Zetman

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Zetman is a Seinen, Sci-fi, Action, Drama that traces the lives of two rival heroes; developing and enacting their own form of judgment in a DC Comics fashion. Still it is a major problem, since you’re mostly unaware of what Zetman is about until much later on.

Describing the story for Zetman is quite the arduous task, because not only is it hard to make any sense out of the 1st couple chapters but nothing is clearly explained until much later. The beginning basically sets the scene for this manga, which has something to do with monsters known as ‘players’ and it introduces a kid who’s ... somewhat involved in all this. Then we jump to another kid who’s grown up idolizing a cartoon superhero, which soon influences his future aspiration. None of the numerous plots floating about really makes sense at this point and it takes a long time before the real story surfaces. Till then all the reader can do is follow the lives of two boys (Jin Kanzaki & Kouga Amagi) who share a sense of justice but live completely different lives. It’s quite odd that this manga suddenly splits into two separate stories but then again it’s also captivating the way it shows the different hardships our characters face, which lead them into sharing a similar goal.

Sure there are two main characters that share the same strong sense of justice but they’re both incredibly different. Jin Kanzaki is a “down to earth” kind of guy, who is both blessed and burdened of being a superhuman known as “Zet”; whereas Kouga Amagi is a sheltered rich boy, who’s always dreamed of being a hero of justice. There are other characters that bring a good change of pace to this really grim story; be it family, friends or love interests nonetheless quite a few of the characters have unappealing personalities.

However what certainly isn’t unappealing is the artwork, as this manga does an amazing job in portraying the gritty reality of this unreal world. Even though everything from the backdrop to the characters look rather sketchy, there’s a great deal of detail put into all of it, including the towering skyscrapers and the technical devices. To sum it up, the art is near perfect, with everything having an interesting Western comic book style. I just had some minor qualms with the gruesome action scenes, not for the level of gore but because it can be difficult to tell what kind of blow was landed.

Overall Zetman is a great piece for those heroic/action story lovers, with a particular question that seems to surface a lot “what is your idea of justice?” Sadly it doesn’t even give the reader a clear idea of what the story is entirely about early on but part of the experience is from finding out yourself. As you read on you’ll begin to tell that the mangaka really makes an effort to construct a logical storyline. Sure the cover picture and the undeniable theme of justice may get you thinking of your classic Western comic book but that’s what makes this Japanese manga so special.

Zetman is about Justice.

But what is impressive about Zetman is the way it chooses two characters, completely different from each other, puts them side by side and lets us see how their ideas of justice are similar and different. They have the same goals, but what is most precious to them, what they decide to sacrifice to achieve their
goals are very different.

Jin is a superhuman known as Zet. From a young age, he has discovered the hardships of life as he loses many people who are very precious to him. Through these incidents, he becomes sort of a cold person who likes to ... pretend he doesn’t care about anything but inside doesn’t want to lose anyone anymore. To do this, he tries to keep distance from the people he cares about. He believes that the people closest to him are most important and that saving someone’s life is always right, even if the person doesn’t want to be saved. He didn’t want to become a hero but because of Zet, he realizes that he must or the people close to him will always be in danger.

Kouga on the other hand is a rich and quite spoiled boy who dreams of becoming a superhero. His friends have built him a suit that gives him more or less superhuman abilities. He doesn’t actually question what justice is to him until he encounters Jin and an incident that shows him the horrors of life. He is still a bit unclear of what justice and idolizes Jin for being so clear of his ideas of justice.

The two characters are quite the opposites, but when they interact the question of “What is Justice?” constantly pops up. As the characters struggle to find what they believe is justice, we also find ourselves wondering with them.

Zetman’s entertainment doesn’t all just come from themes and characters though. The action is quite nerve breaking. The romance subplot is also quite strong and enjoyable. It is interesting to read about the tension between their lives as people and their lives as superheroes. They try to understand what being a superhero means but also have to cope and protect with the ones they love. Of coures, the originality of this isn't there, but its still fun.

Oh. And The Art Is Amazing.
It’s quite an amazing feeling seeing all the details put into it. The characters, the background and the action scenes are all just drawn so well.

Sadly, the pacing of the manga is rather very hard to follow as the beginning explains very little about the setting. The direction of the plot for a while is almost impossible to follow especially "the Kouga arc". I admit I’ve actually dropped this manga a few times. Still, if you keep with it, and when everything connects, simple enjoyment will overwhelm you.

I have to give this manga a 10! Everything about it is stunning. From the story line to the artwork it is a must read. The emotions and events that happen in the manga keep you on the edge of your seat wanting more. Ok enough talking please go and read it you won't be disappointed!^_~

Zetman is a Devilman derivative (or in the case of the original one-shot, an obvious pastiche) that fills the niche of those looking for a darker, sexier superhero comic while retaining some of the camp of the genre, along with character duality reminiscent of a reversed Batman/Superman dynamic. Fans of the slow-burn will enjoy the steady build of the plot, while others may be frustrated at points where it seems to move *too* slow.

Its strongest point lies in its artwork, which will likely keep people reading despite bumps in story construction. The artwork is beautiful and polished, with immaculate attention to detail and anatomy put ... into the character designs and settings, which is impressive during extensive fight scenes with highly detailed characters. Those who appreciate the hyper-detail that goes into works like Berserk will likewise also appreciate the effort put into Zetman's art and design.

Storywise, Zetman is a familiar sci-fi take on a classic subject and becomes fairly meta as genre-specific anime origins become integrated into its plot. While slowly paced, the story is full of timeskips and flashbacks, at times becoming incoherent or suffering from superfluous dialogue when the priority should be "show, not tell." The attention to detail is extensive, but the storytelling would benefit with streamlined editing. While the overall soul of the story is meant to be in the internal conflicts of the main characters with a "nature vs. nurture" subtext, it remains weak by being largely driven by plot points, with the main character remaining fairly static. While a hit-and-miss for some, Kouga's character arc remains the most dynamic thus far.

This lack of dynamism extends to the female characters to a great degree - most lack dimension and serve as plot devices to create conflict for the male characters. It's worth mentioning that this manga could be called "Fridged Women: Zetman Edition." Those with a low tolerance for this trope will quickly become frustrated by the constant sexualized peril and exploitation of the female characters, which appears so fetishistic it can border on guro. While tolerable the first few times, the constant recurrence can quickly become redundant and exhausting. Those discerning of well-developed romance will probably crinkle their nose when the first major one comes out of left field, feeling jarringly hasty and uncharacteristic. The motive for the shoddily constructed romance is blindingly obvious, which will leave some with a sour taste.

For all its flaws, Zetman has its poignant moments and is worthwhile for those looking for a niche seinen with retro superhero vibes. This story could also satisfy anyone simply looking to read something with beautiful art. It is committed to retaining suspense and tension, which makes it an exciting read when all the elements flow smoothly. With the action only now seeming to truly kick off, it could still have time to iron out its flaws.

I just finished reading the available chapters of Zetman and I just have to say WOW!!! What a trip! From what I've read in the superhero genre this is something extraordinary, from the artwork, to the characters, the world, and above everything else; the story. What makes Zetman stand out from the lot is the incredible well written story. For good and bad, there appears to be a long tradition of improvisation in the art of manga-storytelling. You create the characters, set a premise, and then just going where the story takes you, one arc at the time. Even if there technically is arcs in ... Zetman, the story is so tightly woven that everything is connected and everything overlaps, there's nothing the typical crescendo -> resolution movement, and you really need to read it from the start. Even after 200 chapters you see flashbacks to the first chapters. The effort put into the story is just incredible, and I've get come across any major "loose threads" that defiles the logic of the story.

Another thing that is really impressive about Zetman is the world that Zetman is zet into (fufufu). I can be really picky about suspending my disbelief, and I can also be really tired of long written out explanations on the (imaginary) world's logic, that many adventure/scifi mangas are burdened with. In Zetman I did not come across anything like this, the world and it's logic works really well. One interesting aspect is the neo-materialism that the story have, there is nothing supernatural here, everything is defined within the boundaries of science, and not even souls separated from the body exists (as it is written out anyway). This is not a big point within the story, it just happens to be there.

It's actually quite refreshing that this manga does not rely on existentialistic themes and philosophy and instead focuses on actual storytelling. Sure, you'll get your share of neo-materialistic (almost nihilistic) ethics, especially the question on what "justice" really is and who is worth saving, but it's not the main focus as some seinen mangas have it.

The art, just stunning. Just amazing. I can not help to feel sorry for all the poor assistants who had to work day and night to trace those crazy backgrounds, like seriously, that is one insane effort put down in those details, I'd run out of superlatives if I were to describe it with words. Read the manga already.

What amazes me about the characters is how realistic they are. They are portrayed with warmth and a sensitivity to the human psyche, in this manga things matter, and people just doesnt move on after life changing traumatic events as if nothing ever happened. Even the villains have their reasons, and even the silly appearance of the non-human cast have a great and actually credible backstory.

So hey, what's more to say? The scanlation group Evil Genius have through their work with Zetman, Berserk and others given a huge gift to the English speaking part of the world. Now I wish someone would license it in English so we can give something back to the mangaka himself (and his loyal team of assistants!(whom all have autism and are hung up on drawing huge constructions of trashed concrete)).

A manga with great art, but that's all it has to offer.

An uninteresting story with a shallow development that doesn't seem to go out of place.

Apart from the characters that are very one-dimensional. Seeing Kouga screaming "justice" all the time is so irritating, and development around this theme is nil.

The art is beautiful, that's a fact. The fights are also very well done.
But that's not all that makes a story good to follow.

Anyway, it wasn't a good read. But the main point that led me to drope was because the work had an open ending for an act 2 that never came...
I see no reason ... to follow a work that has no conclusion, frustrating any use of history.

This is one of the best manga i've have read in a long time, really even if sometimes you might say "this manga goes too slow and doenst show much battles like on some other mangas", the story is excellent, the main characters are very realistic, they art is really good as expected from the artist who has made great mangas before and finally its really enjoyable since you always want to see what happens next.
I really recommend it for those people who like a lot of violence

There are so many words to describe it and so little time because i dont want to bore you. This manga has so much action you might not think it is made by Katsura, Masakazu. The manga is one of my top favorites. And it wont disappoint. Come on how many homeless kids do you see kicking butt? That is really all i need to say.

tl;dr: A manga with interesting themes, characters, and plot threads that just throws them all away at the end.

Zetman is to some degree a manga about super hero origins, but it's more so a manga that explores some of the issues relating to the ethics of super heroes, and hence goes deeper and gets quite a bit darker than most super hero related works. This dark setting works pretty well, and the issues relating to justice and such mostly come through pretty well. The various character relationships were done pretty well too, with Jin and Kagou serving as good foils to one another, and the romantic aspects also being pretty well done for the most part. The ... plot was interesting too, in that there did seem to be a lot going on and a lot of players with various motivations and plans. However, all of this is severely hampered by how the ending is a complete nonending that doesn't do anything that an ending is supposed to do. While the ethics and such behind being a hero and justice were explored a good amount throughout the series, in the end it never felt like they actually made any sort of point. The various character relationships too end on a note where they're all completely broken, which is simply sad, not bittersweet, just kind of bitter. The plot never actually comes together. There are a lot of plans and conspiracies and twists where it turns out that the plans, goals, and motivations behind various characters are very different from what they appeared to be, but in the end it never became clear what the actual goals were, and what was actually going on, and ultimately the extremely long finale simply felt like chaos. There isn't a proper ending, rather the ending is essentially a set up for a time skip, being more preoccupied with setting up new plot threads then resolving them. But even in terms of that, it felt quite strange, in that it doesn't stop at the time skip, but has one chapter that shows things after the time skip that doesn't actually resolve anything either but rather just feels kind of awkward in terms of there eventually being a proper continuation. Though considering the time frame, it seems unlikely a continuation ever will be made at this point. I really liked the art style, art, and character designs, though I was fond of the general style more towards the beginning toward the end because it seemed it got a lot more reserved. 

Ah Zetman... Another one of your traditional seinin mangas that combine gore, death, and sexual explicity into one ghastly package. It was an ok manga...until you reach the one part where [ SENTENCE IS BLOCKED DUE TO SPOILER ] of course... Eeeeuh that part made me puke.

So Zetman. It features a unique and different take of a superhero and also a gloomy one (kinda like Batman).

The storyline is great and is full of mysterious parts which keeps the reader guessing what's gonna happen next. It truly is a masterpeice as it presents a story which is different ... in its take and is very sci-fi. Kinda like Guilty Crown but in a less shitty, more f*cked up kinda way.

The characters are unique too as they represent a more unique and different bunch although they do remind me of Batman characters somehow...

Its a pretty radical story and most of it is full of mystery with a light touch of comedy and a spoonful of tragedy.

The problem here is that it is meant for mature readers and certain parts may be very disturbing. It has sexually explicit parts and being a seinen, lots of gore. So if you don't want your child to grow up to be Charles Lee Ray, keep it away from him.

In short Zetman is a wonderful and beautifully illustrated masterpeice but is a little too much for me. It is mainly for mature readers and younger readers are advised to stay away from it. 8/10.

A perfect blend of Manga and Western style comics about a strange homeless kid with a halo mark on his hand, monsters hidden throughout the city, and the amagi corporation.

Zetman is by no means complicated in its themes just think Devilman meets Batman Beyond all covered and wrapped in the allure of a mystery novel with tons of dark themes regarding superheroes, origins, and ideals.

The action and imagery is realistic, dark, brutal, and unsettling true to the superhero nature of the manga the fights indeed reflect that with dynamic impacts and transformations

The art is highly detailed and gorgeous which is to be expected from Katsura, ... Masakazu creator of Tiger and Bunny and Zetman his illustrations of his characters always slick and full of expressions while looking badass and emanating a sense of coolness

Zetman was a really interesting read, it's been years since I've seen a picture of it and I was like I'll definetely read this one

It's clearly inspired by Devilman and I honestly enjoy this fact. Each and every arc felt unique ,interesting and fresh .The last one was kinda lacking in some aspects ,but I think I'm satisfied with what I got from it ,though objectively speaking the story was not concluded entirely.

The art is great and unique ,probably one of the greatest I've seen.It also looks more like a western comic rather than a japanese.

The cast was pretty good ,especially Jin and Kouga,both are ... really well made and easily liked .I can't say I liked Konoha ,I consider her boring and not likeable.Regarding female characters though I really liked Hanako ,she was really fun to watch and had some great scenes.

Overall, Zetman is a great dark series with amazing art and cast,the ending can feel kinda off though, so keep that in mind

I really enjoyed Zetman. I binged it from chapter 1 to current after watching the anime. The anime follows the manga very closely expect for the last arc where it makes some changes to make it end a bit better for an anime season. Manga wise the translations appear to only just be wrapping up that same arc.

As far as story goes, I feel its rather unique in the way it handles it really. I haven't read many manga with a similar feel to them. The story revolves a lot around how the main characters develop and perceive situations as the story itself is a ... little confusing till you really dive into the later chapters and find out more. If you like seeing how different people handle different situations and develop over time with what happens to them then you will really enjoy this manga. It still has a lot of battle and in depth story setup and its very interesting and fun to read but I feel the real grit of the story is character perception and how that changes.

I would say read the manga first then watch the anime. The manga is more in depth in some areas and tends to lay its story a bit sensibly. If you can though watch the anime once you read the current translations. I feel the anime flows better but has a problem of handling some scenes and plot points slightly differently towards the later half. Nothing drastically different but I remember when I was watching the series I felt a little weirded out and lost however later reading the manga it made a lot more sense in the way they presented it.

Zetman is really good untill the story got confused, a little boring and you realize that there are very damage to women

Story 7/10 - The story has a great start, showing Jin as a kid and then Kouga, both of them trying to make justice in the way that each one things what justice means... the deaths are understable and hurts the reader, also there are a lot of chalenges to the main characters, really good! But then, starts to got more, more and more dark, it fits awesome in the story and is keeps the atention, until here the story is great, but when ... both of them grown up they want to have a romance, that's great for Jin and Kouga, it makes you interested then you realie that is nothing more than usual, and also the manga continues to hurt women, then the villains came up, Haitani is great, but the Amagi family and theirs employes are so confusing and annoying, Konoha is just a girl in love and Hanako is strong, but they messed up with her backstory. To end this, the ending is really depresing, but makes sense in somethings, a good story, nothing more than that.

Art 8/10 - The art really impressed me, it was surprising and makes the work more cool and dark, I really like the way that the feamle characters are drew, the villains are good too, that insect vibe was strange in the begining, but them it fits perfect, Zetman really looks like a super hero, Kouga is really great too. But I didn't like the fight scenes and the last monster either, really sad...

Characters 7/10 - As I said, the story got confused and the mostly reason of that are the Amagi family's employes, sometimes I was so lost in who are who in some scenes that I got bored. The female cast is great, even that they are really hurt in mistunderstooding ways, Aunt Akemi is a strong and beautiful woman, Hanako is really great and we fell in love with her, she's also funny, Konoha has very drama in her story and makes her a good character, but her crush in Jin... I don't like it, Mayu is also a great character, her backstory was sadly forgotten. JIN and Kouga, are both the justice, but what justice means? That question continues through the whole manga, and builds awesome main characters.

Enjoyment 8/10 - If you are searching for a dark manga with sci-fi and humans questions Zetman is a good choice, there is great elements, but it gets really confused in the middle to the end, a good romance and a vey good art with two great main characters.

Overall 7/10 - Yes, is a good manga, but as I said it gets so confused the makes you bored, but Jin and Kouga, also Aunt Akemi and Hanako, and Haitani as well, makes the manga a worth reading

Story: superhero like (in a japanese way) but more realistic, justice is not one sided, and untill the end it's not clear what's good and bad.
Art: art is amazing, especially the character design, which is very unique. The section is very clean and the body are realistic and dinamic, creating captivating fight scenes.
Character: every characters is deeply described with their thoughts and actions, so you get very attached to them. Especially Jin and Kouga, expressing their feelings and thoughts during the story. They also well represent two sides of society and human nature.
Enjoyment: this manga kept my attention thanks to the action and the ... twists. Still i found the narration could be handled better, especially the final part which i found very hasty. Also, I would have preferred to feel more the anguish of this distopic world like in AOT or Gantz.

TL;DR: It starts off well but gets annoying and pointless after the second half.

The first part of the work is good, seeing the two childhoods and origins of the main characters until the point where they meet becomes very interesting, seeing how Kouga's perfect sense of justice clashes with the difficult reality that Jin lived, seeing the disagreement of both until a friendship and partnership begins. Up to this point the work remains good and interesting, but it starts to go downhill from there.

After this, the story just gets messy, mainly because of the character named Seiji. The manipulation he does at first is mysterious ... and interesting, but it goes on until it becomes irritating and gets worse and worse. This character makes no sense and you won't understand it even at the end. Who he is, what side he's on, why he acts the way he does, no one knows and there's no way to know because it doesn't even make sense.

Another bad point in the story is the uninterrupted sequence of plot twists. Almost every character has their dark secret that makes them switch sides, act against expected or he was manipulating everyone all the time. Most of them don't make any sense and the reader doesn't get any clue about their actions, for me it's just a cheap and poorly done way to impress the reader, but when you stop and think, you realize that it's just bad writing.

The worst part of all is the ending. I can respect an author's choice not to deliver a happy ending or one that most of the audience expected by the author's own choice, as long as it is well written and makes sense, which is not the case here.

The actions that one of the characters takes at the end were very drastic and unforgivable. I could understand it due to the fact that he was being manipulated, but even after the control is lost, the character changes so much that he is not even the same person. There is no feeling of remorse or guilt. It seems that the whole story that happened between them never existed. Their actions from that point on completely change the course of the story to a terrible and bad written ending.

What I can praise about the work is the art, it is really well done, it really conveys the emotion of the events of the work, which I would have appreciated a lot if I wasn't frustrated with the story.

To conclude, I do not recommend this work, and even though it says that there could be a sequel on the last page, I wouldn't read it because there is no way to fix the poorly written story.

Obs: I don't speak english very well, so mostly is Google Translated