Chinese cartoonists Liang Xiaolong and Chen Weidong have just
published in Japan comic books - with 3,200 pages in ten volumes -
depicting the Chinese ancient masterpiece Outlaws of the
Marsh, the China Youth Daily reported on
Wednesday.
Liang and Chen are the first Chinese mainland cartoonists whose
original works have entered the Japanese market where the
competition is so fierce that few works from foreign countries can
be published, the newspaper said.
Publishing comic books is one way to popularizing Chinese
culture because comic strips can be enjoyed without language
barriers, said Chen, director of Tianjin-based Shenjie Cartoon
Studio.
Outlaws of the Marsh, A Journey to the West,
The Dream of Red?Mansion and Romance of Three
Kingdoms are regarded as four Chinese classical masterpieces.
Chen's studio has completed the comic books of the first two and is
working on the other two.
Outlaws of the Marsh is a satirical look at the
government and society during the Song Dynasty (960-1279),
depicting a real and grandiose peasant uprising in the 12th
century.
"Publishing works of Chinese cartoonists, especially comic books
of Chinese ancient literature, has greatly boosted the confidence
of Chinese cartoon industry," Pang Bangben, vice director of the
comic book branch of the China Association of Oriental Culture
Studies, was quoted as saying.
Pang said the government encourages original cartoon works by
Chinese authors and their expansion to overseas markets.
The comic books of Outlaws of the Marsh are scheduled
to be published in the Republic of Korea before the end of the year
and A Journey to the West in Europe next January, Chen
said.
(Xinhua News Agency October 5, 2006)