New Lanchester Strategy, v. 2 & 3

New Lanchester Strategy: Sales and Marketing Strategy for the Weak vol. 2
New Lanchester Strategy: Sales and Marketing Strategy for the Strong vol. 3
Written by Shinichi Yano, illustrated by Kenichi Sato and translated by Connie Prene
Released in the US by Lanchester Press, Inc



Slugline: Learning to beat your business opponents, manga style!

I thought I would try something a little different from what you are used to. A business theory manga. The Lanchester business theory deals with how to beat business opponents by focusing on their weak points and so on. This has been used in Japan as one of the theories employed in their post-WW 2 recovery. This title was translated by a small specialty press in the late 90s that focuses on Lanchester theory works.

The reason I chose to review this particular title is that it is one of the few examples I know of a non-fiction manga, showing the width and breadth of the medium. Because it's not just about which titles tell good stories, it's about what kind of information manga can be used to communicate. And the answer is anything, because stories are just information, theories are just information. This sort of manga has not reached our shores yet, but I hope this can show what other sorts manga can turn up if the market keeps expanding and demanding material, even material that we may not yet realize we want.

This is a three part manga series, but right now only the last two are available via Amazon. The story is told through the eyes of a group leader, striving to do his all for his company, facing opponents both within and without the company. He talks to friends and fellow company members, each time illustrating one particular point of the business theory in an accessible, commonsense way. Nothing really earthshattering about the theories, but it does take some interesting approaches on understanding and applying business theories, both offensively and defensively.



- Ferdinand

p.s. Now seriously, you thought manga was all sailor girls and bishonen, didn't you. As boring as this manga might sound, imagine how much more boring it would be without pictures...

- Miranda