Sunday September 27, 2009
Double trouble
By ZAKI ZAKARIA
BLACK GOD Vol.5
Story: Dall-Young Lim
Art: Sung-Woo Park
Publisher: Yen Press; 208 pages
(ISBN: 978-0759528444)
For older teens
BLACK God centres around ordinary bloke Keita, who accidentally got embroiled in an ancient war when he offered a bowl of ramen to a strange girl called Kuro, who is actually a supernatural being – a Tera Guardian.
Kuro ended up making a contract with Keita to save his life, and his life has never been the same again.
In Vol.5, Keita may have finally found his mother’s “doppeliner”. (In Black God’s world, everyone is born with two people who look exactly like them, but meeting one’s “doppeliner” would result in one’s death – a fate that befell Keita’s mum.)
Whoever she is, Keita must stay around to find out more about the doppeliner Shinobu. Meanwhile, Kuro, along with twins Kakuma and Makana, scour Okinawa in search of clues, as the resort nearby holds some disturbing negative energies. Also, Keita picks up some new skills with the sai.
Malaysians first came to know Sung-Woo Park’s art via Cyber-Doll, a manhwa published locally by Gala Unggul Resources. If you compare Black God with his previous works such as NOW, the improvements in his art are evident. There are more details in the background, the characters show more emotion, the girls are cuter than ever, and the action! Dude, the Park-Man can pull off some seriously sick action. Panels are paced tightly, and the fights are brutal.
Park doesn’t hold back with the blood, gore and ultra-violence, but he does manage to convey some poignant scenes between Keita, Kuro and the rest of the gang. And, yes, there’s fanservice, in the form of Akane running to Keita in her bikini. You rascals.
And you thought all this guy can draw is just cute girls....
In regard to the characters, Keita, who started out as a little lame in the beginning, gradually grows as he comes face to face with his destiny. Kuro manages to stay kawaii all the way, even when she’s taking down bad guys bigger than her.
Kudos to Dall-Young Lim for managing to flesh out the characters, and create poignant drama and action scenes.
Be warned, though, the “reunion” between Keita and his mother’s doppeliner might cause some uncomfortable feelings.
Casual readers may not have to go through too many details about what a doppeliner is or how to create an “Exceed”, and can just appreciate the compelling characters and action scenes, even from the first volume.
No wonder Black God was adapted into an anime series this year.
(Rating: 4.5)
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