physics on display in those trailers so far. There’s a shot of Matthew Fox punching a guy in the face while his car is upside down above Racer X... that’s so crazy I can’t believe someone filmed it... but I love that they filmed it. It feels like they really love the world of these books and the show that they inspired. It’s an arbitrary world of crazy exaggeration and hyper-action, where even when the characters are standing still, they appear to be doing it very, very fast.
I love these books. I know they were published only to tie in to the release of the film. If you want to read an authoritative review of the books by someone who really knows the historical relevance of them, check out our own Scott Green’s review. Good stuff.
It’s two volumes, about 650 pages total. Hardcover. Printed in traditional manga order, everything right to left. I read that format so infrequently that it took me a few pages to get used to it. But when you see how the art is laid out for the racing, it’s obvious which way your eye’s supposed to go. The manga’s at its best when the characters are driving, which is as it should be. The way preposterous speed is portrayed is exuberant, and it’s just plain fun to read.
I’m seeing the Wachowski Bros film tomorrow, and I’m taking Toshi with me. He’s nuts for the old show. He’s nuts for the trailer. And tonight, before bed, we read the manga, and he was narrating it for me. This particular deluxe edition may just be a piece of the hype for the film, but it’s beautifully produced, and as a pop culture artifact, it’s a bargain if you can find it for $30 or less shopping online. Well worth that if you’ve got any fondness at all for the original.
Drew McWeeny, Los Angeles
Drew McWeeny, Los Angeles
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I hope with all the work that went into this movie it's a big hit. It deverves to be.
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I love this stuff so much. Can't wait for the movie, hope it makes a gajillion dollars.
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The Iron Man one is okay, but Harry as Pops Racer would be better.
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Why is no one taing about a big screen updating of this character?
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The US shows were heavily edited from the Japanese, mostly because of violence. When is anyone gonna put that show out in it's original form? I admit, it would probably require a new dub, which would sort of wreck a lot of the charm of the show... you know what? never mind.
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The only thing I ever liked about Speed Racer was this mid 90's computer game. I was meh about the show, stoked on the movie (mainly because it comes out on my B-day). But this set looks awesome. And that really pisses me off. Because my Gigantor and Inspector Gadget sets look like shit compared to it. And both of those are more set up to have cool shit then Mach 5. Oh well wonder when they are going to release later seasons of Gigantor (when it was in color and much more dramatic), and the live action movie that came out a year or two ago over there. Wonder if they are goning to do anything cool for G.I.Joe, Snorks or Fragile Rock for their upcoming live action films. I wonder if they are going to use real Snorks or CGI Snorks for the film?
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Or are you going to be asked to keep your mouth shut until May 9th? I'm really, really looking forward to this movie, but a couple of things scare me:
1.) I don't want to sit and deal with the overwhelming urge to punch Paulie Litt in the face while trying to enjoy the movie on all its other merits, and
2.) I'm kind of worried about how or even if all the action's gonna cut together. Every trailer I've seen thus far, I can't shake the feeling that as awesome as some of it looks, it feels like kind of a mess.
So I'm really curious to see what people say about it. -
For those interested, Amazon has this set for the best deal: $26.37. Couple that with Amazon's Free Shipping on anything over $25, and you've got a swanky bargain. http://www.amazon.com/Speed-Racer-Mach-Box-Set/dp/1569707316/ref=wl_it_dp?ie=UTF8&coliid=I2WS9V1KBG6K22&colid=19QSDT0F51LH6
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Apr 17, 2008 8:14:26 AM CDT
Is it me or is Emile Hirsch somewhat of a girly man?
by banallfirstposters
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Bring It!
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Damn You Michael Bay
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That live action Gigantor movie was released in this country 2 years ago.I got it through Netflix.
The catch is it's got the original Japanese name, Tetsujin 28.The giant robot stuff is cool and the stuff around here it is decent enough. -
The annual soapbox derby down volcano mountain! What a fantastic challenge. I bet I could win a race like that. I bet I could build a car that was faster than all the other cars and then I'd win! But what about dad? He's never let me enter such a race and he'd fear for my safety and I don't blame him but I have to enter that race!
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keep an eye out for these tricks. Because if you don't pay attention they can trick you and mess you up!
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Moved to the top of my queue. Thanks. Don't know why I didn't think of the name difference before.
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Is it in black and white or in color? The picture you have shows the art in black and white, but one of the pictures in Amazon shows the pages in color. Which is it?
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Has a wittle cwush on Emile...lol!
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I just don't get it. This movie will flop in a big way.
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Apr 17, 2008 9:59:25 PM CDT
Mori, I know you're not a manga fan, but here's my recommendatio
by badwaldo s revenge
Viz Signature's GOLGO 13 series (English adapted) in 13 volumes. Seriously, almost all stories are kick-ass riveting, with the world renowned professional assassin taking out the amoral scumbags in the end. Check it out. Also track down a copy of Golgo 13: The Professional 1983 anime film (OOP 1994 Orion Pictures video copy for maximum aesthetics or settle for a Urban Vision DVD edition). It's the most ludicrous action movie ever made, period, animated or not. A weird story with an insane twist at the ending populated with some of the most lunatic villains. Also recommended are: Crying Freeman (erotic action thriller, 5 volume), Sanctuary (political crime thriller 9 volume), Mai the Psychic Girl (Tim Burton was rumored to develop the project but left it in early 90's, one of the very first manga in English released in NA in 1987, 3 volume) and Wounded Man (9 volume, crazy action-packed story courtesy of Kazuo Koike, who also wrote Lone Wolf and Cub, available in 28 volume English edition, with the wallop of an emotional ending after a long journey of manga reading). Of course, there's 9-volume Battle Angel Alita manga which James Cameron intends to adapt after completing Avatar. That one's very good.
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I saw Moriarty at the screening tonight along with Devin from CHUD. I'm curious to know what they thought of SPEED RACER. It's definitely geared towards a younger audience but I thought it was a fun ride. The racing sequences are pretty inventive and the film has heart. I could have done without the Chim-Chim musical montage at the end but I'm sure kids will love that stuff.
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