Confusion with the confusion, but how fun! – review of the manga “Rumik World”

Aliens planting bombs on a regular newspaper delivery man, secret agents with superpowers, and an unusual relationship based on arguments are just a few of the themes of the manga stories in the first volume of Rumik World . If you like reading short, but funny stories at the same time, you will surely like this publication.

The manga publisher JPF decided to spoil its fans with beautiful editions of several titles by Rumiko Takahashi. This famous cartoonist, awarded with several awards, has such manga as: Ranma ½ , Inuyasha or Urusei Yatsura , which have sold tens of millions of copies and is certainly known to a large part of Japanese culture fans.

Great fun

The first volume of Rumik World is 10 selected short stories. Each tells about different characters, so we get a very varied collection of characters. The first adventure tells us about a newspaper carrier, who becomes entangled in a cosmic game between alien extraterrestrials, strange water creatures and the people themselves. Each of the nations involved has goals and plans to be achieved, but they do not take into account one fact – the man they want to use as their tool really wants to distribute the newspapers to their customers.

The second story is, on the one hand, a reference to the events of Japanese history – the famine wave caused in 1783 by the effects of the Asama volcano eruption, and on the other hand, it deals with an important topic, which is the thought of resources. The plot is presented very humorously, but under the guise of playful behavior and texts Takahashi reaches for an issue that is important for people (especially now, when we are struggling with the problem of climate change).

All gold that is holy is told of a greedy marriage who are able to go to any lengths (even invoke ancient deities) to obtain happiness – as material goods they understand. The events of this manga are comical and abstract on the one hand, and a bit scary on the other, because the main victim is the couple’s son.

If you are a fan of spy climates, then five more stories titled Dust spurt , about two unusual agents, you will definitely like. Tamuro Gomi and Yura Enjoji are members of the Hinomaru-CIA (Japanese intelligence group) with supernatural abilities. The power of a man is teleportation (but only from garbage to rubbish), and the power of a woman is super strength (and a very explosive character). Their task is to protect Japan and ultimately the world from the secret evil organization Perfekton. A lot happens in these five adventures, because both sides have a lot of problems with the organization and selection of weapons or locations for hiding. So get ready not for scrupulously thought out intrigues, but for a racial comedy of errors.

The last two stories are less complicated than the ones that precede them, but still very engaging. Out of this world business tells how the school club tries to earn money by summoning ghosts, and the spouses show that in a good relationship, the couple should first of all respond to their needs.

Perfectly drawn, excellently rendered

These 288 pages of Takahashi manga are very entertaining reading. The author has a rich imagination, remarkable sense of humor, efficiently uses a situational joke, and thanks to the appropriate translation, the whole is also rich in very funny dialogues. More than once while reading, I have sneezed under my breath, and I’m sure I’ll come back to these stories when my mood drops. It is worth noting, however, that the author’s drawing style is different from those in modern manga and not everyone may like it. I grew up on anime based on the work of Rumiko Takahashi, so finally getting to know the actual works of this cartoonist gives me a lot of pleasure. The publisher has also made an effort in terms of the quality of the publication, so the eyes are pleased with the larger format, colorful pages at the beginning of the manga and consistency with other titles published as part of the Rumiko Takahashi series.

I just want to deliver the newspapers!

The first volume of Rumik World provides us with absurd and at the same time funny stories, the plot of which is pleasantly non-standard. This manga is read with great interest and pleasure. At the same time, as part of a larger series about this author, it is a nicely published publication that will look beautiful on the shelf of every fan.