{"id":849,"date":"2014-01-22T06:04:20","date_gmt":"2014-01-22T06:04:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tezuka.strobez.ca\/wp\/?page_id=849"},"modified":"2023-02-10T03:06:23","modified_gmt":"2023-02-10T03:06:23","slug":"zero-men-manga","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/tezuka.strobez.ca\/wp\/?page_id=849","title":{"rendered":"Zero Men (Manga)"},"content":{"rendered":"
Also known as 0\u30de\u30f3 (0 Man)<\/h5>\n
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\"Zero<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
English Title:<\/strong><\/td>\nZero Men<\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
In English?<\/strong><\/td>\nNo<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Japanese Title:<\/strong><\/td>\n0\u30de\u30f3 (0 Man<\/em>)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Type:<\/strong><\/td>\nOngoing Serial<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Original run:<\/strong><\/td>\n1959\/09\/13 –\u00a01960\/12\/11<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Published in:<\/strong><\/td>\nWeekly Shonen\u00a0Sunday<\/a>\u00a0<\/em>
\n\u9031\u520a\u5c11\u5e74\u30b5\u30f3\u30c7\u30fc<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Published by:<\/strong><\/td>\nShogakukan<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Volumes:<\/strong><\/td>\n4 (MT-021<\/a> |\u00a0MT-022<\/a>
\nMT-023<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0MT-024<\/a>)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n

Zero Men<\/em> (1959-60) was Tezuka’s follow-up to Dr. Thrill<\/em> (1959)<\/a> in Weekly Shonen Sunday<\/em><\/a>, and was originally serialized from September 13, 1959 to December 11, 1960.\u00a0 Much like The Adventure of Rock<\/em> (1952-54)<\/a>, Captain Ken<\/em> (1960-61)<\/a> and Astro Boy<\/em> (1952-68)<\/a>, Zero Men<\/em> (1959-60) explores a favoured theme of Tezuka’s, the struggle to bridge the gap between two opposing cultures – in this case human being’s with tails.<\/p>\n

What it’s about<\/h2>\n

The story begins as a handgun shootout rages between two pilots from opposing countries that have been shot down and forced to land in a wasteland near the Himalayan Mountains.\u00a0 As they continue firing at one another, they notice the sudden appearance of a tiger carrying a human baby in its jaws. \u00a0The two agree to a truce while they rescue the baby.\u00a0 After the tiger is dispatched the two make a gentleman’s agreement that whoever survives the shootout will look after the baby, and resume their conflict. \u00a0In the end, the Japanese soldier prevails, but when he collects the baby, he is surprised to find it has a massive tail.\u00a0 Naming the baby Rikiya, or “Ricky<\/a>” for short, he is brought back to Tokyo and raised as a human being, despite being one of the “Zero Men” – an advanced underground civilization of squirrel-like beings that live under the Himalayas.<\/p>\n

\"Ricky<\/a>

Ricky learns of his origins<\/p><\/div>\n

Led by their Grand Priest, an absolute dictator with a hatred of humanity, the Zero Men use their advanced technology to invade Tokyo and transform it into an inhuman futuristic city and a base from which to launch their plans for world domination.\u00a0 However, although he is a Zero Man by birth, having been raised by humans, Ricky<\/a> decides to do what he can to help humanity.<\/p>\n

And so, Ricky<\/a> and his friends infiltrate and destroy the Zero Men’s secret factory.\u00a0 This, however, causes chaos underground and eventually sets off Mt. Fuji.\u00a0 In an attempt to stop the volcanic eruption, the Zero Men use an electronic freezing machine, but a mistake in the settings actually throws the Earth into a new ice age. \u00a0This, of course, is a much more difficult situation for the humans, as the Zero Men are able to survive quite comfortably in a climate with temperatures that plummet to -50o<\/sup>C.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>

The freezing machine<\/p><\/div>\n

Faced with these hardships, the humans launch an ambitious plan to abandon Earth to the Zero Men and colonize Venus.\u00a0 Yet, shortly after they arrive, the humans encounter the humanoid ancestors of the Zero Men.\u00a0 Meanwhile, back on Earth, leads a guerrilla war against the Zero Men. \u00a0Although they are at a severe disadvantage, when the Zero Men oppressed by the Grand Priest’s dictatorship stage a revolution, the tide turns and the Grand Priest is exiled.<\/p>\n

As the Earth’s climate begins to realign itself, with Mother Nature throwing off the effects of the artificial ice age, the Venus expeditionary force abandons their plans and return to Earth.\u00a0 There they find the Zero Men, now led by a revolutionary government, pursuing a peaceful coexistence with the humans.\u00a0 Ricky<\/a>, now wearing an artificial tail to replace his own tail that was lost in battle, becomes the ambassador plenipotentiary, bridging the gap between the humans and the Zero Men.<\/p>\n

Of course, peaceful coexistence is easier said than done.\u00a0 When a group of humans come into the possession of a “death-ray” machine, they go on a rampage, destroying the Zero Men’s underground world.\u00a0 Saying “we have decided not to bother with humans anymore”, the Zero Men leave Earth to the humans and return to Venus, the home of their ancestors.<\/p>\n

\"Blast<\/a>

Blast off!<\/p><\/div>\n

And so, after the Zero mean leave, the Earth returns to a state of relative peace, almost as if nothing had ever happened.\u00a0 However, given humanity’s apparent unwillingness to learn to live peacefully, the closing message is clear – “If mankind kills itself through wars, then Zero Men might return to earth again.\u201d<\/p>\n

What you should know<\/h2>\n

Zero Men<\/em> (1959-60) followed Dr. Thrill<\/em>\u00a0(1959)<\/a>\u00a0in Weekly Shonen Sunday<\/em><\/a>. \u00a0Yet while Dr. Thrill<\/em>\u00a0(1959)<\/a>\u00a0had begun as a collection of stand-alone stories that eventually transformed into a long-form story serial, Tezuka constructed Zero Men<\/em> (1959-60) as a lengthy science-fiction story from the beginning.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>

The humans prepare to attack<\/p><\/div>\n

Much like Nextworld<\/em> (1951), The Adventure of Rock<\/em>\u00a0(1952-54)<\/a>, Astro Boy<\/em>\u00a0(1952-68)<\/a>, and later \u00a0Captain Ken<\/em>\u00a0(1960-61)<\/a>, Zero Men<\/em> (1959-60) is part of Tezuka’s collection of science fiction stories where he explores an encounter between two different sentient races, and the struggles of a champion caught in the middle who is trying to prevent the inevitable degeneration into all-out war.<\/p>\n

While certainly similar to Astro Boy<\/em>\u00a0(1952-68)<\/a>, with the young hero of the story caught between two worlds, Zero Men<\/em> (1959-60) more closely resembles Next World<\/em> (1951). \u00a0In Nextworld<\/em> (1951), a conflict arises between humans and the Fumoon, a tiny intelligent race which develops rapidly in the depths of Australia, a mutation caused by human pollution.\u00a0 In both these cases, the races coming into conflict are both natives to Earth, but find themselves unable to coexist with one another, despite the fact that the many animal races on our planet have no difficulty coexisting.\u00a0 The similar endings to both stories, concluding with one of the races declaring that coexistence is impossible and leaving Earth forever, project a pessimism about the possibility of true tolerance ever being achieved, since peace is only possible through separation.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>

The ancestors of the Zero Men<\/p><\/div>\n

This is evident in the title “Zero Men,” which mean human beings at degree zero.<\/p>\n

Tezuka seems to suggest that there are no easy solutions to racial prejudices.\u00a0 We cannot hope to see change in the course of a single story but must look to change only in the long-run.\u00a0 However, even in Tezuka’s masterwork Phoenix<\/em> (1967-88)<\/a>, a story which takes place not over months or years but over the many millennia of human history from beginning to end, intolerance and war remain even in the furthest-flung chapter, “Future”.<\/p>\n

Yet two sources of optimism remain. The first is the perpetual progress of the quest for understanding of the cycle of life; explored in characters such as Saurta<\/a> in\u00a0Phoenix<\/em>\u00a0(1967-88)<\/a>\u00a0who journeys through many incarnations, each time learning more about the cycles of life and death; and in stories such as Buddha<\/em> (1972-83)<\/a>.\u00a0 The second, far warmer and more approachable, are the incorruptible heroes, such as Ricky, Kenichi<\/a> and especially Astro Boy<\/a>, who continue to hope and to work toward peace and understanding, and will never waver in their infectious faith that friendship is possible in all circumstances. \u00a0It is a good infection to catch.<\/p>\n

As with many of Tezuka’s stories, although they are technically intended to be children’s literature, their content is quite serious and often extremely dark.\u00a0 Zero Men<\/em> (1959-60) is no exception, it features explicit depictions of murder, slavery, war, racial intolerance, political corruption, global destruction and genocide, but describe at a level that children can understand.\u00a0 Tezuka’s willingness to tackle these serious real-world problems is a hallmark of his work, and can be traced from his earlier works, such as Zero Men<\/em> (1959-60), through to his more adult, real-world, treatment of them in Ayako<\/em> (1972-73)<\/a>, Phoenix<\/em> (1967-88)<\/a>, and his Second World War tale, Message to Adolf<\/em> (1983-85)<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Zero Men (1959-60) was Tezuka’s follow-up to Dr. Thrill (1959) in Weekly Shonen Sunday, and was originally serialized from September 13, 1959 to December 11, 1960. Much like The Adventure of Rock (1952-54), Captain Ken (1960-61) and Astro Boy (1952-68), Zero Men (1959-60) explores a favoured theme of Tezuka’s, the struggle to bridge the gap between two opposing cultures – in this case human being’s with tails.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":850,"parent":9280,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[314,296,50,339,137,45],"class_list":["post-849","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-manga","tag-alien-invasion","tag-ongoing-serials","tag-sci-fi","tag-shonen-manga","tag-boy-heroes","tag-weekly-shonen-sunday","has-thumbnail"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/P6vZWu-dH","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tezuka.strobez.ca\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/849","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tezuka.strobez.ca\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tezuka.strobez.ca\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tezuka.strobez.ca\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tezuka.strobez.ca\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=849"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/tezuka.strobez.ca\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/849\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12885,"href":"https:\/\/tezuka.strobez.ca\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/849\/revisions\/12885"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tezuka.strobez.ca\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/9280"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tezuka.strobez.ca\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/850"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tezuka.strobez.ca\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=849"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tezuka.strobez.ca\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=849"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tezuka.strobez.ca\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=849"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}