Black Lagoon
ブラックラグーン (Burakku Ragūn)
Genre	Action, Adventure, Crime fiction, Black Comedy
Manga
Author	Rei Hiroe
Publisher	Shogakukan
English publisher	Viz Media
Demographic	Seinen
Magazine	Sunday GX
Original run	19 April 2002 – ongoing
Volumes	8
TV anime: Black Lagoon
Director	Sunao Katabuchi
Studio	Madhouse
Licensor	Geneon MVM Films Tokyo Night Train, then Madman Entertainment
Network	Chiba TV, Gunma TV, KBS Kyoto, Sun TV, Tochigi TV, Tokyo MX, TV Kanagawa, TV Nagoya, TV Saitama
Original run	8 April 2006 – 24 June 2006
Episodes	12
TV anime: Black Lagoon: The Second Barrage
Director	Sunao Katabuchi
Studio	Madhouse
Licensor	Geneon MVM Films
Network	Chiba TV, Gunma TV, KBS Kyoto, Sun TV, Tochigi TV, Tokyo MX, TV Kanagawa, TV Nagoya, TV Saitama
Original run	2 October 2006 – 18 December 2006
Episodes	12
Light novel
Author	Gen Urobuchi
Illustrator	Rei Hiroe
Publisher	Shogakukan
Demographic	Male
Publishing label	Gagaga Bunko
Published	July 18, 2008
Volumes	1

Black Lagoon (ブラックラグーン, Burakku Ragūn^?) is manga series written and illustrated by Rei Hiroe, published in Shogakukan's Sunday GX since 2002. The action genre is a class of creative works characterised by a greater emphasis on exciting action sequences than on character development or story-telling The adventure genre, in the context of a Narrative, is typically applied to works in which the Protagonist or other major characters are consistently placed in dangerous Crime fiction is the Genre of Fiction that deals with Crimes their detection criminals and their motives It is usually distinguished from Black comedy, also known as black humor or dark comedy, is a sub-genre of Comedy and Satire where topics and events that are usually regarded ˈmɑŋgə is the Japanese word for Comics (sometimes called komikku コミック and print Cartoons In their modern form manga date from shortly is a Japanese Manga artist who is more recently known for his latest manga Black Lagoon. is a Japanese publisher of dictionaries, Literature, Manga, Non-fiction, DVDs and other media in Japan. Viz Media LLC, headquartered in San Francisco California, is an Anime, Manga and Japanese Entertainment company founded in 1986 often abbreviated as, is a Japanese Seinen Manga magazine published by Shogakukan. Events 1012 - Martyrdom of Alphege in Greenwich London. 1529 - At the Second Diet of Speyer See also 2002 (disambiguation Year 2002 ( MMII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. is the Japanese term for a book that is complete in itself and is not part of a series though the Manga industry uses it for volumes which may be in a series Television ( TV) is a widely used Telecommunication medium for sending ( Broadcasting) and receiving moving Images, either monochromatic (anime in Japanese, is a Japanese animation studio founded in the early 1970s by ex– Mushi Pro animators including Masao Maruyama, Osamu Dezaki, Rintaro, and MVM Films is a British distributor of Japanese animation. The company sublicenses anime titles from US Anime companies such as Geneon and US Manga Corps Magna Pacific is a leading independent film and home entertainment distributor headquartered in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, operating within Australia Madman Entertainment is an Australian company that specialises in the distribution of Japanese Anime and Manga in Australia and New Doing business as, is a Japanese commercial Terrestrial television broadcasting company headquartered at 11-25 Miyako-chō 1-chōme Chūō-ku Chiba is a Commercial broadcasting station headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. is the only commercial television station in Tokyo Japan that exclusively serves the city ( tvk for short is an independent television station in Japan serving Kanagawa Prefecture and parts of the Greater Tokyo Area with favorable abbreviated TVS, Doing business as is a Japanese fee-free terrestrial commercial Television broadcasting company headquartered in Events 217 - Roman Emperor Caracalla is Assassinated (and succeeded by his Praetorian Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Events 972 - Battle of Cedynia, the first documented victory of Polish forces takes place Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. This is a list of episodes of the Black Lagoon Anime, covering the two seasons of the series This is a list of episodes of the Black Lagoon Anime, covering the two seasons of the series Television ( TV) is a widely used Telecommunication medium for sending ( Broadcasting) and receiving moving Images, either monochromatic (anime in Japanese, is a Japanese animation studio founded in the early 1970s by ex– Mushi Pro animators including Masao Maruyama, Osamu Dezaki, Rintaro, and MVM Films is a British distributor of Japanese animation. The company sublicenses anime titles from US Anime companies such as Geneon and US Manga Corps Doing business as, is a Japanese commercial Terrestrial television broadcasting company headquartered at 11-25 Miyako-chō 1-chōme Chūō-ku Chiba is a Commercial broadcasting station headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. is the only commercial television station in Tokyo Japan that exclusively serves the city ( tvk for short is an independent television station in Japan serving Kanagawa Prefecture and parts of the Greater Tokyo Area with favorable abbreviated TVS, Doing business as is a Japanese fee-free terrestrial commercial Television broadcasting company headquartered in Events 1187 - Siege of Jerusalem: Saladin captures Jerusalem after 88 years of Crusader rule Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Events 218 BC - Second Punic War: Battle of the Trebia - Hannibal 's Carthaginian forces defeat those of the Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. This is a list of episodes of the Black Lagoon Anime, covering the two seasons of the series This is a list of episodes of the Black Lagoon Anime, covering the two seasons of the series A is a Novel with Anime - or Manga -style Illustrations primarily targeting teens and young adults is a Japanese Manga artist who is more recently known for his latest manga Black Lagoon. is a Japanese publisher of dictionaries, Literature, Manga, Non-fiction, DVDs and other media in Japan. Events 390 BC - Roman - Gaulish Wars Battle of the Allia - a Roman army is defeated by raiding Gauls, 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common ˈmɑŋgə is the Japanese word for Comics (sometimes called komikku コミック and print Cartoons In their modern form manga date from shortly is a Japanese Manga artist who is more recently known for his latest manga Black Lagoon. is a Japanese publisher of dictionaries, Literature, Manga, Non-fiction, DVDs and other media in Japan. often abbreviated as, is a Japanese Seinen Manga magazine published by Shogakukan.

An animated television series based on the manga aired in Japan from April 8, 2006 to June 24 of the same year, totaling twelve episodes. (anime in Japanese, A television program (US television programme (UK or television show (U For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics. Events 217 - Roman Emperor Caracalla is Assassinated (and succeeded by his Praetorian Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Events 972 - Battle of Cedynia, the first documented victory of Polish forces takes place A second season, subtitled "The Second Barrage", ran for twelve weeks starting on October 2, 2006. Events 1187 - Siege of Jerusalem: Saladin captures Jerusalem after 88 years of Crusader rule Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar.

The English language version of the manga is distributed by Viz Media, and the first volume is expected on August 12, 2008 (ISBN 978-1-4215-1382-9). Viz Media LLC, headquartered in San Francisco California, is an Anime, Manga and Japanese Entertainment company founded in 1986 Events 1099 - First Crusade: Battle of Ascalon - Crusaders under the command of Godfrey of Bouillon defeat Fatimid 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common The television series was distributed by Geneon USA until the company's shutdown on December 31, 2007. Events 406 – Vandals, Alans and Suebians cross the Rhine, beginning an invasion of Gallia. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century.

Plot

The story follows a team of mercenaries known as Lagoon Company, who smuggle goods in and around the seas of Southeast Asia. A mercenary is a person who takes part in an armed conflict who is not a national or a party to the conflict and is "motivated to take part in the hostilities essentially by Their base of operations is located in the fictional city of Roanapur in Thailand, and they transport goods in the PT boat Black Lagoon. The Kingdom of Thailand (ˈtaɪlænd ราชอาณาจักรไทย, râːtɕʰa-ʔaːnaːtɕɑ̀k-tʰɑj PT Boats were a variety of motor Torpedo boat ( Hull classification symbol "PT" for "Patrol Torpedo" a small fast vessel used by the When on land, they move around and conduct business using Benny's 1969 Dodge Coronet R/T (with a '69 Plymouth Roadrunner side-scoop induction hood). Lagoon Company does business with various clients, but has a particularly friendly relationship with the Russian crime syndicate Hotel Moscow. "Crime syndicate" redirects here For the DC Comics group of villains see Crime Syndicate. The team takes on a variety of missions—which may involve violent firefights, hand-to-hand combat, and nautical battles—in various Southeast Asian locations and when not doing much, the members of the Lagoon Company spend much of their down time at The Yellow Flag, a bar in Roanapur.

Characters

Main article: List of Black Lagoon characters

Black Lagoon features a wide cast of characters, many of them involved in the criminal underworld and its dealings in and around Roanapur. The following is a list of characters from the Japanese Manga and Anime Black Lagoon.

• Revy provides the muscle for the Lagoon Company. The following is a list of characters from the Japanese Manga and Anime Black Lagoon. She is of Chinese descent and grew up in New York. The term Chinese people may refer to any of the following A person who resides in and holds citizenship of the People's Republic of China (including Hong Revy is exceptionally skilled with using firearms in battle, but is not much of a people person. She enjoys killing her enemies and seldom stops to negotiate. While merciless in battle, she begins to develop feelings for Rock as the series progresses. The following is a list of characters from the Japanese Manga and Anime Black Lagoon. Her signature weapon is a brace of custom-made stainless steel 9mm Beretta M92F "Praiyachat Sword Cutlass Special" pistols. In Metallurgy, stainless steel is defined as a Steel Alloy with a minimum of 11 The Beretta 92 (also Beretta 96 and Beretta 98) is a series of Semi-automatic pistols designed and manufactured by Beretta of Italy Her nickname "Two-Hand" reflects her ability use both pistols simultaneously.

• Rock is a Japanese salaryman who joins the crew of the Black Lagoon after they kidnap him. The following is a list of characters from the Japanese Manga and Anime Black Lagoon. refers to someone whose income is Salary based particularly those working for corporations Rock does not fight but is an excellent negotiator and translator. He is often scared by the methods Revy can use to achieve her goals.

• Dutch is the African-American leader of the Lagoon "trading company". The following is a list of characters from the Japanese Manga and Anime Black Lagoon. He captains the PT boat Black Lagoon, and coordinates his crew. Although he seldom participates in battle, he is still a deadly adversary, stemming from his time as an American soldier in the Vietnam War. The Vietnam War, also known as the Second Indochina War, or the Vietnam Conflict, occurred in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia

• Benny is a former post-graduate student at the University of Florida. The following is a list of characters from the Japanese Manga and Anime Black Lagoon. He serves as the Lagoon's technical expert. Like Rock, he is not a gunfighter and does not have the capacity to kill in cold blood. However, he is hardened to the job and willing to over look almost anything just to get the job done.

Media

Main articles: List of Black Lagoon media and List of Black Lagoon episodes

The first season of Black Lagoon consists of episodes 1 to 12. This is a list of media associated with the Anime and Manga series Black Lagoon. This is a list of episodes of the Black Lagoon Anime, covering the two seasons of the series The second season consists of episodes 13 to 24 and is labeled Black Lagoon: The Second Barrage. The second season focuses less on the character developments than the first season and more on the jobs they do.

So far, the first three DVDs containing episodes 1–12, have been released, completing the first season. The first DVD of The Second Barrage was scheduled for a November 20th, 2007 release, but as of now has been canceled. ^[1][2][3]

Black Lagoon began airing on G4techTV Canada on Friday, October 26, and currently airs Fridays at 8:00p. G4techTV Canada is a Canadian English language category 1 Digital cable Specialty channel co-owned by Rogers Media and Events 740 - An Earthquake strikes Constantinople, causing much damage and death m. and 11:30p. m. EST.

Starz edge began airing Black Lagoon on Friday, February 29 2008 to American audiences. Starz (originally "Starz!" it dropped the exclamation point in 2005 is a US Pay TV network which features mainly first-run Motion pictures Leap years Although the modern calendar counts a year as 365 days a complete revolution around the sun takes approximately 365 days and 6 hours

Design

Black Lagoon includes a considerable amount of graphic violence, often involving violent gun fights and spectacular physical feats in battle. Graphic violence is the depiction of especially vivid brutal and realistic acts of violence in visual media such as Literature, Film, Television Many of the characters who are most skilled with weapons (mainly guns) are women, thereby bearing a similarity with "girls-with-guns" genre with the six strongest women in the series parodying some type of stereotype (dragon lady, maids, nuns, etc. For the character see Dragon Lady (character for the U-2 airplane see Lockheed U-2 A Dragon Lady is a Misogynistic Stereotype ). Some of the scenes and dialog are within the realm of dark comedy, as humorous moments occur or are mentioned during and after many violent battles. Black comedy, also known as black humor or dark comedy, is a sub-genre of Comedy and Satire where topics and events that are usually regarded Examples include Revy making fun of Garcia about Roberta, as she is a maid, until she finds out the hard way that Roberta is what Garcia claims. Also, Revy intentionally starting a gun battle between Fabiola and the Cartel, in addition, laughing at Bao and a Cartel member playing tug-o-war over a telephone while a violent gun battle is exploding just on the other side of the bar counter. Another moment is Shenhua and Revy playing a game of Rock, Paper, Scissor to see who will kill first, Revy then whines like a child when she loses. Rock-paper-scissors (also known as scissors-paper-stone, Jan-ken-pon, rochambeau (sometimes spelled roshambo)

Throughout the show, many existential themes are present. Early on, Revy makes a speech in which she asks Rock to explain what she is holding in her hands. When he attempts to point out that they are a medal and a skull, she attacks this notion, calling them "just objects," and goes on to say that people merely choose to give them value, and that they do not have any true innate meaning. This is very similar to many of Jean-Paul Sartre's views, and relates to the existential belief that there is no set meaning in life, and that people must choose to find, create, and assign their own meanings. Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (21 June 1905 &ndash 15 April 1980 commonly known simply as Jean-Paul Sartre (ʒɑ̃ pol saʁtʁə was a French Many of the characters also express atheist views, a common feature of modern existential thought, especially that of Sartre who said that God is just an attempt to put false meaning on things without the responsibility of choice.

As well, important minor characters throughout the show show character traits ideal to the ubermensch of Nietzsche or Knight of Faith of Kierkegaard, that being a person who acts not simply for logical reasons, but rather because it gives them meaning in life. The Übermensch ( German; English: Overman, Superman) is a Concept in the Philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche. Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (October 15 1844 August 25 1900 ( was a nineteenth-century German philosopher and classical philologist Søren Aabye Kierkegaard (ˈsœːɐn ˈkʰiɐ̯kəˌɡ̊ɒˀ in Danish Anglicized as;) A key example of this is Masahiro Takenaka, who though realizing the inevitable failures of any revolutions he participated in as part of the defunct Japanese Red Army failed, he continues to be a rebel as it gives him meaning in life. The was a Terrorist group founded by Fusako Shigenobu in February 1971 after she broke away from the Japanese Communist League-Red Army Faction As well, this can be seen in Roberta, who like Takenaka has seen the betrayal of her own communist revolutions in Columbia, but instead chooses to find meaning in being a maid for an aristocratic family. Garcia Lovelace is a blatant example of a Knight of Faith (one that puts faith in that which he/she wants or believes, even if it is not logical), made so by Rock's comment on Garcia's belief that his maid will come and save him, "I don't know if it'll come true or not, but you must have a great home if you can have such strong faith. "

A distinguishing motif of the series is that no distinction is made between the moral question of right and wrong, which ties into the existential belief that "values are subjective. " Rather, it shows the events from the different perspectives of the characters and how they justify their beliefs in what is right and what is not, just as how existentialists believe that every person chooses their own values for their own subjective reasons.

A review of this moral conflict expressed the matter in this way: There is only a case of perspective, and how one justifies his or her actions to be the morally correct one. It's like trying to define which grey is blacker than the other. ^[4]

While Revy is depicted as being the tough, uncaring gunfighter, Rock is almost the exact opposite, and a central theme in the series is Rock's struggle for deciding whether he should remain with Lagoon Company—a criminal organization—or return to his ordinary life of a law-abiding citizen. Especially in the first season, this conflict between Rock's and Revy's views on crime and moral is important. Many of the "villains" in the series look at Rock as "unique" and refer him as a "rare" individual as he is able to connect with others, even Revy. On many occasions, Rock's personality is demonstrated to be stronger than any weapon or organization imaginable as he is able to connect with not only with Revy, but someone as innocent as Garcia Loveless, as ruthless as Balalaika, or as psychotic as Hansel/Gretel. Even Chang, leader of the Triad, is unsure where to classify Rock as a person.

Alienation is present as well, as the characters are alienated from regular society. As pirates, they spend most of their time at sea, or in a city very much alienated from "regular" civilization. As well, they often are alienated from one another, as can be seen in the conflicts between Rock and Revy.

Free will relates to all of this, especially seen in Rock, who actively chooses to leave his stable life in Japan because it has lost meaning to him. At the same time, he does not want to fully accept his circumstances, or make a true choice as regarding to his own meaning in life, causing him much conflict with Revy, and later another "existential hero" in Yukio Washimine (who chooses to continue fighting an inevitably lost battle with the Russian mafia, and is a reader of both Martin Heidegger and Jean-Paul Sartre). Martin Heidegger ( September 26, 1889 &ndash May 26, 1976) (ˈmaɐ̯tiːn ˈhaɪ̯dɛgɐ was an influential German philosopher Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (21 June 1905 &ndash 15 April 1980 commonly known simply as Jean-Paul Sartre (ʒɑ̃ pol saʁtʁə was a French Yukio confronts Rock with his lack of "choice," over what his own meaning is, trying to stay neutral and not choosing sides in conflicts throughout the series, which she views as laziness and an unwillingness to accept his own individuality and values, and thus a personal alienation. She argues that this is an attempt to just conform to his surroundings and give his meaning away to others, rather than realizing his own choice in the matter. This is the same critique as Sartre, who said that one who is a "being-in-the-midst-of-everything" (as he phrased it) is merely living a false consciousness, since they are pretending that their being has no effect on its surrounds and so it can be a partial observer, which is simply not the case.

Along with free will is the struggle between Giri and Ninjo. in Japanese, is human feeling that complements and opposes the value of giri, or social obligation within the Japanese worldview Giri is the uniquely Japanese form of social obligation. It makes many appearances in the series as internal strife within the characters. It forces them to act in manners they would normally find unacceptable. In episode 7, Rock and Revy are told to do errands for the company. When they arrive at the Church of Violence they have a confrontation with Sister Yolanda. During the confrontation Rock implies that they could turn the church in for trading drugs outside the normal routes. This implication brings about a sense of Giri, or social obligation, and she ends up giving him the firearms Black Lagoon needs. The important thing to understand is that the sense of Giri felt in Japan is unequivocal; Yolanda did not pay back the obligation by giving Rock anything physical, instead she paid it back by giving him the proper consideration he deserved and by following through with her original deal. Ninjo, on the other hand, is the idea of compassion and true feeling that springs up in contest with Giri. In episode 7 it makes its appearance during the confrontation between Rock and Revy. During this bout Rock states that he is done apologizing to Revy. She takes this as a challenge of sorts and tries to push it aside in order to avoid a confrontation. Rock continues to push and Revy reacts in a typical violent outburst. What follows is an argument, which expresses their attempt at understanding one another on the deepest level. Their feelings interfere with their sense of duty towards one another and the tension becomes immense. They have at it until the police interrupt them. The episode ends with the two of them in the back of a police cruiser making amends for their outburst, and they show a sign of true understanding and camaraderie.

The series also touches on other themes, like modern Nazism, the power struggle between various criminal syndicates, and outright sadistic killing. Nazism, which was a short name for National Socialism (Nationalsozialismus refers primarily to the Ideology and practices of the National Socialist German Communism plays a major role for almost all of the characters as well, with a connection to almost every protagonist and antagonist in the show, though in most cases due to some conflict or alienation from it (e. Communism is a Socioeconomic structure that promotes the establishment of an egalitarian, classless, stateless Society based g. Dutch fighting in Vietnam, Mr. Chan and Revy originating from China, the Russian Mafia originally being a Soviet paratrooper brigade, Hansel and Gretel being orphans under an ex-Communist dictator, etc. ) Black Lagoon also makes numerous cultural references (see below).

The "Fujiyama Gangsta Paradise" arc showed that most of the characters throughout the series actually speak English, with the Japanese simply being translations done for the audience. While the English voice acting in the anime is heavy in Japanese pronunciation, nearly all occurrences of English lines in the manga are accurate. However, the instances of Cyrillic script tend to be less so.

Reception

As of October 2007, the manga series has sold over 3 million copies in Japan. October 2007 is the tenth month of that year It began on a Monday and 31 days later ended on a Wednesday. ^[5]

References

External links

• Official site (Japanese)
• Geneon's Official Black Lagoon Website
• Black Lagoon (manga) at Anime News Network's Encyclopedia