Manga Review: Detroit Metal City, Volume 1 (DMC)

Manga has a new face that can only be described as one thing: unexplainable. Detroit Metal City (DMC), Volume 1 is one of the newest Manga releases from Viz Media. DMC is raunchy, vulgar, sickening and unexplainably hysterical.

DMC stars Soichi Negishi, a timid boy with folk-singing aspirations, who also just happens to be the cult leader of all followers of Death Metal music. When Negishi puts on his wig and face paint, he instantly transforms into Lord Krauser II, band leader of Detroit Metal City. Krauser is the swearing Overlord of Hell who commands the stage with his repugnant words and electric guitar. Family? He has none because he killed them upon birth. Well, at least that’s what the teen rumors say. In reality, Soichi is a mama’s boy who was raised on a farm. It’s all bizarre and twisted, but you won’t stop reading.

Throughout Volume 1, the parallels between Negishi and Krauser are intertwined like Bruce Wayne and Batman. On the surface the two identities appear different. However, Negishi has been living the lie so long that vestiges of each lifestyle have begun to accidentally leak over into the other, causing several laughable situations.

Krauser is joined by band mates Jaki, aka Masayuki, and Camus, aka Terumichi. These two are more into living out their dual identities than Negishi. And, that’s exactly what the band’s boss, a vicious woman who enjoys sexual assaults, wants. As much as she despises Negishi, she is enthralled by Negishi’s persona on stage. Unfortunately, once he’s backstage, the gloves are off and she’ll kick Negishi around, literally, to get the performance she wants from him.

Detroit Metal City is the new breed of Manga, from Kiminori Wakasugi. The stories are written and illustrated with utterly distasteful humor that urges you to laugh. If you’ve never laughed at an underdog getting demoralized, you will now. Just make sure you can deal with the expletives, because DMC delivers vulgarity and inappropriate comments by bucket load.