Pluto: Urasawa x Tezuka, Volume 4 Book

WHAT IS IT ABOUT?

"Pluto: Urasawa x Tezuka, Volume 004" by Naoki Urasawa and Takashi Nagasaki is the fourth book in an eight-book science fiction manga series Pluto. The whole series is based on "The Greatest Robot on Earth," the most popular story arc in Astro Boy series by a legendary manga master Osamu Tezuka.

A mysterious force disguised as a tornado is after the four remaining great robots of the world, while the former members of Bora Survey Group are being killed one after another… And it seems that both Atom, a.k.a. Astro Boy, and Professor Ochanomizu are next on the list. Meanwhile, detective Gesicht is searching for clues about the killer's identity and the motive, but he himself is in danger, and not only because he is one of the seven great robots of the world.

THUMBS UP:

1) Perfectly paced and surprising.
As I mentioned in my previous review, the story building in Pluto series is excellent. The plot is full of twists and turns, but despite the fact that A LOT of thing are happening all at once, it is surprisingly easy to keep all the storylines straight. I admit though that "Pluto, Volume 004" didn't provide all the answers I really hoped for at the end of the third book, but I cannot really complain - I still have four volumes to go. By the way, I am still in denial over a couple of events in this volume: I really didn't see it coming and still can't believe it really happened!

2) Depth.
In addition to being thrilling and suspenseful, Pluto series is also moving and thought-provoking. For example, the first act in this volume is very simple yet very powerful emotionally. Although "Pluto, Volume 004" does not offer nearly as much social commentary as the previous volume, it still raises a couple of interesting questions, such as what makes a robot perfect.

3) Beautiful artwork.
It's time for me to finally acknowledge how gorgeous Urasawa's artwork is. Although I previously complained that the adult characters most of the time are drawn with their mouths shut while talking and have a limited range of facial expressions, it doesn't really bother me anymore (or maybe the illustrations DID get a little bit more dynamic). In either case, the artwork is very realistic and simply stunning.

COULD BE BETTER:

1) Ruined surprise.
Towards the end of the book the authors introduce a new character and put some effort into hiding his face up until the last page. Such a maneuver is supposed to build tension but it clearly fails to do so because a) we've never seen this character before, so finally seeing his face doesn't have much of an effect, and, more importantly, b) his face is plastered on the cover of the volume and you can easily recognize him just by seeing his hair, beard or glasses. FAIL!

2) Lack of color.
Yet again only the six first pages are colored and the remainder of the book is black and white. Why the teasing, I ask?

VERDICT: 3.5 out of 5

"Pluto: Urasawa x Tezuka, Volume 004" by Naoki Urasawa and Takashi Nagasaki is perfectly paced, surprising, moving and thought provoking. It is as good as the previous two volumes, so if you liked the story so far, don't stop.

POST SCRIPTUM:

Check out my reviews of the previous three volumes:
1) "Pluto: Urasawa x Tezuka, Volume 001;"
2) "Pluto: Urasawa x Tezuka, Volume 002;"
3) "Pluto: Urasawa x Tezuka, Volume 003."