 | | ▪ | RELEASED BY: | | VIZ MEDIA | | | ▪ | AUTHOR / ART: | | NAKED APE:
SAKI OTOH & NAKAMURA TOMONI | | | ▪ | FORMAT: | | JAPANESE / B&W | | | ▪ | PAGES: | | 200 | | | ▪ | RATING: | | OT | | | ▪ | RELEASE DATE: | | 05/12/2009 | | | ▪ | REVIEW DATE: | | 05/02/2009 | | | ▪ | REVIEWED BY: | | SCOTT CAMPBELL |
Kai Eto may look like a squeaky clean kid, but the greater Kanto Narcotics Control Division’s new investigator hides a violent alter ego and a dangerous past. Together with his stoic partner Hal Kurabayashi, Kai is assigned to track down and stop the distribution of a dangerous new drug – Dragon Speed. But Ryugen, the syndicate trafficking the drug, is almost impossible to infiltrate. Add street violence and a jurisdiction war with the Meguro Police, and poor Kai is in for some very long days at the office. In volume eight, the written word may be eloquent, but the writer seems to be the very opposite! Yusuke Shinoda is a freelance writer who just got out of the slammer on drug charges, but the NCD's going to keep tabs on him to see if he's really clean, and if not, to see what he'll lead them to. As always, the truth in this drug-fuelled intrigue won't be pretty… Switch returns again with another volume and a whole new string of events that lead us deeper into this involving crime drama. As always, the artistic quality of the visuals are very appealing – this series has a mature art style geared towards readers with a more mature taste which many people likely appreciate greatly. It’s nice to see something mature and produced on a “higher” level for us “older kids.” The use of contrast in the art is really cool – the straight up black and white mixed with hard lines gives Switch a really appealing look. The visuals are very non-linear when it comes to presenting things, and it makes for a more entertaining read. This, and many other elements of the artistic style, give the visuals a very mature, artsy feel to them. The art on its own is well worth a look - it’s just quite different in its approach, and looks great doing it. The story is fast-paced with lots of twists and turns, and plenty of interesting subject matter that goes towards giving this book its Older Teen rating. Sex and violence certainly makes its way into the story when required, but not to the point that it is over the top – it just adds to it, rather than becoming something to roll your eyes at like so many other books. Switch still keeps a good balance in the way that it will appeal to both female and male audiences – there’s a little something for everyone here, rather than giving it a very gender specific appeal. As for extras, there are a number of preview advertisements for other book series from VIZ Media. A little about the author and artist for your educational enjoyment: Naked Ape is the collaboration of Tomomi Nakamura and Otoh Saki, who were born just three months apart. Nakamura, the artist, takes things at her own pace and feels no guilt for missing deadlines. Saki, the writer, also does cover design and inking and is called President by the assistants. Naked Ape’s other works include Black Tar and the ongoing futuristic crime thriller DOLLS.
IN SUMMARY:
Switch is both fun and edgy – it’s a semi-humorous story about an often serious subject, so it certainly keeps you on your toes as you read it. The visuals are both unique and enjoyable to partake of, rounding Switch off as a perfectly good read to add to your list. |
