About.com Rating

The Bottom Line

After an exciting but confusing first installment, the second volume of Black God offers a little more clarity about the mototsumitama, a race of superhuman warriors. But for every question that's answered here, several more pop up to keep readers perplexed.

On the upside, there's some satisfying character development as we see Keita's sensitive side and learn more about the symbiotic human / mototsumitama pact.

Lim and Park also give us more of the high-intensity fight scenes that made the first installment so memorable. While it's not brilliant, there's enough here to keep readers on the hook for Volume 3.



Pros

• Offers an intriguing mix of poignant drama, supernatural suspense, action and humor
• Answers a few more questions about mototsumitama left hanging from Volume 1
• Introduces readers to Mikami, a more street-wise mototsumitama assassin
• Provides glimpses of a more sensitive side of the normally selfish Keita
• More of the inventive and wildly violent fight scenes that made the first volume so powerful

Cons

• Includes gratuitous shots of women in their underwear fighting like rabid bobcats
• Still poses many more questions than it ever answers, with some confusing terminology

Description

• Original Title:Kurogami (Japan)
• Author: Dall-Young Lim
  Artist: Sung-Woo Park
• Publishers:Yen Press (US)
  Square Enix (Japan)
• ISBN: 978-0-7595-2841-3
• Cover Price: $10.99 US / $12.75 CANADA / £5.99 UK
• Age Rating:OT – Older Teens, Age 16+ for bloody violence, strong language, partial nudity
  More about content ratings.

• Manga Genres:
  • Seinen (Men's) Manga
  • Korean Manhwa
  • Action / Adventure
  • Martial Arts Action
  • Paranormal / Supernatural
• US Publication Date: February 2008
  Japan Publication Date: 2005
• Book Description: 224 pages, black and white illustrations, 4 color pages

Guide Review - Black God Volume 2

In Black God Volume 1, super-strong Kuro and ordinary Keita entered into blood pact that binds them together – but what exactly does that mean? Thankfully, Lim and Park shed a little more light on this symbiotic relationship by introducing Mikami and Shingo, an older mototsumitama / human duo. At first, Kuro is thrilled to meet a fellow mototsumitama– but her happiness is short-lived as she discovers that the streetwise Mikami is an assassin for hire, and her next target is Akane, Kuro and Keita's dearest friend.

As friends turn into enemies, Kuro and Mikami fight fiercely. In the process, Keita and Kuro discover the greater power that they have when they "synchronize" and the potentially high toll that may come from their relationship. Also, a little bit more is revealed about a dark conspiracy surrounding doppleliners, or humans who have two identical counterparts.

Black God Volume 2 has much of the same ingredients that made the first volume interesting: high-intensity fight scenes, a mysterious supernatural cosmology and some humorous moments to keep things from getting too heavy. What's been added this time is a bit of bittersweet romance, as the no-holds barred fight between Mikami and Kuro is interspersed with flashbacks of Mikami's long-term relationship with Shingo.

On the downside, Black God is still somewhat hard to figure out – What exactly is an "exceed" and how is it related to the "coexistence equilibrium?" Lim tosses out a lot of terminology, but doesn't really explain them. The other problem, which may not be a problem to some, are the gratuitous shots of semi-nude, big breasted women and almost ridiculous amount of bloody violence. I'm not ready to put this series at the top of my must-buy list, but it's got enough here to keep me on the hook for Volume 3.