Yoshitomi Akihito's "Ray" (Spoilers)

[Xenops]

I'm surprised nobody has discussed this, maybe because there are less Tezuka references than Urasawa's "Monster"? Possibly.

I've read the first three volumes of such, just haven't watched the anime. First impressions are that yeah it's cool that we "see" Black Jack, but I don't see how his presence added anything to what Akihito was writing. Plus, even though it's mentioned that Ray is an unlicensed surgeon, the manga never mentions it again.

The point of the manga is mostly about how useful her X-Ray vision is and about discovering the organization that raised her.

I get the idea that Akihito didn't know what he wanted to write, so he made a "Female Black Jack", until later he had a story of his own to work with.

One thing I liked, though: I love the anatomical illustrations. They're drawn in a different style than Tezuka, but still accurate. When we see though Ray's eyes into the human body, that is really cool (to me, at least).

Thoughts anyone? Go ahead and disagree with me, I want to read what you have to write.

~Xenops