History Manga / Domu

Meanwhile, little Etsuko moves into the apartment complex. Her own psychic powers match those of Old Cho, the man who is behind all of the deaths. The story continues with one final battle.

* CulturalTranslation: One child sings the first Franchise/SuperSentai theme song to himself. This is changed to [[MightyMorphinPowerRangers "Go, go Power Rangers!"]]. The manga was written in the late seventies but not translated until the nineties, so at least the reference had a reasonable equivalent.

* CulturalTranslation: One child sings the first SuperSentai theme song to himself. This is changed to [[MightyMorphinPowerRangers "Go, go Power Rangers!"]]. The manga was written in the late seventies but not translated until the nineties, so at least the reference had a reasonable equivalent.

* KarmaHoudiniWarranty: [[spoiler:Old Cho seemingly ends up getting away with his crimes, the only drawback is a detective watching him. Then Estuko enters the scene and quickly kills him.]]

[[quoteright:198:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/domu_8847.jpg]]

* WriteWhatYouKnow: Apparently the apartment is based on a creepy one that Otomo once lived in.
** The inspiration behind the book was actually a newspaper article Otomo read about a rash of mysterious deaths at another apartment complex. He decided to combine it with the one he lived in and based some of the cast on his neighbors.

''Domu: A Child's Dream'' is a 1980 manga written by Creator/KatsuhiroOtomo of ''Manga/{{Akira}}'' fame.

%% Dead Trope * BadassLolita: Etsuko, combined with PluckyGirl.

* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler: Old Cho destroys many building killing innocent people, but is simply taken into custody after being defeated where little information is gathered. Yoshikawa is ultimately blamed for the events, withTakayama ultimately deciding to keep Cho under watch. That is, until Etsuko shows up again to finish her job, stopping Old Cho for good.]]
* ChildrenAreInnocent: Subverted to your own interpretation.
* ChunkyUpdraft: Psychic power can apparently make pebbles, leaves, and sticks float off the ground while you're using it. This is, in fact, the first physical evidence of the final battle between Chojiro and Etsuko that Tamura can see, until a far-off window behind him shatters.

** The psychic menace terrorizing the apartment block turns out to be the mentally-deficient little old man.

* The psychic menace terrorizing the apartment block turns out to be the mentally-deficient little old man.

* NightmareFace: Old Cho's look of absolute terror upon realizing that Etsuko has come back for him. Otomo gives it a lovingly detailed two-page spread -- just about the only one in the entire book -- and the image was so instantly iconic that he worked it into [[http://images.gr-assets.com/books/1343906033l/136744.jpg one version of the cover illustration]].

* PsychicPowers

* GoryDiscretionShot: One of the policemen who arrives at the scenes of the apparent "suicides" remarks that it's far gorier than it should be, and another mentions that he's never eating spaghetti again. We have to take their word for it. Completely averted with Tsutomo's suicide and the climactic battle between Old Cho and Etsuko.

* MeaningfulName: Old Cho's full first name is Chojiro - which is (kind of) a portmanteau of the name Jiro, and Chojin - the Japanese word for superhuman.
* {{Otaku}}: Tsutomo has been trying to get into college but can't because he is too obsessed with making model planes.

* SlashedThroat: Poor [[spoiler:Tsutomo]]...

Already in the year 1979, there have been a staggering 31 suicides by people in the same apartament complex. The tally is brought to 32 with the death of a supermarket manager. Once again, inspectors Yamagawa and Tamura have to investigate another frustrating case. Once Yamagawa also commits suicide, it's up to Tamura to solve exactly what is going on.

* GoryDiscretionShot: One of the policemen who arrives at the scenes of the apparent "suicides" remarks that it's far gorier than it should be, and another mentions that he's never eating spaghetti again. We have to take their word for it. Completely averted when Tsutomo kills himself with a utility knife, though.
* LockedRoomMystery: Why the police force is so frustrated. They discover that the door to the roof hasn't been used in years and is rusted shut. How could they have gotten up?

* WriteWhatYouKnow: Apparently the apartament is based on a creepy one that Otomo once lived in.

''Domu: A Child's Dream'' is a 1980 manga written by KatsuhiroOtomo of ''Manga/{{Akira}}'' fame.

This story won the 1983 Japan Science Fiction Grand Prix after being re-released into {{graphic novel}} form. Supposedly, GuillermoDelToro has the rights to make a film adaptation, but interest in the project has not surfaced since the late 1990s.

* EvenBetterSequel: Essentially. The loosely connected manga stories involving psychic powers by Otomo kept increasing in quality as time went on. First was a largely forgettable short story about the cops seen in this manga. That was followed by this, beautifully illustrated and written. Then came the classic Manga/{{Akira}}, revolving around the government's attempts to copy the powers seen in this story for their own ends.

* BadassLolita: Etsuko, combined with PluckyGirl.

''Domu: A Child's Dream'' is a 1980 manga written by KatsuhiroOtomo of ''{{AKIRA}}'' fame.

* EvenBetterSequel: Essentially. The loosely connected manga stories involving psychic powers by Otomo kept increasing in quality as time went on. First was a largely forgettable short story about the cops seen in this manga. That was followed by this, beautifully illustrated and written. Then came the classic {{Akira}}, revolving around the government's attempts to copy the powers seen in this story for their own ends.

* EveryGirlIsCuterWithHairDecs: Apparently even Otomo isn't immune to this trope. Etsuko holds her curly hair back with two little barrettes.