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Reviewed by Barb Lien-Cooper I gave Volume One of this series a B, although I seriously thought of giving it a B plus because it is one of the most viscerally exciting manga to come out in recent years. I graded low because the characters were a little out of central casting and the bad guys were a little two dimensional. However, reading the thrilling conclusion to the series, I'm going to give Volume Two an A minus, which translates into a B plus for the series as a whole. Fair enough? The set up: a young salary man type on his way home from work is caught in an earthquake which leaves him and a few others trapped beneath a ton of rubble. There is little food and water, the cell phones don't work, rescue is slow to come because the earthquake was so massive, and the foundations around the subway are pretty rickety. Added to the survivors' problems is another set of survivors, lead by the nastiest set of villains this side of the island that Battle Royale takes place on. In Volume Two, the villains are still a little too two dimensional (although, as I said, totally heartless and nasty), but the good guys all of a sudden stop being such stock characters. One turns out to be a coward. Another turns out to be a lot more decent than you'd ever expect. And, without giving too much away, still another turns out to have a lot more hero in him than you'd expect. The plot turns in this book are often unexpected and clever. A couple of them I certainly didn't see coming. I really hate to use an over-used phrase like "roller coaster ride" in a review, but psychologically, that's what this book is. The reader goes from fear to relief to new fear to despair to hope to a lot of different other emotions before the end of the work. Now, Metro Survive isn't the world's most subtle manga. There are scenes of violence and some gore to it. This is definitely an older teens book. But the work delivers everything you want this kind of series to deliver. You do care about the characters and their well-being. You do get some interesting psychological journeys along the way. Characters do grow up and find their courage. Everything ends in a totally emotionally satisfying way without getting sentimental or over the top about matters. Most of all, Metro Survive is a real page turner. After I read Volume One, I waited impatiently for months for Volume Two. I wondered if it would end there (it did, which was good, as one of the work's strengths is its fast paced plot). I wondered if I'd be satisfied with the ending (I was). Most of all, I wondered if everyone would be okay (hey, I'm not telling you that one---get the book). It was worth the wait. I said this about Volume One and I'll say it again about Volume 2. If Hollywood could produce a blockbuster half as good as this, I'd be the first in line to see it. I don't like all of Dr. Master's manga, but every so often, they bat a big home run. Metro Survive passes all the bases with aplomb as far as I'm concerned. Comment on this review of Metro Survive v2 on the Manga Life Forums. |
6 October 2009
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