The Hitman Stans Volume 1 Review
My life was dark and empty… but you gave me light. Each and every day is full of emotion now.
Owaru Endou is the most ruthless and feared assassin in Japan, ‘the strongest hitman employed by the massive underworld organization known as the Fujiyama Group’. But when he unexpectedly announces his retirement, his underworld bosses can’t believe that he’s quitting to devote himself entirely to his beloved idol, Kaori Minaboshi, ‘Rosaceae Red’ of the four-girl group Rosaceae.
But even though Endou takes a part-time job delivering to pay for his stanning with ‘clean’ money (he has a fast motorbike and a helmet that obscures his features so no one will recognise him) he still feels utterly unworthy to receive Kaorin’s attention. He can’t even bring himself to shake her hand at a meet and greet as he feels his hands are dirtied by his profession.
Kaorin also has a secret: she’s the daughter of the Prime Minister (Minabishi) and the intimidating hulk Morita assigned to be her bodyguard somehow fails to prevent her being kidnapped. But Endou is on the case and goes gallantly to the rescue; the group is due on-stage in their first solo concert and the show must go on! Because Kaorin has a hood over her face, she doesn’t get to see who her rescuer is (he doesn’t want her to know) but she grasps his hand and tells him he must come to the concert! Has she guessed…?
The Hitman Stans is the first manga by Rintarou Ohshima to be published in English and a very fine debut it is, indeed! The drawings are striking (especially the glowering Owaru Endou), the villains he encounters are suitably terrifying and the four members of Rosaceae display all the necessary attributes of a cute girl idol group. You know from the first chapter that Ohshima knows what they’re doing when panels of Rosacea performing on-stage are inter-cut with Endou fighting off the thugs that have come after him, merely armed with a couple of glowsticks. Great stuff! There are more truly cherishable comic moments, especially in Chapter 3 ‘Picture of a Hitman’ in which Endou has the chance to have a photo taken with Kaorin but cannot forget that he has been trained never to let himself be photographed for fear of being recognized… with inevitable results. Plenty to enjoy here on the comedy side but also the awareness that – from the first image of utter carnage caused by the Hitman – he has blood on his hands and much to atone for. Endou is especially aware of this from the get-go, not daring to shake hands with Kaorin because his hands are dirty which she rather charmingly misunderstands.
When I first saw this title, I wondered if it might have been influenced in any way by The Yakuza’s Bias by Yatsuda Teki which has a sort-of similar premise, although the bias in that case is a singer in a K-pop boy band. However, the whole story, although exquisitely drawn, is played for humour of a very different kind. The Hitman Stans, although containing several genuinely funny and cleverly drawn set-ups, never forgets Endou’s dark background. At one stage Ohshima gives us a flashback into Endou’s earlier life, giving us a chilling glimpse of the training he was forced to undergo to become a ruthless killer. In some ways, this is a redemption story: Endou’s desire to build his life around his idol Kaorin is a way out of the ruthless criminal world that has shaped his identity – although, as in Sakamoto Days (another reformed hitman manga) the skills he’s learned come in mighty useful when dealing with the less than savoury people he encounters on that uphill journey. In some ways it’s occasionally reminiscent of Tatsuya Endo’s Spy x Family in the combination of humour and action – but these very slight similarities are mentioned to say, ‘If you’ve enjoyed Sakamoto Days and Spy x Family, you’ll enjoy The Hitman Stans even though it’s a very different manga!’
And what about Kaorin, the object of Owaru Endou’s respectful adoration? She might be a little slow on the uptake sometimes (as shown during the kidnapping) but she’s devoted to her fans and there’s no doubt she’s taken an interest in Endou. After all, he saved her from the kidnappers and when he’s not glowering in a terrifying way, he’s really good-looking.
Translation for Yen Press is by Minna Lin (a couple of translation notes are at the back) and brings out the humour especially well which, matched with R. Gupta’s lettering, makes this an enjoyable read. There’s a page about Kaorin’s outfits at the end, paired with a comment from the mangaka, as well as a one-page Backstage Story and the volume ends with a double-spread trailer for Volume 2 (due in October).
This is a great debut and I can’t wait to see what happens in Volume 2; warmly recommended!
Our review copy was supplied by Yen Press.
