One of the greatest manga ever created. The plot twists are completely unpredicatble but when they happen, you can't hope but think that you should have figured it out earlier.
Don't even think about not reading this manga, I have not ever seen someone rate this less than 10/10.

20th Century Boys have its strong points indeed, the mystery hooked me pretty well at first, but man, what a lame bunch of "heroes"! I can't remember having seen before an equal or worse group of such powerless and witless protagonists that have to defeat a strong villain, specially the main character. Chapter after chapter I kept waiting that they would pull out something or do something out of the ordinary against the villains, but they didn't! They only won because the villain was a fan of the main protagonist, his childhood friend, and kind of gave up. Even the girl that had actual super powers didn't do much in the end. Lame, plain lame! I felt deceived after finishing it, the only character I liked was the girl that was the comic relief of the story, while she tried desperately to keep her head attached to her neck in that brainwashing prision school.

... Last updated on June 9th, 2017, 3:56pm

I am at a loss of words. It truly is a masterpiece. If you are looking for a heroic story, this is it.

This is simply the best story ever told im my opinion. If you're a fan of giant conspiracies and plot twists, then this is the story for you. No book, movie or videogame comes even close to having a story this perfect. I fell in love with Monster when I first saw the anime and thought that nothing could ever top it. But I can now say with confidence that 20thCB completely blows Monster away, and that's not easy to do considering how great Monster was.

This is definitely one of the most compelling works I've ever read. Many plots and sub-plots are woven together so well that the whole is an intricate tapestry of mystery, intrigue, and suspense. Nothing is too confusing to understand, though the story is quite sophisticated.

The mangaka seems to have been heavily influenced by the works of Stephen King. Echoes of The Stand and Stand by Me haunt the reader throughout the series. Although somewhat unoriginal, these story elements are used expertly to keep the reader enthralled by the well paced revelations.

The only real weakness I can find is the lack of closure. As others have said before, it seemed like new plot twists were added only for the sake of extending the life of the series.

Now for a spoiler, something I almost never do.



The many flashbacks and flashforwards can be a bit confusing. Scenes from past, present, and future are sometimes depicted on the same page. Read carefully to avoid getting lost in time.

Overall, it's a truly great work, and I strongly recommend it to those who enjoy drama, mystery, and psychological. Fans of sci-fi and supernatural will not likely be satisfied.

... Last updated on November 17th, 2008, 10:06am

is this manga better then monster?

This is the very first manga I have ever enjoyed this much. The story and the art is perfect. The main characters are perfect. Everything matches. Even FMA and GANTZ which were the number ones before this are lower than 20th Century Boys.

Not good either.

Don't miss it! when i first downloaded the 1st Vol., i checked the 1st page and decided to not to read.why? cause it didn't seem interesting. A month later, i decided to give it another try. I read the 1st chpt. then the whole 1st Vol and boy i was wrong!!! it is a master piece. Everything is great: the art, characters, plot and Everything!!!!. if you're looking for something special, Don't miss it.

Dramatic and thrilling. Will have your spine tingling when you reach over to turn the page.