I finally had the chance to sit down with IRON WOK JAN! Vol. 1 over the weekend, and I have to say it’s probably the best introduction to manga I could have asked for. As a fan of cooking shows, comedy, and comics, this book really speaks to me.
The premise seems basic: rival trainee chefs butt heads in the kitchen of Tokyo’s best Chinese restaurant. But the stories and characters unfold in surprising ways. Best of all, the rivalry between the two chefs, arrogant Jan and traditionalist Kiriko, stems from a fundamental difference in culinary philosophy.
Jan thinks cooking is a competition, an ongoing opportunity to outdo and surprise. Kiriko thinks it’s about devotion and commitment. They’re both right, obviously, and they’re both flawed enough to make the proceedings an engaging, evenly matched battle.
Hopelessly arrogant, Jan is also wonderfully enthusiastic and focused. He may view the kitchen as a battleground, but he comes alive at the stove. Underneath her beliefs on tradition and emotion, Kiriko is almost as conceited and competitive as Jan. So while she may have a nobler take on the culinary arts, she isn’t a plaster saint. And both seem to spark at the presence of a worthy rival; they don’t cut each other any slack, but they’re delighted to have someone at their level as a sparring partner. It’s a charming and promising relationship.
The supporting cast is nicely rounded, though I particularly love loathesome food critic Otani and the kitchen crew that serves as something of a Greek chorus to the headstrong star trainees. Each is a bit distinct, with passions and proclivities of their own, but their reactions to the wokside antics of Jan and Kiriko are almost always priceless.
The dialogue is hyper-dramatic, which is funny in part but at the same time manages to convey the seriousness of the characters for their craft. It’s a nifty effect, a kind of comic sincerity. The art is marvelously kinetic, a perfect match for the scripts. Basically, it takes kitchen drama to the level of opera, and yet it works perfectly.
IRON WOK JAN! is by Shinji Sayjyo, English translation by Sahe Kawahara, published in the United States by ComicsOne Corporation. I’ll definitely be picking up other volumes of this wonderful story, and I’m grateful (again) to Johanna Draper Carlson at Comics Worth Reading for profiling it. Now that I’ve taken the manga plunge, I can’t wait to see what else is out there.