astral glacier
Where to find it: I have the anime on a DVD from a now-defunct distributor; Google says Netflix has the anime but that may depend on region.
Summary: Psychological thriller. Dr Tenma is a talented neurosurgeon who runs afoul of his hospital's corrupt director and board when he chooses to save the life of a young boy with a gunshot wound rather than follow their orders. He's only just getting his life back in order when the boy shows up again, implicating him in a series of murders. Dr Tenma, now on the run, starts a search for the boy he once saved in order to clear his own name, and decide if he believes that he made a mistake saving his life way back when.
My level: About Milestone 48
Difficulty: I would hang off on this one a bit, honestly, at least the anime. Sometimes I feel like I'm fine (it's a DVD from 2004, so I think I'd be a bit more proficient if I could switch on JP subs, to be fair), and then the story hits me with the director asking a question about Tenma's research into subcortical haemorraging, or the detective starts explaining the political situation in East and West Germany before the fall of the Berlin Wall with reference to specific political titles and I rewind the scene and put the English subs back on. I don't have the manga in Japanese to compare, but I personally am better at reading than listening, so I'd rate the manga a bit lower.
Additional Notes: I'm gonna start giving myself a reputation if I don't recommend something non-awful soon, but keep in mind this puts the 'psychological' in 'psychological thriller'. Lots of psychological manipulation, some of it done to kids. I swear the story, like a lot of Urasawa's work, is actually deeply hopeful and uplifting ... it just goes through some awful places in order to get there.
OH and if you can, try and get your hands on a Japanese original broadcast version. There were licensing issues outside Japan with some of the music, and having the lyrics on the ending theme song in particular genuinely makes a difference to the experience.
teal sleet
chrome tartan
