Considered one of Osamu Tezuka's (many) master works, Dororo is a treat for lovers of classic manga titles and relatable characters. While standards for manga were not the same back then and many works from that era reflect that, Dororo still holds some wait. Each chapter is a complete subplot, while not so much arc, each one has a piece of character development, no pun intended. The story follows a child and self-proclaimed thief Dororo, after both of his parents die he becomes a tramp and goes from village to village taking what he can. He winds up eventually running into Hyakkimaru, a young man made whose mother abandoned him under threat of being sacrificed to demons by his father. Hyakkimaru, however, is hardly human, with only a head and a body, Hyakkimaru must slay a demon to regain a body part, slay all of them and he becomes fully human. While their circumstances in finding each other are by chance, Dororo and Hyakkimaru always wind up together again once they have decided to go their own ways. That said, they hardly get along with each other, often being at odds between Dororo's aspirations to be a thief and Hyakkimaru's lack of interest inhaving a companion, especially a child. This creates a complex relation between the two in regard to how each oneisforced to help the other even though they do not like each other. Overall, each story in Dororo is worth reading, however, there is no conclusive ending, it is said that Dororo and Hyakkimaru went their own ways. In conclusion, Dororo is quite the recommended read in my opinion, for it is more of a journey which allows for the reader to bond with the characters than just a simple story of the character tropes which we know and, for at least some, if not, then most otakus, love.
As a side note, I am aware that there is a 2019 reimagining of the series in both manga and anime form and it has been well received. Additionally the original manga got an anime in 1969. I may read/watch these sometime in the (somewhat near) future. Stay tuned!
