by xombiemonkey on May 4th, 2008, 5:30pm

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User rating of this review - 4 out of 5
Story/Plot - 4.5 out of 5
Characters - 4.5 out of 5
Drawing Style - 5 out of 5
Enjoyment - 5 out of 5
Overall - 4.7 out of 5

Click here for series information

Plot/Story
The story starts off in a subway tunnel. It introduces Kei Kurono. After he helps his old friend Kota haul a hobo off the tracks, they here a train coming. They run for it as fast as they can, but they arent quite fast enough. After being hit, they wake up in an appartment with a few other people sitting in the room and a black sphere in the middle. They try to get out, but for some reason none of the doors will open. After the arrival of another character, they see some writing on the Gantz sphere and it opens up, revealing strange looking weapons and suits. After gearing up, the black sphere, known as Gantz, tells them to kill an alien and transports them to the middle of the city. This is where Gantz gets interesting, as the survivers of each mission keep getting thrown into another one until they earn enough points to buy their way out. The aliens they fight are varied and creative, and there are many twists and turns in the plot. It constantly has you asking questions, but rarely reveals much. The plot advances at a great pace, introducing new characters frequently, but most of them don't last more than one mission. Overall, the plot is great and well thought out.
Characters
Kei Kurono: perverted, assholish, but deep down has a good heart. I could relate heavily with his character because he almost seems like a direct reflection of myself. He starts out as a whiney, perverted teenager, not above taking advantage of a girl, but after he becomes the boyfriend of a nerdy otaku, he starts to change for the better. He finds someone he loves, and is willing to protect her to the end. Later on, after meeting Reika and the rest of the new Gantz team, he starts to develop great leadership skills, and becomes a hero in the eyes of his peers. Overall, I really like his character because of how similar he is to me at the beginning.

Masaru Kato: Basically the opposite of Kurono. He's caring, noble, and tries his best to protect people. He's very likeable, but I couldn't really relate to him that much. He is a very influential character, though. Kota, however indirectly, was able to get Kei Kurono to stop standing around wetting himself, and start acting like a hero

Joichiro Nishi: A middle schooler who seems to know more about Gantz than he lets on, Nishi is the definition of asshole. He's kind of like a younger, seemingly less perverted version of Kurono, but for some reason he just gives off a more evil, sadistic vibe.

Shion Izumi: The first actual "villain" in the series, he starts out as an athletic, handsome, incredibly popular friend of Kurono's, but eventually starts to reveal that his sanity isn't fully intact, and that he's much more evil and sadistic than anyone thought.

Reika: Although having the biggest breasts, and possibly the most nude scenes of any of the characters, Reika is the most competent, well-developed female in the series. She starts out with a crush on Kurono, then eventually falls in love with him and tries to model herself after his heroism.
Drawing Style
The art can be desbribed as one word: amazing. This is the best art I've seen since Gantz. The characters are drawn very well, and a lot of the gory look like they should be in a video game. I don't want to get into too much detail, but breasts are very well-drawn, and you can tell that the mangaka takes a lot of time trying to make them look just right.
Enjoyment
This is a manga that I couldnt put down. I would read it for hours on end, just dying to know what happens next. The pacing is perfect, and you'll find that hours pass like minutes when you're reading this. The only other manga that had me captivated like this was Love Hina, and that's saying something, since I pretty much worship Love Hina. This manga will definately entertain you, and everytime you feel that it starts to get repetetive, they throw in something to keep you reading, whether it's a new, interesting character, or just a line of witty humor.
Overall
Gantz is a great read, although the gratuitous amounts of violence and sex will turn off some. The plot never seizes to leave you wondering, and the characters are well thought out, although the highlight of this series has to be the breathtaking art.

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