Get Backers Volume 3

The mediocre first two volumes of Get Backers left little to no impression on me. As the comedy-filled action struggled to place any real importance on its inevitable outcome, I felt this was a series lacking a harder dramatic edge to underline it’s outrageous and colourful action- but with this third instalment throwing us straight into the “Limitless Fortress” arc; Get Backers has finally developed into something worth watching!
By creating an atmosphere dotted with tension and making interesting allusions to character backgrounds, watching the likes of Ban and Ginji kick some butt has taken on a new level of importance. And with publishers ADV continuing to be generous in placing 5 episodes on this volume, this potentially drawn out story-arc swishes past at the blink of an eye and left me hankering for more!

Get Backers #3 starts with firm intentions by quickly introducing us to Ginji and Ban’s latest job; to recover a mysterious item (known only as IL) from a crime-ridden part of town known only as the “Limitless Fortress”.
Ginji and Ban won’t be alone on this dangerous mission however, as in fact they compromise only two parts of an “all star” team that includes the beast-master Shido, thread-master Kazuki, uptight potions-mistress Himiko and you guessed it, the murderous yet strangely empathetic Dr. Jackal. Organised by the blonde bombshell Ms. Hevn, they have come together as professionals and agreed to put their differences aside in order to take on their most deadly mission yet.

The “Limitless Fortress” works not only as a fantastic setting for some gritty action scenes but also as an interesting concept too! It’s an uncontrollable, lawless and claustrophobic fortress where only the strongest can survive; parents dump their unwanted children there and many of our main characters (Ginji, Kazuki and Shido) are heavily connected to the place.
While this arc is great for its creative and exciting action, it also helps us learn more about these characters; specifically, where they are coming from and what shaped them into the personalities they are now. Ginji is a particularly interesting subject; he was basically the bad-ass boss of the Limitless Fortress before leaving to team up with Ban, and in several quick flashbacks, we are treated to a much harsher and more serious person than the light-hearted pacifist we know him as now. Suffice to say it’s interesting and endlessly cool to see rather different, hidden sides to these characters and I look forward to learning more in the next volume.

The newly formed “team” makes for great watching too, if just because it is made of people who hate each other! At some point, Ginji and the psycho Dr. Jackal are separated from the rest of the group and watching these odd two play off each other makes for some real laughs; innocent Ginji’s fear of Dr. Jackal made all the more obvious when his character design slips into it’s trademark super-deformed scared look! It’s also worth noting that the usually uptight and disagreeable Himiko doesn’t come across as disgusted with Ban as she did in the previous episodes and whether this is down to dodgy character development or just something more sinister (many hints are made towards a deceptive “Judas” being in the group), I’m certainly confused by her new found tolerance of her sworn arch enemy.

Seeing the characters in action like this also makes me realize how stylish and attractive the character designs for Get Backers really are. Whether or not it’s the sleek design of the sexually ambiguous Kazuki or the eerily innocent angle conveyed by the look of Limitless Fortress big-cheese Makubex, I often find myself admiring the look of this series.

In Summary

Get Backers #3 was a big surprise for me. Given my indifference towards the first two volumes, these tension-filled five episodes had me gripped from start to finish. The action is as colourful and inventive as ever, but I can feel myself becoming attached to these characters now; with their young lives in the Limitless Fortress being intriguingly threaded together through a scattered set of interesting flashbacks.

Full of inventive action and tactical fight scenes, Get Backers #3 retains the series lively and likable sense of humour but finally hands us a group of characters worth caring for.