Domu: A Child's Dream

In a residential high-rise block, a string of mysterious deaths attracts the attention of the local police, but they are utterly baffled by the lack of connection, motive or even means, to the extent they begin to think about supernatural causes - but the truth is, a powerful psychic, an old man sunk into the second childhood of senility, is killing people on avaricious whims. The arrival of a young girl with powers to rival his own prompts him to attack a perceived threat with devastating consequences. The girl is more powerful, but the old man is wily and ruthless. The psychic war that breaks out across the apartment block is dizzying, dynamic, with stunning shifts in perspective across the modern architecture and tearing through the show more lives of the modern community.

Though Otomo expanded on themes from Domu in the science fictional Akira, Domu is very much a horror comic, with haunting, unsettling moments, ugly violence, strange visions, psychological manipulation and after the shattering pyrotechnocs of the central confrontation, an amazing climax of quieter, slowly building tension. show less

3.5

Suitably mad in Otomo's own way and sometimes absurdly dark. It doesn't give you a lot of answers and you kinda just have to go with it. Probably inferior to Akira on pretty much every level, but still a solid bit of entertainment and a blast to read. It does rather feel like Act 1 and 3 stitched together though; the pieces are set up and then they're blown up. The second half of the story is just utter madness and exhausting in a way that I couldn't help but laugh. It very much feels a like a precursor to Akira, a series of ideas that Otomo would later perfect.

Otomo atesta, nesse quadrinho de horror, como os grandes complexos habitacionais de estilo modernistas deram errado e que não seria diferente no Japão. Em Domu, a área se torna evidentemente problemática por mortes violentas inexplicadas, com uma simplicidade brutal que o autor associa ao infantil, quando ligado ao sobrenatural.

This is definitely a very clear precursor to Akira, and for someone looking for a more contained example of Otomo's work, this is definitely worth giving a read.

An apartment block in Japan bears witness to an inordinate series of unsolved deaths. Is the building haunted, or is there something much more...special at work here? Mischief makers of young and old wage psychic battle amongst the ignorant while casualty levels skyrocket and a team of police investigators attempt to solve the mystery behind these deaths.

In some ways a more satisfying story then Akira because of the smaller scale but no less epic.

A look into the mind of a child. It can be powerful and terrifying all at once.