Banya: The Explosive Delivery Man

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Banya is a fast paced mature shounen manhwa where odd characters and violent action are put together in a stylish way. The author has created a distinct world with its own conflicts, heroes and adventures.

Banya follows a protagonist of the same name who works as a delivery man in the Gaya Desert Post Office. Together with his friends, he goes on various missions and always delivers the package. No matter what challenges lie ahead of him.

The first couple of volumes concentrate on different assignment that Banya undertakes. Beuatiful art, plenty of carnage and interesting monster designs immediately suck the reader into the ... narrative. After several story arcs, the main plot finally arrives but sadly, it does not have sufficient time to have a real impact. It would have been much better if the story had more time to develop. As it is, it feels rushed and fades into the background letting action take place at the forefront of our attention. The ending feels a bit rushed but considering the total amount of volumes (5), it should not come off as a big surprise.

Despite the fact that the plot centers around the development of the main protagonist, most of the secondary characters still come off as quite interesting and the stylish visuals really help commiting them to memory.

Overall, this manhwa was enjoyable to read. The reader cant help but think that it would be so much better if only it lasted longer. However, it is still a fun ride and thus, earns the score - 8/10

The author can into art like god, but almost equally sucks at plot-building (ok, a bit less, but still can’t into it too well). The beginning is episodic, the overarching story starts at chapter 19 (and absorbs some of the details of the earlier chapters, so don’t just drop in there), but it stays rather second-rate. The plot is certainly not the strength of this manhwa. Keeping it in mind, you can enjoy this work to a considerable degree thanks to the art and the action. In one of the chapters the author mentions that he knows his manhwa isn’t too good, but he wants ... it be addictive, like coffee and cigarettes, and I think he succeeds. Basically it’s all you need to know, but I’ll specify a bit.

So yeah, the art is amazing – the designs of the characters, if not too original, are beautiful. Bit by bit you notice that the world is rather consistent and has its own distinctive atmosphere (it’s desert-centered, by the way). But the best thing is the design of the monsters. They are detailed, complex and imposing – a very viable reason to pick this up, if you like beautiful fictional beasts. Of course, I can point out some hiccups in the art too, and in the later chapters there’re some bits of censorship for gore (can’t imagine why, so counterproductive), but overall it’s very impressive. It’s because of the art that I give this manhwa 1 point above “fine”.

The story feels as if the author made his mind about what to write pretty late in. Some of the earlier chapters seem random (which results in upsettingly short life expectancy among the potentially interesting characters, btw), though in the end the motives that were introduced in the earlier episodes form the story. The bigger plot could’ve benefited from more buildup, but in the end the plot here is more or less just frame for action. As the first reviewer aptly said, it’s a mature shounen – a typical adventure, but with lots of death, albeit, I give it this, it’s not exactly stupid, and the flow of the dialogue is mostly ok.

Oh, and there’s the strong protagonist, I always forget how important it is for many, though he is introduced first as a rogue. The manhwa includes fanservice for both sexes (tits and abs aplenty, though mostly abs, and pls, let the “sexes” slide this time for the sake of simplicity), but it feels like it is done more for drawing pretty than for pandering.

Banya is often overlooked by those seeking action manga, and it’s a pity: this is exactly the badass action with a badass MC that many want. But I think that to avoid disappointment it’s best to approach it with the right mindset – just remember, it’s about art and fun slaughter, not philosophy or character development. Just like a big paper cup of street coffee – maybe it’s not the best coffee you’ve had, maybe it’s not healthy, but it’s just the right thing sometimes, when on the road.

Banya: The Explosive Delivery Man is basically a package delivery manga set in fantasy world where people are constantly fighting with monsters.

Story:

I sure wish the story was as good as the art. Stars of with MC delivering a letter and somehow ends up with him "saving the world". Considering how short and fast paced it is, stakes get insreased from 1 to 100 real quick. It would've been fine if it had more chapters to build it up to that point but his way is just plain terrible.

Art:

Pretty good.

...
Character:

Mei and Kong don't even appear in that many chapters even tho they are main characters. So there is no need to really talk about them in detail. Anyway, all the characters are pretty bland with zero to no personality, and none of the sticks out. And let's not forget how MC get's a power up when plot calls for it. MC gets beated by enemies. Suddenly hidden power within him awekens. He then beats the enemies and returns to his original self. Generic. And on top of that, it's not even explained how he got that power or how it works. Literally nothing is mentioned about it.

Overall:

I sure wish the story was as good as the artstyle. If you're looking for something with a plot, skip this one. But if you're just bored and looking for something that is fun, short and can be read in one sitting, this is it.


Overall: