The history of manga includes no shortage of stories revolving around the unfortunate plights of characters who are so ugly that they’re ostracized, or characters who naturally look so mean and scary that they’re typically misunderstood. Just a few examples of such stories include Norihiro Yagi’s Angel Densetsu, Hotondoshindeiru’s Isekai Ojisan, Ryo Hiromatsu’s Busamen Gachi Fighter, and Saka Mikami’s Kaoru Hana wa Rin to Saku. A new addition to the company is author Enji’s adventure dramedy The B-Rank Adventurer With a Scary Face Becomes a Father for the Hero and his Friends. While this ambitious sword & sorcery epic has its heart in the right place, its own appearance may erect obstacles in the way of its success. One Peace Books will present the officially English-translated manga to receptive English-speaking readers, and hopefully also win over some skeptical new fans, on September 9th.
After launching in April 2022 as a web novel illustrated by Kazuhiro Hara, creator Enji’s fantasy adventure tale grew popular enough to earn a manga adaptation by illustrator Cogeme beginning in May 2023. The B-Rank Adventurer With a Scary Face manga initially revolves around Gray, a skilled veteran adventurer whose experiences have taught him to be kind to those in need and merciless to those undeserving. When he stumbles across a ragtag family of abandoned children, his compassion kicks in, and he informally adopts the kids as his own wards. Although he vows to care for and protect the children, Gray has only the faintest idea that despite his best efforts these children’s futures may end up far more fraught with tragedy, terror, and misfortune than he could ever conceive.
Typical isekai manga involve characters resurrecting in fantasy worlds with god-given “cheat” powers. Occasionally, in titles such as Knights & Magic and Kenja no Mago, the “isekai” resurrection theme is so underutilized that it’s basically window-dressing. Within the crowded field of isekai fantasy stories, B-Rank Adventurer feels somewhat fresh because it doesn’t lean toward either thematic extreme. Gray, the main character of the first volume, doesn’t rely on superhuman cheat skills. He’s legitimately earned his strength through practice and experience. Moreover, his story skips the routine origin exposition. Readers meet Gray as an experienced, capable, independent adult, not as an unconfident, confused, weak teen who’s just discovering his powers. His isekai past is only referenced briefly, and that succinct depiction effectively explains Gray’s current personality. In his previous life, he lost his family. So that sense of grief, abandonment, and loneliness compel him to offer help to children that he finds in a situation reminiscent of his own past. Moreover, the story also deftly drops plenty of other intriguing small hints. The story implies that Gray’s new kids may be more than they appear. Furthermore, at least three of the six children have their own, unique, individual mysteries about them which the manga may delve into through future volumes.
Characterizations aren’t extremely rich or complex in this first volume, but writer Enji deserves some credit for making effort to flesh out the characters while also speedily moving the story forward. Gray is an endearing character because he has a playful sense of humor and a considerate, kind heart. But he’s also firm in his principles and ruthlessly merciless toward his enemies. In this first volume, the kids don’t get enough focus to develop, but each of them has a distinct personality. The story is mostly conventional, practically a slice-of-life fantasy that alternates between Gray working as a mercenary adventurer and Gray “working” as a caring father to his new family.
While the manga can be praised for not using its isekai trope as a narrative crutch, it also earns from criticism for lacking development of its titular theme. The adventurer Gray has a naturally intimidating face, but he practically suffers no ill consequences. Bystanders gossip and rumormonger about Gray’s supposed evils, but nothing seems to appreciably interfere with Gray’s routine daily life. In effect, the manga title feels like it makes a rather big deal out of nothing. Bystanders may be willing to put up with Gray’s ugly appearance, but readers may be less forgiving with the manga’s graphic art. Cogeme’s illustration looks and feels most like earnest fan art. This is no Katsuhiro Otomo, Kentaro Miura, or Masamune Shirow. Cogeme’s art isn’t even on par with middling level professional manga. Simply put, the illustrated art of the B-Rank Adventurer manga is amateurish and occasionally sloppy. For better or worse, it has the look and feel of cheap independently published comics that excel on enthusiasm rather than talent.
For a light domestic comedy, the first volume of B-Rank Adventurer with a Scary Face contains a generous amount of violent action. Gray beheads goblins, orcs, and human bandits with equal aplomb, resulting in a shocking number of decapitations within a single book. While the action is bloody, that manga takes care to tastefully obscure the gore. Heads go flying frequently but in a cartoonish way that renders the violence comical rather than grotesque. However, Gray is so good at his job, and so efficient at taking enemy heads, that the action ends up feeling a bit redundant and boring rather quickly. Instant killing blows may be strategically wise, but they don’t do much to generate dramatic tension.
The 184-page first volume of The B-Rank Adventurer With a Scary Face Becomes a Father for the Hero and his Friends contains the manga’s first six chapters plus a single page afterword from the manga artist. Cogeme uses fewer visual sound effects than typical manga illustrators, but the sound effects that do appear on page are translated. The manga’s original three color pages are rendered herein in monochrome. The manga contains frequent scenes of fantasy violence but contains no harsh language or nudity, and only a passing, chaste reference to sex.
Readers who are curious about The B-Rank Adventurer With a Scary Face Becomes a Father for the Hero and his Friends should give the manga a try. Readers with an insatiable appetite for isekai and high fantasy manga will likely find The B-Rank Adventurer… familiar but not unenjoyable. The manga’s weak graphic art, including minimal detail, rough, sketch-like design that often looks unfinished, and periodic designs that look off-model or poorly illustrated, is undeniably an initial obstacle. But the scripting, the characterizations and brisk story development, show a lot of heartfelt enthusiasm and some effort to lay groundwork for a larger, more complex and challenging narrative. The B-Rank Adventurer With a Scary Face Becomes a Father for the Hero and his Friends is far from an ideal introduction to manga. This book should not be any reader’s first foray into Japanese manga. But readers who are familiar with the tropes and themes of isekai fantasy may find B-Rank Adventurer With a Scary Face to be a slightly refreshing divergence from the conventional formula and a promising beginning. One Peace Books will officially release its first English-language volume of the manga on September 9th.
