Radiation House by Tomohiro Yokomaku and Taishi Mori
Natively Link coming soon!
Genres: Medical, Drama, Romance
Triggers: Medical Issues, Body Parts (not gore)
Background on the artist:
Taishi Mori, a manga writer and illustrator, was a published mangaka before Radiation House, having a comedy ecchi manga published in a smaller monthly magazine for several years. However, Radiation House is undoubtedly what he will be remembered for. He only does the illustrations, since the writing for this manga is so complicated due to the medical aspects, but he is also currently releasing Asoko de Hataraku Musubu-san in Monthly Shonen Sunday.
This is a romance about a woman who works at a condom company… So yeah…
(slightly NSFW)
In case this and his earlier work didn’t tip you off, Mori-sensei is kind of horny? It comes up a bit in Radiation House, but it’s mostly really tame fanservice, probably intended to lighten the mood, but frequently feels out of place in such a normally serious manga.
One compliment I would like to say is that he is a really good artist, especially since he has to write three slightly longer chapters a month, that’s basically on Weekly Magazine pace! Thats really good Mori-sensei, sorry for calling you horny!
Manga Summary:
The name might be confusing to some, but this is a medical manga about Medical Imagery. It follows a genius MI technician trying to reunite with his childhood crush who is now a doctor in the radiation department. A slow romance begins to burn, hampered by the fact she doesn’t remember him!
Okay so overall this is basically just House MD, but instead of the main character being an asshole, he is just quiet and easily misunderstood. It follows a very episodic structure, averaging a little over a medical case a volume, with an overarching will they/won’t they romance between the doctor and the technician. Each patient has a problem that requires a different type of imaging to be used, and there is plenty of drama that the other doctors and technicians also get swept up in. Don’t worry, the premise and general story of this manga is not complicated at all!
The content, however…
Sean’s Thoughts/Should You Read This?:
Ummmm, no, not in Japanese.
Remember when I wrote about Shrink, and mentioned that it would be a great gateway for upper intermediate reading? Radiation House is not that. Instead, its like the subject matter and structure of Shrink (though much harder because of all the biological and scientific terms) combined with the complexity and long explanations of KamoNegi. There is a reason that this one took me the longest to read!
Radiation House is above all else, technical and extremely thorough. Take a look at some of these explanations!
So, it’s not impossible, it’s just hard to wrap your head around. He does do a good job of explaining it! So it’s doable, but might be a struggle for most non-native readers. Honestly, I think this might even be too much for my wife, just because its soooo technical.
I actually have an advantage for this manga. I majored in Physics in university and actually took a class on Medical Imaging technology. AND IT BARELY HELPED ME AT ALL. Admittedly it was a while ago, but like DAMN. I understand why there is a writer and a separate medical practitioner to help write it, and why Mori-sensei feels the need to break it up with some comedy.
That said, is it a good read in English? Yeah! It totally is! I love House MD (just realized now I could have made a Radiation House MD joke… Oh well!). It’s a great medical drama, and, ignoring difficulty, is much more my style than Shrink was. While some of the characters are annoying (especially in the beginning) eventually you warm up to them, and the romance is a nice slow burn.
There actually is a drama and a movie of this that you can watch (I think it is on Netflix?), if you want to experience it that way. But personally, the manga is where it is at. The art is sometimes just so stunning, especially for a bimonthly medical manga, that you should check it out for that reason alone.
TLDR:
You shouldn’t read this if:
- You aren’t N1 and/or a scientist. Even with my specific background this stuff is hard
- You don’t want 10,000,000 lookups
You should read this if:
- You like TV medical dramas
- You like good art
- Ummm, thats really it. Its a good manga I promise! But is exactly what it is and nothing more, if that makes sense.