I guess this starts to set up the big bad for the series, but this manga seems to be trying to hard to be everything from a sad sack comedy to a scifi monster epic to a military combat action adventure. And it just sort of doesn't fit together.

Really interesting series. Reminiscent of Pacific Rim but with an interesting twist for the main character. Love the developing relationships between all of the characters and can't wait for more of the story to unfold.

Read more graphic novel reviews at www.graphiclibrary.org.

This volume picks up at right at the moment Volume 1 ended, which means the recruits are still in the middle of their entrance test. All hell broke loose right at the end as a very powerful kaiju started sabotaging the test and bringing dead monsters back to life. Kafka and Leno come to Kikori’s aid as a humanoid Kaiju takes her to her limit. Kafka transforms in front of her but ultimately saves her life. The test concludes and the recruits get their results - Leno is in as an officer, but Kafka nearly fails. The review panel brings him in as a cadet as some feel he is a hard worker and can provide some comic relief to the squad. Kafka now has to work twice as hard if he’s going to catch up to Captain Mina, his childhood friend.

What initially drew me to this story was its off-the-wall humor, and that's still somewhat present. This volume tones it down a little bit in favor of more action sequences. However, the officers are right that Kafka brings some levity to the Defense Force, much to Leno's disapproval most times. The second half of this book features some heartfelt moments of Leno trying to be his best to save Kafka from having to change into his kaiju form, which is a nice development for their friendship. Kikori sort of gets adopted into their group because she sees Kafka transform, but this is a minor note and could have been developed a little bit more. Hopefully, we see her working more with the two main dudes as Kafka slowly wins people over.

There are a few violent scenes with lots of characters bleeding profusely, and some mild cussing, so this might be best for high school audiences.

​Sara's Rating: 9/10
Suitability Level: Grades 9-12

A fun new series, very solid continuation and we're looking forward the next entry in this series. It fits well in our collection and we' re definitely going to be adding this to our collection.

This was a great second volume! I loved that we got to see more of the trainees in action and their very first mission. I enjoyed all of the artwork as usual and I'm excited to read the next volume!

The kaiju plot thickens in volume two of Kaiju No. 8! In this volume, Kafka struggles to hide his kaiju shapeshifting abilities from fellow cadets. Honestly, he's even lucky to still be on the team! When all academy personnel is deployed to handle a massive kaiju attack, we learn more about the insidious forces behind the developments in the kaiju world, including how they keep respawning and a peak into whose behind it all.

Before we begin this review, I would like to thank Viz Media and Net Galley for this opportunity.

We are continuing from our review of the first volume, Kafka, and Kikrou is in the middle of their exam and is up against a honju. Kafka threw caution to the wind and transformed into his Kaiju form to save his teammate. After their battle, it left destruction in its wake as Kafka begs Kikrou to keep his secret from the Defense Force.

Kikrou agreed to keep his secret, however, the Defense Force picked up on Kafka’s life signs disappearing from their reading during the fight, and the sudden high reading from his Kaiju Transformation.

Later, Kafka and Reno would get their results back on their exam. Reno learned that he would be a Candidate for Officer, while Kafka failed the exam. The silver lining in this was that he caught the attention of Soshiro, who was well aware of Kafka’s sudden disappearing life signs, but allowed him to join as a cadet in his Platoon. As we move forward, Reno, Kikoru, and Reno are on their first mission, to take down the Base Kaiju and stop its destruction, but unbeknownst to the Defense Force, the Mysterious Humanoid Kaiju who revived a neutralized honju during the exam is involved in the mission behind the scenes.

I am impressed with this story so far, with each chapter packed with suspense, humor, and of course, Kaiju Action! Speaking of Kaiju, the monsters in this newest volume are designed magnificently. Forgive me for going ‘Fanboy’ in this review, but I always have enjoyed seeing what an artist (or creator) can bring to life, in this case, creepy and horrific monsters.

Okay, back to the review, I am loving the way the characters are written in this series. For example, the protagonist, Kafka, is determined to show his worth to the Defense Force, and lucky for them, he brought what he had learned from his previous time at Monster Sweeper Inc. Kafka might have his Kaiju ability, but what he has also learned could be a great benefit to the organization.

Again, I am impressed by the characters in this story. They are well written and offer depth with humor to help keep the story from becoming stale. The cruelest thing I can think of about this volume was the cliffhanger. You become so enticed by the story and all of a sudden it ends unexpectedly.

Another amusing volume with a mix of silliness thanks to our main character (and some of his facial expressions) as well as action! I actually think I’m warming up to Kikoru more than I thought I would!

There’s a few intrigues to keep you hooked as they begin their training and I can’t help but root for our MC, even though he can be a bit of a numpty! It was also quite fun to see them all bond a little, even if it was only because he was gossiping about Ashiro.

This is one of my favorite manga series right now. The story itself is a fun take on a very common genre. Kafka is hilarious and his character development is what keeps me engaged. The art style is also super cool! I love Kafka's kaiju form! I can't wait to see where this story goes - I recommend this to everyone who enjoys manga.

Kaiju No. 8 Volume Two starts to expand on the Defense Force, both on the characters in the force and on how the force itself works.

Kaiju No. 8 Volume Two
Written by: Naoya Matsumoto
Publisher: Shueisha Inc.
English Publisher: VIZ Media
Release Date: April 5, 2022

Volume Two opens with Kikoru and Kafka up against a honju, and Kafka transforming into his kaiju form. While he’s able to defeat the honju and leave a trail of destruction, he begs Kikoru to keep this a secret from the higher ups in the Defense Force. She agrees, but as we learn later, the Defense Force picks up on the higher reading from his kaiju transformation and the loss of a signal for Kafka’s life signs when this fight is taking place.

When Kafka and Reno get their test results back, it’s revealed that Reno is an Officer Candidate. We learn that Kafka officially failed the exam, but that Soshiro Hoshina convinces the higher ups to let Kafka in as a cadet in his platoon. He frames it as Kafka providing some needed comic relief for the force, but we learn that Soshiro is aware of the loss of Kafka’s life signs during the battle and he suspects something’s up. During training, Reno acquires a rival in a fellow inductee named Iharu Furuhashi, although Iharu is much more interested in the rivalry than Reno is.

As this is going on, it’s also revealed that there is a kaiju that can transform into a human, and that he’s working undercover at Monster Sweeper Inc. This becomes important when Kafka, Reno, and the others head out on their first mission. Reno sees this person coming out to one of the monsters while the battle is going on, and Reno suspects something’s up. This leads to a fight with this kaiju disguised as a human, and it brings about a great scene between Reno and Iharu, with Iharu seemingly being humbled by the experience.

Before this, though, Kafka is able to use his knowledge from his time working at Monster Sweeper Inc. to discover where a fallen honju’s core is (which no one had any idea where it was located in this creature). Kafka also discovers that the creature has reproductive organs, which would allow it to keep creating more monsters. Thanks to Kafka’s discovery, the Defense Force has necessary information it needs to help take down the other honju. While this may not be the same as taking down the honju on the battlefield, Kafka’s knowledge from his previous job is helpful to the other members of the Defense Force, so he shows he has some kind of worth to them.

But once again, Kafka is forced to turn into a kaiju when Reno and Iharu are fighting against the humanoid kaiju and all hope seems lost. Kafka defeats the other kaiju, but right at the end, it’s revealed that the other recognizes Kafka as Kaiju No. 8.

Kafka kind of has a rough time in his volume. He’s not making any real progress on his physical abilities in his training, and Soshiro makes it clear that if he can’t make enough progress in three months that he’ll be out the door. Which, of course, means that Kafka won’t be able to attain his goal of fighting side-by-side with his childhood friend, Mina, who is now among the elite in the Defense Forces. As the series progresses, will something or several events (either intentional or unintentional) happen that will somehow allow Kafka to miraculously achieve his goal? I want to root for him to make it, but as of right now, his goal seems impossibly out of reach.

On top of this, Kafka has to hide the fact that he can transform into a kaiju from the Defense Force. If they find out his secret, they could kick him out of the force, and likely perform experiments on him. So far, Kafka has been lucky that both Reno and Kikoru are keeping his secret. But how much longer can Kafka’s “dumb luck” hold out before the “cat comes out of the bag” or Soshiro pieces everything together? I have a feeling that this will continue to be a running thread throughout Kaiju No. 8.

While I can still see a lot of Wild Tiger from Tiger & Bunny in Kafka, I’m overall seeing less of Barnaby Brooks Jr. in Reno. While Reno is still the younger of the two, it appears that he’s already developed a stronger bond with Kafka than Barnaby did with Wild Tiger at about the same point in Tiger & Bunny. Kafka and Reno seem to have legitimately become friends.

Overall, I’m still enjoying the art style that Matsumoto is using for Kaiju No. 8. There were one or two panels where I thought the art was a little weaker, but for the most part, it was just as strong as it was in the first volume.

Now that I’ve read Kaiju No. 8 Volume Two and getting to see a real mission in action, I was picking up on some World Trigger vibes that I wasn’t quite picking up in Volume One of the series. That’s not a bad thing, though, and I think readers who are already familiar with the World Trigger manga and enjoy it might potentially find they can also appreciate Kaiju No. 8.

As for me, I’m still interested in reading more volumes of Kaiju No. 8 in order to find out what will happen to Kafka and the others.

This volume kept my interest, but so far it doesn't stand out as special within its genre. I'm excited to see if that comes with volume 3.

Thank you NetGalley and Viz for a free advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Kaiju No. 8 Vol 2 was such a joy to read. The characters are fun, and the storyline is fresh. Even with a growing ensemble cast, it's never difficult to keep track of characters. I also love the addition of color pages. Overall, Kaiju No 8 is No 1 for me.

Story and Art: Naoya Matsumoto
Translation: David Evelyn
Touch-up Art and Lettering: Brandon Bovia
Design: Jimmy Presler
Editor: Karla Clark

The story continues from where we left off in the first volume, with Kafka leaping into the fray to prove himself. Determined to become a permanent member of the Japanese Defense Force and stand by his childhood friend. Kafka and company are in for plenty of action as kaiju attack the city and a more sinister plot unfolds. Just how long can Kafka keep his transformation a secret and will he be able to prove his worth before they boot him from the corps?

Amidst the action, there are plenty of touching moments, comradery, and backstories. Kafka is the faulty hero that we've been waiting for. We get to know a few more of the side characters as well. I have a feeling that this is my new favorite series.

this volume was absolutely amazing! i've got to read the first one now, i couldn't put this book down at all. i really hope this can become an anime one day, it has so much potential.

Just like with the first one, this volume kept be thoroughly entertained from start to finish! I am absolutely loving everything that I'm reading of this series. The artwork is so great that I definitely need to pick up a physical copy just so I can see the full page panels properly, because wow! Definitely going to be checking out the rest of this series as it releases.

I received an eARC of this title through NetGalley in return for an honest review.

I feel like this volume really ramps up the stakes and brings to light some great villains. Kafka and Ichikawa have joined the Japan Defense Force, Kafka more on a probationary role. With that, Kafka still has to hide his Kaiju form from the rest of his squad. Although, he has gained a new confidant in the infamous Kikoru, a Kaiju killing prodigy. However, there is a villain afoot who is causing Kaiju to become more powerful, and somehow come back from the dead.

Kafka may be the only one who can stop it, but he can't blow his cover as a normal non-kaiju human. He is determined to only use his Kaiju ability when absolutely necessary. I think I enjoyed this volume because Kafka is determined to show he is useful by going through kaiju on the battlefield and helping his teammates learn more about their enemy in the moment. I think this is something logical that the Defense Force never considered.

I recommend keeping up with this series. I think it has the potential to not only be a good manga, but a good anime.

I have said it once, but I'll repeat it this manga deserves to be made into an anime when more chapters/volumes are released because this is some good action and character-driven stories!

We saw more of the action of fighting the monsters and what goes on behind the scenes of training PLUS, we saw a little more glimpse into another humonid thing like the main character, which only adds to the mystery of what is going on!
I cannot wait for more!

UGH this has got to be my absolute favorite manga series out right now, I literally cannot wait for the volumes to come out fast enough!! When will they make this an anime!!!