Matsumoto Leiji The creator
To
the western reader, Matsumoto Leiji (Reiji) appears almost as
mysterious as the good Captain Harlock himself.
Born
in 1938, Matsumoto began drawing in his youth, and has said
that the seeds of the great Harlock-Tochirō relationship were
sown during his high school years. The Tochirō character was
based upon himself, with the Harlock character drawn around
his taller and 'more handsome' friend.
Matsumoto’s preferred themes appear to have been wartime drama and science fiction, and while his wartime dramas contain by far
the superior storytelling and artwork, it is for his science fiction that Matsumoto is now famous.
Matsumoto is patently a deep thinker. His stories focus upon good versus
evil, the basic nature of same, and the fact that the natures of good and evil might not be quite what they seem. He is also
intrigued by concepts of reality, by the properties and movement of time, and concepts of space that one usually finds
reserved for those versed quantum physics. The origins of man are also an interest, and one will find his musings on these
topics embedded into much of his science fiction.
Weekly manga publications are a huge business in Japan, and like most artists Matsumoto got his early breaks in
these serial publications. Otoko Oidon, a humorous and sharp look at one young mans life, was one of his earlier works.
It became hugely popular in serialisation, and was later condensed into several specialised volumes, which is how many
popular manga and anime become born.
Matsumoto’s art style is unique, to say the least. His characters come in two forms: tall and willowy, or short and
squat. His faces retain a similarity no matter which genre he is presenting, though his characterisations — the personalities of his creations — are diverse and intricate.
Matsumoto is also admired for the extreme detail of his mechanical drawing. Where his human figures are all squiggly
lines, his backgrounds, aircraft and spaceships are breathtaking in their execution.
For those seeking explanations for Matsumoto’s division of humans into two types — tall and willowy or short and squat —
don’t overly strain yourself. There are likely a multitude of reasons. At times it seems as though foreign
(European) characters are drawn tall, and Japanese characters are short. At other times old people are short and young
people are drawn tall. Many of Matsumoto’s shorter characters also speak country dialects, and anyone who has
spent time in country Japan will know that speakers of extreme dialect usually belong to an older generation. To confuse matters even
more, ‘unfortunate’ people may be drawn short, while ‘lucky’ people will be depicted as tall. There is no
explaining, in general terms, why Matsumoto inhabits his artwork with two different human representations, existing side by side. Characters are personality- and story-driven, and
observed patterns are not always useful. At the end of the day this is simply Matsumoto’s style. Don’t question it, it just is.
Regardless of the diversity of Matsumoto's characterisations, motivating forces are
always the same: friendship (which seems to rate higher than love in Matsumoto’s world), the sanctity of the promise or
obligation, and the overriding need to be a ‘man.’ Yes, women do have a place in Matsumoto’s world, and he has
created a large array of strong-willed women and female conquerors, but Matsumoto writes stories about men, and about the nature of a mans heart.
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