KAMUI Vol. #08

By Julie Rosato     June 25, 2008
Release Date: August 08, 2007



Creative Talent
Writer/Artist:Shingo Nanami
Translated by:Satsuki Yamashita
Adapted by:Elizabeth Hanel

What They Say
Atsuma has tapped into his own power, and now hopes to use it to save the world and his friends in NOA. But first, he and his allies must fight their way into Utsuho's stronghold.

While Atsuma and Shui head towards the root of Okikurumi, Sumire and Kojomaru confront Utsuho. But neither Okikurumi nor Utsuho will fall easily, and there are still secrets to be revealed.

The Review
Boys manning up and girls kicking ass - this manga is back in stride... if still a bit convoluted.

Atsuma's toughened up and actually become a real hero type. And thank goodness, I say, because I think I finally like the guy. His determination and spirit are winning over the rest, and he won't take no for answer. The whole absorbing kamui thing? Turns out it's likely to kill him in the end. But still, he's ready to throw his life away to save everyone else, and he's got reason to believe he can do it. Sure, he isn't breaking the hero-mold, but at least now he's finally filling it!

Thanks to his new power, Atsuma manages to duff Shiki up and then persuade him to switch sides. Here the teams change again; Sumire/Kojomaru and Shiki are off to kill Utsuho, still acting on their own agendas while Atsuma goes off alone to save the world. Once inside the compound he's finally reunited with Shui (and there was much rejoicing) and after a bit of sport-cum-bonding, they set off to rescue Anzu and take out Okikurumi. Aika, cut free by Sumire but still searching for her own place, is hot on their trail, and unbeknownst to them, covering their butts! Things are looking up by the time they get to Okikurumi, but Atsuma and Shui soon find out what Shiki and Sumire have already learned back at the lab - that Kojomaru's really a tool of Utsuho's. Uh-oh.

I have to admit that this series gets increasingly more difficult to write about as it progresses. The core players have finally regrouped on one side, more or less, but despite all the "connections" they're making, they still fight for separate reasons and Atsuma's the only one who's managed to grow as a character. The ending twist involving Kojomaru feels tacked on, but I suppose like most of the plot twists so far, it'll probably play out better in the coming chapters. KAMUI definitely prefers shock-value set up over steadier developments; while it's hard to dislike this approach for an action manga, with such a heavy reliance on the method to drive the story, it has come to feel forced rather than engaging. Still, there were a number of successes here, which improves my overall feeling for the volume.

Much like in volume six, there is a lot of action here but fight scenes can be tough to follow. Lots of speed lines and SFX crowd already small panels, actually decreasing the sense of motion rather than creating a fluid sequence. I mention this mostly because the busy linework tends to overwhelm character movements, and it fails to capitalize on the drama of someone jumping in harm's way to save a comrade - which happens a lot in this volume and tends to be pretty significant. It's a bad trade for an extra bit of style, so the art grade dips a bit this time.

Broccoli continues to get top grades for production elements, however. Printing, text, SFX translation and retouch are great, and all the usual extras are included. One of these days I'm even going to send away for the dust jackets.