The manga this week
Sensou Meshi (Wartime meals)
By Santa Uonome (Akita Shoten)
Late last year, the history book "Nihongun Heishi" (Japanese soldiers) was published by Chuokoron-Shinsha, Inc. and became a best seller. Written by Yutaka Yoshida, the book attempts to draw an accurate picture of World War II as fought in the Asia-Pacific region. The war ended 73 years ago with Japan's surrender. The book mentions the shocking fact that many of the 2.3 million deaths among Japanese military personnel and civilians employed by the military were caused by starvation or malnutrition.
It is estimated that malnutrition caused as many as 61 percent, or 1.4 million, of the deaths, a greater number than those killed in combat. Even under a more conservative estimate, it is still true that the death-by-starvation rate in the Japanese military was unusually high, and probably unprecedented in world history.
Taking such factors into consideration, it is quite surprising that there had been no manga like this week's "Sensou Meshi" (Wartime meals) until it debuted three years ago. There exists a whole variety of gourmet manga about good meals and eating out, but "Sensou Meshi" is the first to so directly and straightforwardly connect meals and World War II. Perhaps the connection was too obvious, so much so that no one bothered to take it up.
I assume that not all episodes in this work are true to life, but short stories are told in a nonfiction style, using simple drawings. In one episode in a jungle battlefield, a soldier cooks katsudon (a bowl of rice topped with deep-fried pork cutlets and egg) to fulfill the wish of the squad leader, using whatever ingredients are available. In another story at a prisoner-of-war camp in Okinawa, American soldiers become hooked on fried rice made with the canned meat Spam by a Japanese POW. Then another story tells the historical fact that ramune lemon soda was made on board the battleship Yamato. In another, a sauce for grilled eel is sealed in a jar and hidden deep underground during the bombing of Tokyo to protect a generations-old secret recipe.
When death may come tomorrow, today's meal is precious and delectable. In today's Japan with plentiful food, such stories are sure to be moving.
Impressive among a wealth of information provided by this manga is that many dishes altered by the war are popular today. For example, nigiri-zushi (sushi shaped by hand) has been around since the Edo period (1603-1867), but each piece was apparently fist-sized back then. During the war they became the smaller morsels known today. Nikujaga simmered meat and potatoes was a new dish reportedly developed during the war. One story traces pan-fried gyoza dumplings to a Japanese soldier who returned from China and re-created a local dish whose name he didn't even know.
The fourth volume in this series came out last month. If this manga becomes more popular, many relevant stories from the public are expected to be included. Due to this manga's style of depicting each meal, there must be no end to source materials. I hope this manga will develop into one big historical saga that tells a complete story of the war solely through food and meals.
Ishida is a Yomiuri Shimbun senior writer whose areas of expertise include manga and anime.
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