Some seriously twisted scenes lead to a great change in our hero in this latest volume!
Creative Staff
Story/Art: Sui Ishida
Translation: Joe Yamazaki
What They Say
Kaneki is captured and then tortured by Yamori, one of Aogiri Tree organization’s most sadistic members. To survive the interrogation, Kaneki will have to finally surrender to the Ghoul inside him, but if he does, it will change him permanently and push him even further away from being human.
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
The volume kicks off with all the Ghouls back home making up their minds to go after Kaneki. This includes the Gourmet as well, who is miraculously revived and ready for combat, which is a bit odd, but I guess there was a desire here to buff up the group of noteworthy fighters. All this takes up a whole chapter on its own, which does honestly feel a bit excessive, but oh well. Next up, the authorities begin their raid on Aogiri Tree. There’s actually a somewhat interesting setup of a Ghoul holding them back with finely honed sniping skills, but their defensive line inevitably falls when Juzo launches a reckless charge.
The real meat of the volume, though, comes with Kaneki’s torture. Yamori quickly proves just how sick he is as he drives Kaneki to the brink of insanity, and we’re taken along for the ride. Careful imagery and detail makes this section really powerful, and the pure suffering our hero goes through is almost palpable as a result. And in the process we get to see Kaneki’s inner thinking as he works things through, until the breaking point finally comes, and he’s forced to shed his absolute kindness. Of course this also brings with it a bit of breaking free, and we get a cathartic and action packed battle as a result. It’s absolutely brutal and does a great job of displaying how our hero has changed, making for an truly breath-taking scene.
Will the rest of our heroes be able to find Kaneki and safely pull away from the chaos erupting around them? And if they do, just how will they react to the changes he’s undergone?
In Summary
Though this volume does have some weak points to it (noticeably the setup from the beginning), it’s still a powerful one that absolutely deserves attention. In particular, everything surrounding Kaneki’s torture takes up a big part of the book, and the way it’s done has a huge impact. It’s raw, brutal, and absolutely shocking to read through, and does a great job of getting across the horror of the situation. Add to this the big shift you see in our hero here as a result of all this, and you have one hell of a strong plot point. The rest of the book doesn’t quite live up to that brilliance, but there’s still plenty of action to go around to help keep things fresh, so it never really grinds to a halt either. If nothing else, that central plot with Kaneki is masterfully executed and should certainly be experienced, so be sure to give it a read.
Content Grade: A
Art Grade: A-
Packaging Grade: B+
Text/Translation Grade: B+
Age Rating: 16+
Released By: Viz Media
Release Date: June 21st, 2016
MSRP: $12.99
