Kenzo Tenma and Johan Liebert: Two Sides of the Same Coin (Monster) 

Monster is one of the greatest manga ever written, but look how cool Killua's skateboard is.

...This is why I love Monster so much. It's a Hegelian Dialectic in a way; with Tenma being the thesis of the inherent good in people, while Johan rises to become his antithesis of evil and nihilism. As both men come to clash, they come to a synthesis, where Tenma learns that nihilism and misery are just as much a part of people as compassion is and that holding on to love and purpose are what can help this side to grow, whereas Johan learns to move past the overwhelming despair as to move forward in life. Even though one could say Tenma won, both men are changed in the conflict by the other's viewpoints.

_When you gaze in the abyss, the abyss gazes back at you._

I remember watching Monster and viewing Tenma’s change throughout the story. The idea of him loosing his faith and humanity and his hope for a better future really frightened me. His persistence in tracking down Johann was really admirable to me. Tenma saw it as his duty to kill him. As the story progressed, he seemed so sad, a shell of what he once was. And I cried tears of joy in the last episode, seeing him vibrant and happy once again.

Tenma is my favorite character in Monster! It's a shame he's usually overshadowed.

Can I just say I would LOVE a German dub for this show.

I’m a simple man, I see Monster related content, I come running and leave a like.

WHAT I LIKED ABOUT JOHAN IS THAT he never showed any emotions no pain, happiness, regret, disapointment, anger, hate, or even lust for killing.

I love how your video focuses mostly on Tenma. Johan is usually the most discussed character in Monster which is a shame because other characters such as Tenma, Grimmer and Lunge are equally interesting and well-written

Johan Liebert the greatest villain in anime, and monster the greatest anime of all time

If life is suffering, saving someone's life (role of a doctor) is the cruelest act you can commit. That's why kenma can't let anyone fall into despair

Such a brilliant character dichotomy. One of the best villains, and an underrated protagonist. I see a lot of people saying Tenma wasn’t the best protagonist and the show is carried by Liebert which is crazy to me, definitely one of the best anime protagonists.

That coin reference is so fitting. Most of the time the both sides of the arguments, (especially those who judge others morals) seem to be using SAME arguments when the tables turn around. And they don't even realize it, they have become the same, but just mirror reflection of each others.

Most underrated anime of all time

Just after I'd finished watching your other Monster analyses, this is the icing on the cake. Suffice it to say, very well done, this is incredible.

Love this show

Monster is the best thriller ever. You can't change my mind.

You must've aced those essays in school 😮😮.

First of all: Great video! Good and Evil, Light and Dark. These same words are scathered all over "Monster", "Pure Evil" is the term a lot of characters use to describe Johan. These same expressions were used by you a lot, discussing "Monster". However, going through "Monster" the question between what is good and what is evil is being asked multiple times, simultaneously. Urasawa actually chose one of the darkest times, in the world (post world war II in eastern germany) to ask this question. And I was almost expecting a fight club kind of plot twist where Johan and Kenzo were the same. As you pointed out, they act under the same prism of ideals, but one seems like the pure "evil" while the other the brightest "good". We see a little of everything in this story, and "Monster" as the title is perfect. You see all kinds of monsters throughout the story, regretful monsters, afraid monsters and almost, if not all monstruosities seem to converge on the tip of THE Monster. Now, this is after a war and believeng that all evil is the product of the corruption effect from the monster makes no sense. So, this monster was actually just a very influential one. As you see evil actions spreading you also see the good ones too. Kenzo's journey is about increasing his allies through good actions while being violently discarded of people who he didn't do anything good to. Johan's journey is about manipulating his allies through a parasitic way, since he has no interest in keeping them or caring for them. Kenzo is constantly conflicted about if he could kill. Killing a human is the antithesis of himself. Urasawa never really concludes on that topic, but I think the keyword is on the value the human life is given. There was always something weird for me, from the start. Why is an asian man on the most racist point of the globe when he has no interest other than improving his career. And I think, not only because it's a manga, Eastern europe had a lot of similarities with most of asia when it came to the human life value. Times were rough, poverty hitted, and the ashes of war and oppression are still settling. Similar atmospheres were being felt all over Japan, but asia in general. The biggest difference between Johan and Kenzo, and the only difference that matters was on how much value does one give to a human life. Kenzo seems to give all the value he could possibly think of while Johan seems to give the least amount he could. And the difference is clear. This is what I took from monster.A very realistic set, criticizing almost all sectors and classes in a modern society with a little fantasy, just enough to enphasize how such a simple thing (the human life value) can affect the outcome of your actions, regardless your motivations, and make all the difference between Kenzo and the Monster.

Monster IS the greatest anime of all time! The plot devices constantly used in this story are insanely absolute and beautiful! As someone with a rough childhood I understand that Johann is the ultimate victim, his mind was somehow just so. He was able to experience kinderheim and come out on top somehow. This anime pulls no punches. Ideals shattered. The most beautiful thing in the world is your mind can bend in a new direction. Great content!!!!

Always a great day when I see a upload from this channel! Then it's about one of my favorite anime too: _"Monster"_

I need to watch Monster again. For the. . .8th or so time.

YES!!! Monster is in my top three! I love the insight you lend to your videos. When I go back and rewatch stuff that you have discussed, it's almost like seeing it for the first time because I'm able to see it from such a different point of view than my own. Your ability to dive into characters the way you do is so unique. It's almost like I'm listening to the creators behind the characters. You're amazing, keep up the great work!

Your videos are always so insightful and well spoken..it's always a delight to view a new one.

Loved this analysis. Such a thoughtful commentary. Keep up the good work.

The difference between The Batman and The Joker is that Batman cares, and The Joker doesn't. The difference between Johan and Tenma is that Johan doesn't care, but Tenma does. It's often that small difference that divides hero from villain. Johan could have talked the alcoholic officer into being a better person, if he cared. Tenma cared about an unknown child, and saved a killer. Good triumphs when it never gives up for so long that evil can't win, can't go on, or takes the hand offered to find a better life. The hard part is sometimes finding what will truly do good, instead of just feeling good.

Such an underrated series, everyone should give it a go once.

Finally my hunger for a Monster video has been satisfied. Thank you Aleczandxr (On my 4th rewatch ^_^)

This analysis is so perfect. I always come back to this video once in a while

Back again with that Monster greatness!

Thank you so much for tackling such important questions and intricacies. This video is incredibly relevant not only to each Monster lover, but to each human being first and foremost. Props for putting up a detailed and compelling video brimming with quality :)

Monster is one of those shows that I’ve first watched when I was young but still managed to hold up to this day regardless. And I would even credit it for planting early seeds for some of the themes that I would repeatedly find myself captivated by the most. This is why I appreciate your channel so much - you consistently manage to demonstrate that deriving a broader message from a medium that you draw entertainment from can go hand in hand.

This is one of the best video analysis i have ever seen... You are brilliant! It really felt like you were describing me in some places. Monster is one kind of a story. Pure brilliance. :)

I never clicked in a video so fast before hehe But really, I can't explain how happy i am to see another Monster video in your fantastic channel Aleczandxr, thank you so much for bring such good content to us! ;)

It's hard to stay on the path of Light when the Darkness provides strength through agency. People are always looking for "certainly" in life. To show their life had meaning cause it was deemed "right" in their eyes. Also long as humanity looks at abstract concepts in philosophies through binary understanding, we will always reflect each other as mirrors. For Light and Darkness are just truths based on humanity's fragile understanding of the phenomenon known as reality(or the "real"). Tenma reminds me so much of Kirtsugu from Fate/Zero and the battle between Shirou and Archer in UBWs. Amazing video m8!

Monster is one of my favorite stories of all time, not just anime! Great video as always man! Keep up the great work!

My personal favorite show. Glad to hear what u have to say about this topic

You took it to another level with this one. "Monster" is one of my favorite anime, and I'm grateful to you for putting thoughts and feelings I've had about the show, into actual words and philosophical concepts.

Don't know why I wasn't notified of this video, however, two new videos from you within the space of a week was a real treat. The more videos you make on Monster the more I appreciate it. Fantastic work as always.

Another great video . I really like your analysis / exploration of the nihilistic theme in this video charismatic of one of Johan's ideals , something which was not covered in much detail in your previous video about Monster (as that focused on identity and human nature commentary aspect). For Johan though , I do feel that atleast in the Monster anime, he NEVER waivered in his own outlook and the only person he felt worthy enough to prove/show that to was Tenma, contrary to the highly contemplative behavior of Tenma.

One of my favourite manga and anime. I really dug the duality of Kenzo and Johan which is why I love the conclusion so much. Good video mate.

Yay! A monster video and an alexandxr video all in one again!

Damn, I love this page, your insights are profound.

Woohoo! I've been waiting so long for you to talk about Monster!!!😁

Always here for your videos bro one of my fave youtubers and the only one who's entire content collection I watched

I LITERALLY just subscribed and turned on notification after discovering you and after I saw your hunterxhunter videos. Now you upload. Holy shit I am lucky

exactly 1 Year later after finding your channel i’m revisiting your videos on monster and i didn’t even realize you put out a new one

YAY!!!!! You're back! Missed you very much! Keep up the great work!

I don't care what anyone says, you are the best at analyzing anime series and characters.

love the ideas of this channel! we're kinda same in prospective so I always watch your videos, the way you explain the characters the contrast between them and their similarities, I just love the way on how you do it man,

This anime is criminally underrated, it is honestly disgusting how much so.

Thank you once again Alecxzandxr

Johan was terrifying for me because he was ruthless to all without discrimination even to children. And the fact that his face and voice seemed incredibly kind and when he cried you could see how sad he was. It was all so unsettling and terrifying. We didn't see him murdering people much often directly instead he had this incredible ability to push people to death just with his words. I felt scared for any normal person in his premise. And for Tenma it was the absolute opposite. He helped all without discrimination and throughout the series I saw people getting really frustrated that after he had gone to such great lengths to hunt down Johan he just couldn't shoot him when he came across him and I understand how it could be frustrating but it was pretty obvious from the beginning that Tenma's character was symbolic of all the goodness in humanity and he wouldn't really kill anyone. I would have been shocked instead if he was the one who shot Johan.

This video had some great info that really makes me think more about the world and the anime Monster. I can't wait to check out Monster. Thanks for the video !

Amazing video, congrats for the analysis

Man, anytime you post a video (especially a character analysis), I want to write paragraphs upon paragraphs expressing my gratitude to you. You see, I've always wanted to write stories that get people thinking but I never mustered the nerve. But then I found your channel, and every time I watch a video of yours it inspires me that I can do it. So thank you so much.

Ah yes another monster analysis video from you Im honestly so glad you still review and pick apart old anime I feel that so many people forget that old anime was the pinnacle of psychological horrors and honestly pulled on heart strings you thought you never even had. There was such a weird feeling of emptiness the show left me that I loved at the same time. Thank you for putting me on to a lot of great gems of anime I can’t wait to see your channel grow as anime becomes more popular and people seek out more anime based content on RU-vid. You never disappoint

Excellent analysis, loved this video!

One of my favorite anime, I’m hyped for this.

Somehow i knew you were gonna make a vid on Monster eventually. Its one of my favs and i love this vid. Keep it up

So glad you made another video on this masterpiece. Hoping for an analysis on grimmer when you can

Ahhhhhhh, YES!!! Just what I needed. :')

I'm surprised Radiant Historia fits so well with this video. As usual great video the message of the video was delivered excellently.

Love these videos

Some of your finest analysis, good job my man.

Love you and your analysis. Monster is my favourite anime series of all times and I've been hoping that this would happen. Please keep making great content!

Great video as always. Keep it up!

Amazing video man!!!

Great video man, their idealistic battle is definitely one of my favorites in fiction 💯

The Aleczandxr OVAs are a treat.

Im watching this show right now and it is so good, characters are good and i love how each episode

Liked before watching the video as always

My personal philosophy is the only flawless and correct one I'll have you know! (Also when I saw the title I thought of Hyori ittai ending theme)

It's amazing you used Mechanical Kingdom from Radiant Historia for the intro music. You nailed it perfectly......

The thing with Monster is that its too real and not like other anime over the top I can see someone in real life do smth that Johan did Johan Liebert the best villian not just in anime but in fiction

It kinda reminds of the 'The Nameless Monster' picture book. Remember that the nameless monster used to be one entity, it later split up into two entities. Opposites of one another, one believes that it needs a name to be happy, and the other believes that it should just accept it's nature as a 'nameless monster' and that it can be happy without a name. At the end of the story the two meet up in 'the landscape of the end'. Just like Johan and Tenma near the end when for a second you saw them both of the landscape. What a masterpiece, to think a human could create something so brilliant.

Ah! I had commented on another of your videos hoping you'd analyze Monster and lo and behold, you have created so many - and such impressive ones at that! My goodness, astounding work and analysis, especially of the comparison of Johan and Dr. Tenma. I really enjoyed this, one because I've been really hoping to find more Monster content, but especially your exploration of ideology and contrasting moral perspectives. I honestly agree, I wish more series were willing to engage with ideals and even religion, because it makes for more fascinating, satisfying, and more well-rounded content. I gained a new appreciation for Tenma and Johan, as it was insightful to see more clearly how they are more similar than it initially appears. And I think Tenma's tragic moral struggle is exactly what endears him and this story to me and so many others who discover it. Marvelous work and treatment of the content, wonderful!

Awesome work

I love a good monster video

I was hoping that you would cover this at some point. Picked up 2 volumes in a thrift store and I love the series so far.

I really like how Johan portrays Nihilism so well.

As a person who has dealt with clinical depression for over 3 years starting at the age of 19, Tenma's view is something really relatable to me, and you did an amazing job fleshing it out. Being open-minded is something I took away from watching this video, thanks AJ!

Brilliant analysis as usual! As someone who has followed you for a while, I definitely wanted to get to Monster at some point since I'd heard how great it was from many people and also saw that you rated is among your favorite works in the medium. At last, I finally got to it over the last few weeks, and just finished it today! What a ride! I do think the story as a whole has its flaws in terms of plot conveniences and some unbalanced pacing, but from a thematic point of view I really can appreciate what it was doing, as you clearly do (and I also think from a characterization outlook it is also top tier for the most part, I was surprised at how many side characters I grew attached to, like Lunge, Eva, Richard, Reichwein, Martin and Grimmer). Definitely worthwhile overall as a story, brilliantly unique and evocative of a different kind of anime storytelling style with its more deliberate speed and realism, reminiscent of older works from the 90s and early 2000s historically speaking). I think the comparison in this video is fascinating in many ways, and thematically brings the dichotomy of love and nihilism, and the interpretations of meaning and its creation and expression to the fore through utilizing these two main characters as reflective protagonist and antagonist. Like you said, both represent surprisingly similar sides to each other in many ways, but end up utilizing their abstract understanding of the world and human contact antithetically despite a surprisingly similar approach. I think the point on how framing and subjective valuation is of particular importance in that sense, from a philosophical perspective. As a more practical point, I think an additional dimension that could be added to your already substantive analysis would be looking at, and contrasting, HOW Tenma and Johan used their connections to others throughout the narrative, and the means by which it intertwined with the larger thematic points on offer in Monster. Tenma was a brilliant neurosurgeon who was repeatedly willing to put others before himself and help as many people as possible, despite eschewing personal connection much of the time. He bred loyalty and love from others, but constantly pushed them away while he was on his harrowing quest to hunt down and end Johan, because he was never willing to use others to further what he saw as a morally horrible journey and act. He was instead willing to be used, to aid and adhere to his principles as a doctor even when it was not pragmatic and did not further his goal. We see this repeatedly in many of the shorter "arcs" or standalone stories in single episodes across the entire tale. Johan, conversely, actively utilized his charisma and connection to others, especially those who had been at Kinderheim 511 with him and suffered the same memory tampering he did, to use them as tools to further his ultimate aims (Roberto being the prime example, but far from the only one). Unlike Tenma, he lacked any genuine empathy or love of life, but he was effective in simulating care to further his control towards the end he sought, which was naturally one devoid of love, finding meaning only in death and the nihilistic urges of the "landscape of the end," the culmination of his philosophical vision. This ties in with the larger theme of identity which you cover in your other video on Monster, along with the main themes of human nature inherent in the story as well. Tenma sought the positives of identity and meaning, connecting with others without using them, instead willing to be used to foster true human connection through love. Johan used others as tools, displaying cruel kinds of psychological control and reveling in meaninglessness to rid the world of others, of identity, of self. As you say, he represented that abyssal hopelessness that Tenma could never relate to, despite their theoretical similarities and the fact that Tenma still came so close to accepting the monstrous side of humanity in the final arc at Ruhenheim. The narrative quality of Johan's own desire to erase all those connected to him, to truly become a fiction, metanarratively ties to these themes of identity too, especially in relation to the truly awesome framing device the story produces with Bonaparta's picture books and the "Monster without a Name" in particular, but that is a post and analysis for another time, I'd say! As usual, well done with the video, and I look forward to watching the rest of your work on Monster, as I did with your other takes on stories like Fate/Zero, Steins;Gate, HunterxHunter etc. Keep up the great work! PS: Since you love both HxH and Monster so much, if you haven't already, you should do a video on how to effectively use motifs and concepts in a story, and focus on the motif of having and how it ties to identity! The Chimera Ant arc has this thematic thrust (with Meruem), and so too does Monster (with Johan), as we clearly see at the end. Both stories also allude to it more subtly initially, and really build it up as a real tension point beyond just the abstract level, but as part of actual core plot points! I think it could really be an enjoyable and stimulating project intellectually. Just food for thought!

Very well analysis I love it.

Two videos in two days? What did we do to deserve this pleasure!

Thank you for this video AJ! The part about Tenma being comfortable alone in a crowd while being terrified of living in alone in this world resonates so much with me that it helped me understand myself in a way. So I'm grateful to you for that.

Only questioning his faith allowed him to affirm it

amazing video and anime

For people who thinks that Johan didn't has any feelings: In the Manga he was shocked when Anna said "I forgive you" to him ... he wanted to hear that from her when he offered that she should kill him when they where 9 years old.. but in the anime they -idk why- didn't put that very significant scene... and before that in episode 73 in the house where their was portraits of him and Anna he was crying ... Though he believed in nihilism.. he was in a huge deep pain that he planed (a perfect suicide) thinking that that is the only way for Anna to live happily (to erase the past including erasing himself from her life) ... probably because Anna is the only one he has deep attachment to and truly love

I love Monster with a passion. It's my favorite anime and manga.

7:49 a really good point!

"People don't have ideas, ideas have people.'' - Carl Jung

Well this hit me at a deep level.

Is it weird that I'm not into that many anime, but I absolutely *love* this channel?

I love your videos about Monster! Make a video analyzing Another Monster, pleeease!!

monster is one of the best animes out there. life changing!

Still not over Grimmer's death

Most underrated anime ever!

This video is amazing and I really wished this would get more views. However, if you would pardon me, may I make my own request for a video on one of the key characters of the series, one whose influence in the narratives makes him the key element driving much of the mystery, Franz Bonaparta. The man was pretty much responsible for how the story came to be. Maybe a look into how his books and experiments reflect those points of humanity your other videos have mentioned. And maybe this can connect with exactly what made Johan the monster that he was, through the choice his mother made.

Man I love this anime. Do more!