GANTZ RAMBLE

Recently, I got Volume 3 (Technically its vols 9-11 since it's a 3-in-1) of Gantz, which is a manga I initially thought was meh but had an interesting premise. Anyways, I take it all back, okay not all there is some stuff it does wrong but I've finished the notorious Buddha Arc of the story and it is genuinely AMAZING. I never expected to change my mind on a piece of media with just a single volume but this is legit one of the best mangas I'm reading and I can definitely see why people have recommended it so much.

Is it comparative to actual literature? Kind of but let's be honest nah very few manga get close to being actual writing genius. It starts off as such an insincere and edgy story and in the space of a single arc completely changes into a genuinely terrifying/harrowing work that invokes emotions that I never thought I could feel just reading something, the manga finally shows its true colors as the action/horror mix it was preparing itself to become. It is one of those few works along with Higurashi and Muv Luv that got me to feel this cold sweat and genuine dread from my stomach and holy hell it is great.

Very few other manga can ever represent combat as such a desperate struggle for survival and dominance as Gantz does, the feeling that you're watching the universe itself laugh at these people and the lives it's taking 1 by 1, death is instant and near-irreversible and characters you grew to love live on as only memories as the story goes on without them, the crushing reality of knowing it is all a cycle repeating itself until the end of time and that every "game" can be your last setting in. It is actually amazing stuff even though I suck at explaining, but yes I can finally see why Gantz is good now. I heard many good and bad things about this manga but what I can definitely say is that despite all its controversy it is a story that can generate genuine tension and dread in an amazing way, as well as just being infinitely creative with INCREDIBLE art.