 First edition | |
| Author | Kōtarō Isaka |
|---|---|
| Original title | グラスホッパー (Grasshopper) |
| Translator | Sam Malissa |
| Language | Japanese |
| Series | Hitman |
Release number | 1 |
| Genre | |
| Publisher | Kadokawa Shoten |
Publication date | September 2004 |
| Publication place | Japan |
Published in English | April 14, 2022 |
| Pages | 272 |
| Awards | University Readers' Award |
| ISBN | 978-1787303201 |
| Followed by | Maoh: Juvenile Remix Bullet Train(Maria Beetle) |
Grasshopper (Japanese:グラスホッパー,Hepburn:Gurasuhoppā) is ablack humourthriller novel by Japanese authorKōtarō Isaka published in 2004 and later translated to English asThree Assassins. The novel follows a schoolteacher who is drawn into thecriminal underworld seeking revenge for the murder of his wife, only to be drawn into protecting a family from a trio ofassassins after the target of his revenge is in-turn murdered by someone else. The first novel in Isaka'sHitman trilogy, it was followed byBullet Train (original Japanese title:Maria Beetle), to which it was marketed as a prequel in English language territories on its translated re-release in 2022, as atie-in to theBullet Train film adaptation.[1]
Amanga continuation,Maoh: Juvenile Remix, was additionally serialized inShogakukan'sWeekly Shōnen Sunday from June 6, 2007,[2] to June 24, 2009,[3] to which a spin-off series,Waltz, was serialized in Shogakukan'sMonthly Shōnen Sunday from October 10, 2009,[4] to February 10, 2012.[5]
The novel was well reviewed, and was adapted as a 2015Japanese film.
Suzuki is just an ordinary man until his wife is murdered. When he discovers the criminal gang responsible, he leaves behind his life as a maths teacher and joins them, looking for a chance to take his revenge. What he doesn't realise is that he's about to get drawn into a web of unusual professionalassassins (the titular3 Assassins), each with their own separate agendas.[6]
Suzuki must take each of them on, to try to find justice and keep his innocence in a world of killers.[6]
In an interview withThe Japan Times,Three Assassins English translator Sam Malissa describedThree Assassins as "[Kōtarō] Isaka calling out the thriller genre but [a]lso playing with the reader and the complicity of creating an illusion to invite people into the world of story and fabulations. In Japan, there’s quite a divide with books funneled to the pulp lane or the serious lane, but Isaka is riding that line between entertainment and more serious fiction, playing with those boundaries and pushing against that division. I’m always appreciative when artists straddle lanes or push boundaries like he does."[7] Comparing the novel to Isaka's sequel novelBullet Train (translated to English years ahead of its preceding novel), Malissa said that "'Three Assassins' goes deeper, so there’s more psychological exploration of the characters, which adds nuanced sophistication to the action."[7]
The Japan Times praisedThree Assassins as a "rollicking good time", together withBullet Train "showcas[ing] Isaka’s versatility as a writer and his skill as an entertainer, forging his own path as he merges literary fiction with high-octane fun."[7]The Unseen Library lauded the novel as "another awesome read from Kotaro Isaka that takes readers on a wild and exciting journey to Japan’s outrageous underworld of assassins. Filled with quirky characters, surprising turns and intense action, this is a fantastic novel and you will swiftly get addicted to its entertaining and captivating story [and a] must read for fans of this legendary Japanese author", summarising it to be a "captivating and amusing overall story".[8] withHot Press complimenting it as a "Triple Tokyo Terminator Throw Down!",[9] andThe Irish Examiner expressing interest in the novel being adapted as a sequel to the2022Bullet Train film.[10]
Contrasted toBullet Train,The New York Times lauded "Three Assassins [a]s a sparser, sourer thriller, its slow pursuit distending across Tokyo and leaving plenty of time for dread", concluding that as a "surrealist fable disguised as a crime novel, “Three Assassins" feels like afever dream that makes sense when you’re in it, but whose strange contours linger long after you wake up."[11]
Amanga adaptation drawn by Hiroto Ida was published from 2008 to 2010 onKadokawa Shoten'sYoung Ace magazine, and later collected in three volumes.[12]
The novel inspired a Japanese film adaptation,Grasshopper, directed by Tomoyuki Takimoto and starringToma Ikuta. The film was released theatrically on November 7, 2015.[13][14]
【週刊少年サンデー】週刊少年サンデー２７号 発売中■超大型新連載!!
ヘビーボリューム巻頭カラー63P!!
原作：伊坂幸太郎 漫画：大須賀めぐみ
『魔王』
Kōtarō Isaka'sHitman series | |
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