PART 40 of 52 ONESHOTS in 52 WEEKS
浦沢直樹の『DAMIYAN!』 “Damiyan!” by URASAWA Naoki
Naoki Urasawa is a highly regarded mangaka, beloved for his epic mystery thrillers, including 20th Century Boys, Monster, and Billy Bat. These multi-faceted stories span generations, take place throughout multiple countries, and accommodate a sizeable cast of memorable characters. The author is a proven master of long-form narratives but, like many of his peers, is also no stranger to oneshot stories. Since debuting in 1983, Urasawa has written no less than twenty short works, which have been collected in numerous anthologies.
The most recent is a volume titled Sneeze: Naoki Urasawa Story Collection, released in Japanese by Shogakukan in 2019, and in English by Viz Media in 2020. The anthology collects eight of Urasawa’s more recent oneshots, including several auto-biographical stories. This week, I’m taking a look at Damiyan!, the collection’s opening manga, which was originally published in Big Comic Spirits in 2016.
Komoto, a member of the yakuza, is ordered by his superior to avenge their boss’ death by taking out the new leader, who is accused of violently ousting his predecessor. Komoto hires the enigmatic Damiyan to do the deed, whose apparent psychic powers are able to induce heart attacks. Komoto attempts to mend his family life in the meantime, but soon finds himself at wits end when he learns the truth behind the boss’ death and his yakuza business goes awry.
Damiyan! is fairly archetypal as a story about yakuza, depicting the usual tussle for power at the top, with subordinates caught in the crossfire, but it does a lot with a little. The first two scenes exposit the plot well, quickly and adroitly defining the characters and their situations in a way that is both tantalising and fun. Throughout, there’s a sense that no panel is wasted.
Naoki Urasawa has often achieved a remarkably cinematic presentation in his serial work, using his fluid artwork and panel arrangements to mimic film editing, depicting match cuts, dissolves, and abrupt transitions, to help bolster the tone and pace of his plot. There’s certainly a flavour of this in Damiyan!, as the oneshot unfolds with an engaging and driven pace.
Titular character Damiyan is compelling and unusual, but Komoto brings the story its emotional weight as a gang member yearning his family life, forced to rethink both his priorities and alliances. Some of the finer details here could do with a little more festering, but at 35 pages the story unfolds with a commendable capacity.
The author’s character designs have a sketchy appeal, with Urasawa honing in on facial detail. His particular attention toward characteristics such as laughter lines, wrinkles, baggy eyes, facial hair, eyebrows and so on, help to shape characters which are singular and distinguished. Although this often leads to his older male characters (with all their seasoned facial features) being much more distinctive than their younger female or child counterparts, whose attributes tend to overlap more noticeably throughout his work.
Widely known for his mystery thrillers, Naoki Urasawa attempted to replicate such a tale with Throw Toward the Moon, which immediately follows Damiyan! in the Sneeze anthology. Unfortunately, this oneshot came across as rather contrived, and was unable to reach its potential in a tighter format. Despite being less adventurous, Damiyan! is all the more memorable for its proficiency and incisiveness.
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Morning, Roo 