Japan, Inc.: Introduction to Japanese Economics

by Shōtarō Ishinomori, Peter Duus (Introduction)

They are burning Japanese cars in Detroit. The top management at Toyosan Motors must decide whether to begin offshore production of its cars in the U.S. But our hero Mr. Kudo fears that offshore production will devastate the numerous local subcontractors of Toyosan, leading to a hollowing out of the auto industry in Japan, leaving only a financial shell. The American color TV industry has already suffered such a fate. The villain, Mr. Tsugawa, calls Kudo a wimp and sees a splendid opportunity for union busting. Will our hero prevail?

Thus begins the first episode of this rollicking yet incisive introduction to the world economy from the Japanese point of view. Other episodes treat the appreciation of the yen, the impact of the 1970s oil shocks, deficit financing, the internationalization of business and banking, and the post-industrial future of Japan and the Pacific Rim.

The book is an English edition of volume 1 of Manga Nihon keizai nyumon , originally published in 1986 by Nihon Keizai Shimbun, the Japanese equivalent of the Wall Street Journal. It is based on a serious introductory text put out by the newspaper and is packed with informative charts and facts. When the comic book was first published in Japan, it was an immediate best-seller, selling over 550,000 copies in less than a year.

The stories in the book reflect Japan's national mood during the "Japanese miracle" and into the 1980s economic apprehension and optimism jostle one another, and there is a sense of national self-pity. The book also reflects a deep suspicion of politics and bureaucrats. The prime minister appears more worried about his government's popularity than about taking the right economic course. Ultimately, the employees at Toyosan Motors demonstrate that the success of the Japanese economy will not depend on natural resources or politics but on business practices that are ethical, socially responsible, and forward-looking.

Genres: Manga, Japan, Economics, Comics, Nonfiction, History, Graphic Novels

320 pages, Paperback

First published November 25, 1986

About the author

Shōtarō Ishinomori (石ノ森章太郎) was a Japanese manga artist and cartoonist. Known as the "King of Manga", he is regarded as one of the most influential manga artists of all time.

Reviews

[Nooilforpacifists · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written at the height of the "Japan bubble" -- when Americans were said to be fat and lazy by the Sony CEO -- this book now reads like the comic book version of hubris. Still, it was fun in the '80s. And they still make better cars.

[Frank Ashe · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a sucker for manga versions of economic texts.

[Kathleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad, but quite a bit out of date! This edition would have benefitted from a smoother translation, or better proofreading, or even consistent use of punctuation (usually absent in Japanese writing, but never in good English.) The stories told by the comic are generally informative, and easy to follow. The random footnotes and inserted tables, on the other hand, often feel out of place and have absolutely nothing to do with the part of the story they are interrupting. Those should have been placed with more care.

[Colin Harris · Rating 2 out of 5]

Uh, it's a manga that attempts to describe the 80's financial climate in Japan. I guess I just wanted to see a manga depiction of Ronald Regan - Does Not Disappoint.

[Consito Ramirez · Rating 5 out of 5]

If all text books were written in the form of a Japanese Manga, the world would be a much better place.

Not that many schools are probably using this book as a text anymore. It goes through complicated topics on currency, trade and fiscal policy using the oil crisis, 1980s VER with the U.S. and the other real-life situations as a backdrop. Of course, there's sex, lies and betrayal too squished between the complicated economic topics.

All that being said, I didn't appreciate Tsugawa, the union-busting businessman playboy with a penchant for luxury goods, being an obvious symbol for American business mentality. So racist.

Still, a great read for people who are huge nerds - I mean, really, it's dense economics mixed in with a manga...

[Ignition · Rating 4 out of 5]

great little short read about the culture and inner workings of the individuals who made the japanese economy the second most powerful in the world and their cars of better quality than america.

Surprisingly entertaining given all the economic jargon in it

[Tim · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5 stars. My eyes glazed over for about 90% of the book. There are also numerous spelling and punctuation mistakes in the book.

[planetkimi · Rating 1 out of 5]

I think this book just wasn't my style. I read to page 97 (middle of the second chapter), and I realized that I just didn't care much about what happened. So that was a minus on the storytelling side. I'm not wild about the art either. And I know this isn't terribly important in the grand scheme of things, but the placement and alignment of the English text in the dialog bubbles sized for the Japanese text drove me nuts. The words don't fit the bubbles, and it looks pretty sloppy.

I think the most interesting parts were the prose economics explanations that were interspersed within the pages of manga. Maybe I'll go back and scan through those.

Also, this book was published in 1988, which is before Japan had its big economic meltdown. In light of current events in the US, I was really hoping to read about how they addressed the problems with their country, not so much what was going on in their pre-downturn days.

[Donnell]

A bit tough going given the topic is Japanese economics thirty years ago. But contains scraps of fascinating stuff like seeing financial paths beginning which would bloom over time. For example, the dawning realizations that it is more profitable to manipulate stocks and bonds and to do other financial machinations, than to actually make anything. And that labor markets were going to cheaper workers overseas, leaving home country workers unemployed.

Learned: Japan voluntarily restricted its exporting of cars to the United States for three years in the early 1980's. Voluntarily? Would that be possible today?

Also of note--characters recognizing that there is more to life than economics and profit, yet the Reader knowing the world would become more financially, and less culturally, focused over time.

[Nick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well its a manga about the financial history of japan from the late 70s through 80s. Its pretty relavent now'ndays if you want yet another monetarist explanation of how finance works. Also its pretty overly optimistic considering what happened in the 90s. Nevertheless, its a great piece of weirdness from japan and has some legit economics/finance teachings in it. It also has a manga version of Reagan, strip clubs, and a ripoff of "I Pencil" at the end.

[Josh Paul · Rating 2 out of 5]

Who'd have thought a book about the Japanese economy in the 80s could be so boring? Japan Inc. tries to be both an economics textbook and a narrative and doesn't do particularly well at either. The economics is light and often incompletely explained, and the characters in the story are almost painfully two-dimensional.

[Colin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Uh, it's a manga that attempts to describe the 80's financial climate in Japan. I guess I just wanted to see a manga depiction of Ronald Regan - Does Not Disappoint.

[Jim · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is hilarious, plus you learn stuff!

[Julie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Manga-format examination of the Japanese business world. Even covers some of the social issues related to the salaryman lifestyle. It was interesting.

[Patricia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely marvelous instructional tool from the 1980s. Fun. I wish he were alive to write another to address the recession.

[Albert Straub · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dated but just substitute China for Japan.