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A review by quizkidpatrick
Buddha, Volume 1: Kapilavastu by Osamu Tezuka
4.0
This was an interesting read. The first book in the series is more of a historical context for the arrival of Siddhārtha Gautama. He is not actually born until about page 260 out of 400. The book mostly follows a few other people that I presume will be important to Siddhārtha as the series continues.
Since there are no written records from the time of Buddha's life this is presumably mostly fiction. Seeing what life was like in ancient India is interesting. There is a lot of violence and death so it is good to be aware of. Both male and female nudity, but none of it is sexual, so take that for what it is. The caste system is in full force here so there is some abuse going from the higher classes towards the slave caste and the untouchables. There is one main character from the Brahmin class, but the other two main characters are of the lowest castes so you don't see very much of the good life in India. Death and hardship follow them most of the book.
Presumably, since Siddhārtha is born in the last third of the book we will see more of what his life as a prince in the next volume. Thus far, not having only read some of the Buddha's suttas and not accounts of his life I have no idea how these other characters will tie into his life, there doesn't seem to be much of an indication so far by the end of this volume. There are a few anachronisms that I don't feel add much to the story, but I understand why there are there. At one point, a character refers to their city, "like New York or Paris, if you know what I mean." Which is to say it's a bustling metropolis, but this book's setting is sometime between 550 and 400 BCE so, no neither comparison is apt to the characters. I can't help but feel these types of explanations wouldn't be better as something in narration or as an editor's note as you see in some comics.
All in all, I'm ready to read more. The author of this book also wrote the Astro Boy manga, and one of the characters even looks like Astro. [a:Osamu Tezuka|29482|Osamu Tezuka|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1204216995p2/29482.jpg] has been compared to Walt Disney, so it's an understatement to say that his work is important. I can see great things coming for this series, and I appreciate the groundwork laid in this first volume.
Since there are no written records from the time of Buddha's life this is presumably mostly fiction. Seeing what life was like in ancient India is interesting. There is a lot of violence and death so it is good to be aware of. Both male and female nudity, but none of it is sexual, so take that for what it is. The caste system is in full force here so there is some abuse going from the higher classes towards the slave caste and the untouchables. There is one main character from the Brahmin class, but the other two main characters are of the lowest castes so you don't see very much of the good life in India. Death and hardship follow them most of the book.
Presumably, since Siddhārtha is born in the last third of the book we will see more of what his life as a prince in the next volume. Thus far, not having only read some of the Buddha's suttas and not accounts of his life I have no idea how these other characters will tie into his life, there doesn't seem to be much of an indication so far by the end of this volume. There are a few anachronisms that I don't feel add much to the story, but I understand why there are there. At one point, a character refers to their city, "like New York or Paris, if you know what I mean." Which is to say it's a bustling metropolis, but this book's setting is sometime between 550 and 400 BCE so, no neither comparison is apt to the characters. I can't help but feel these types of explanations wouldn't be better as something in narration or as an editor's note as you see in some comics.
All in all, I'm ready to read more. The author of this book also wrote the Astro Boy manga, and one of the characters even looks like Astro. [a:Osamu Tezuka|29482|Osamu Tezuka|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1204216995p2/29482.jpg] has been compared to Walt Disney, so it's an understatement to say that his work is important. I can see great things coming for this series, and I appreciate the groundwork laid in this first volume.