What do you think?
Rate this book
MPD Psycho #4
MPD Psycho Volume 4
Feeling the weight of personal and professional rejection, stylish one-eyed reporter Toguchi embraces his dark side. The horrors he's both documented and participated in haunt him also, and a "perfect storm" of frustration and anger builds until he resolves to pull off a violent "performance art show" in order to get the widespread attention he feels he deserves. Unfortunately, this involves killing a lot of people, transforming the happy-go-lucky guerrilla journalist into a modern monster! Crazed Toguchi also makes some sensitive information public, enraging Zenitsu, another unbalanced villain with a knack for murder and a resistance to pain. Kazuhiko Amamiya arrives at the scene a little too late, but Amamiya - our favorite multiple personality detective - feels that there's some hope yet, and he risks his life to negotiate with Toguchi.
184 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 25, 1999
10 people are currently reading
146 people want to read
About the author
Eiji Otsuka
361 books143 followers大塚英志
Social anthropologist and novelist. Graduated from college with degree in anthropology, women's folklore, human sacrifice and post-war manga. In addition to his work with manga he is a critic, essayist, and author of several successful non-fiction books on Japanese popular and “otaku” sub-cultures. One of his first animation script works was Maho no Rouge Lipstick, an adult lolicon OVA. Otsuka was the editor for the bishojo lolicon manga series Petit Apple Pie.
In the 80s, Otsuka was editor-in-chief of Manga Burikko, a leading women's manga magazine where he pioneered research on the “otaku” sub-culture in modern Japan. In 1988 he published "Manga no Koro" (The Structure of Comics), a serious study of Japanese comics and their social significance. Also as critic, Otsuka Eiji, summarized the case of the Japanese red army's 1972 murders as a conflict between the masculine and the feminine principles as they were both embodied by women and against women (Otsuka,1994).
Social anthropologist and novelist. Graduated from college with degree in anthropology, women's folklore, human sacrifice and post-war manga. In addition to his work with manga he is a critic, essayist, and author of several successful non-fiction books on Japanese popular and “otaku” sub-cultures. One of his first animation script works was Maho no Rouge Lipstick, an adult lolicon OVA. Otsuka was the editor for the bishojo lolicon manga series Petit Apple Pie.
In the 80s, Otsuka was editor-in-chief of Manga Burikko, a leading women's manga magazine where he pioneered research on the “otaku” sub-culture in modern Japan. In 1988 he published "Manga no Koro" (The Structure of Comics), a serious study of Japanese comics and their social significance. Also as critic, Otsuka Eiji, summarized the case of the Japanese red army's 1972 murders as a conflict between the masculine and the feminine principles as they were both embodied by women and against women (Otsuka,1994).
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
January 23, 2023
I didn't enjoy this one as much as I enjoyed some of the others, but the tale is still moving forward, and I'm waiting for some mind-blowing revelations and turns otherwise it will all be for nothing.
September 11, 2023
so much happening!!! the art in this is so good!!! but when will you tell me what that whole eye stuff is about!!!
July 19, 2018
Basically, 2 things happen:
1. Toguchi goes berserk
2. Zenitsu doesn’t approve
Everything revolves around Lucy Monostone (or should I say, Papa Dearest?)
The “blame it all on daddy issues” statement has a new meaning now!
1. Toguchi goes berserk
2. Zenitsu doesn’t approve
Everything revolves around Lucy Monostone (or should I say, Papa Dearest?)
The “blame it all on daddy issues” statement has a new meaning now!
May 4, 2015
Volume 4 was the last chance I'm willing to give to this manga. I'm dropping it. It doesn't have an interesting story and after the shock-value passes, which happens early on, it can't hold the reader's interest. The fact that I don't care for none of the characters doesn't help either. It gave me the impression that it tries to hold the reader's attention only through gore and nudity. I need much more than that.
May 30, 2012
Stuff I Read – MPD Psycho Vol 4
So the fourth volume of MPD Psycho actually picks up basically directly after the events of the third volume, to the point that they can be considered part of the same story, where we see the ultimate fate of the photographer. This is a bit of a sharp departure, as before this it rather seemed like the photographer had his mind together, but here we get a very drastic and sudden descent, as he learns that he might be going blind in his remaining eye. We also learn that he did in fact have a barcode on his eye, though that eye was removed during his covering of a war. But the barcode eye seems to mean something. It is possible that it is used to control people, as that seems to be the implication, that it can be used to trigger people into doing horrible things. And yet the killing spree that the photographer goes on seems to be against the wishes of the organization behind all of this, as he decides to betray them and wants to turn over information to the main character. The larger part of this is just the photographer going around killing people, though, and setting himself up on the top of this building as the king of his castle, where he has the power of life and death. He does a lot of messed up things, and I’m not all that sure what to make of them, but so it goes.
I guess this is getting through him as a character, showing how he was someone who wanted to be loved by the public, who wanted to be appreciated as an artist, and who ultimately failed to do that. Like some of the other killers in this series, there is an emphasis on acts of murder and destruction as artistic forms. Really that seems to be the one thing that binds all of the killers together, that they see what they are doing as a sort of service to the people. The photographer refers to himself as a hero of the people, that he wants to see change, but really all he is doing is killing people. Murder is his art form but is a form that really cannot be artistic. There is a contradiction, because the act of violence is something that lacks aesthetic, at least to sane people. But as if commenting on the trends in culture to use the most vulgar and offensive images and modes as art, the writer makes these characters strive to use murder as art, taking that thought to its illogical conclusion. Further, it revolves around the person of Lucy, a singer of the type one might associate with Marilyn Manson or something like that, only newer. It further draws the line between these acts and thinking of these forms as artistic. Basically, it is forcing these newer, more vulgar forms to defend the idea that if music that treats with murder and movies that treat with violence and even manga that treats with manga can be considered art, how about the act itself. It walks a fine line because it itself is a manga full of these gratuitous acts of violence, that in some ways glorifies the acts as it presents them.
It is interesting, and I think rather successful, as it avoids falling under its own argument by showing it in such an extreme way as to be a satire of other, less extreme depictions that nonetheless glorify violence. It shows violence that is so gory, so obscene, that it cannot be redeemed. At least that is what I read into it. It also takes on rather directly the idea of how we pass these ideas along to the next generation, as the second and shorter story in this volume deals with the emergence of a group of children who are even more cold blooded than their adult counterparts. The Lucy Seven are the next generation of killers, who are out to show the old guard that the standards of the past will not stand. I think it is pretty funny how these children emerge, as they basically set out to kill the idea that these acts are in any way related to violence in the media, in video games, or even in manga. Someone involved with the organization says that it is not that, that it is more a matter of a switch being flipped, that it is nothing else, just that switch. Which means that the old guard can basically wipe its hands of any responsibility for creating the new wave of killers.
In effect, by saying that it is just a switch the author is really saying something else, that this violence (and by this I mean real violence) that we are seeing rise of is indeed the result of a shift in thinking about violence, that this shift is manifested in popular culture and how we treat death and dying, and that this shift is responsible for the slow change in people’s actions. Which I suppose is the whole point of the manga, as the writer said at the beginning (or end?) of the first volume that he wanted to return the dead body to the scene, that the trend of losing the dead body made death and conflict into something more noble and good, and that by returning the corpse to the scene, by showing the horrible things that happen to people, how they die, to show the actual effects, that confronts people with the facts of the situation so bluntly that they cannot turn away. People don’t want to see the ugliness of death. And yet this manga is all about forcing people to look at it, to stare at it so that you see that the dead should not be pieces of art, that they should not be tossed aside so easily, but that they should be treated with respect. It is something rather difficult to say, and I’m not sure yet how the author will do it, but so far I am rather convinced that that is what is going on here, especially with these new killers.
The volume is rather a mixed bag, though. The stories themselves aren’t really all that involved, and really they can be summarized as resolving the character of the photographer and introducing these new threats in the form of the children. I am rather eager to see what happens in the next volume, but this one seemed more concerned with setting things up for the next act. And I do feel that with this volume we have closed the book on the first act of the story and are getting into the second. We’ll have to see where that leads. I know at some point the detective who shows up in Kurosagi is going to lose a foot and get kind of maimed in the head, but we shall have to see how that goes. As for this volume, it was good and did push things forward, and I give it an 8/10.
So the fourth volume of MPD Psycho actually picks up basically directly after the events of the third volume, to the point that they can be considered part of the same story, where we see the ultimate fate of the photographer. This is a bit of a sharp departure, as before this it rather seemed like the photographer had his mind together, but here we get a very drastic and sudden descent, as he learns that he might be going blind in his remaining eye. We also learn that he did in fact have a barcode on his eye, though that eye was removed during his covering of a war. But the barcode eye seems to mean something. It is possible that it is used to control people, as that seems to be the implication, that it can be used to trigger people into doing horrible things. And yet the killing spree that the photographer goes on seems to be against the wishes of the organization behind all of this, as he decides to betray them and wants to turn over information to the main character. The larger part of this is just the photographer going around killing people, though, and setting himself up on the top of this building as the king of his castle, where he has the power of life and death. He does a lot of messed up things, and I’m not all that sure what to make of them, but so it goes.
I guess this is getting through him as a character, showing how he was someone who wanted to be loved by the public, who wanted to be appreciated as an artist, and who ultimately failed to do that. Like some of the other killers in this series, there is an emphasis on acts of murder and destruction as artistic forms. Really that seems to be the one thing that binds all of the killers together, that they see what they are doing as a sort of service to the people. The photographer refers to himself as a hero of the people, that he wants to see change, but really all he is doing is killing people. Murder is his art form but is a form that really cannot be artistic. There is a contradiction, because the act of violence is something that lacks aesthetic, at least to sane people. But as if commenting on the trends in culture to use the most vulgar and offensive images and modes as art, the writer makes these characters strive to use murder as art, taking that thought to its illogical conclusion. Further, it revolves around the person of Lucy, a singer of the type one might associate with Marilyn Manson or something like that, only newer. It further draws the line between these acts and thinking of these forms as artistic. Basically, it is forcing these newer, more vulgar forms to defend the idea that if music that treats with murder and movies that treat with violence and even manga that treats with manga can be considered art, how about the act itself. It walks a fine line because it itself is a manga full of these gratuitous acts of violence, that in some ways glorifies the acts as it presents them.
It is interesting, and I think rather successful, as it avoids falling under its own argument by showing it in such an extreme way as to be a satire of other, less extreme depictions that nonetheless glorify violence. It shows violence that is so gory, so obscene, that it cannot be redeemed. At least that is what I read into it. It also takes on rather directly the idea of how we pass these ideas along to the next generation, as the second and shorter story in this volume deals with the emergence of a group of children who are even more cold blooded than their adult counterparts. The Lucy Seven are the next generation of killers, who are out to show the old guard that the standards of the past will not stand. I think it is pretty funny how these children emerge, as they basically set out to kill the idea that these acts are in any way related to violence in the media, in video games, or even in manga. Someone involved with the organization says that it is not that, that it is more a matter of a switch being flipped, that it is nothing else, just that switch. Which means that the old guard can basically wipe its hands of any responsibility for creating the new wave of killers.
In effect, by saying that it is just a switch the author is really saying something else, that this violence (and by this I mean real violence) that we are seeing rise of is indeed the result of a shift in thinking about violence, that this shift is manifested in popular culture and how we treat death and dying, and that this shift is responsible for the slow change in people’s actions. Which I suppose is the whole point of the manga, as the writer said at the beginning (or end?) of the first volume that he wanted to return the dead body to the scene, that the trend of losing the dead body made death and conflict into something more noble and good, and that by returning the corpse to the scene, by showing the horrible things that happen to people, how they die, to show the actual effects, that confronts people with the facts of the situation so bluntly that they cannot turn away. People don’t want to see the ugliness of death. And yet this manga is all about forcing people to look at it, to stare at it so that you see that the dead should not be pieces of art, that they should not be tossed aside so easily, but that they should be treated with respect. It is something rather difficult to say, and I’m not sure yet how the author will do it, but so far I am rather convinced that that is what is going on here, especially with these new killers.
The volume is rather a mixed bag, though. The stories themselves aren’t really all that involved, and really they can be summarized as resolving the character of the photographer and introducing these new threats in the form of the children. I am rather eager to see what happens in the next volume, but this one seemed more concerned with setting things up for the next act. And I do feel that with this volume we have closed the book on the first act of the story and are getting into the second. We’ll have to see where that leads. I know at some point the detective who shows up in Kurosagi is going to lose a foot and get kind of maimed in the head, but we shall have to see how that goes. As for this volume, it was good and did push things forward, and I give it an 8/10.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 30, 2020
It all gets pretty murderous and explosive with Toguchi.
More possible barcode children emerge....and the plot thickens with the mysterious Gakuso organisation.
More possible barcode children emerge....and the plot thickens with the mysterious Gakuso organisation.
July 1, 2021
Idk it’s still amazing. I started liking this type of mangas because of this one yesssssssss
July 30, 2013
One of the best of the series so far. The SF elements are relegated to the background again, as we enter a very personal and dark entry. Playing on themes of rejection, memory, the various connotations of "sight", and more, the story veers further away from the MPD detective and pans out to the the various puppet masters holding the strings. This is also the first to show a full murder in the panels (Vol. 2 does have someone attempt suicide ... but they are prevented. Otherwise, most of the violence occurs off screen and we only see the results - an incredibly effective stylistic technique), and thus their power is intensified. For so long, the readers have been seen only glimpses and the results of the madness going on around the central characters, but now we see the results themselves. Only fitting given that this volume plays around with seen/unseen so much (the "villain" in this is a visual artist).
I wish that this volume could be read on its own, because this is where I would want people to start. Maybe the effect of the violence would be lost on those who enter the series now, but this is easily the most cohesive of the volumes. It is worth reading the first three just to get here.
I wish that this volume could be read on its own, because this is where I would want people to start. Maybe the effect of the violence would be lost on those who enter the series now, but this is easily the most cohesive of the volumes. It is worth reading the first three just to get here.
January 7, 2016
Voilà enfin l’occasion de mettre en avant Toguchi, chose que j’attendais depuis un bon moment.
La première partie du tome consiste essentiellement en un beau massacre mais les choses deviennent rapidement très intéressantes.
Toguchi est loin d’être un imbécile et le dossier qu’il a constitué est énorme. Il possède de nombreuses informations et réussit même à fâcher Zen.Itsu qui va exécuter ses parents sous ses yeux pour le calmer un peu.
L’ensemble des révélations qui sont faites sont très importantes. On apprend notamment que Toguchi a eu lui aussi un œil tatoué et qu’il fait parti, tout comme Amamiya, du groupe des Enfants de Lucy Monostone.
Le projet Lucy est désormais enclenché et la conclusion avec les gamins, qui semblent former une deuxième génération des Enfants, est très intrigante.
Ils semblent encore plus cinglés que leurs aînés qui étaient pourtant déjà pas mal dans leur genre, et les voilà parti à la recherche de leur dernier membre pour que leur groupe soit au complet.
Je me demande s’il ne s’agit pas de Miwa, la sœur de Machi.
La première partie du tome consiste essentiellement en un beau massacre mais les choses deviennent rapidement très intéressantes.
Toguchi est loin d’être un imbécile et le dossier qu’il a constitué est énorme. Il possède de nombreuses informations et réussit même à fâcher Zen.Itsu qui va exécuter ses parents sous ses yeux pour le calmer un peu.
L’ensemble des révélations qui sont faites sont très importantes. On apprend notamment que Toguchi a eu lui aussi un œil tatoué et qu’il fait parti, tout comme Amamiya, du groupe des Enfants de Lucy Monostone.
Le projet Lucy est désormais enclenché et la conclusion avec les gamins, qui semblent former une deuxième génération des Enfants, est très intrigante.
Ils semblent encore plus cinglés que leurs aînés qui étaient pourtant déjà pas mal dans leur genre, et les voilà parti à la recherche de leur dernier membre pour que leur groupe soit au complet.
Je me demande s’il ne s’agit pas de Miwa, la sœur de Machi.
May 26, 2014
The story line is great, and it keeps getting better. The developments around Gakuso are interesting, and the entire section with Toguchi taking over the building in a massive killing spree is gory and gripping. The subsequent series of attacks against people by what appears to be another serial killer are also creative and ghastly.
I'm deducting a star from the rating on this book because of what seems to be potentially misogynistic leanings in the way that drawings of nude women are interspersed between the chapters. I don't want to assume that the author hates women, but there is a potentially negative message being portrayed with the juxtaposition of those images against the graphically violent content of the story itself.
I'm deducting a star from the rating on this book because of what seems to be potentially misogynistic leanings in the way that drawings of nude women are interspersed between the chapters. I don't want to assume that the author hates women, but there is a potentially negative message being portrayed with the juxtaposition of those images against the graphically violent content of the story itself.
September 15, 2008
Oh man, the first few pages almost turned me off. Kikuo Togushi loses it and becomes a cold-blooded spree killer, and there's enough tits and ass in this to make me hurl. It redeems itself, predicably of course --like I didn't see the Lucy connection to the barcoded eyeballs...but finding out how our subject fits into all this, should be interesting.
The only reason I give it three stars? Those gorgeously drawn men trying to kill each other.
The only reason I give it three stars? Those gorgeously drawn men trying to kill each other.
July 6, 2008
It's troublesome and gory. Not for a reading in the park, with the breeze blowing and children playing nearby. To say it's too generous with blood spraying is underrating, though. The title suits very well. The first I read from the series (a bit odd to start reading from volume 4, don't you think?). Haven't read the rest of them so far.
October 3, 2012
Of all the volumes I read during winter break this is the one I loved the most. The action is fast, the blood flows and the mystery gets even deeper. I was on the edge of my seat through out this whole volume. If you read one 18+ manga this year, get the first 4 volumes and just try not to get the rest!
May 6, 2013
Toguchi, seorang jurnalis yang mengabadikan kemunculan kepribadian Amamiya, lelah karena dihina, ahirnya mengeluarkan senjatanya dan menembaki orang2 yang dianggapnya menyebalkan, mulai dari di stasiun, lift, sampai di mall. satu mall disandera.
Di buku ini juga ada kemunculan Lucy Seven, anak2 SMP yang mengaku sebagai anak2 Lucy Monostone.
Di buku ini juga ada kemunculan Lucy Seven, anak2 SMP yang mengaku sebagai anak2 Lucy Monostone.
July 29, 2011
This one was pretty good, especially being basically one story, so it's allowed some room to breath. Lots of hints at the larger conspiracy that adds more questions to the answers. Art seems more tight in this one too. Good sterf.
Read
October 1, 2011SPOILER (kinda)[return][return][return][return][return][return][return][return][return][return][return][return][return][return]wow, I'm sad to see this character go this way. It is not really surprise though.
June 20, 2016
In this volume we get some closure on some of the characters and some explanations that were necessary to continue to read this manga. I won't go into much detail with fear to spoil everything, but this manga has a lot to offer and gets more interesting with each volume.
January 2, 2013
Excuse what I said about the last volume, because this one was simply INSANE. Itching to read Vol 5 now.
October 18, 2010
3 and a half stars
August 2, 2016
The roof top scene is unforgettable
January 19, 2012
The photographer's story is my favorite so far. Mmmm
February 28, 2019
** Amazing and NOT for the faint at heart **
Eiji Otsuka's MPD Psycho is one of the most brutally bloodiest, psychologically dark, mind fucked mangas I have ever read. The complex array of socially dysfunctional psychopaths committing brutally creative, straightforward morbid homicides borderline erotic and disturbing at times left on mark on me while reading this series for nearly 5 years.
The art fresh with simple clean lines, macabre to say the least, hypnotized me with detailed expressions and backgrounds. That said, the illustrator kept most of the cast true to the Japanese background, a rare feat in today's mangas.
The plot felt realistic to a certain degree when excluding the Lucy Monostone ensemble (especially in the finale). There isn't much comedy as it is very dry, with no useless characters and a dark environment.
Unfortunately, the translators stopped a few years back and no english volume has been release in some time. Fortunately, the french version of the series had been completely serialized in France so I was able to grab copies and read the ending finally. Although I can read french this is the one downfall for those that cannot...
If you can muster the first chapter, you're in for a treat. This is just one of the novels where you need to fully pay attention to each sentence.
Do I recommend it:
YES!!!
Eiji Otsuka's MPD Psycho is one of the most brutally bloodiest, psychologically dark, mind fucked mangas I have ever read. The complex array of socially dysfunctional psychopaths committing brutally creative, straightforward morbid homicides borderline erotic and disturbing at times left on mark on me while reading this series for nearly 5 years.
The art fresh with simple clean lines, macabre to say the least, hypnotized me with detailed expressions and backgrounds. That said, the illustrator kept most of the cast true to the Japanese background, a rare feat in today's mangas.
The plot felt realistic to a certain degree when excluding the Lucy Monostone ensemble (especially in the finale). There isn't much comedy as it is very dry, with no useless characters and a dark environment.
Unfortunately, the translators stopped a few years back and no english volume has been release in some time. Fortunately, the french version of the series had been completely serialized in France so I was able to grab copies and read the ending finally. Although I can read french this is the one downfall for those that cannot...
If you can muster the first chapter, you're in for a treat. This is just one of the novels where you need to fully pay attention to each sentence.
Do I recommend it:
YES!!!
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews