Customer Reviews

The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service, Vol. 9

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I love TKCDS!!
V.9 tells us alot about yatas & Kei back story!!!! This is one of the best stories in the V. yet ^-^

Is volume is another installment in what really is a great series for people who enjoy manga aimed at adults.

Eiji Otsuka again uses the KCDS to offer up some really wicked commentary on modern Japanese society. First up he offers an honestly creepy story about dolls stalking a TV show host which holds a mirror up to celebrity, fannish obsession and the Japanese entertainment industry in general. I liked that just who the "bad guy" was is questionable and there is an amusing twist at the end. The only real problem is that TV show host Yuriri looks a LOT like Makino so I feel a bit confused at times.

Next is a story that's short, fun riff on the tale of the Headless Horseman. It's a nice read but not the strongest of stories.

Following that is the real gold of this volume. A very dark tale concerning Japanese actions in WW2 and some utterly *savage* riffing on modern Japanese politics. I've lived in Japan so I understand the political subtilies going on here but they're likely to be lost on most English-speaking readers which really is a shame.

Finally, we get a short story that gives some real depth to Yata and Makino's pasts. Despite going into the hardships in their pasts the story end on a cute, upbeat note which is nice after the very grim previous tale.

A few flaws aside this is a really good read and worth picking up for any manga fan.

I will admit, the artwork at the beginning of the series wasn't the absolute greatest. However, no one can deny that as the series progressed the artwork has improved drastically as Otsuka got a better feel for his characters. This volume is no exception to that.

As with the previous volumes, this volume can be read as a standalone book with only a few exceptions. There's a few references to previous story lines, but none that are so absolutely necessary that you have to read the previous volumes. (But I do recommend reading all of the previous books for the best experience, though.)

The stories in this volume show that the stories are getting more "out there" than the first few tales in the series, with one story being about a dead scientist who made a suit that could render him invisible & another about a dead professor with a gift for knowing lots of nasty little political secrets. There's also the return of the Mumume-Tan costume as well as a story about dolls that like to stalk a certain pretty celebrity.

Over all, my impression of this volume is that I liked it- I just didn't like all of the stories. The one about the dead professor was a little boring, which is unfortunate because it's a rather lengthy one. It's not absolutely terrible, but when I re-read this volume I usually end up flipping through it rather than reading through it.