Apollo's Song
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Apollo's Song (アポロの歌 Aporo no Uta?) is a graphic novel by Osamu Tezuka. It was originally serialized in Shukan Shonen Kingu in Japan in 1970 (1970/04/26-1970/11/22) [1] and was published in English translation in 2007.
The story follows a neglected and abused boy, Shogo, who does not feel feelings of love. Through a series of visions spanning the past and future, Shogo explores the meaning of love between man and woman.
According to the official Tezuka web site, sex education for children was a taboo in Japan in the late 1960s, but this changed suddenly in the early 1970s. Apollo's Song was created during a period where manga was increasingly portraying sexual stories and imagery, and was Tezuka's exploration of love and sex in manga form. This period in Japan was marked by violent student riots and incidents involving student activists, and Tezuka reportedly later said that Shogo's depressed character reflected the dark mood and instability in society at the time. [2]
[edit] Plot Summary
- Prologue - Shogo is introduced and he encounters
- Chapter 1 - Die Blumen und die Leiche (Flowers and the Corpse) - Shogo has a vision of Nazi-era Germany and meets a girl named Elise.
- Chapter 2 - No Man' Land - Shogo has a vision of an idyllic island he inhabits with a photographer named Naomi.
- Chapter 3 - The Coach - Shogo is taken in and trained to be a marathon runner by a woman name Hiromi.
- Chapter 4 - Queen Sigma - Shogo has a vision of a dystopic future in which humans are subjugated by the race of clones called Synthians. He is sent to assassinate the queen of the Synthians, Queen Sigma.
- Chapter 5 - Lover's Hill - The narrative between Shogo and Hiromi concludes.
