I absolutely loved Buddha. I think the story was brilliant, deep moral themes interwoven with a humorous drawing style. It very delicately walked the line of being comedic and very serious. No tragic moment was really dwelled upon it was all very action packed and fast paced. It was not the representation of the story of Buddhism that I would ever expect, but never the less I think it was very well done. What shocked me was the very explicit nature of some of the scenes. Tezuka never shied away from talking about or showing abuse, slavery or death. What offset it was the traditional comic style used with in. The "SLAM or "AGH" that was used in the spiky speech bubbles or, the stars above characters heads really gave the comic a more cartoonish look. This in turn, gave it a more humorous connotation. However, it never felt like a dumbed down story. The narrative was really well composed, delving into loss, triumph, and sacrifice; all the while also showing themes of Buddhism like Pratītyasamutpāda, the interconnectedness of life, and impermanence.
I have always had mixed feelings about manga. I think what has and is being produced is really impressive but the anime/manga culture has always put me off. Buddha was the first manga I have read since childhood and it has really made me re-evaluate my thoughts on the media. A story like this would definitely not be the first that comes to my mind when I think of manga, but just like anything else you have to find what you like in a medium. Buddha really showed me a possibly of manga that I was not expecting and I'm excited to discover more.
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