released 08 mar 05 / last mod 01 jun 07 / greg goebel / public domain
* At the beginning of Japanese manga (comic) writer Masamune Shirow's DOMINION BOOK ONE, we meet hotheaded Liona and mild Al, cops in a future polluted world. The crooks are so tough in this age that the police have to drive around little tanks to deal with them, and Liona is passionately dedicated to her mini-panzer, named "Bonaparte". They have to deal with lunatic police chiefs and screwball colleagues while trying to fight the evil Buaku and his gang, which features two sexy cat-eared androids, the Puma Sisters Uni and Anna.
As you might guess, DOMINION isn't supposed to be taken all that seriously, being something along the lines of a comedy-action-adventure series. It involves good artwork, with Masamune Shirow's usual clever ideas on science-fiction hardware; a lot of running around, with comedy plot not suffering anywhere near as much as Masamune Shirow's more serious works from his sheer inability to tell a straight story; and, actually, some pretty good laughs. When Liona and Al get in a tight spot, she says: "We'll ram them! We'll take them with us!" Al screams back: "YOU JAPANESE ARE KAMIKAZE-CRAZY!"
Now cut to Book 2 of the series, DOMINION CONFLICT 1: NO MORE NOISE. Actually, it's not really "Book 2" because instead of continuing the original story line, Masamune Shirow decided to break it down and rebuild it. We have the polluted world and Liona and Bonaparte, but no Al. Buaku doesn't show up, but the Puma Sisters have become cops, much to Liona's fury. (Liona's told: "They're machines! We can't charge them with crimes!") They like being cops: "No more sleeping in dumpsters for pretty Anna!"
Despite all the changes, including a much more evolved artwork style and substantially more convoluted plot, it's hard to say that Book 2 feels all that much different from Book 1: more of the same, lots of screwball adventures and running around -- with lots of bizarre subplots, for example the jealous crusade of the meter maid corps against Liona, who barely notices them. The Puma Sisters, with their stereotypical android naivete about humans, provide particular laughs. There's a little cartoon in the end where they're trying to catch some shut-eye in body bags: "Boy, these sleeping bags are sure thin and cold!"
Overall, the DOMINION series is well-crafted, adventurous, imaginative, humorous and fun. Great art, eh, probably not, but if that's not a worry then you'll probably like it. The only real difference between Book 1 and Book 2 is really stylistic: if you like early Masamune Shirow, try Book 1, if you like modern Masamune Shirow, try Book 2. Since there's not much continuity between the two volumes, it doesn't matter which one you try first. Masamune Shirow claims he has more DOMINION in mind, but he got so bogged down on the brilliant / incomprehensible MAN-MACHINE INTERFACE that it's hard to say when he'll get around to it.
* There is actually at least one DOMINION TANK POLICE anime movie out. It's not bad, taking its cue from the DOMINION BOOK 1 manga, though it rearranges the plot and details considerably. If you liked DOMINION BOOK 1, you may well like the movie. It definitely has its moments; the nutcase police chief, arguing with city officials, demands the ultimate crime-fighting weapon. "You don't mean ... " "Yes! I'm talking TACTICAL NUCLEAR WEAPONS!"
And that, folks, more or less sums up the flavor of DOMINION.