野獣死すべし (1979年)

by 大藪 春彦

敗戦で満洲から引揚げた伊達邦彦少年は、大戦の惨害に人間性の根底まで蹂躙され、大学生の頃には計算しつくされた完全犯罪を夢見るようになる。大学入学金の強奪に成功した彼は、戦時中父の会社を乗っ取った京急コンツェルンに対し執拗な復讐を開始する。怜悧な頭脳、端正な容貌と猛獣のような体躯を持つ非情の男伊達邦彦を描くハードボイルド小説の傑作。大藪春彦のデビュー作となる正編に加え、「週刊新潮」に連載された続編となる復讐編を収める。

Paperback Bunko

Reviews

[Wei Lin · Rating 4 out of 5]

There's something satisfying in going from the straightforward simple-minded nihilistic/narcissistic fixation on the "black box" protagonist in the first part to the second part (or, as it is called, the "revenge arc") and its more skillful inclusion of other characters' perspectives (even one that merely lasts two pages before he dies). Historically I think this might be an important novel in the genealogy of a super strong and smart character that outwits and overpowers everyone else, and though it was sometimes dry, it wasn't obnoxiously indulgent and was overall quite a fun read. Some scenes did reach a level of absurdity where it almost felt comedic, from the perspective of a 2025 reader, but there's quite a careful toeing of the line between unironic seriousness and flat out parody. Just imagine a yakuza film in novel form, with pretty detailed descriptions of a variety of guns as well as, in the second part, some pretty interesting and complicated know-how on hijacking a company through cunning financial means.