This first volume of Urasawa's mysterious maybe sci-fi manga focuses on a group of childhood friends who've grown up, kept somewhat in touch, but have their own separate lives and maybe a bit of animosity between them. When one of the childhood friends ends up killing themselves, a particular symbol starts to show up wherever the protagonist, Kenji, looks. He's convinced they need to discover what the symbol is for, and unite his friends to solve the mystery.

It's not too dissimilar a conceit to [a:Stephen King|3389|Stephen King|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1362814142p2/3389.jpg]'s [b:It|830502|It|Stephen King|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1334416842l/830502._SY75_.jpg|150259], but similarities end there.

The story jumps around from childhood adventures in the late 60s, to their college years in the late 70s, and their lives in the late 90s. While the 1997 storyline appears to be going chronologically, the late 60s storyline jumps around, and there is only one scene so far set in the 1970s, and so far, it seems to be the least relevant part of the story.

As the 1997 storyline advances, we realize the group of friends that we've focused on, initially three men, extended to six, are just part of a "secret society" of friends that grew up together. It appears one of them is the leader of some sort of cult that plans to bring about an apocalypse and take down other relgiious groups. To what ends, we don't know.

At some point in the 2010s someone recommended [b:Monster: Perfect Edition, Vol. 1|18775119|Monster Perfect Edition, Vol. 1|Naoki Urasawa|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1670519515l/18775119._SX50_.jpg|13882777] to me, and I couldn't find all the volumes, so I decided to pick this up without having anyidea what the story was. Several volumes sat on my manga shelves for years, as I was missing volume two. It arrived in the mail last week, so I've decided the time had come to see if this was woth the read through. I'm happy to say that I do Really Enjoy this so far. The mystery portion and the reliance on flashbacks has me a little worried, as this came out during the split narrative boom of the late 90s, between Pulp Fiction and Lost, and many of the split narrative stories began with promise before petering out.

If you're looking for an Entry Level manga, this might be a good one. For some reason, I see the split narrative as being a Very American storytelling device (this may be incorrect), and I find the characters' dialog and motivations to be extremely relatable. I'm picking up volume two to read as soon as I post this entry.

4.5 ⭐

Tldr; local rowdy neighbourhood gang grows up into unimpressive adults who seem to have inspired a cult - we just can't remember the one who was with us at the time who started it. Weird. Whatever.

If you are looking for a mystery thriller told across multiple time frames, this is for you. I love the art and Naoki Urasawa definitely has a signature style that is unique, emotive, and fun. I can see why this is one of the most highly rated series out there. It's eccentric, the mystery is gripping, art is superb, and the characters are memorable and complex.

I loved it so much, but I did find it hard to keep track of the characters associated with each year explored. That being said, the transitions were well done and all background knowledge for those scenes was well relayed and interpreted. For the most part, I could understand what the author wanted us to know from the scene as opposed to being thoroughly confused.

This is the first volume of a series of manga, but unfortunately, it didn't really feel like it stands on its own. As an origin story, it's rather slow-paced and repetitive. The flashbacks were confusing at first, but I eventually became used to them and understood the way the story was being told. My main problem is, I'm not sure this volume is compelling enough to make me want to read the next. I kept hoping we would find out the meaning behind the cult and its leader, but that is clearly one (or more) volumes away. I feel the germ of an interesting story is here, but I'm not seeing quite yet.

Empieza MUUY intrigante!

Adoro a Naoki Urasawa ♥

The story and mystery is getting interesting definitely going to keep reading to see what happens next.