Even if unspoken, it continues to be read—On Makoto Kobayashi

There are manga artists in this world who are easy to evaluate and those who are difficult to evaluate.

For example, Osamu Tezuka is an easy-to-understand, highly evaluable manga artist. Well, that is only natural, as his achievements are so incredible that they deserve it. There are also numerous monographs researching Osamu Tezuka.

Katsuhiro Otomo is also a manga artist who is easily brought to the table for critical discussion. Since he is a great artist whose overwhelming drawing ability made him a turning point—before Otomo and after Otomo—that is also to be expected.

Conversely, there are also artists who, despite having quite impressive achievements, are difficult to evaluate—or rather, while they are both evaluated and popular, it seems unlikely that a monograph like 'A Theory of So-and-So' would ever be written about them.

For me, the representative of this is Makoto Kobayashi.

He has numerous hits and popular works such as '1, 2 no Sanshiro', 'What's Michael?', and 'Judo-bu Monogatari', and he is an active manga artist who has written 'Seishun Shonen Magazine 1978-1983', the gekiga Hasegawa Shin series starting with 'Seki no Yatappe', and is currently serializing 'Joshi Judo-bu Monogatari'.

Personally, 'Judo-bu Monogatari' is a manga I still find myself re-reading frequently. I believe it remains a monumental achievement in judo manga even today.

There are many points where his manga excels, but the most outstanding is that in his sports manga, he does not use unrealistic, absurd special moves or supernatural phenomena, but rather depicts the struggle entirely through the power of careful and dynamic illustration.

For example, in 'Judo-bu Monogatari', which I love, the protagonist's specialty is the shoulder throw, and he fights using only the shoulder throw until the final match. Many other characters appear, but every character competes within the realm of real judo techniques.

What I quoted above depicts the process in 'Judo-bu Monogatari' where the thrown opponent counters by taking it to the ground and executing a chokehold. The process leading up to the chokehold and the sharpness of the movements are depicted perfectly without omission, and even someone who doesn't know judo can understand what happened just from the drawings; it is an incredible descriptive power.

The fact that he is able to depict the appeal of a sport without resorting to unrealistic elements, but rather through precise descriptions that would be impossible without a deep understanding of the sport, and the technique to translate that into manga, has undoubtedly become a guidepost for many subsequent manga artists.

George Morikawa and Takehiko Inoue can be cited as manga artists under the influence of Makoto Kobayashi. Perhaps it is because they are authors who know the appeal of their respective sports—boxing and basketball—well, that they were able to release major hits like 'Hajime no Ippo' and 'SLAM DUNK' by depicting the appeal of those sports without resorting to unrealistic descriptions.

Thinking about it, since Makoto Kobayashi is positioned at the source of these two works, his influence is tremendous, and I feel that he is an artist who should be talked about more.

A major appeal of Makoto Kobayashi's manga is his expression that utilizes the 'ma' (pause/timing) in manga.

This '...' expression—Makoto Kobayashi is exquisitely good at this.

Basically, his drawing style, or rather his line work, is consistent, and he doesn't often use deformed character expressions depending on the scene. On the other hand, the pacing of his dialogue is exquisitely controlled, which contributes to the airiness and good rhythm of his manga.

The fact that a character can express what they are trying to say even when they are silent and say nothing means that the control of subtle nuances—such as the character's delicate expressions, the slight amount of sweat, or the differences in the speech bubble frames—is perfect. In short, Makoto Kobayashi is an incredibly skilled manga artist.

Incidentally, George Morikawa is an author who is significantly influenced by Makoto Kobayashi. He uses this silent "..." dialogue and the depiction of a group running through the city and fading out, which Kobayashi draws in his works, in a very similar way in his own creations.

I have roughly described the appeal and influence of Makoto Kobayashi's works so far, and while it is strange that his works have not been discussed much despite their popularity and acclaim, I also feel I understand why. Makoto Kobayashi's works are interesting when you read them, and their charm is conveyed completely, so there is little need to overanalyze or speculate about them.

That means they are perfectly completed as entertainment works, and I think that is wonderful in its own right.

On the other hand, the possibility that the best sports manga can be drawn without falling into unrealistic absurdity, provided there is an understanding of the sport and precise depiction as presented by Makoto Kobayashi, will continue to influence many manga artists in the future. And above all, "Judo Bu Monogatari" remains completely unfaded even when read today, along with its outstanding depictions.

Makoto Kobayashi will continue to be an author who is read even if he is not discussed. That is a wonderful thing.

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