Manga Reviews (2010-2019): Arakawa Under the Bridge Manga Omnibus – vol. 2 by Nakamura Hikaru

“Arakawa Under the Bridge” is probably the craziest manga you will ever read here in the US. It’s highly addictive and recommended!

MANGA TITLE: Arakawa Under the Bridge Manga Omnibus Volume 6

Story and Art by Nakamura Hikaru

FIRST PUBLISHED IN JAPAN: Square Enix Co., Ltd

PUBLISHED IN USA BY: Vertical Comics

RATED: T for Teen

RELEASE DATE: April 30, 2019

The Venus-bound rocket successfully launched against all odds… and now Rec is back after an out-of-this-world encounter with Nino’s folks, and even Takai had his own alien encounter that leaves him transformed. As the seasons turn, everyone’s eccentricities spiral out and twine together, and the Mayor finds himself expecting…!

Mangaka Nakamura Hikaru is known for creating unusual but enormously popular stories. Her first was “Arakawa Under the Bridge” which was published by Square Enix from 2004-2015 and her current popular manga is “Saint Young Men” which began back in 2007.

In terms of sales, she is in the top 10 with the most manga sales since 2010 with 5.54 million copies sold.

As for “Arakawa Under the Bridge”, the manga was originally serialized in “Young GanGan” back in 2004 and an two-season anime adaptation followed in 2010. And a live TV drama adaptation was released in 2011, followed by a live-action film in 2012.

With a total of 15 volumes completed, the manga would end in 2015. And here in the United States, the sixth manga omnibus featuring volumes 11-12 have been released courtesy of Vertical Comics.

The manga series is set in Arakawa, Tokyo and a successful businessman named Ichinomiya Kou lives by one rule emphasized to him by his father growing up, to never be indebted to another person.

In fact, when Kou got older, his father Seki made him feel that he was indebted to him and in return, he demanded Kou to raise him as a baby.

One day, Kou was pants by a group of young kids and they threw his pants on top of a bridge. While trying to get it, he sees a young woman fishing from the bridge. She offers to help but Kou explains to her about his rule of not being indebted to anyone.

While trying to climb the bridge and retrieve his pants, he falls over into the water and is saved by the young woman and she says “Looks like…You owe me.”.

Her name is Nino and knowing now he is indebted to her, he tries to offer her a lot of money but she refuses. He tries to offer her clothes and wonders if she’s cold but she tells him that she’s from Venus and not an Earthling like him, and he realizes that he may be dealing with a crazy person.

Not wanting to be indebted to Nino, Kou asks what he can do and she answers “Could you help me fall in love?”. So, he makes a promise that he can show her love.

And because he will now be her boyfriend and she his girlfriend, he is ready to sacrifice in order to not be in debt (also, being indebted gives him an asthma attack). So, the first thing she asks Kou…does he want to sleep in a house or villa? And he realizes that he is going to be sleeping outdoors under the bridge.

But before he can move in, he must talk to the mayor and to his surprise, it’s a kappa living in the water among the tall grass. But when the mayor turns around and he sees his skin color and realizing, perhaps it’s a man dressed up as a kappa, which the mayor is offended when Kou tries to prove him wrong that he’s not a kappa. Meanwhile, because Kou is going to live under the bridge, he must have a new name and he will go by the name of “Recruit”.

And while living under the bridge, around their “village”, he meets others who live near the bridge as well. Hoshi is a person with a star mask and is a self-proclaimed singer/superstar who happens to be in love with Nino. But because Kou is her boyfriend, he is very jealous and considers Kou as his rival.

Also, living in the area is a gun-toting man wearing a nun’s outfit that goes by the name of “Sister”. He has a scar on the right side of his face and can be very scary.

There is also a 43-year-old man named Shiro who is obsessed walking on a straight white line and must walk with a line painter. Because of his obsession, he has not been able to see his family.

Also, living in the area are the Metal Brothers, Tetsuo and Tetsuro who wear sailor suits and metal helmets. They are self-proclaimed ESPers who have psychic powers and are also jealous of Kou being closed to Nino.

Also, nearby is Piko, who grows vegetables for the village and cares for vegetables as if they are a living being. There is Maria, who runs a nearby farm and despite being very beautiful, she is very insulting towards people and for Sister, they know each other very well and Maria hates Sister with a passion? But what is their connection?

And there is a little girl named Stella, who came from an orphanage in England that Sister ran and she happens to be one who can go all “hulk” in power and who is often angry and scares people because she is deadly.

To make things even crazier is Kou’s staff members, secretary Takai Terumasa (a perverted older balding man) who takes care of Kou (but also has love for him) and Shimazaki, a spy (and stalker) who is to spy on Nino and the people that Kou is in contact with, but find herself falling for Shiro.

With the sixth omnibus, you have to wonder if Nakamura was creating this manga series while under the influence of something because this is probably the wildest storyline that he has created thus far.

Nino is planning to ride a rocketship to Venus and Kou really loves her and doesn’t want her to leave his side, but can he prevent Nino from leaving to Venus? Or will he go with her?

Will thanks to Takai, he manages to rip the chair off so Kou and Nino can go to Venus together, but while it’s supposed to happen, Takai’s love for Kou, leads the older man in grabbing his bosses hand and locking the door, leaving Nino behind and Kou and Takai traveling to Venus together.

But what situations will happen out in deep space?

And why is it when Kou returns, he is traumatized? What shenanigans transpired and did Takai do something to Kou while they were locked in together in a tiny space in the rocket ship?

Meanwhile, the next story arc features Christmas and how the people who live in Arakawa Under the Bridge feel about Christmas in their warped kind of way. Meanwhile, Piko, who left to visit her family comes back and finds out that something has happend to Kappa and that he has changed drastically? What happened?

Overall, this is one heck of a crazy volume.

The first story arc featured is crazy because we know that Kou and the bald perverted old man, Takai, wants to be close to Kou so badly and now he has his chance while they are in a tight space in a rocketship (which was supposed to be for Kou and Nino). Needless to say, there is a lot of hidden sexual innuendo while the two are flying to Venus and may it be hallucination or whatever, Kou encounters weird things such as a naked man riding a whale, to Kou starving and he is given big hairy fruit, and oh..there are also tentacles.

Needless to say, there are a lot of crazy shenanigans in this volume that left me laughing, because it’s so far out!

As for the artwork, Nakamura has her own distinct style and it works well with the overall series. It’s an interesting style that Nakamura uses to her advantage in creating interesting expressions and emotions. Especially when Kou has his “pissed-off” face, which is hilarious.

Overall, there really is so much to enjoy with this manga series and you can realize why Hikaru Nakamura’s manga series are among the top selling manga releases in Japan. They are unique, crazy and so much fun to read.

“Arakawa Under the Bridge” is probably the craziest manga you will ever read here in the US. It’s highly addictive and recommended!

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