Title: Kaiju No. 8 Vol. 1
Author: Naoya Matsumoto
Series: Kaiju No. 8 Ch. 1-7
Pages: 204
This was an action packed, monster filled, and hilarious start for a series. Kafka is an adult who gave up on his dreams of being in the Japanese Defense Force years ago. When a new rookie joins his team for Kaiju cleanup he finds himself fired up again for taking the test. Unfortunately he finds himself turning into a kaiju first.
I loved the mesh of kaiju, action, and humor for this manga. It made for a fun but still serious read, especially when the kaiju attacked. Also I loved that Kafka was a 32 year old man who is trying to achieve his dream. As someone in their 30s it’s great to have an older protagonist in a Shonen Jump Manga!
CW: body horror, injuries, hospitalization, bullying and hazing,
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Title: Kaiju No. 8 Vol. 2
Author: Naoya Matsumoto
Series: Kaiju No. 8 Ch. 8-17
Pages: 212
This continues to be such a good story. Kafta and Ichikawa have both been accepted into the Japan Defense Force and have spent weeks training to fight the kaiju. When a giant kaiju attacks they get their first real life mission and it quickly turns dangerous when the mysterious humanoid kaiju shows up. I can’t get enough of this story. I love the mixture of action, humor, and monsters. I really can’t wait to see what happens next now that Kafta has revealed himself again.
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Title: Kaiju No. 8 Vol. 3
Author: Naoya Matsumoto
Series: Kaiju No. 8 Ch. 18-26
Pages: 192
This picks up with Kaiju No. 8 fighting Kaiju No. 9 and protecting his teammates. Before he can finish Kaiju No 9 though he is interrupted by other teammates and finds himself fighting Vice-Captain Hoshina. This battle was great because we finally got to see what the Vice-Captain is capable of. He is a master with those blades and I really can’t wait to see him fight again in the future.
A few weeks later the gang is woken during the night to find their base being attacked by multiple kaiju working together. While we only get a portion of this battle in this volume, it is already action packed and dangerous. While I didn’t like Kikoru Shinomiya when she was introduced, I now love her and how badass she is. She never hesitates to jump into battle and she is deadly with that giant ax. Matsumoto really does a great job with making badass female characters. I also love that we don’t get any patriarchal ideology with the defense force so we don’t have to deal with the men being upset with a woman being the most powerful fighter.
I am really loving this series and can’t wait to see what is going to happen next in this battle, and for Kafka’s hidden identity.
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Red-Haired Ash Reads 