This is the first 70s manga i love...

Ignore mystichead's review. For one, this was written in the 70s, where a LOT of things were different from now. So if you're trying to read a manga that's almost 50 years old, without suspending your disbelief, you're new to manga (and rarely will people recommend manga like Black Jack to those that aren't used to it).

The politics and darker themes behind the manga are there to drive the plot forward. Most of it is fictional, though it is a somewhat accurate (if exaggerated) depiction of what can happen in a world where... well, weird things happen. The author, Tezuka Osamu, even makes fun of his own reality-bending in another of his works, "Midnight", where Black Jack makes a cameo appearance. He says that a lot of the things he's done were rightfully impossible to do in a realistic setting - the only thing that made them possible is because Tezuka Osamu (yes, he broke the 4th wall) "didn't know what he was thinking" (paraphrased).

I mean,when I was young,about 5 or 6,I've already read this.
No matter how many times I read this manga,it's still as amazing as ever!!The characters are well-built and have individuality in each of them.

its actually pretty good.............but if u know ANYTHING about how the medical industry works in a deep sense...the actual politics, procedures and true faces of the problems and issues, or the real solutions or complexities of an issue range..........this MIGHT get on ur nerves as it does mine....since i consistantly go in my head "Wait thts not how it works/goes"

I mean its still truly worth a read........but im only hanging on and ignoring those parts tht irritate me due to my patience for these misunderstandings done in works of art

Again pretty good...just that you might want to avoid it if ur in any position with decently high knowledge/understanding level in the healthcare industry or maybe even biology

... Last updated on April 11th, 2012, 7:36am

If you look behind the goofy 70's art style, this is one deep story.
You can never predict what outcome each chapter is gonna have, because Osamu Tezuka isn't afraid of themes such as death and exploring the grey side of the human mind. While each chapter is a "back to status quo" story, they stand just fine on their own due to Tezuka's extraordinary storytelling skills. Some chapters end with Black Jack reaching his goal and saving an innocent life, while others end in tragedy and leaves Black Jack fustated and angry with himself.
Black Jack himself is a facinating, he somtimes come forth as sympathic and kind, while other times he seems down right cruel. He's a classic anti-hero, and that I really like.

This is a really great manga. It's definetly not a kids manga though, there are a lot of tragedy, and graphic surgery scenes, also the grey morals aren't really somthing a kid would get.

: ) A great read!

THis manga is probably one of the best medical mangas I have ever read. The art as can be expected from a manga from the 70's, is okay. Except for a couple 2 chapter arcs, there is no plot to speak of and that's what really annoyed me. There were several chapter that I felt were worth elaborating on but when the chapter ended it was never spoken of again. If not for the lack of plot(s) it might well have been a perfect manga.

a decent Manga. Just got re-released by Vertical Horizon. Every volume contains roughly 300 pages of short stories (20-25 pages). Imo, they're fun but nothing more then that. Just fun.