Gantz:G

As of this review, I have recently finished the spin off manga to the somewhat popular titled Gantz. We are really only introduced to two aliens: first ones kinda basic, similar to a few aliens being fought in the original series. Second one, which is the finale, was quite impressive in my opinion. In terms of gore, there was much more less, but there was enough to satisfy me. If you want to suck in all the lore and details about the world or universe of Gantz, this one will shed some more down. Another thing worth mentioning is this story goes more towards fighting againstthe aliens. There is a relationship but drama seems to lack more than in the original manga, however we do get to see the characters relationships change throughout the story. Sadly, some thing in the manga do seem to go by a little fast due to it's short length at time. If you read Gantz and enjoyed it, id give this one a quick read.

Honestly? I enjoyed it. Now I do have to preface this with saying I eat anything involving Gantz up like it's home cooking. This spin-off definitely had potential to be an actual side story to Gantz if it was longer, but doing a short format story doesn't do the story the proper justice it deserves. Issues: First, it's much too short. Yes it's a spin off and wasn't meant for mass serialization, but due to that it doesn't give the characters enough time to REALLY develop like I know Oku is capable of doing. He has some pacing issues in his manga when they're not givena long run which is a shame. That's not to say I disliked all the characters in this, if anything I feel like the cast had fantastic potential. The hate respect relationship between Kurona and Ikegami would be really interesting to see developed over time, but it was sadly too rushed. Same with the unsuccessful idol, and the up and coming mangaka. I feel like the only character that was strong out the gate and had a solid arc, besides the two BROS who I would've loved to see more of, was Kaji. But all in all yeah my issues were that this was way too short. Cool shit: Aight first and foremost the Mermaid fight was great. Granted it being a 100 point fight again was slightly problematic due to the pacing and could've been much more intense if it was placed later on in a longer story. Regardless I find Okus ability to limitlessly create terrifying and fascinating aliens that defy our conception of life always blows me away; and his ability to make every fight feel like a desperate struggle between weak humans and monstrously powerful aliens. Also the art, as usual in Gantz, is solid as all hell. Total? I think it's a soft 7, hard 6/10. I still recommend reading it if you love Gantz as much as I do and could eat up anything regarding it.

G is for GIRLZ~!! In this spinoff, Gantz: G focuses on five girls who died on their school field trip. You don't need to have read Gantz or even be familiar with it to read this short series. In fact, this might be a better entry point before diving into the long series that is Gantz. It's really interesting to see a Gantz spinoff where Oku is only on writing duties. The artist that he is paired with is good and does a pretty close job at mimicking Oku's artwork, but it really shined a light on Oku as a writer for me. There was less ofwhat you'd expect from him such as huffing, gratuitous nudity (though there is still nudity), and a sex drive of a teenager, and a more of a streamlined plot. With it being only 3 volumes it truly is hard to say how this could have done if it had continued because there is a lot of potential for this series and these characters. That said, Oku really impressed me with the way he included enough character development and ended the series on a safe and satisfactory note considering how long it usually takes for his characters to develop. I enjoyed this immensely. It had a lot of promise and the characters were all interesting enough that I wished we got to see them grow over 10 or 20 volumes. It's a short read but a pleasant entry into the Gantz universe.