Buso Renkin, Vol. 2

Time is rapidly running out for Tokiko, whose body is slowly being overtaken by a homuculu embryo. And the second volume of "Buso Renkin" is a suitably fast-paced affair, full of explosive action, blood and an overhanging sense of dread, although I didn't expect Nobuhiro Watsuki to have the hero and villain confront each other so soon. Kazuki starts combing the school anew for the Papillion Mask, who turns out to be a brilliant, dying student named Koushaku Chouno. Chouno first offers to trade the antidote for Kazuki's kakugane -- and after learning that it brought Kazuki back to life, he tries to take it by force. As Tokiko is about to destroy the final embryo -- the humanoid homunculus core -- she and Kazuki are attacked by Chouno's last servant, a hawk homunculus named Washio. Unfortunately defeating Washio isn't the only thing that Kazuki needs to do, when the embryo reaches Tokiko's neck and paralyzes her legs. Naturally, our hero never gives up, even as the deadline for Chouno's and Tokiko's embryos approaches. But when the toxic Chouno family's politics disrupt everything, Kazuki must choose between his vow not to kill his enemy, and letting Tokiko die. The second volume of "Buso Renkin" is a pretty intense experience, with plenty of explosive homunculus action, a touch of mystery (who is that trenchcoated man?) and some truly horrific material (Papillion in a thong -- PUT THE BUTT AWAY!). And the whole thing is a fratic race against the clock, with only hours before Tokiko turns into a homunculus and/or finishes herself off. And Nobuhiro Watsuki milks every aspect of the story for all it's worth -- a lot of this is taken up by the action and horror, whether it's Kazuki's duel against superhuman homunculi (including the winged Washio), or Papillion's ghastly transformation and mad-eyed devouring of his own kin ("It's dark as the devil. It's hot as hell. It's sweet as a kiss... so this is what human taste like"). Fortunately there is an undercurrent of delightfully over-the-top comedy ("No point in hiding it!" Mahiro says, right before bandaging poor Tokiko like a mummy) to keep things from becoming too grim. And though the finale seems like the ending of the series, the last few pages -- and the strange coat-wearing man's appearance -- hint that Tokiko and Kazuki may not be quite done yet. The once-innocent Kazuki goes through some painful growth there, struggling with a no-win scenario that challenges his deeply-held beliefs. That, and he bleeds some more. And Watsuki crafts a truly unique antagonist in Washio, a hawk homunculus who proves to be dramatically different from Chouno's other homunculi. You actually like and respect him after his duel. The second volume of "Buso Renkin" is a bloody, explosive fight right to the end, and fortunately things aren't quite over yet.

Each book just keeps getting better and better. To me, the plot is interesting, and the characters, though still finding their footing, are full of life and are easy to identify with. Tokiko is the cool battle babe, and Kazuki is the kind of brother I think we all would like to have (his sister and friends are a little whacko, but what can you say?. The villan's personality is sick and twisted-perfect for the bad guy. So many people say 'this series is nothing compared to Rurouni Kenshin' but that's (maybe) half true. I will love RK until I die, but you know what? These stories are SOOO different, you just can't compare them; there's no point. In my opinion, Watsuki has done it again! Can't wait for the next volume!