Kaiju No. 8 vol. 4

The kaiju decided to take the fight to humanity in a big way at the end of vol. 3.  Not content to simply attack humanity in its cities, they decided to take on the defense force at the home of its third division.  Unfortunately for the kaiju, that isn’t just the place where protagonist Kafka Hibino is stationed.  It’s also where his childhood friend and current military idol Mina Asahiro is stationed, along with ultra-skilled blade specialist Soshiro Hoshina.  It’s him who gets the spotlight in the volume’s first half as he pushes against his limits to take on the kaiju who is leading the attack on the base.  However, it’s Kafka who winds up saving the day in a way that delivers on a plot development that was all but inevitable for this series.  Now he’s going to have to go up against a living legend of the defense force, Isao Shinomiya, a man with the weapons (and aura) of a daikaiju and someone who’s determined to dispose of our protagonist for the good of humanity.

“Kaiju No. 8” isn’t likely to turn into one of the great shonen action titles the way it’s been going so far.  There’s no sense that it’s trying to buck the conventions of the genre in the way “Chainsaw Man” does, and it doesn’t throw out the unpredictable twists or strategic fighting that “Jojo” delivers on a regular basis.  What this series does have is rock-solid execution and plenty of style to back it up.  Even if the beats of the fight between Soshiro and the kaiju feel familiar, the breakneck speed and intensity of the combat still draws you in.  Ditto for Kafka’s last-second save, and I’m really not upset that they’re playing this particular card so soon.  It was something that was obviously going to happen at some point, so it’s likely for the best that they’re getting it out of the way now.  As for how our protagonist is going to live through this development, well… I’ll admit I can’t quite guess how that’s going to turn out.  Which, as always, is a good thing.