I am a massive fan of Naoki Urasawa and
his works, whether it be Monster or Pluto and beyond.
But 20th Century Boys has a special place in my heart.
I'm hard pressed to choose between these three in particular,
because he never ceases to amaze me time and time again.
But 20th Century Boys is one of my favorites of his.
Naoki Urasawa is known for making series that keep you guessing,
but he also knows how to build
an incredible cast of characters
and his series don't just follow one or two of them.
You really delve into the lives of everyone in his series.
Everyone plays a part in the story, and this is present in 20th Century Boys too.
Time skips and flashbacks are something he's a master at.
The story jumps from one timeline to another flawlessly also.
Given the nature of how he tells his stories, there's a lot of reveals
and mystery involved, but 20th Century Boys is a unique entry in his catalog.
Especially given that it's a thrilling sci fi story
that follows a group of everyday
kids who, due to certain events, now have to prevent the end of the world.
Just my quick thoughts on the series.
I'll do a more in-depth video on
20th Century Boys later on, but what's the best way to collect it?
Currently, there are two ways that you can collect
20th century boys with English translation,
the singles, and the 20th Century Boys Perfect Editions,
both of which are released by VIZ under their SIG imprint.
VIZ first began releasing 20th Century Boys in singles.
20th Century Boys itself is collected in 22 individual volumes,
but the story is incomplete with these 22 volumes.
The series reaches its completion in 21st Century Boys, which is collected
in two singles.
Technically, there are a total 24 volumes that fully collect
the series because 21st Century Boys is the ending.
VIZ later release perfect editions for 20th Century Boys and 21st Century Boys.
They are 2-in-1 editions of 20th Century Boys collected in 11 perfect editions,
and the two volumes of 21st Century Boys are collected in one perfect edition.
So there are 12 perfect editions in total to collect.
What about size?
Both editions are the same height and width,
but they vary in terms of depth.
With the perfect editions being 2-in-1’s, they are 1.7 inches
deep versus 0.62 inches deep for the singles.
So really the only difference is how thick the volumes are.
Each edition is the same
height on the shelf as other SIG volumes like Biomega and Naoki Urasawa's
other works like Monster, Pluto and Master Keaton, which are SIG
volumes too, so they look great on the shelf with one another.
Let's take a look at their price next.
The singles prices vary because many volumes
are currently unavailable and are priced higher as a result but you can still find
some volumes for retail on sites like Amazon and Barnes and Noble.
Retail for singles is $12.99.
Only some are still available though so the rest,
which you currently have to pick up secondhand vary a lot in terms of price.
Since a few of the volumes are pricey though the cost of the set on sites
like eBay can vary anywhere from around $450 to $650, depending on the listing.
I am keeping an eye on these volumes
in particular and will notify you guys on Twitter
and my manga restocks post on my website which I'll link in the description below
if any of the unlisted volumes go back in stock.
So be sure to tune into either if you're still in search of any of the singles.
The Perfect Editions on the
other hand, retail for $19.99 apiece.
So you can pick up the full set for around $240.
Right now, with a lot of the singles unavailable on sites, the Perfect Editions
are the cheapest way to collect the series.
Even if you could pick up all the singles at retail though,
the perfect editions would still be around $70 cheaper.
These prices are all, of course, at full price,
but they are priced lower on sites like Right Stuf and you can often find
the Perfect Editions in particular on sale.
Let's take a look at their design next.
The singles were completely redesigned for the English release,
and I love all of the choices they made here.
The logo is red, so it really stands out from the other more grayscale and black
and white details of the covers.
You have the full color artwork of the boys here.
So some details are similar to the Japanese volumes.
The volumes have a matte feel, but some details like the text
have a glossy finish.
The front covers of the Perfect Editions feature completely new cover art,
and they are character centric.
Volume 1
has art of Kenji on the front cover and they are all drawn in this portrait style.
The colors are bright and punchy in comparison to the singles, which feature
a mostly black, white and red color palette which I also enjoy.
It’s the details they added in the Perfect Editions that set them apart though.
The front cover has a glossy text overlay that says 20th Century Boys presented
by Naoki Urasawa.
All of the text is raised except for the volume number featured on the front cover.
The spine features a pop art like graphic with the 20th Century Boys
logo running down the spine.
The text is raised here as well,
and then you have the back, which features a logo as well as select panels.
In addition to the text, the line work in the panels is raised.
They really went
the extra mile in these editions, but it's details like these that are above
and beyond.
Here's a quick look at the rest of the covers for the Perfect Editions.
All in all, even though they have
completely different aesthetics, both are beautifully designed.
In terms of print and page quality, I didn't notice any big differences
between the two.
Both have pages that are about the same thickness
and they are printed on off white paper that has an eggshell like texture to it.
Let's take a look at translation, lettering and sound effects, next.
The Perfect Editions have new lettering and they keep the original hand-drawn
sound effects.
The singles translated all of the sound effects and redrew them in English.
The new lettering definitely fits the style of the series
and is more readable in the Perfect Editions.
You also notice the text in the bubbles has been reformatted
and they look better as well.
In the singles, some text especially sound
effects, run vertically, whereas they run horizontally now in the Perfect Editions.
And for your reference,
they included sound effects glossaries in the back of the Perfect Editions.
In terms of translation, I didn't notice any differences
in translation after a side-by-side read through of the first few volumes.
So it looks like the sound effects in the
lettering are the only things they updated or changed in the Perfect Editions.
In terms of readability, even though the Perfect Editions are thicker,
I had no issues reading them at all, no gutter loss or anything like that.
They read just as well as the singles to me.
I've read both editions and both are easy and comfortable to read,
so you really can't go wrong with either in this department.
The real kicker for me is the color pages in the Perfect Editions.
The singles do not have any color pages, whereas the Perfect Editions do.
I read both editions and the color pages really added to the experience
and they are beautiful to witness.
Naoki Urasawa’s master in black and white but there’s just something about
seeing those pops of color throughout that makes it even more enjoyable to read.
What about extras?
Aside from the color pages and editor notes that are included
in the Perfect Editions.
The Perfect Editions don't come with any other extras in comparison to the singles.
Now that we've gone over everything, what's the best way to collect the series?
Honestly, at the beginning of this video, I wasn't sure which route I'd go.
But after taking a hard and close look at both side by side,
I ended up enjoying the Perfect Editions the most.
If you're looking for the most true edition to the original, the edition
with the best formatting and lettering, the most convenient and cheapest way
to collect the series and the edition with the overall best quality,
you'll want to check out the 20th Century Boys Perfect Editions.
They also come with color pages, which are beautiful additions and
they left the hand-drawn sound effects untranslated, which I appreciate as well.
The singles though look awesome on and off the shelf too.
And while I think the perfect editions are the best overall with the updates
they've made and the addtions they've added,
have a cool design and a pleasing aesthetic too.
If you're new to the series entirely, I recommend
picking up the Perfect Editions, but if you're a huge fan of the series
both are fun to collect.
All in all, though, even though I own all of the Perfect Editions
and have tracked down and own most of the singles,
I personally think the Perfect Editions are the best way to get into the series.
But I love the overall look in the singles too.
What about you guys?
What's your favorite way to collect 20th Century Boys?
Let me know.
And if you're a fan of Naoki Urasawa,
stay tuned because I have a lot more videos featuring his works on the way.
That's it for the video guys.
Thanks as always for watching and I'll see you all next time!