yakface

January 31, 2014 11:53 pm Really enjoyed the podcast...made me quite jealous to listen to others thoughts reading through it the first time like I did so many years ago. I've sold off every comic I owned as a teenager except for my entire collection of the Epic (marvel) Akiras (and a leatherbound Dark Knight Returns). They are like a prized treasure to me. You mentioned that there seemed to be a lack of motivation for Tetsuo's actions in the first volume, and while you're right, there is a subtle nod right at the very beginning...when the gang is on their nighttime ride to old Tokyo, Tetsuo tries to prove he's the best by beating everyone else and that's why he ends up running into Takashi and having the accident. As we find out more in the later books, Tetsuo's main motivation is to prove his worth, something he has struggled to achieve his whole life. So when he gains powers and bests his old biker gang (by killing pretty much all of them except Kaneda), the whispers of Akira being the most powerful psychic of all time are all the motivation Tetsuo needs to find this guy out and prove that he's truly worthy of respect. Finally, I'm not sure how you guys heard that the entire Akira saga was condensed into the movie, because it wasn't. I don't want to ruin anything for you, but if you're wondering why the first few volumes seem so 'rushed' compared to the plot of the movie, it's because there's a LOT more story to go after the credits roll on the feature. I can't wait to hear what you guys think of where the story goes!