[Categories: Manga Reviews]
Monster volume 6
The sixth instalment focuses very closely on Tenma’s former fianceé Eva, as well as the irrepressible Lunge and highlights how our hero is being hunted down on all sides. Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned as the old saying goes; true enough, Eva will stop at nothing (except maybe a bar) to exact her revenge on him. She even goes as far as teaming up with Roberto in order to get what she wants, which really shows how she is at her lowest ebb.
Lunge also exhibits an almost fanatical desire to bring Tenma in - who else would try to arrest someone while suffering from a serious knife wound?! It’s a shame really that Lunge’s suspicions are so all-consuming yet so misplaced - a mind like his only works to its full potential when it is open to alternative possibities. As it is, he is so convinced of Tenma’s guilt that his insight is very blinkered indeed.
In addition to the regular cast, we’re introduced to some important new ones: a disgraced detective-turned-private investigator, a wealthy old businessman by the name of Schuwald and a young man named Karl who may be his long-lost son, to name but three. Without prior knowledge of the story, I’d say that this is quite an uneventful volume in that anything significant that does happen is centred around characters who have already been introduced (namely Eva and Lunge) and everything else is merely setting up for an unknown destination. Nevertheless, Schuwald turns out to be a very important character in subsequent chapters so it’s not worth skipping.
Johan’s calculating nature strongly suggests that he has plans for Schuwald and Karl, but he still comes across as being almost like a phantom: he appears and disappears at will, leaving no trace. What I found particularly interesting was his reaction to Karl’s recollection of his tragic childhood: was Johan shedding crocodile tears to win Karl’s trust or were those genuine feelings of empathy? It’s so difficult to figure out where the deviousness ends and the genuine regret for a traumatic past begins; I suspect Johan is so psychologically messed-up he doesn’t know either.
Although this volume is setting the scene for events that follow, it is not without its suspenseful moments and certainly not short on the intrigue. As always, the explanations are revealed gradually and with an effective knack of building up the tension. There’s an outdoor shootout in which Eva’s feelings for Tenma are brought out (aided by young Dieter, of all people) and of course there is also the recurring theme of identity being lost in half-forgotten pasts and misinformation. If you’ve reached this point in the story, take my advice and keep going: this is the overture to another great arc in the story.
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