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A growing body of comics observers have jumped on the bandwagon for Naoki Urasawa as the best genre cartoonist currently working with his layered, dynamic storytelling. But not everyone has gotten the religion! His 21st CENTURY BOYS is currently coming out from Viz, but with 15 volumes in print it could be a bit daunting to jump into. For those who prefer a video introduction, MONSTER, based on the manga of the same name, just began streaming from Netflix. The 74-episode series deals with Dr. Kenzo Tenma and his efforts to stop an insane killer whose life he saved as a boy.

NAOKI URASAWA’S MONSTER (rated TV-MA, subtitled) is based on the critically acclaimed manga (graphic novel) series, also published in North America by VIZ Media, and will be presented uncut. The series joins several other popular VIZ Media anime titles such as BLEACH, DEATH NOTE, NARUTO, INUYASHA, and MÄR, which can now be instantly streamed from Netflix.

What would you do if a child you once saved grew up to be a monster? An ice-cold killer is on the loose, and Dr. Kenzo Tenma is the only one who can stop him! Tenma, a brilliant neurosurgeon with a promising future, risks his career to save a critically wounded young boy named Johan. When the boy, now a coldhearted and charismatic young man, reappears nine years later in the midst of a string of unusual serial murders, Tenma goes on the run from the police, who suspect him to be the killer, to find Johan and stop the monster he set loose upon the world.

Conspiracies, serial murders, and secret government experiments set against the grim backdrop of the formerly communist Eastern Europe are masterfully woven together in this compelling work of suspense. The critically acclaimed NAOKI URASAWA’S MONSTER manga series is also published in North America by VIZ Media and was nominated for the prestigious Eisner Award.

1 COMMENT

  1. I really, really, REALLY wish they would have made the dub that aired on SyFy available. That dub was fantastic, but with the bilingual DVD release stalled out after one box set, completely unavailable.

    That said, Monster is totally worth watching. It’s one of the most slavishly faithful adaptations I’ve ever seen, right down to each episode covering exactly two chapters of the manga.

  2. I believe the dub is available on Hulu (not as convenient for me as Netflix streaming but at least it is out there for now). I would kill, though, for a big DVD box set with the entire series. Please Viz?

  3. I watched this when it ran on SyFy–fabulous adaptation of the manga, and a wonderful use of limited animation. And of course the story is riveting . . .

  4. Yeah, all 74 eps of the dubbed version have been up on Hulu for a while. Johan’s dubbed voice kinds rubs me the wrong way for such a menacing character, still so good.