Today’s Tub Manga: Golden Kamuy (volume 3)

The short review: Golden Kamuy is simply amazing and one of the best things out right now. I think you should read it.

The long review: Intestines. Please take those skewers out of Sugitmoto’s cheeks. Asirpa has the BEST reaction faces. I found out that no matter how ancient Hijikata gets, my fangirlness knows no bounds and he will always be so fuckin’ cool. His whole “Kill them all!” scene gave me goosebumps and I got way too excited.

On a personal note, I absolutely love the portrayal of hunting in this manga. I think it’s so important to the story and I’m really intrigued as to how it’s being received by the readers. One thing in particular that stood out to me is after injuring the deer, as they’re tracking him Asirpa says, “Since the buck is injured, he’ll be trying to avoid climbing any slopes…” And my immediate thought was, “Uh, you’d think that, but you are WRONG.” (Unfortunately, I know this from experience. Not Ezo deer specifically, but still.) So then when their ambush goes awry and the deer escapes by going up the slope, I was oddly satisfied that such a silly but factual thing like that was included.

And at the risk of sounding like a total nutter (or giving away my super secret hunting technique?) Tanigaki’s conversation with Nihei about the “bloodthirsty odor” and the Matagi saying “become one with the trees” made me laugh out loud. I have actually done this. Not become a tree, of course, but tried to have “tree aura.” And for the curious reader, yes, I did end up with elk all around me, some within about four feet. And for the curious reader still reading: at four feet away, one of the elk did finally realize I was, in fact, not a tree and totally freaked out and bolted.

But I digress. READ GOLDEN KAMUY! It’s incredible.

Today’s Tub Manga: Golden Kamuy (volume 2)

What time is it? It’s Golden Kamuy time! Woo!

Approximately four pages into this volume, I wanted to scream to the world, “OMG I LOVE THIS MANGA!” It is really just that freakin’ good.

Saichi has great scars. Asirpa kicks ass and makes poop jokes. The bad guys are skin-crawly. The violence is intense, the live animals perfectly detailed, and the dead animals…even more perfectly detailed. The entire time I’m reading, I think, “Everything in this manga is perfect.” Even the comedy is totally on point. I can’t get enough.

 

Today’s Tub Manga: Golden Kamuy (volume 1)

READ THIS! TRUST ME!

I’d preordered this quite a while ago and was pretty excited about it. I’ll admit, I don’t hesitate to judge a protagonist by his facial scars. So “Golden Kamuy” looked super promising.

And volume 1 was phenomenal. I loved the shit out of it. I kind of worried I was too stoked about it and had set the bar too high but that was ultimately not the case. Volume 1 is exciting and clever and violent and beautiful. I read it way too fast because I just couldn’t stop. I love how the premise seems quite straightforward (looking for gold in Hokkaido) but is made tricky (tattoo map, anyone?).

I also really enjoy what Asirpa brings to the table; I love her practicality and feistiness as well as the flavor her Ainu heritage imparts to the story. I feel like I’m seeing something new. Along with that newness, I felt like we saw a more “wild brutality” in this manga compared to others. Growing up in the mountains, I kind of appreciated that “shit out here in the wilderness can kill you” feeling that this manga does very well.

Lastly, I freaked out at the final pages. I don’t think I blinked. I had a tiny suspicion at the line “old political prisoner” and then I read “Battle of Hakodate” and I was thinking, “No. Fucking. WAYYYYYYY…” and when I turned the page–

well, if I screamed and did a small fist pump of victory, thankfully I was in the tub where I didn’t bother anyone.