Violence Jack - the anime and manga character of Go Nagai
Violence Jack is a Japanese manga, co-written and co-illustrated by Go Nagai from 1973 until 2008 aimed at an adult audience, due to its violent content. It has had several serializations and one-shot stories that were published in the 70s, 80s, 90s and 2000s. Most of the stories were collected in around 45 tankōbon, while some of them were released as special tankōbons. or have yet to be published in that format. Violence Jack is considered to be the character who gave rise to the post-apocalyptic manga and anime genre, to which he belongs Ken the warrior (Okuto No ken).
A series of manga sagas have been adapted into three independent home video (OVA) films released in 1986, 1988 and 1990. These OVAs have been released in the United States, Italy, France, the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand. In some of these countries, OVA content caused censorship problems, while in Australia the second OVA was banned altogether.
The original manga reuses many concepts and characters from other Go Nagai works.
Characters
Violence Jack
This anti-hero protagonist is a total mystery to those who have met him. He is often described as 2 to 3 meters tall with the muscles of a gorilla, the fangs of a wolf and with glowing primal eyes.
He was given the name Violence Jack, due to his unpredictable and violent nature and his signature weapon, a large switchblade that he hides and sometimes wields when needed.
Having appeared out of nowhere after the great hellish Kanto earthquake, Jack wanders Kanto, often arguing on the street with those he sees as a threat to Kanto. He often helps those who are weaker than him who are preyed upon by violent nomads and criminals who patrol Kanto.
Although Jack is described as human, he is often the focus of strange phenomena occurring in Kanto. Often, when he's done helping the weak, he suddenly vanishes without a trace of him.
Many of the cities he visits are often prone to mysterious earthquakes that occur during or after his arrival. His mere presence sometimes incites those around to get violent and try to attack him.
It is also shown that he uses hallucinations for those he meets. Once a young woman who was selling a girl as a slave, she is ruthlessly massacred along with her boyfriend. He is also often accompanied by a Golden Bird which is only seen at the end of some arches.
Slum King
Violence Jack's main antagonist, Slum King is a sadistic warlord who rules most of the devastated Kanto region.
Thirty years before the hellish earthquake, he was known as Takatora Doma and was the eldest son of the noble Doma family of Shinshu. Born with a rare medical condition that accelerates the growth of muscle tissue which can be potentially fatal. He is given a heavy set of samurai armor and an iron mask to prevent any overgrowth of muscle tissue and is locked up in a shed by his family out of fear. Doma is then given a private tutor who helps him read and write.
Slum King is an extremely strong giant man and is a highly skilled swordsman. Although his armor is intended to aid in his medical condition, it also provides him with protection against most attacks. Violent and sadistic in nature, Slum King is widely feared throughout Kanto and is known for turning anyone who angers or upset him into dogs by slashing their arms and legs down to their joints and then slitting their tongue to prevent them from speaking or killing themselves.
Ryu Takuma
A boy who survived the hellish earthquake has become the leader of a group of children living on the outskirts of Slum Town.
Once a fifth grade student with a good heart and an innocent spirit, Ryu's world has changed forever after the great hellish Kanto earthquake.
Losing all of his family, Ryu endured the new world on his own and gathered a group of followers.
He initially sees Jack as a savior until he witnesses Jack's thirst for violence and puts him and his group at risk.
After being forced to fight Slum King's men, Ryu becomes the leader of over three hundred children who have come together to fight Slum King.
Saotomo World
A criminal who seeks his fate in the wasteland of Kanto. Together with his friend Mido, Mondo escapes to Kanto but is greeted by Jack, who attacks the two.
He is killed by Jack in a duel to the death with rocket launchers, but is later resurrected by Mido through alchemy.
Both he and Mido are from the Gakuen Taikutsu Otoko manga, also known as Guerrilla High.
History
Violence Jack
The series takes place in the ruins of the Kanto region, after a violent earthquake (which in the OVA was triggered by the impact of a comet) nicknamed “The Great Kanto Hellquake”. Cut off from the rest of the world, the survivors of the disaster are torn between strong and weak and the earth becomes a haven for criminals and renegades from all over the world. Violence Jack is discovered in the rubble and granite demolished by the inhabitants of a ruined city, asking him to help the weak and helping them to destroy what, in most cases, are the strong groups led by murderers and rapists (this is the plot of “Violence Jack: Evil Town”). In the three OVAs, Jack is asked to help several groups, such as Zone A (he later ends up helping women in Zone C) or a small town, as shown in "Hell's Wind". As for the manga, the stories change drastically, the first being the story of Violence Jack who helps a group of models in a tropical forest in Kanto, possessing a boy who lives in said forest to fight a tribe of wandering bandits. Although Jack maintains a ruthless facade, he often helps the weak and expects nothing in return. However, Jack's unpredictable nature causes bystanders to be injured or even killed at times due to his ferocious fighting style.
When it was originally released there were several clues pointing to the relationship between Devilman and Violence Jack. The final chapter reveals that the apocalyptic world in Violence Jack is in a world recreated by God. Satan (Ryo Asuka) is punished for being constantly humiliated by Slum King, who is the reincarnation of his second in command, Zennon. As part of this punishment, Ryo has removed all four limbs and is forced to walk on the stumps like a dog. Jack is actually Akira Fudo, and is one of the three parts that make up Devilman, the others being a baby Jack and the woman Jack, both normally seen as birds around Jack from time to time. Eventually, Ryo regains his memories of him and Satan's identity and leads his army of demons into battle alongside Zennon to resume his battle against Devilman. This time, Devilman is victorious.
Shin Violence Jack
In Shin Violence Jack, a reboot of the series, the storyline is set up a little differently. In this continuity, Jack is an alternate form of Amun, while Akira now lives as an amnesic warlord known as the Skull King, with the iconic demon Devilman Jinmen as his subordinate leader. With the help of his child form, his true form of Amun, a little boy named Ushio, and the reborn Sirene (who merges with the heroic Sara, essentially becoming a Devilman), Jack leads the assault on the fortress of the King Skull, managing to restore Akira's memories and ignite a rivalry between the two.
The animated films OAV
Violence Jack: Harem Bomber
Some of the manga's story arcs have been adapted into OVA format. The first OVA, called Violence Jack: Harem Bomber (バ イ オ レ ン ス ジ ャ ッ ク ハ ー レ ム ボ ン バ ー, Baiorensu Jakku: Hāremu Bonbā) (also referred to in some translations as Harlem Bomber) was released in June 1986 (some sources place the release date on June 29, 861). although others place the release date on June 5, 1986).
A comet hits the Earth, severely damaging the Kantō region. Volcanoes erupt and massive earthquakes set off, driving many cities to rubble and killing thousands. In this period of weakness, a ruthless man known as the Slum King (the King of the Underworld) has taken control of the Plain of Kantō by brute force and rules it with an iron fist. However, in the midst of a journey across the earth with his great forces at his side, he encounters a mighty beastlike man wearing a battered green jacket and yellow ascot who slaughters his men and then takes off. target the Slum King himself. They collide, but their struggle is interrupted by a sudden, massive tsunami that separates the two.
Slum King survives the wave and returns to his immense fortress where he tells his men that no one can dare stand up to him and be allowed to live. That said, he promptly orders his men to find and kill Violence Jack, the man he faced before him.
Soon after, a young woman named Mari is captured by Slum King's army and sent to an exploitation camp. Her boyfriend, Ken'ichi, rescues her with the help of Violence Jack.
Before Jack, Ken'ichi and Mari can escape, Harem Bomber arrives and challenges Jack to fight. With great difficulty, Jack manages to defeat the Harem Bomber, but at the cost of Ken'ichi's life, who is killed when a helicopter that Jack used to subdue the Harem Bomber is thrown out.
Mari wakes up in the ruins and looks up to see Jack take the form of a giant golden bird, flying away with Mari following him on foot.
Violence Jack: Evil Town
The second OVA, called Violence Jack: Evil Town (バ イ オ レ ン ス ジ ャ ッ ク 地獄 街, Baiorensu Jakku: Jigokugai), was released on December 21, 1988. It was a particularly controversial entry for classifications as some of its themes involved necrophilia and cannibalism. .
Due to a violent earthquake, an underground part of Tokyo was separated from the outside world. Due to the limited supply of food and the constant threat of war between the groups, the survivors of the underground city have dubbed the Hell City area. When the story begins, Evil Town has been around for several months.
Evil Town is divided into three "sections". Section A is made up of businessmen and ordinary citizens and is the most regulated section for the presence of police officers. Section B, made up of criminals and madmen, is controlled by the huge gang leader Mad Saurus and his second-in-command, the transsexual Blue. Section C, a former modeling agency, avoids contact with other groups except when necessary.
Section A is attempting to return to the surface when they discover Violence Jack, who apparently was sealed in a rock face by the earthquake. The leaders of Section A invite Jack to remain as their protector, but the other sections have also learned of Jack's existence and call a meeting to see him in person.
At the meeting, Section C leader Aila Mu offers to hire Jack as their guardian and tells him a disturbing story: After the earthquake, A and B's men went wild, capturing and raping the women until they learned that there was sufficient food for long-term survival. Many of the worst offenders are the current leaders of Section A, who will return to behaving like animals if another disaster strikes. Convinced by Aila Mu's story, Jack agrees to help Section C.
Annoyed by Jack's persistent presence, Section B launches a surprise attack on Section A; as expected by Aila, A's leaders turn against each other in an attempt to survive, causing the group's near-total destruction. The survivors flee into Section C just as the women finish their tunnel outside Hell City. The raiders from Section B arrive and finish Section A, then start attacking the women. Jack defeats the raiders, killing Blue and seriously injuring Mad Saurus.
Mad Saurus mourns the loss of Blue, who has accepted despite Blue's differences. To combine their powers, Mad Saurus consumes his corpse, transforming into a devilish red creature to fight Jack a second time. Jack is badly injured in the fight but manages to defeat Mad Saurus by stabbing him in the forehead with his switchblade. Saurus stumbles for a moment before collapsing, dead.
The battle between Mad Saurus and Jack gives Section C enough time to rise to the surface, which is now an open grassy plain with several ruined buildings scattered over the place of a city. Aila Mu complains that her modeling skills are useless in the ruined world, but the rest of Section C assures her that she is a capable and loved leader.
Violence Jack: Hell's Wind
The latest OVA, Violence Jack: Hell's Wind (バ イ オ レ ン ス ジ ャ ッ ク ヘ ル ス ウ イ ン ド 編, Baiorensu Jakku: Herusu Uindo Hen), was released on November 9, 1990.
Shortly after the cataclysms that devastated Japan, a peaceful town called "Hope Town" was founded with the intention of restoring peace to the region. The Hell's Wind biker gang shows up and loots her. Violence Jack enters here. The episode begins when a young woman, Jun, and her boyfriend, Tetsuya, are attacked. Tetsuya is assassinated by Hell's Wind and soon after they attack and rape the terrified Jun.
Jack arrives to fight off the raiders and fends off the gang by firing several gunshots which appear to have no effect on him.
Hell's Wind captures a young teacher and takes her to their camp at Yokota Air Base. She takes off her top and tie her to a fighter jet. At the behest of an orphaned boy, Jack goes to rescue her. They try to shoot him with a rocket launcher, but Jack digs a tunnel under the ground and explodes as he is set on fire to kill everyone. The bike leader sends a messenger to their "supreme master" and requests reinforcements. Jack eventually kills the gang leader.
Jack leaves, strangely heartened by talking to the orphan boy, who has vowed to become stronger than anyone else to protect the people around him.
The final scene shows another band of horsemen coming from afar and shows the messenger tied to a pole. A close-up of one of the vehicles is taken to show the Underworld King in full armor. The screen goes black and Jack's eyes appear, he becomes furious, and the credits roll.
Violence Jack has influenced other anime and manga
Violence Jack is credited for giving birth to the post-apocalyptic manga and anime genre. He described his post-apocalyptic environment as a wasteland with motorcycle gangs in the desert, anarchist violence, ruined buildings, innocent civilians, tribal leaders and small abandoned villages. This was similar and may have influenced the desert settings of later post-apocalyptic characters such as the Australian film series Mad Max (which premiered in 1979) and the Japanese manga and anime series Ken the Warrior (Hokuto no Ken, debut in 1983). . Goichi Suda (Suda 51), who cited Violence Jack as an influence on his No More Heroes video game series (2007 debut), said: “All the titles set in the desert are actually inspired by Violence Jack. This came long before Hokuto no Ken, so this is the true origin of it all. It's a great Japanese comic. "
Kentaro Miura, creator of the manga and anime series Berserk (debut in 1989), he cited Violence Jack as his influence. Other Japanese media influenced by Violence Jack include the original video animation MD Geist (1986) and the post-apocalyptic video game series Atlus Digital Devil Story: Megami Tensei II (debut in 1990). WhatCulture listed the Violence Jack anime series as the second most gruesome death in anime history.
Technical data
Comic manga
Author Go Nagai
Editor Kōdansha (1973 to 1978), Nihon Bungeisha (1983 to 1993), Shūeisha (2001 to 2008)
Magazine Weekly Shōnen Magazine
Target shonen
1 edition July 22, 1973 - March 23, 1990
Tankōbon 45 (complete)
Italian publisher Dynamic Italia from 2001 to 2002
1st Italian edition November-December 2001
Italian periodicity bimestrial
Volumes it. 18 (complete) (ed. Editions BD)
Texts it. Federico Blows
OVA
Violence Jack: Harlem Bomber - Slum King
Author Go Nagai
Regia Osamu Kamijoo
Subject Seiji Okuda
Film script Mikio Matsushita
Artistic direction Torao Arai
Studio Dynamic Planning, Studio 88
1 edition 5 June 1986
Episodes unique
Episode duration 37 min
1st Italian edition July 2003
Episodes it. single
Dialogues it. Laura Valentini (translation), Valerio Manenti (dialogues)
Double studio it. Sefit - CDC
Double Dir. it. Serena Verdirosi
Violence Jack: Hell City - Evil Town
Author Go Nagai
Regia Ichiro Itano
Film script Noboru Aikawa
Char. design Takuya wada
Artistic Dir Mitsuharu Miyame
Music Hiroshi Ogasawa, Yasunori Honda
Studio Dynamic Planning, Studio 88
1 edition 21 December 1988
Episodes unique
Episode duration 58 min
1st Italian edition July 2003
Dialogues it. Laura Valentini (translation), Valerio Manenti (dialogues)
Double studio it. Sefit - CDC
Double Dir. it. Serena Verdirosi
Violence Jack: Hell's Wind
Author Go Nagai
Regia Takuya wada
Subject Takuya wada
Film script Takuya wada
Char. design Takuya wada
Artistic Dir Geki Katsumata
Music Kaoru Ohhori, Hiroyuki Kouzu, Takeo Miratsu
Studio Dynamic Planning, Studio 88
1 edition November 9, 1990
Episodes unique
Episode duration 54 min
1st edition it. July 2003
Dialogues it. Laura Valentini (translation), Valerio Manenti (dialogues)
Double studio it. Sefit - CDC
Double Dir. it. Serena Verdirosi
