Biomega vol. 6

This volume begins with a very pleasant surprise:  two full-color cast recap pages that introduce you to the main characters and elements of the story and their place in it.  While Zoichi and Fuyu need no introduction at this point, the other parts were very welcome in a series where clarity isn’t its strongest suit.  Unfortunately, that’s this concluding volume’s biggest detriment as a lot of what goes on is just plain confusing, if not impossible to understand.  That being said, there are still plenty of cool action sequences rendered in mangaka Tsutomu Nihei’s typically spectacular art to appreciate along with the fact that the series didn’t descend into incoherence before this volume.

Things start out with tense zombie movie pastiche as a family on the Recreator finds out that the N5S virus that caused the drone epidemic on Earth is still lurking around.  Then we find out what happened to the Grizzly sniper Kozlov and his doctor friend after the events of vol. 4, and he gets clued into his role in the final conflict.  There’s another chapter involving two of Niarudi’s agents that doesn’t really make much sense beyond revealing Eon Green’s whereabouts, but things kick into high gear for the final three chapters as Zoichi, Fuyu and Funipero begin their assault on the DRF’s headquarters.  Zoichi’s infiltration-by-motorcycle and Funipero’s duel with Niarudi are both exciting sequences that showcase the series’ strongest aspect:  creating stylish over-the-top action sequences.

To get to these sequences, you’ll have to put up with little issues like wondering about the time difference between Kozlov’s arrival on the Recreator and how he catches up to the “present day,” and where the “human” characters in the third chapter came from.  While I can force myself to not think too hard about these things, it’s a lost cause when I’m thrown up against the massive amounts of exposition and nonsensical revelation that make up the final chapter.  Though the general idea of what’s happening can be gleaned, so many plot developments and action sequences are crammed together here that it can’t help but fall flat.

Even with the weak climax, I still enjoyed the series.  My expectations were very low going into it, and I was surprised when they were exceeded.  Though the series succeeded mainly in presenting an example of how to properly do “style over substance” — provide enough plot and context to make the action scenes matter — I was most surprised by how it showed that Nihei had grown as a storyteller from his work on “Blame!”  Granted, he still has a long way to go before the quality of his writing matches his art but I can believe that such a thing is actually possible now.  It’s a mixed bag, but I do recommend this series and am looking forward to seeing whatever Nihei does next.