is a Japanese

gekiga , literally "dramatic pictures", is a style of Japanese comics aimed at adult audiences and marked by a more cinematic art style and more mature themes. ''Gekiga'' was the predominant style of adult comics in Japan in the 1960s and 1970s. It is ...

manga series written and illustrated by

Takashi Fukutani Takashi Fukutani (; February 4, 1952 – September 9, 2000) was a Japanese manga artist. He is best known for his manga series '' Dokudami Tenement''. Early life and career Fukutani was born in the Saidaiji area of Okayama and was rai ...

Description

Initially serialized in Japanese in the pages of ''

Weekly Manga Times is a Japanese weekly seinen manga magazine published by Houbunsha since November 1956. The publisher claims it was Japan’s first weekly manga magazine, and the magazine is published every Friday. While its name resembles that of its sister maga ...

'' from May 18, 1979 until April 2, 1993, the work was hugely popular and subsequently collected into 35 volumes by the Japanese publisher

Houbunsha is a Japanese publishing company founded on July 10, 1950. It is based in Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo. Magazines published by Houbunsha *''Weekly Manga Times'' *''Hana Oto'' *'' Comic Fuz'' Manga Time magazines *'' Manga Time'' *'' Manga Time Original'' ...

. Total sales of Dokudami Tenement are recorded at 5 million copies. The series is currently out of print, however

e-book An ebook (short for electronic book), also known as an e-book or eBook, is a book publication made available in digital form, consisting of text, images, or both, readable on the flat-panel display of computers or other electronic devices. Alt ...

volumes have been published. Set in

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...

during the 1980s, the work explores and deals with many subcultures and social issues that were prominent at the time, such as Japanese traditional customs,

yakuza , also known as , are members of transnational organized crime syndicates originating in Japan. The Japanese police and media, by request of the police, call them , while the ''yakuza'' call themselves . The English equivalent for the ter ...

, recreational drug use,

drug addicts Addiction is a neuropsychological disorder characterized by a persistent and intense urge to engage in certain behaviors, one of which is the usage of a drug, despite substantial harm and other negative consequences. Repetitive drug use oft ...

, infidelity,

fetishism A fetish (derived from the French , which comes from the Portuguese , and this in turn from Latin , 'artificial' and , 'to make') is an object believed to have supernatural powers, or in particular, a human-made object that has power over ot ...

alcoholism Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol that results in significant mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognized diagnostic entity. Predomi ...

, poverty, and isolation. Takashi Fukutani stated a number of times that the stories, characters and settings in ''Dokudami Tenement'' are

semi-autobiographical An autobiographical novel is a form of novel using autofiction techniques, or the merging of autobiographical and fictive elements. The literary technique is distinguished from an autobiography or memoir by the stipulation of being fiction. ...

and are based on his own life experiences during his time in the towns of Asagaya, and Koenji (both located in Suginami-ku, West Tokyo). The series depicts the highs and lows a young man named Yoshio who is employed as a

day labourer Day labor (or day labour in Commonwealth spelling) is work done where the worker is hired and paid one day at a time, with no promise that more work will be available in the future. It is a form of contingent work. Types Day laborers (also k ...

in civil construction sites during the Japanese asset price bubble period. Dokudami is the Japanese name for ''

Houttuynia cordata ''Houttuynia cordata'', also known as fish mint, fish leaf, rainbow plant, chameleon plant, heart leaf, fish wort, or Chinese lizard tail, is one of two species in the genus ''Houttuynia'' (the other being ''H. emeiensis''). It is a flower ...

,'' a flowering plant native to Japan. It is often considered a weed and grows in damp and shady places. 'Doku' is also the word for poison in Japanese.

Characters

;Hori Yoshio, "Yoshio" () :The main protagonist of Dokudami Tenement is Yoshio. He is a 24-year-old man born in Saidaiji , Okayama prefecture . He moved to Tokyo, bringing his guitar, in search of the

bohemian Bohemian or Bohemians may refer to: *Anything of or relating to Bohemia Beer * National Bohemian, a brand brewed by Pabst * Bohemian, a brand of beer brewed by Molson Coors Culture and arts * Bohemianism, an unconventional lifestyle, origin ...

lifestyle, and settled in Asagaya, West Tokyo. Within one year he has sold his guitar and has become a day labourer on civll construction projects.With no guarantee of constant work the only accommodation available to him is the cheapest type of accommodation, that with no bathroom, no air-conditioning, no bath, a shared toilet, a shared kitchen "Dokudami-so" with "no money, no job, no woman. We are living a single man life of poverty." :Yoshio, due to his young age and positive childlike enthusiastic

demeanor Social behavior is behavior among two or more organisms within the same species, and encompasses any behavior in which one member affects the other. This is due to an interaction among those members. Social behavior can be seen as similar to an ...

, often finds himself in encounters with pretty young woman, and other interesting individuals. Yoshi's hobby is binge drinking, "and when I drink, I often fall to the roadside..." ;Hori Miyuki () :Yoshio's sister. ;Daisuke Ruta () :A Resident of Dokudomiso. He is a cartoonist who struggles to sell his comics for a living. ;Aussie Hiromi () :A Resident of Dokudami Tenement.

Movie

A movie based on the manga was published on December 24, 1988. It was directed by Abe Hisaka, with the original screenplay written by Takashi Fukutani. The movie was converted into VHS in 1989, but it has not been released on

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...

or as a digital download .

References

{{reflist

External links

''Dokudami Tenement'' movie
at eiga Live-action films based on manga 1988 films 1980s Japanese-language films Seinen manga Shochiku films