K

,,The strong man is strongest when alone." ,,K" is a 1 volume manga of one's struggle against mountains and elements surrounding them. The story focuses on one of the greatest mountaineer the world has ever seen and his treks on some of the most dangerous mountains in the himalayas. In mere 5 chapters K has to climb five mountains in order to help different people, despite the simmilar setting each venture is somehow unique and the story never gets boring. The exciting moments feel exciting , you never know what's going to happen and what tricks K will pull off in order to fulfill his mission.Despite not knowing a lot about K's character and backstory you get to like him after a while and thanks to few subtle touches you really care about him and want him to suceed, his story is very interesting and if only had this manga been longer we could get an amazing character arc. The side characters are fine, apart from Lena they don't really stick out but given that they are really non important and don't take up too much space, they fulfill their role just fine, and seing them react to K's actions (such as his characteristic shaving beard) is really satysfying. The plot is not important and it's just a excuse for making K climb different mountains, what matters are the themes of determination and finding the power to surmount the insurmountable and K's arc really delivers on it. The art in this manga is simply impeccable, despite depicting mainly mountains each location is different and the world feels like a beautiful yet extremely dangerous place, at one page the characters may be admire the breathtaking views and on the next one they'll have to try to survive a snowslide. It's also worth to point out that few cities and camps presented in the manga are well portrayed so you can feel the ambience. Thanks to the K's amazing character design you can feel the dread and determination in the toughest moment and pure joy whenever he manages to overcome those hardships. The sheer number of different detailed facial expressions is worth praising, the detailed artwork also lets you understand what K is up against and why it's so difficult to climb a given mountain, you can almost feel the cold of the himalayas while you're reading the manga. Not for Jiro's art this manga wouldn't simply be the same.