| | |  | HAIKASORU | Home » » » Mardock Scramble | | | | | | | Description: | | Reads L to R (Western Style), for audiences. Why me? It was to be the last thought a young prostitute, Balot, would ever have…as a human anyway. Taken in by a devious gambler named Shell, she became a slave to his cruel desires and would have been killed by his hand if not for a private investigator and his self-aware Universal Tool, Oefcoque. Now a cyborg, Balot has not only physical powers, but the ability to disrupt social environments. She chases after Shell, his partner-in-crime Boiled, and faces down a variety of insane villains in this pulse-pounding cyberpunk noir adventure. | | | Product Details: | | | Author:
| tow Ubukata | | Paperback:
| 680 pages | | Publisher:
| VIZ Media LLC | | Publication Date:
| January 18, 2011 | | Language:
| English | | ISBN:
| 1421537648 | | Product Length:
| 7.95 inches | | Product Width:
| 5.31 inches | | Product Height:
| 2.07 inches | | Product Weight:
| 1.54 pounds | | Package Length:
| 7.9 inches | | Package Width:
| 5.2 inches | | Package Height:
| 2.3 inches | | Package Weight:
| 1.55 pounds | | Average Customer Rating:
|  based on 7 reviews |
| | | | Customer Reviews: | |
Average Customer Review:
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8 of 8 found the following review helpful:
Strange mix of ethics, philosophy and surreal sci-fi anime actionMar 31, 2011
By Keris Nine
One of the largest books published by Haikusoru's fascinating range of Japanese science-fiction novels, Mardock Scamble collects the three books of the Japanese edition into a single huge block of 775 pages. This might not be quite as portable for English language readers (not so much a problem for Kindle readers), but it does give recognition to the fact that Mardock Scramble is all just one story, and - even though it has been adapted to anime in Japan - it's not episodic as you might expect from its SF manga premise. There are however varying tones to the story that are quite unusual and interesting.
The story springs into action fairly quickly when a PI team of Dr. Easter and his technical tool mouse Oeufcoque rescue Rune-Balot, a young girl who is the victim of a wealthy businessman Shell-Septinos, who uses young girls for his own depraved needs only to have his bodyguard, Dimsdale-Boiled, dispose of them when he is done with them, having his memory erased so that he cannot be accused of or feel guilt over any crime. The Doctor, who specialises in Scamble 09s, the use of forbidden science in exceptional cases where it can be demonstrated as being for the greater good, uses the technology to enhance the badly injured girl, turning her into an impressive killing machine with extrasensory powers to influence mechanical objects in her vicinity. Guided by Oeufcoque, she's going to need those powers, because the PIs want to use Balot as a witness against Shell in a court case they have submitted against him, and Shell intends to use his own Scramble enhanced bodyguard to make sure she doesn't testify.
There's plenty of potential then in Mardock Scramble for fast-paced action chases and super-powered battles as Balot discovers the extent of her powers and even proves to be capable of taking them to unprecedented and unexpected levels. Tow Ubukata however is just as interested in the moral, ethical and philosophical questions that are raised by the subject relating to the dignity and respect for the individual, as well as to questions over the benefits of technology and their value to society, even getting right down to what constitutes "value" and what constitutes "society". Coming from a background of childhood abuse that has led her on the road to prostitution that has nearly taken her life, Balot also becomes a complex figure when the roles are reversed and she has power over others and the temptation is there to abuse it. The action sequences however give way then in the extended middle section to a different kind of psychological battle - a battle of wits in a gambling casino - where questions of probability and chance come into the equation.
So while in some ways, Mardock Scramble is quite straightforward in its anime-like characters and action, providing plenty of explosive battle sequences by characters that have extraordinary powers, there's also something of a naive Philip K. Dick angle to the book, of ordinary people grappling with big, but meaningful concepts that influence their activity but remain just out of their grasp to fully comprehend. The whole tone of the book is also quite surreal, the characters having strange names and caught up in realities that have various literary and fairytale references - from Humpty Dumpty and Alice in Wonderland to Biblical references - that add another layer of strangeness to it all. I'm not sure it all entirely holds together and the translation - particularly dialogue - is a little bit awkward, but this is an intriguing and unique book and surprisingly quick to read considering its size.
5 of 5 found the following review helpful:
 One of the best trilogies from Japan I've ever read!!Jun 03, 2011
By the golden witch
"the golden witch"
Since the US edition was published with all three books in one (yay omnibuses!), I decided to break down my reviews book by book since there is a LOT of action in each different volume. I also used the original art for each volume since it's not included in the US edition and I like this art better.
That said, this first book in the first trilogy of the "Mardock" saga is a refreshing slap of cold water in what's been a rather tepid pool of sci-fi novels around the world within the last decade, and I'm just so glad it FINALLY got translated into English (since, for me at least, there are some parts of the book that are still hard for me to interpret from Japanese to English, but that's my failing with kanji understanding and all) so more people can enjoy Ubukata's awesome story.
First, it's wonderful to see the usual idea of what can be called the "Ghost in the Machine"-inspired cyberpunk of girls-remade-as-cyborgs genre being twisted with the use of Rune-Balot, a child prostitute/porn-star being turned into something at her own request, though the full ramifications of this request don't hit home with her (and with the audience) until the end of this first book. Balot has been used and abused her entire life, and now she has a chance to take it back with the help of Dr. Easter and Oeufcoque, the Golden Mouse (who later becomes her partner).
Unlike the policewoman Katsuragi from the famed "Ghost in the Shell" who is a cyborg from the start, this is the story of a human girl becoming something more - a reverse process which is interesting to behold in of itself. Ubukata takes this abused girl who has hidden inside of her "shell" her entire life and brings her out of it to show her how to protect herself against those who would keep abusing (as in Shell, the actual villain here in these books), but trying to temper this with not abusing the power that she's been given so that she doesn't become what she hates.
This series of books at its very core is the question of what it means to be human with a very untraditional cast of inhuman characters - Boiled, the first Scramble, an assassin, Oeufcoque the Golden Mouse, the Living Tool, Dr. Easter, the mad scientist, and others that appear throughout the tale. We find that in the theme of "being useful", we are at our most human - as shown by Oeufcoque and Balot, who bond very intensely as the hunt of Balot's (second) life begins. The idea of the Scramble 09 system is to be useful so that the technology that enables Balot (and sadly, Boiled as well) to keep on living does not become abused.
One could take this theme one step farther - as a metaphor for addiction. Addiction of any and all sorts. If you ask any addiction specialist (Dr. Drew Pinsky would come to mind as the most accessable of this department of medicine), the idea of "being useful"/"providing service" to others heals many addicts on their road to recovery. Just like Balot is broken in both body and spirit upon her reboot in life through the Scramble system, Oeufcoque and Easter's teachings of being of service to others helps heal her and gives her purpose in life.
My final note, for this volume, is how wonderful the translation is. It made clear all of the muddy parts in my own head when trying to read the source material on its own. The adaptors/editors made this very, very easy to understand with all of its philosophical parts along with the usual sci-fi story attached, and makes it all balance out very nicely. Even if you're not a fan of this genre, I really recommend you pick up this omnibus of the first "Mardock" trilogy (the second has not yet been licensed for translation into English, as far as I know as of this moment). You won't regret it.
Book 2 of 3:
Oh man, that ending from the first book. I admit, I was crying by the end of it and feeling like I'd really bonded with all of the gang - Balot, Easter, and Oeufcoque - and felt like I'd been facing down Boiled and his henchmen along with him. So seeing the "bleeding gun" version of Oeufcoque there in the beginning of this second book was almost more than I could handle.
That said, this is an excellent continuation from where the first novel left off. We get some answers (finally!) about Easter's past and Balot's present, as well as who Boiled really is (though more of that is detailed in the prequel, "Mardock Velocity", which came out after this first trilogy was published). We see Boiled evolve as well through his lust for regaining Oeufcoque (but not as a partner) and his willingness to stop at nothing to retake the golden mouse.
Happily, there isn't much about Shell in this book (I'm hoping that'll be saved more for the third book) aside from the fact that he's about to make a major power play at the top of the Mardock social pyramid - and that even though he's stored his memories away on a chip, Balot's death still haunts him every single night. That was really satisfying for me. Tow really knows how and when to give his readers information, and that was proven again and again with this second book.
And then, of course, the cliffhanger - which really isn't a cliffhanger in this case, but at least I've learned how to gamble according to data modeling on how dealers behave. I guess what really is wonderful about this second book (at the end of the day), is Balot's willingness to push forward in her quest for justice against Shell, no matter how much it hurts her. We see the evolution of her as a person, regardless if she's more than half metal at this point. Her love of Oeufcoque and her wonder over making friends in Paradise was wonderful to behold, and I hope that Tow continues on this cant for the rest of the series.
Book 3 of 3:
You know, I was pretty sad when I finally got to the end of this series. I kept wanting more adventures with Easter, Balot, and Oeufcoque, and the end itself was really touching. I mean, I was actually kind of crying. I'm not sure if it's my wacky hormones or what, but the end itself was a total emotional cliff-hanger. And even if painful, the ride was absolutely wonderful.
We finally get to see Boiled and Balot's final showdown (as well as seeing Shell finally get his own through a strange twist of fate via Boiled, Oeufcoque, Easter, and Balot) - and that in itself was pretty thrilling and satisfying. The final chapters of the book are spent in the epic gun battle, much like a showdown like you'd find in a western, between Boiled, Oeufcoque, and Balot - and even though it was really, REALLY violent (and pretty graphic - body parts everywhere!), the entire trilogy was really building toward this. Balot needed closure, and not just with Shell, just as Boiled grew increasingly unhinged and likewise needed closure with his old partner Oeufcoque.
And now, I really REALLY want to read the prequel trilogy, "Mardock Velocity", which is pretty much all about Boiled's origins and the invention of the Scramble 09 technology. That hasn't been optioned yet for US translation, but I hope it will be soon. I'm also kind of pissed that this series got ignored by US sci-fi awards this year - it won multiple awards in Japan, and the translation has been overlooked. And that's really sad, because this translation is pretty fantastic, if I do so say so myself. If I can find the prequel trilogy via book-off or ebay or something, I might just try to read it myself, confusion over kanji or not.
At the end of the day, this book is all about one thing - the will to live. Does one have it? What does it take to have it? What is the cost of having it? "Mardock Scramble" explores this question very consistently all throughout the trilogy, and the evolution of such a decision (to live) through the character of Rune-Balot and her relationship with Oeufcoque. It really is a masterpiece, and I'm not just saying that. Ubukata did a great job in his emotional hook, and I literally could NOT put this book down.
Lucky for you, Haikasoru/Viz has released all three books in one omnibus format. If you want to try something fresh and new, please, please, please try out this series. You won't be sorry, and you won't look at sci-fi the same way ever again.
(crossposted to librarything, shelfari, and [...])
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
Amazing in every way!Dec 13, 2011
By Eric
This book is outstanding, it shipped super fast and was in great condition. If you're into scifi, and adult themes, then Mardock Scramble is definitely for you!
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
Great BookJun 28, 2011
By Salah S. Sedarous
(This book is not for the faint of heart)
As everyone says, Mardock Scramble starts off with a bang. Not only are the action scenes incredibly choreographed, but the characters, too, are incredible in their depth and unique motivation.
Perhaps one of the best things in this book is the development of the characters, our heroine, Rune-Balot, in specific. Seeing the phases she goes through in gaining trust, strength, self-control, and--eventually-- the knowledge of what love really is, is absolutely fascinating.
Seeing the characters' psychological descriptions and then seeing how they interact is another incredibly enjoyable part of the story. There is a good mix of characters, some who are completely depraved and others who are struggling to find their way in the world. Many times, you will be left laughing, whether by deliberate humor on the characters' parts or as a side-effect from their interactions.
For the dreaded casino part (that I actually enjoyed a lot) I would recommend not paying attention to anything but the basic rules of the game (so that you have an idea of what each move means) and then the psychological battles/manipulation that appear. There are paragraphs that state "so-and-so got this card" but those are unimportant compared to the paragraphs on the characters' minds.
All in all a wonderful book that made me sit still and think after closing it.
 Fascinating characters, deeply flawed pacingApr 07, 2012
By CultureAddict
As one of the better reviewed Japanese Scifi books on Amazon, I bought it to read on a day with the flu. Lots of pages, slam bang opening. Complex and dangerous death dealing characters who, wait for it: Spend half the book betting on cards in a casino.
The characters each have compelling enough personalities that their interactions with each other would have made for drama. Instead, after a rollicking beginning, the action disappears, replaced with gambling pieces in which the author describes conflict and tension, but fails to convey that to the reader. Instead, one gets the sense that the author loves gambling, and consequently thinks that the audience will love it too.
Mysteriously gifted blackjack dealers don't make a compelling foil for a set of lethal cyberpunk heroes. It's not just blackjack: Mardock Scramble goes through several hundred pages of Texas Hold-Em and roulette before lurching to a 20 page inevitable shoot-em-up conclusion. The verbiage of the blackjack table provides the only tenuous connection between the cards and the shooting (e.g. using the term "doubling down" to describe the right tactical position in a gunfight).
About halfway through the Private Investigator protagonists describe an earlier case they solved which included twists, double crosses and surprises. With these characters, that case would have made a compelling book. Much like hitting on a 12, and getting a king, this book was so close, but still a "bust."
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