Manga Messiah

by Hidenori Kumai

Book Overview

Experience the Gospels in a whole new way.

Manga (pronounced "mahn-ga") is the Japanese word for comics, and it's one of the fastest growing genres in America. Appealing to kids, tweens, teens, and adults, readers will find this edgy rendition of the Gospel accounts both compelling and highly engaging. This authentic, cutting-edge art style is combined with fast-paced storytelling to deliver biblical truths to fans of graphic novels...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1414316801
• ISBN13: 9781414316802
• Release Date: September 2007
• Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers
• Length: 288 Pages
• Weight: 0.72 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.5" x 8.2"
• Age Range: 12 to 17 years
• Grade Range: Grades 7 to 12

Customer Reviews

All hail the king. (Of rock and roll.)

First I'd like to say this review does not hold any religious aspect and is gaged only by the art and deliverance of the story. Manga Messiah starts out a little jarring, to me the transition from scene to scene is not very smooth but it does even out a bit once you get a few chapters in. The art has a typical shonen style to it, often giving the more modernized parts a fun vibe. The main character, Yeshua, was down to earth, smart, relatable, and kind. At first. Around the end of chapter two (a little over half way through) he became brooding, slightly unpleasant, and not as relatable. I understand his mission was important and the responsibilities on his shoulders great but I didn't see a change as to where his personality should have withered. Also by the later chapters they got more episodic, which could be my issue with Yeshua's mysteriously less desirable personality change considering there might be information not shared due to length restraints of the volume. Overall I enjoyed reading this book and while I do enjoy learning about different religions and cultures, I believe this is probably the only way I'd ever actually read The Bible (or different adaptation) lol.

Awesome way to tell the Gospel

A lot of children love illustrations. They are visuals and this is a great way for them to understand the gospel more in their lives. If your child or even you love manga, then this is the book for you.😊

Jesus and Art

I greatly enjoyed this presentation of the life of Jesus. Beautifully drawn this is a graphic representation of the life of Christ pulled from a combination of the accounts told by the four Gospels. As the story progresses scripture references from all four Gospels are given so that any interested readers can go right to the source. This isn't a verse-by-verse retelling, it isn't intended to supplant reading the Bible, it's simply bringing the story to life through art. For me, a Christian for 25 years, it served as a reminder that these were real events. Many movies covering these events try to do the same thing, but the flow of the story in this format works better. It helped me imagine what it would be like to be present as Jesus performed his miracles. I've enjoyed it as a lover of art, and it has blessed me as a Christian. I don't follow manga specifically, but I've been a life-long fan of the art in comics and animation favoring the darker styles of Batman, Death Note, and Battle Angel (Gunnm Alita). I've often found myself stopping to just stare at the pictures in Manga Messiah for a while. The large image of Gabriel in particular blows me away. This is beautiful work! If you've heard that this work promotes anti-Semitism, don't believe it. I respect Jewish culture to the point that I practice some of their traditions despite not being Jewish. Israel is my favorite place on Earth other than home, and I'd visit more often if I could. If I thought this work was in any way hateful to the Jews I would not support it.

Authentic Art and great storytelling

I will first admit that I have not read the entire book. I had it in my hands and I read a few chapters. I have seen other manga or imitation manga and the artwork in this book is legit. The artwork is very beautiful. I also love how they add little bits of humor here and there (when Jesus turned water to wine), that had me laughing outloud. The message portrayed is authentic and is based on Scripture. It is almost like a commentary since it obviously cant have the Gospels line by line. Take it for what it is: fun, great for kids, and art lovers. Really breathes some emotion and imagination into the greatest story ever told.

As Good As It Gets

I must say, I was very impressed. Many are making an effort [which I appreciate] to be more culturally relevant by printing Christian Mangas, though I must say, most fail. This book more than succeeds. I work as an Assistant Youth Pastor with a bent towards the nerdier kids in our youth group [as I am a nerd myself] and this was great for it. Tells the story in a near flawless manner, appealing to the kids who like manga, while not really losing the heart of the narrative. Minor Criticisms [none bad enough to lose any rating]: - Names seemed unnecessarily swapped. More accurate to the names they would have had, but inevitably led to people asking me 'who' a character was if they didn't already know the story. - Loses the emphasis that gospel writers put in their own gospels since it is a combination of them all, but worth the trade off to include the entire story IMO. - Depicts all the characters as white... but can you really complain? So do almost all Japanese Mangas that take place in Japan. Sorry for the long review, but hopefully it helps. Summary: if you have kids, students, or friends who are into manga, this is the best chance you will have to get them to read the story of Christ.

Great Tool

I know the artist personally. We met while I was doing missions work in Japan. She has an amazing heart and wants to use this tool to spread the gospel to the Japanese people. The Japanese version is getting popular in Japan, this English version came later. I wish I could also buy the Japanese version as it is a good gift for Japanese friends. In Japan the comic book culture is not just a kids fad. On the subways you see numerous business people even in their 50's still reading the popular manga comics, its a lifetime hobby. This is a great gift for someone who is into this style of animation. Kelly (English name) is a brilliant artist! Its also a great read for someone who is interested in new, creative ways of engaging the Japanese people for Christ.

Perfect Bible for an 8 year old boy!

If your kids read graphic novels (comic books) and you would like them to read the bible, then give them this one. I didn't tell my 8 year old what it was, just left it on his floor near his bookcase (like I do with his Calvin & Hobbes, Batman, Fantastic 4, etc.....). He started reading it when he came home from school and I actually had to tell him to put it away to come down to dinner. Wow! What a great way to bring the bible to more people!