The Thief Inoue Akikazu and Other Stories

by Osamu Tezuka

From the legendary creater Osamu Tezuka comes an anthology of psychological thrillers that will drive a chill in your spine. A woman is spurned by her lover, and is presented with the chance to get her revenge. A serial killer claims that his inhumane acts against man and nature are in protest of a society he sees unjust. In The Thief Inoue Akikazu, Tezuka masterfully balances the horrors that creep at the edge of our psyches with the amazing dialogue and artwork that prove he was a legend!

Genres: Manga, Anthologies, Classics

240 pages, ebook

Published August 1, 2017

About the author

Dr. Osamu Tezuka (手塚治虫) was a Japanese manga artist, animator, producer and medical doctor, although he never practiced medicine. Born in Osaka Prefecture, he is best known as the creator of Astro Boy and Kimba the White Lion. He is often credited as the "Father of Anime", and is often considered the Japanese equivalent to Walt Disney, who served as a major inspiration during his formative years. His prolific output, pioneering techniques, and innovative redefinitions of genres earned him such titles as "the father of manga" and "the God of Manga."

Reviews

[Δημήτρης Μπ · Rating 3 out of 5]

The artwork is pretty nice, however, I wasn't that thrilled with the stories themselves. The one with the title name was long and confused me at times. The rest, have their ups and downs. I liked the creepy/mysterious atmosphere that they create, though.

[ComicNerdSam · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of some great stories. The title story and Peter Kurten story have jumped up to some of the best comics Tezuka has ever done. Extremely rich.

[Dan P · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first few stories in this collection are the kind of pulpy men's magazine fare you'd expect from someone with Tezuka's output publishing in the 70's: fun ideas at their core, but clearly rushed for deadlines with endings crunched in on the last couple pages. But the last story, the titular Inoue Akikazu, is fantastic. A layered story with complex characters and stunning art. A man of contrasts, that Tezuka!

[Fluffyroundabout · Rating 3 out of 5]

## Notes
- Another collection of psychological horror created by the God of Manga though never meant to be amongst his greatest, it’s another collection for the Tezuka fanatic or completionist for stories mainly created between 1972-1973.
- ‘The Record of Peter Kurten’ will haunt me for awhile, incredibly vile and reminder of the dark depths people can go to in order to satisfy their base desires.
- ‘The Thief Inoue Akikazu’ was another standout here, really enjoyed learning about the volcanic formations which created Mt. Showa Shinzan.

[Marcus Woodman · Rating 4 out of 5]

As usual with Tezuka's short story collections, the tales in this book are hit and miss. Tezuka frequently relies on his usual unfortunate tropes to challenge and traumatize characters, but I appreciated the twists in these more. I was a little worried because the first story in the book was predictable and not-very-good, but the others managed to challenge my expectations. All in all, a pretty solid collection.

[Nomad nimrod · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one was different.

[Abdullahi Gelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

The stories here are all dealing with criminals and the best of them is, of course, The Thief Inoue Akikazu.