Crying Freeman
"Crying Freeman" is a manga series created by writer Kazuo Koike and illustrator Ryoichi Ikegami, originally serialized from 1986 to 1988. The story follows protagonist Yo Hinomura, a Japanese artist who inadvertently becomes embroiled with the Chinese crime organization known as the 108 Dragons after discovering incriminating photographs related to a murder. After being abducted and mentally conditioned, Hinomura discovers his latent abilities as an assassin, marked by a full-body tattoo that signifies his status within the organization. The narrative explores themes of identity, loyalty, and the struggle between personal morality and violent obligation, particularly through Hinomura's complex relationship with Emu Hino, a woman he is compelled to kill but ultimately cannot harm.
The artwork in "Crying Freeman" is noted for its detailed realism, often contrasting graphic depictions of violence and sexuality with an elaborate visual style reminiscent of classic American comics. As the series unfolds, it touches on various escapist elements, portraying Hinomura as both a master assassin and a romantic figure, appealing to both male and female readers. The manga has had a significant impact on adult readership in the U.S., challenging the perception that comics are solely for younger audiences. It was adapted into a film in 1995, further solidifying its cultural influence.
Crying Freeman
AUTHOR: Koike, Kazuo
ARTIST: Ryoichi Ikegami (illustrator); Wayne Truman (letterer)
PUBLISHER: Shogakukan (Japanese); VIZ Media (English); Dark Horse Comics (English)
FIRST SERIAL PUBLICATION:Kuraingu Furiiman, 1986-1988 (English translation, 1989-1990)
FIRST BOOK PUBLICATION: 1987-1988 (English translation, 1990-1994)
Publication History
Crying Freeman, written by Kazuo Koike and illustrated by Ryoichi Ikegami, was originally serialized in Shogakukan’s Big Comic Spirits from March 29, 1986, to July 1, 1988 (issues 7-21). As is typical for serialized manga, which tend to be collected after their original publication into larger books printed on higher quality paper, Crying Freeman was quickly assembled into nine individual tankobon volumes released between January of 1987 and July of 1988.
VIZ Media was the first American publisher to acquire the English-language distribution rights to Crying Freeman; the company repackaged the manga into six volumes and began publishing the series in 1990. After the release of a second VIZ Media edition, the series went out of print for several years. In 2005, Dark Horse Comics began to republish the series in five volumes. Dark Horse Comics’ Chris Warner also edited the volumes for content, bringing artist Wayne Truman to the project to handle any needed touch-up art and English-language lettering. One of Truman’s tasks was to conceal some of the more graphic depictions of nudity.
Plot
Protagonist Yo Hinomura is a Japanese artist who has gained international recognition for his pottery and is invited to take a selection of his artwork to an exhibition in the United States. While Hinomura is there, a photographer spying on the crime organization the 108 Dragons hides photographs of a murder in one of Hinomura’s pots. Hinomura inadvertently discovers the pictures, but he refuses to give them up when confronted by members of the organization, part of the Chinese mafia, and instead sends the developed photographs to the police. The organization’s leader, Father Dragon, decides to have Hinomura abducted and compelled to serve the 108 Dragons. Ironically, after Hinomura has been mentally altered to ensure his loyalty to the organization, it becomes apparent that he naturally possesses the traits of a perfect assassin. Also, since the leaders of the 108 Dragons are selected on the basis of exceptional ability, Father Dragon sees in Hinomura a worthy successor. Marked with the full-body tattoo that signifies his high status in the 108 Dragons, Hinomura is given his first assignment. Initially, Hinomura is horrified by the murders he is ordered to commit. After each kill, he briefly awakens from his hypnotized state and weeps from regret.
During one of his assigned assassinations, Hinomura is seen by a young woman, Emu Hino, who is charmed by his beauty and the tears he sheds when forced to kill a notorious crime boss. She asks him his name, to which he responds, simply, “Yo.” Knowing her own life is in danger because she has witnessed the killing, Emu nevertheless cannot help becoming obsessed with her memories of the killer. When he comes to her house to silence her, she accepts her fate and asks only that he take her virginity so that she might feel what it would be like to be loved by him. He admits that he is attracted to her and is also a virgin, and they have sex.
Afterward, it is clear to Hinomura that he cannot kill Emu, so he takes her to Hong Kong and sponsors her entry into the 108 Dragons as his wife, with the approval of Hu Feng-Líng, or Tiger Wind Chime, the female leader of the 108 Dragons. The two are embraced as future leaders. Emu is tattooed with the tiger symbols that represent her place at Hinomura’s side, and both are given Chinese names: Lóng Tài-Yáng for Hinomura and Hu Qing-Lán for Emu.
Hinomura and Emu’s first joint mission is to travel to Macau to determine which organization is behind a string of attacks on the Dragons. Meanwhile, Bái Yá Shàn (White Ivory Fan), the granddaughter of the former female head of the 108 Dragons, insists that she be the next leader. She kidnaps Hinomura and attempts to hold him hostage. When he manages to escape and defeat her in combat, she pledges her loyalty to him.
In a later episode, professional wrestler Oshu Tohoku nearly kills Hinomura’s friend, Dark Eyes, leaving Hinomura with no choice but to kill Oshu. Hinomura is challenged to a contest of strength by Oshu and religious leader Naiji. Oshu manages to catch Hinomura in a weak moment and squeezes him until he passes out. Hinomura is taken to Naiji’s fortress, where he encounters a pair of men altered to look like him in order to infiltrate the 108 Dragons.
Later, Oshu’s widow, the geisha Kimiryu, rejects Hinomura’s attempts to provide financially for her needs. However, her son, Yujun, is sick from poison and needs an antidote held by another assassin, Tateoka. Hinomura kills the man and cures Yujun, keeping a promise made to the dying Oshu.
Volumes
• Crying Freeman: Portrait of a Killer (1990). Artist Emu Hino accidentally witnesses a murder, and she and her would-be killer, Yo Hinomura, must make a difficult transition to escape their intended fates.
• Crying Freeman: Shades of Death (1992). Hinomura and Emu marry and begin their life together, receiving Chinese names that signal their status within the 108 Dragons.
• Crying Freeman: The Killing Ring (1992). Hinomura, now called Lóng Tài-Yáng (Dragon Sun), is the leader of the 108 Dragons. He and Emu are threatened by the Askari, also known as the African Tusk, a crime syndicate. Meanwhile, Emu finds a cursed Muramasa katana and tames it through her purity.
• Crying Freeman: A Taste of Revenge (1992). Religious leader Naiji Kumaga sends professional wrestler Oshu Tohgoku to attack Dark Eyes in the hope that the assault will cause Hinomura to seek out her attacker for revenge.
• Crying Freeman: Abduction in Chinatown (1993). The American cartel Kidnappers Organization, which uses the abduction of young children for ransom to fund its other criminal activities, comes into conflict with the 108 Dragons.
• Crying Freeman: Journey to Freedom (1994). Hinomura fulfills a promise made to the dying Oshu to protect his family, providing an antidote when Oshu’s son is poisoned.
Characters
• Yo Hinomura, a.k.a. Crying Freeman and Lóng Tài-Yáng (Dragon Sun), is a handsome and muscular man whose training as an assassin enhances both his natural grace and his physical attractiveness. Forced into the life of a killer, he manages to keep his conscience clear by never taking a contract to kill an innocent person. His tears of pity for his victims further demonstrate his essentially good nature.
• Emu Hino, a.k.a. Hu Qing-Lán (Tiger Pure-Orchid), is a beautiful woman with long, dark hair and a delicate frame. She was once wealthy, but her father’s death left her with nothing but a rotting mansion. Her goodness touches her intended killer, Hinomura, and dramatically changes his perspective on his role in the 108 Dragons. She is stronger and more vital than she initially appears.
• Hu Feng-Líng, a.k.a. Tiger Wind Chime, is the former leader of the 108 Dragons. She chooses to adopt Hinomura as her son and heir. She is elderly but still strong and vital. Although she is the wife of a Chinese mafia boss and a tough leader, she guides her followers with a balanced and fair perspective.
• Bái Yá Shàn, a.k.a. White Ivory Fan, is the granddaughter of the two former leaders of the 108 Dragons. Large and corpulent, she is nevertheless a highly dangerous opponent. She eventually acknowledges Hinomura as a charismatic and effective leader.
• Bugnug, a.k.a. Dark Eyes, is the beautiful and muscular head of the Askari. She conceals her association with the Askari by acting through others.
• Ryuji “Blade” Hanada is a handsome, charismatic member of the Japanese Hakushin Society. He is a schemer without a conscience. His repeated attempts to kidnap Emu cause his own death at Hinomura’s hands.
• Kimie Hanada is the beautiful and ambitious wife, and later widow, of Ryuji Hanada. Her obsession with Hinomura, in combination with the fact that his heart is committed to Emu, causes her to act irrationally.
• Oshu Tohgoku is a former professional wrestler who starts contract killing to make extra money. He is physically huge and incredibly strong.
Artistic Style
One of the strengths of Crying Freeman is the artwork. Crying Freeman is a visually stunning manga that uses a great deal of fine, realistic detail. Most of the characters are drawn realistically with only slightly exaggerated proportions. Ikegami seems to have a background in classical art, as the proportions of his figures and architectural drawings seem almost drawn from life. At times, the artwork is so detailed that it does not appear to be manga at all; the style is closer to that of Golden Age American comics from the 1940’s and 1950’s.
One of the most interesting aspects of Crying Freeman is the stark contrast between its graphic portrayals of sex and violence and its highly restrained, almost “picture-pretty” artwork. The lush combination of realistic figures and intricate, detailed backgrounds contributes to the series’ occasional designation as erotica. The conventions used by Japanese illustrators to represent human anatomy are, on occasion, somewhat jarring. Japanese censorship laws restrict the portrayal of nudity, yet nudes appear in a significant percentage of the splash pages. Careful concealment of genitals behind scenery and in shadow makes the composition of some of the frames seem crowded. Nevertheless, the series has well-executed scenery and visually well-balanced settings.
Themes
Despite its subject matter, the series tends to promote a distinctly positive view of life. For example, Hinomura’s organization is decidedly less criminal than one might otherwise expect. Further, Hinomura’s place in the organization is based solely on his natural abilities and his internal drive to be the best he can be. Even as an outsider, a man of Japanese descent in a Chinese organization, he is embraced by the 108 Dragons as a potential, and then actual, leader. His individual desires are ultimately respected by his peers as well. The plotlines of the series are decidedly escapist and sometimes border on pure fantasy. These factors highlight the protagonist’s role as a vehicle for male wish fulfillment. Hinomura becomes a master assassin who conquers women’s hearts as easily as he dominates his enemies, and in this respect, Crying Freeman seems to have much in common with the escapist male-targeted literature of other countries, such as the James Bond series of novels begun by Ian Fleming. Likewise, Hinomura appeals to female readers due to his presentation as an impossibly attractive and talented criminal who falls deeply in love with a seemingly ordinary woman.
Impact
An influential manga due to its art and subject matter, Crying Freeman contributed greatly to the increasing popularity of manga for adult readers in the United States. Its graphic content emphasized the fact that manga, and comics in general, are not inherently intended for young readers. In some ways reminiscent of a live-action martial-arts film, Crying Freeman inspired a film adaptation that was released internationally in 1995.
Films
Crying Freeman. Directed by Christophe Gans. August Entertainment, 1995. This live-action film adaptation was directed by French filmmaker Christophe Gans. Hinomura is portrayed by Mark Dacascos. The film differs from the manga in several ways, most notably changing the story’s setting and the nationalities of several characters.
Crying Freeman: Complete Collection. Toei Animation/ A.D.V. Films, 2004. Collects six animated films released between 1988 and 1993: Crying Freeman: Portrait of a Killer, directed by Daisuke Nishio; Crying Freeman 2: Shades of Death, Part 1, directed by Nobutaka Nishizawa; Crying Freeman 3: Shades of Death, Part 2, directed by Johei Matsuura; Crying Freeman 4: A Taste of Revenge, directed by Shigemori Yamauchi; Crying Freeman 5: Abduction in Chinatown, directed by Harunisa Okamoto; Crying Freeman 6: The Guiding Light of Memory, directed by Yamauchi.
Further Reading
Buronson and Ryouiti Ikegami. Strain (1998).
Dostoyevsky, Fyodor, and Osamu Tezuka. Crime and Punishment (1990).
Bibliography
Dark Horse Comics Inc. “Kazuo Koike - The Dark Horse Interview 3/3/06.” Accessed March, 2012. http://www.darkhorse.com/Interviews/1261/Kazuo-Koike---The-Dark-Horse-Interview-3-3-06.
Klady, Leonard. “Crying Freeman.” Review of Crying Freeman, by Kazuo Koike. Variety 360, no. 10 (October 9, 1995): 63.
Raiteri, Steve. “Crying Freeman.“ Review of Crying Freeman, by Kazuo Koike. Library Journal 131, no. 15 (September 15, 2006): 44.
Tse, David. “Crying Freeman.“ Review of Crying Freeman, by Kazuo Koike. Sight and Sound 7 (May, 1997): 40.