“It’s Alive!... Well, Sorta….” - Zombie Powder (Manga)- 6/10 Sugar Cubes

Death is a very dull, dreary affair, and my advice to you is to have nothing whatsoever to do with it. ~ W. Somerset Maugham

Genre: Action/ Supernatural/ Comedy/ Teen

Review Status: Full (27 Chapters/ 27 Chapters or 4 Volumes/ 4 Volumes)

Licensed: Licensed in the US

Art: Up-to-date, very clear and pleasant to look at. Good flow between the panels. Character designs are fairly standard.

Summary: Somewhere in the desert lies the world's greatest treasure: the 12 Rings of the Dead, the only source of the mysterious substance Zombie Powder, which can raise the dead and grant eternal life. Into this world stalks Gamma Akutabi, a man with a metal arm and a six-foot chainsaw, cybernetically enhanced master of the legendary martial arts. But it takes more than one man to find the ultimate prize. You need a team: super-gunman C.T. Smith, knife-slinging teenager Elwood, and brilliant (and impossibly big-breasted) journalist Wolfgangina. Against an army of crooks and killers, against runaway trains and superpowered madmen, they'll need all their skills... but the most dangerous thing in the west might be the Rings themselves... (Source: Viz)

Review: I have a friend with a very special skill- picking out manga that have been cut short by their authors in order to work on others that have become immensely popular. In this case, the author went on to write one of the most famous mangas on earth: Bleach. Because this series wasn’t nearly as popular, it was cut short. However, what I did read was pretty good, and could have been a really good manga if given half a chance.

The characters, unfortunately, all seem to be one-note. Gamma is laid-back, at first acting like he doesn’t care but really does (which is how he gains his followers), and really good at fighting. Not much background to him- hinted at, since he’s searching for the Zombie Powder, but nothing’s ever confirmed. Wolfgangia (and what a name that is!) is a large-boobed gal who’s determined to get her scoop. She’s rather annoying, as she’ll follow her leads straight into the jaws of danger- unfortunately, she seems rather stupid oblivious to the danger. But she does have a good heart, since she’s doing it to help out her fellow townspeople. Elwood is the star of the series, since you not only get his story right away, but you can sympathize with him and watch as he grows as a character.

The story itself is your typical action story- they travel around, fight bad guys, try to get the Rings of Power… I mean, Rings of the Dead. Since the story is so short, there really isn’t much else to it, unfortunately. But what is there is fairly exciting. Of course, I’m pleased by anything that doesn’t resort to ki-blast after ki-blast, so I might not be the best person to judge that.

I’m sorry that this manga didn’t get a chance to go on. Even though I didn’t find it the most thrilling out there, I think it could have grown on me given the chance.

Recommended: Why not? As long as you don’t mind the story being cut short when it’s just getting to the good part. Teens and up due to violence and blood.

Other series you might like: Fullmetal Alchemist (manga and anime, both the original and FMA: Brotherhood),
Black Cat (manga),
Soul eater (manga)
Trigun (manga)
Baccano! (anime)
Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann (anime)