Highly Recommended Review: Frau Faust by Kore Yamazaki

 As promised in my previous post, it's time for a first on this blog-- a review of a manga series. Today I'd like to talk about Frau Faust by Kore Yamazaki. I must admit that starting this review is a little difficult. How do you begin to talk about something that's captivated you as much as this series has me? 

To make things easier on me and my readers, I'll start at the beginning. Frau Faust by Kore Yamazaki is a manga adaptation of the Faust legend, especially based on the work of Goethe. The series was originally run in Itan, a josei (manga aimed at an adult female audience) manga magazine owned by Kodansha. The unique premise is, as suggested by the title, the legendary Johann Faust was actually Johanna Faust, a charismatic if very eccentric lady scholar who is the subject of many rumors and myths. At her side is her demon Mephistopheles, who has been her companion since the two made a contract during Johanna's youth. The pair have a complicated relationship, to say the least -- Johanna's mission through the series is to reunite Mephistopheles' body parts that have been scattered as a punishment for his actions, in order for her to finally punch him in the face. 

A cover of Itan highlighting Frau Faust

The crime of the demon Mephistopheles? Making a human immortal. The terms of the contract were
that, at Johanna's death, Mephistopheles would take her soul. When the time came for her to die, instead of taking her soul, the demon made her functionally immortal -- able to survive what otherwise would be deadly, but each time being worn down a little more. For his transgression, Mephistopheles was quartered and imprisoned by the Inquisition, and is only with Johanna in partial form. One hundred years after this bargain gone wrong, we meet our protagonist searching for a demon piece and meeting a new companion, a boy named Marion who aspires to be a scholar himself. Marion, our Point Of View (POV) character gets dragged into Johanna's mission and from there we learn that the legends of Dr. Faust, which are present in the world of the manga, are based on the real Johanna, though some details have changed and many others have been exaggerated. 

Now for my impressions. No doubt every reviewer has a book or film or album that has impacted them so much that they cannot simply write a review of it. This series is it for me-- how can I, in an at least semi-professional manner, review something that has, to put it bluntly, rewired my brain?

Frau Faust is so unique it's hard to know where to start describing it.

While Goethe's is the only version of Faust that Yamazaki stated was an influence, it's hard not to see echoes of Marlowe's Tragical History of Doctor Faustus, Berlioz's Damnation de Faust, and even the original published legend, the Faustbuch. This is on top of the references to even older traditions-- the demons Ino and As are inspired by Greek and Abrahamic mythologies respectively. Goethe references are not limited to the more famous Part One-- one of the main characters is a homunculus created by Johanna and her research partner Wagner, much like the one created by Goethe's Wagner in Faust Part Two. At the same time, Yamazaki doesn't limit the story to a straight retelling of the legend and creates new characters and plot lines to keep the series fresh. It's a great example of the transformative aspect of the Faust legend where each incarnation adds something to the mix but the central story remains identifiably Faust.

Manga is a visual medium and the art of Frau Faust is striking. Yamazaki, best known for another fantasy series, The Ancient Magus' Bride, is an expert at creating weird and wonderful beings. Her design for Mephistopheles is truly unique, taking nothing from the traditional red-suited figure of Goethe and instead being all her own. He cuts a dapper and mysterious, almost gothic figure in his oversized overcoat with checkered lining, dark indigo according to the covers of the books; a long black ponytail, and a mask reminiscent of a plague doctor-- perhaps a reference to the plague that Goethe's Faust's father tried and failed to cure. 

The thing that stands out the most in this series is the relationship between Johanna and Mephistopheles. While the plot is based on Goethe, especially with their contract framed as a game or a bet, their relationship is more like the one portrayed in Christopher Marlowe's Doctor Faustus. The two of them are locked in a codependent partnership that is equal parts violent and tender (after all, Johanna's goal is to punch Mephistopheles in the face, and he's the one who ended her life to begin with!) Their relationship, and how it reminds me of Marlowe is a topic worth its own post so I'll leave it for another day. 

Frau Faust is one of those series that you never want to end, but it ends all too soon-- the series only has nineteen chapters, split into five tankobon (volumes of manga consisting of chapters gathered after serial publication, the most common way of reading manga in the West). There was never an anime series and the only other material are three short bonus books (one being a picture book retelling of the Faust legend) that were never translated into English (oddly enough, they were translated into German) and the delightful art cards that were included with special editions of the Japanese tankobon. It is also hard to find fan engagement, though it does exist. This makes it all the more exciting when I discover a lone piece of fanart on Instagram or Pixiv or find someone else online who loves this series too. It may be obscure, but it isn't unloved, and it quickly became my favorite version of the Faust legend. I highly recommend it to fans of the Faust legend, monster/human relationships, and those interested in manga with unique art.