Sniper vs. Sniper, Blade-wielding Bunny Girl vs. Saw-whip Slinging Office Lady, Ogre-Girl vs. Angry Mob, Edward Sword-hands vs. the Cops, and Kuroko vs. Evil Leader of Terrorists; more than enough action for any fan!
Creative Staff
Story/Art: Yoshimurakana
Translation/Adaptation: Christine Dashiell
What They Say
After a chemical weapon attack on the police department, Kuroko tracks down the extremist group responsible and goes on the offensive! Will she be able to bring the organization’s members to justice, or will this case end up unsolved?
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
Kuroko may be a convicted killer in the employ of the police, but she could have been a great detective given her sleuthing skills and a network of informants. Luckily for both the police and the city, she manages to track down the exact location of the Sakura Pruning Group terrorist hideout. Now Kuroko just has to intelligently deploy her foot soldiers so she can face the final boss without wasting any of her energy, and weapons.
First up is little Rinko. When she dons her bunny mask and pulls her blades, she’s a cold-blooded killer. Kuroko leaves Rinko to deal with the beautiful Aiko, second in command of the Sakura Pruning Group. We know why Rinko is so screwed up given her childhood, but why has Aiko sided with the Sakura Pruning Group and how does she know about Rinko and Kuroko?
The ogre-sized street fighter Ran isn’t to be left out of the fighting. She was kicked out of the underground fight league in Ruruie City and just itching to beat in the face of anyone she can get her hands on. Well, any man she can find because she isn’t willing to fight women. I can see why Ran and Kuroko are buddies, and luckily for Ran there is a mob of low-level terrorists for her to destroy.
While all this is going on, the manly sniper, Reiko, is battling above the streets against the Sakura Pruning Group’s own sniper. The two seem equally matched as they play their deadly game of cat and mouse across the rooftops. One of them will have to outsmart the other given their similar set of skills.
Not to be outdone by her minions, Kuroko faces off against the leader of the Sakura Pruning Group, Higaki. We still don’t know what Higaki wants to accomplish with his terrorist group, but in classic Kuroko fashion, she doesn’t give this man the time of day. But Higaki has survived the brutal underworld and prison for decades, so Kuroko will have her work cut out for her.
In Summary:
The nonstop action in this latest volume more than makes up for the slower tempo of the previous book. The great thing about Kuroko’s character is her ability to turn most of her enemies (at least the women) into her foot soldiers and informants. That gives her the chance to deploy four of her former enemies plus Hinako in her fight against the Sakura Pruning Group. This adds to the appeal of Murcielago as the cast of characters continues to grow. Sprinkle in little hints about the key moments in the character’s pasts and Yoshimurakana keeps me eagerly awaiting each new volume of Murcielago.
Content Grade: B+
Art Grade: B
Packaging Grade: A
Text/Translation Grade: A
Age Rating: Older Teen
Released By: Yen Press
Release Date: October 30th, 2018
MSRP: $13.00
