Steam Detectives, Vol. 1

This is a very simplistic series of books. I must admit though, that the simple feel of the manga makes the series more enjoyable. Sometimes I grow tired of wading through the heavy and more realistic titles out there. Don't get me wrong, I love a lot of anime and manga, but every now and then it's nice to stop reading a mental buster and pick up something more light - kind of like the difference between Gerald's Game and Harry Potter ~_^

Some people find "Steam Dectives" to be a bit too simplistic, considering other works from Kia Asamiya. However, one must remember that this manga was created for his son, and really is made to be one, enjoyable romp. The main character builds model trains and cars; this is supposed to fun for the most part, not deeply psychological.Also, if you're not one for the art, then by all means, just don't read the manga. I for one, adore Asamiya's art. Also, if you pay attention, he simplified his usual style for this series, to give it a more cartoony feeling. The big buttons everyone wears are even a salute to "Inspector Gadget," where he was an inbetween animator.The characters are wonderful. Narutaki is a great hero. Showing bravery where'd you expect a hero to, but then every so often we're suddenly reminded that he is, after all, just a young boy. Ling Ling might be a bit on the weak side for a few people, but I've gotten rather sick and tired of kickbutt female sidekicks. And Le Bread and Lang Lang are just cool villains. When you have a villain dressing like the Phantom of the Opera, with a sidekick nurse who believes death is the best solution to pain, you've got a great rogue gallery set up.This isn't for everyone, I'm sure. But this series is great for someone who wants to sit back, and just enjoy a pleasant read.

This is a very good book. I got it hoping for something to last me a while, but it was so good I read it in less than 2 hours. A very good bit of mystery for the young reader. But I suggest parents look over this in a book store before sharing with children because of a shower scene. It's not explicit though. It doesn't show anything really, but it may offend some parents.

Asamiya's normally known for the "Blade Runner"-inspired "Silent Moebius"; for "Steam Detectives", he turns the clock back instead of forward, putting us at the turn of the century... or is it? I love it when an artist freely intermixes past and present metaphors as a way of enriching a story, and "SD" does that excellently. Some of the translations are not quite up to snuff, but the quality of the work as a whole is unbeatable.