In 1966 the original Batman television series found so much success in the U.S. that it was eventually exported overseas. When the show aired in Japan, the audience was so enamored by the Caped Crusader that the publisher of Shonen King, a popular boys’ magazine at the time, contacted DC Comics to license the rights to the Dynamic Duo. They would go on to create their own original Batman stories interpreted through the lens of Manga. Though the run was short-lived, lasting for only one year, the comics presented an interesting twist on the Batman paradigm, offering entertaining glimpses into the ways culture gets co-opted and consumed abroad. Even with a larger-than-life icon, some nuances inevitably get lost in translation.
Bat-Manga!: The Secret History of Batman in Japan, a new book by graphic designer Chip Kidd, fellow collector Saul Ferris and photographer Geoff Spear, collects these little read Batman adventures together for the first time, complete with English translations. In addition, the volume contains an exclusive interview with Jiro Kuwata, the pioneering artist and author of the material. Also worth noting is the fact that the hard and softcover editions have been published simultaneously. This is an innovative approach that seeks to capture the widest customer base, while building in exclusivity for true fans by including additional content and other perks inside the hardcover version. Needless to say, a beautiful designed product that adds another chapter to the continuously evolving fascination with the Batman.
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