Criticism: The Basement Archive - Relics From Tezuka's Mid 70s Fandom
(Volume 0 of Tokyo no Shirase , one of the oldest Osamu Tezuka FCs of their time. Published and printed via the now archaic blueprint method, this particular FC seemingly suffered from an extreme lapse in funding and club participation, re-releasing by the late 70s into the early 80s as Metropolis In The 21st Century . Personal collection, acquired via M.) There is a very particular smell that accompanies old paper. Take it from someone who haunts thrift shops, antique stores and estate sales - it's not merely mildew or damp cardboard, it's the scent of the decades collapsing into one another. The sweet, nostalgic scene of rotting wood pulp, oxidized ink, and dust that has settled long enough to become part of the object itself really does stand out. Where every collector may know it, I've come to find that some archivists even fear it. In fact, I was almost one of those who cowered when I found what I did find. In a basement in Hyōgo, my colleague M and I found that sm...
