Welcome to This Week in Shonen Jump, our weekly check in on Viz’s various Shonen Jump series. Viz has recently changed their release format, but our format will mostly remain the same. We will still review the newest chapters of one title a week, now with even more options at our disposal. The big change for our readers is that, even without a Shonen Jump subscription, you can read these most recent chapters for free at Viz.com or using their app.
This week, Zach checks in with “The Hunter’s Guild: Red Hood.” If you have thoughts on this or any other current Shonen Jump titles, please let us know in the comments!
The Hunters Guild: Red Hood Chapter 1
Written and illustrated by Yuki Kawaguchi
Translated by Adrienne Beck
Lettered by Brandon Bovia
Reviewed by Zach Wilkerson
It feels like Weekly Shonen Jump is releasing new titles at a faster pace than ever and I’m consistently impressed by how many seem to be sticking. “The Hunters Guild: Red Hood” is, like most shonen manga, a bit of a mixed bag in its debut chapter. Its formulaic story structure is propped up by decent world building, even better art, and a premise that finds a somewhat unique niche amidst the current offerings.
The chapter opens in media res with a striking color page sequence in which a particularly voluptuous woman, cloaked in red, asks the tantalizing question; “Have you ever seen a dragon boy.” How could he? As we quickly find out, they have been dead for five hundred years.
Hard cut to the quaint village of Kasoka, home to Velou, the young boy from the prologue who yearns to become a hunter and protector of his village. We quickly learn that this is a world plagued by monsters, werewolves in particular, and protected by the Hunters Guild. These Witcher-esque figures charge massive fees to dispose of said creatures. This information is primarily conveyed through exposition, but it is done so efficiently enough not to become burdensome. Through this, we’re introduced to other key characters such as the gigantic and compassionate mayor, his crone-like wife, and Grimm, the diminutive hunter that has been hired to take care of the town’s werewolf problem.
Just based on that rough description and the cast of characters, one can quickly make some reasonable predictions about the way this story is going to go. The werewolf’s identity and the connection between Grimm and the hunter from the prologue are telegraphed well before their actual revelations. Still, the story is not without a respectable amount of heart and certainly does not skimp on the action.
Kawaguchi’s art is very rich in detail, much more than I typically expect from a weekly shonen chapter. Their character designs are reminiscent of Horikoshi’s work on “My Hero Academia,” which is to say very expressive, vibrant, and memorable. Kawakuchi does some particularly striking close up shots on the characters faces, which in turn set the tone that the story is trying to convey in the moment. The Mayor’s wide grin, the wife’s drooping and wrinkled visage in side profile, or Velou’s triumphant declarations all come to mind.
The most striking and memorable aspect of Kawaguchi’s art, and the chapter in general, is the bizarre and grotesque design of the werewolf. Caught somewhere between a child’s storybook and a Bloodborne boss, Kawaguchi’s monster morphs with every page turn, from a multi-limbed beast with bifurcated jaw, to a sly and devilish fox, to dinosaur-esque behemoth. The degree of imagination and fluidity on display is extremely impressive. Nearly matching the design work is the well choreographed and hyper-violent fight scene between Velou and the beast.
A major theme of this chapter is the amorality of living. Hunters are just trying to make a living like a chef or a carpenter, so it’s neither good nor bad that they charge exorbitant fees. Werewolves eat humans to survive just as humans eat pigs or cows, so it’s unreasonable to condemn them on moral grounds. This philosophy is not that cut and dry, of course, but it does present a more “grey” view of the world compared to the staunch black and white morality of many shonen manga.
While “The Hunters Guild: Red Hood” doesn’t win too many marks on plot alone, it’s a fantastic debut for Kawaguchi as an artist and visual story-teller. This, coupled with an enjoyable tone and an interesting world make this title one worth watching.
Final Verdict: 7.8 – This very familiar story is elevated by Kawaguchi’s fantastic artwork.
