A Thousand Miles

Gigant

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Gigant is a Sci-fi Seinen manga by Hiroya Oku. It started serialization in 2017 in Shogokukan’s Big Comic Superior magazine. It’s been licensed for western release by Seven Seas Entertainment. The series presently has 8 volumes available, with 4 of those volumes available in English.

Cover Appeal

Gigant – Our cover rests heavily on a simple theme: Size. The title is essentially a form of the word “Gigantic” or “Giant”, specifically, to make it more personal. The “A” in said title is stylized to look like a monument casting a shadow (with bright lighting, to boot) – much like the Gateway Arch. And to tie it all together, “PaPiCo” (one of our main characters) is featured prominently on the cover, her torso consuming roughly 90% of the view making her look giant in her own right. It’s a visual “trick”, of course, as we can see a small bit of the city skyline and the combination of structures used, perspective and, thus, distinct lack of distortion makes it exceedingly clear that she’s just really close to the camera. Regardless, the effect is still there and the implications do pan out.

Hiroya Oku – This is a name that should spark a few memories for many of you. The famed creator of Gantz, Zero-One and Inuyashiki (among others), returns to pen another one of their sci-fi seinen stories. Having watched Gantz as a high school weeb, I do have some staunch expectations that, so far, have been met though Gigant has been a bit tamer. However, that fusion of matter of fact sci-fi and mundane weight of regular life is still there in spades.

The Gist

Rei’s a regular high school student. Life is already somewhat weird for him, being a teenager and all. However, they get weirder for him once he ends up befriending his favorite porn star. That’s awkward enough, but things get weirder yet for both of them when she starts developing size shifting powers. Just what is going on?

The Cast

Rei Yoko-Yamada – High School student and main protagonist. He’s a regular teenager, but really wants to be a film director. Usually goes by just Yoko-Yamada.

Chiho Johansson – Adult film star that operates under the handle “PaPiCo”. She debuted under the name “Saito Alice”. She meets Rei one night when he removes a number of signs slandering her for her profession in her neighborhood. She later gains the ability to size shift.

Ryuji – Chiho’s abusive boyfriend that becomes jealous once Chiho starts hanging out with Rei. She doesn’t exactly do herself any favors, but the two are shown fighting and Ryuji is shown gambling her money away.

Helmet Guy – A weird guy seen around the commercial district in his underwear, a backpack and what appears to be a military helmet (something akin to the blue UN helmets). Oddly enough, he mutters that OUR fashion is weird.

The Rub

Where do I begin with Gigant? Gigant is definitely Sci-Fi, but it’s a bit more grounded than the term may imply. The story is played out on a more intimate, micro-level than one where the bambastic sci-fi sensibilities permeate the whole narrative world. This is reflected in what I presume to be the best part of the story so far. Volume 1 introduces three plot threads, one for Rei, one for Chiho and a late one surrounding a forum poll and the shenanigans it spurs, but Chiho’s is the meat of the story.

Chiho has the most happen to her and has the most going on in her neck of the narrative woods. It is she who meets Helmet man, who gets the power to change size, who has yet another violent lover’s spat, who is burdened with supporting a distant (yet judgemental) family in the brink of grief. Rei doesn’t have nearly as much going on in his world, but the two do play off of each other well. Watching Rei awkwardly work his way through a conversation with a porn star whose work he likely “enjoyed” earlier that day is amusing enough. Luckily, Chiho is a good sport and doesn’t prod the guy with the elephant in the room and the two start a friendship.

It’s within the scope of this relationship, (and that of Chiho with her boyfriend, Ryuji) that her powers are explored. Gigant really wants to take its time, mulling over what these changes are supposed to mean within the dynamic of Chiho’s life.

This is a double edged sword as I must admit that I got a chuckle out of the ecstatic director reveling in a chance to cheaply employ a fetish that would’ve cost a boatload in time and CGI otherwise, but I also can’t help but feel that it highlights how low the stakes are. I have a sneaking suspicion that the secondary sci-fi element, the forum poll, was introduced JUST to have something with some form of wide scale reach by the end of the volume.

In Conclusion

Despite the late arrival of the forum poll and Rei’s plot thread being woefully under-cooked, I still feel like the three plot threads could be wound together in an interesting way despite it not having been done yet. For some reason, I’m picturing some kind of production centering around the feedback loop of the forum poll and Rei’s filming of Chiho’s size changing adventures.

That’s to say, I’m kinda eager to read volume 2, but not so much for the progression of a plot thread I’m confident in as much as curiosity in how they’re going to weave these three threads together. But that’s a double edged sword as well. You’d think “I want to see if Volume 2 does what Volume 1 should’ve done a little more of” is a negative, and it kinda is, but in the “you didn’t do an awesome thing, but you certainly didn’t botch it, so you’ve got potential” way. And the potential of good is better than the certainty of bad.

Continue?: Sure, I guess