Pause. What do you mean you haven't read Gantz? Let me be perfectly clear. You, dear reader, have a serious problem. The truth is we all do. The problem is that we are all going to die. Some of us today, and some of us tomorrow. With that in mind, I'm sure you've wondered about the big question. What comes after you die? Well as it turns out, you get transported to a room somewhere near your home. All the doors and windows are locked, and sharing the space with you are maybe a half dozen strangers. For maybe a few minutes, you convince yourself that you aren't dead. I mean, why would the universe kill someone as awesome as yourself? Regrettably, this giant black ball made from some strange glass in the center of the room tells you that you are, indeed, dead. The only way back to your real life? Join the Men in Black.
This is the basic premise for Gantz, one of the most scintillating and dark manga I have ever had the distinct pleasure of reading. Mangaka Hiroya Oku sinister series brings together glorious violence and rampant sexuality to create a wholly unique story telling experience. The sheer brutality of some of his scenes inspires a primal mix of revulsion, adrenaline and sincere pathos for the characters in this gruesome series about people fighting off ridiculous aliens. Add to this the fact that no character, regardless of how cool or protagonistic they maybe are safe from the author's reaping scythe, and you've got a story that has you grinding your teeth and sitting on the edge of your seat the entire time.
Despite the perceived comical elements, Gantz is a very serious an intelligent story. The raw violence and sexual instances of Gantz are used as integral devices to spice up a sharply written story of humanism. By looking at humans in both their shared intellectual and primitive capacities, Gantz paints a word portrait of humanity at both its best and its worst in times of adversity. Although Gantz is incredibly thought provoking and capable of stirring up a voracious appetite for the series, its artwork is surprisingly lax when compared to with other series in the same genre. The artwork is a touch rough at the onset, and doesn't improve until a lot later into the story. However, it does help that Hiroya Oku is a very serious fan of large breasts, you know, in case you were wondering.
The popularity of Gantz has spawned an anime, two live action movies, and now an upcoming CGI film. Yeah, that's right, it IS weird that you haven't heard about Gantz before. Its probably because of all that violence and sex that goes on behind the covers of the manga. It should be noted that Gantz finished its run as a manga almost three years ago in August. Given the popularity of the series though, it comes as no surprise that readers still want more from Hiroya Oku. A spin off series, Gantz: G, began publishing late last year and is currently on going.
Now that you know Gantz is out there, I think you know that its in your best interest to go and read the series. There aren't that many distinctively raw stories out there that have you wondering at every turn what the next twist is going to be. Nor are there that many which provoke the same level of thought and introspection that Gantz seems to give people. After all, Hiroya Oku is nothing if not a master of manipulating readers into becoming long time fans of his work.
This is the basic premise for Gantz, one of the most scintillating and dark manga I have ever had the distinct pleasure of reading. Mangaka Hiroya Oku sinister series brings together glorious violence and rampant sexuality to create a wholly unique story telling experience. The sheer brutality of some of his scenes inspires a primal mix of revulsion, adrenaline and sincere pathos for the characters in this gruesome series about people fighting off ridiculous aliens. Add to this the fact that no character, regardless of how cool or protagonistic they maybe are safe from the author's reaping scythe, and you've got a story that has you grinding your teeth and sitting on the edge of your seat the entire time.
Despite the perceived comical elements, Gantz is a very serious an intelligent story. The raw violence and sexual instances of Gantz are used as integral devices to spice up a sharply written story of humanism. By looking at humans in both their shared intellectual and primitive capacities, Gantz paints a word portrait of humanity at both its best and its worst in times of adversity. Although Gantz is incredibly thought provoking and capable of stirring up a voracious appetite for the series, its artwork is surprisingly lax when compared to with other series in the same genre. The artwork is a touch rough at the onset, and doesn't improve until a lot later into the story. However, it does help that Hiroya Oku is a very serious fan of large breasts, you know, in case you were wondering.
The popularity of Gantz has spawned an anime, two live action movies, and now an upcoming CGI film. Yeah, that's right, it IS weird that you haven't heard about Gantz before. Its probably because of all that violence and sex that goes on behind the covers of the manga. It should be noted that Gantz finished its run as a manga almost three years ago in August. Given the popularity of the series though, it comes as no surprise that readers still want more from Hiroya Oku. A spin off series, Gantz: G, began publishing late last year and is currently on going.
Now that you know Gantz is out there, I think you know that its in your best interest to go and read the series. There aren't that many distinctively raw stories out there that have you wondering at every turn what the next twist is going to be. Nor are there that many which provoke the same level of thought and introspection that Gantz seems to give people. After all, Hiroya Oku is nothing if not a master of manipulating readers into becoming long time fans of his work.