Billy Bat

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So I won't waste your time and give it to you straight: Billy Bat is not for everyone. This manga's story structure is nigh impenetrable to the average reader(at least I hope I'm average), the story itself has loads of ups and downs and story threads that take forever to pay off. You'll also have to tackle at least a dozen different characters at any give time, and many of them will just be kind of...irrelevant. Additionally, you'll never be sticking with any one character for very long, and the lines between where one ark begins and another ends will be blurred for large portions ... of the manga. It switches a lot between story threads, and this detracts from the experience by melting the stories together at many points. There's other, smaller flaws, but they're largely unimportant.

Now if none of the above deters you from reading, let me give you some positives that might entice you to actually read this manga. Firstly, the art is excellent. It's sharp, professional, clear, beautiful, just perfect. The dialogue is also rather well-written(or at least the translations are) and though the story can take some deep dips, it also soars to amazing heights and had me losing sleep at some points because I just had to know what comes next. The story structure itself is also very well done, even if it's constant jumping between different story threads can be very tiring and annoying. It really feels like the artist had much of this planned out from the start and it flows together very well, if you can bear with it for a while.

Overall, Billy Bat is a good manga. It is, however, a rather difficult read and will probably deter a lot of readers early on. I would recommend it only if you want to read something unique, and are not so concerned with things like traditional protagonists or normal story flow. Otherwise, stay away. You really won't be missing THAT much.

Naoki Urasawa's big three thrillers: 20th Century Boys, Monster, and Pluto. Compared to these, Billy Bat is more of a niche thriller, but it has its loyal fanbase, especially since it's set during the Cold War era.

Let's start with the good stuff: Billy Bat has a ton of settings, tons of information, a non-linear narrative, loads of characters and their backgrounds, and of course, Naoki Urasawa's signature use of foreshadowing, all of which make this work stand out.

Now for the bad: reading it can be exhausting. You have to remember a lot, and sometimes you forget earlier plot points. The pacing can drag at times, ... making you feel impatient, and only the desire to uncover the truth keeps you going. But when you finally reach the end, you might feel like the so-called "truth" isn't that great. You'll probably think, "That's it?" and then feel a wave of dissatisfaction. This is a common issue with Urasawa Naoki's works. Finishing one of his stories often feels like the music is building up to a peak but then suddenly cuts off at a weird way, leaving you feeling a bit lost and let down. It feels like a weak ending ruins the whole thing.

But after calming down and reflecting on the whole reading experience, you'll realize that even though the ending was meh, the storytelling, narrative techniques, and foreshadowing were actually brilliant. So overall, I'd give it an 8 out of 10, but don't expect too much from the foreshadowing payoffs.