Black Magic

July 1, 2008
Masamune is best known as the mastermind behind the popular Ghost in the Shell anime films and TV series. He launched his manga career in 1983 with the eye-popping illustration of this acclaimed series of interconnected vignettes, now at last translated into English. Featuring bioroid Duna Typhon, a cybernetically engineered, sword-wielding sorceress, Black Magic takes the reader back millions of years to Venus, where a civilization overseen by the benevolent supercomputer Nemesis once thrived. Since bioroid servants still have to carry out Nemesis edicts, things inevitably get dicey when various factions try to hijack the computers influence for their own nefarious ends. This is where Duna comes in, as her human appearance camouflages a powerful connection with Nemesis and allows her to deal harshly with anyone threatening Venus utopian ideals. Masamunes own work, like manga in general, has since evolved beyond the cutesy, doe-eyed, button-nosed visages of his protagonists here, which wont lessen Masamunes many fans appreciation for this early fusion of the military pyrotechnics and sf motifs that characterize his later work.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2008, American Library Association.)