I am truly proud to be able to present an article by the excellent writer Linda Lercari on the pages of Mondo Japan. A satisfaction that we at the editorial team want to share with all of you readers.
Lucca, 4 November 2023 – Self Area – Cloister of the Agorà Library
Lucca is comics first and foremost and therefore we cannot fail to mention the wonderful Self Area which this year hosted 32 independent stand operators.
The location was suggestive, a cloister is always a magical place to talk about printed paper. I must admit that I preferred this arrangement to the tensile structures – obviously necessary – scattered everywhere.
I took a slow and careful tour, browsing, browsing and talking to the various authors. You could see right from the sparkle in their eyes how much they cared about their hard-earned, hard-earned, much-loved work.
Then, as a great lover of Japan, my eye fell on the Kumishire bench and it was love at first sight.
I purchased the comic Yuki no Hitodama (snow wisp), First Winter.
It is the prologue of a saga composed of six volumes and two illustrated light novels. The comics constitute the past of the two protagonists and the novels speak of the present, of the current development of the story.
Synopsis (taken from the comic):
Yuki no Hitodama is a twist of fate that stops time on the initial page of a legend, rewritten and traced with blood in the heart of winter. A project that tells the difficult journey towards self-acceptance in an adverse world in which the innocence of childhood frays in war, in loneliness, in the faint limit between life and death. And while the difference between humans and demons, between good and evil, blurs to the point of becoming imperceptible, even in an era of contradictions and violence a magical and fascinating beauty can blossom: like that of a will-o’-the-wisp that shines on the mantle white left by a snowfall. Dipped in the colors and soft shadows of an alternative feudal Japan with a style inspired by the ancient Ukiyo-E prints of the Edo Era and the rough line of the refined calligraphic works Yuki no Hitodama combines continuous historical research and creativity in an explosive combination of tradition and fantasy modern.
First Winter passes before my eyes and it is not an easy read. There are many characters introduced – six plus collateral ones – and you find yourself already immersed in something accomplished, successful. I learn about the Nishida brothers as they prepare for war, their conflicts and their little family rivalries; I immediately sympathize with little Kyoka, a very lonely boy, but who is ever really alone when you can talk to spirits and have as a mother a strangely mysterious creature that appears in the cold? So many questions and the desire to read the next chapters of this little serialized saga.
The line is good, the coloring interesting although in some places I would have preferred a touch more, a greater liveliness, but I understand the artist’s choice to want to highlight some specific details while deliberately leaving some areas shaded with pale gray – for example the moment in which Kyoka passes with her strongly purple dress next to the Nishida brothers who are training: a strong patch of purple passing between white and grey, a scene that remains well imprinted, I must say.
The battle scenes are effective and the movements are not wooden.
I was very satisfied with my purchase and positively impressed by this good quality self-produced work. The paper support is also remarkable, a glossy paper that does justice to the tables.
With these excellently crafted gems, Lucca Comics 2023 confirms itself as a launching pad for authors worthy of attention.
By Linda Lercari