MANGA REVIEW | "COSMOS" - Volume One
To many, having to deal with insurance companies is a headache. So how would someone make these nuisances into heroes to root for? Well, if you’re Ryuhei Tamura — the same mad man who concocted Hard-Boiled Cop and Dolphin — you make them as badass as the 1997 version of Men in Black. And by that, you make the clients and their claims completely out of this world. Welcome to COSMOS, the first time ever insurance claims are showcased in an interesting light!
COSMOS begins with Mizumori, a high schooler with the ability to sniff out lies. If what his friends are saying is true, then there’s no smell. However, when it’s all fibs, Mizumori’s nostrils deal with some stank! So perhaps it’s perfect for an insurance agency to want to hire him, as he can help point out the truth from those lying about their claims. But before we get to them, Mizumori needs to help his classmate Hinakawa find her missing boyfriend, Aizawa.
What first looks like a yakuza loan shakedown becomes something straight out of The X-Files. A strange woman named Rin Homura appears at Aizawa’s apartment and invites Mizumori and Hinakawa inside. There, they find Aizawa lying on the ground completely dried up, a sight that upsets Hinakawa. The good news is that it’s not a dead body, but merely shedded skin. The bad news: Aizawa’s out for insurance claimer’s blood, and he’s got a mad throwing arm that’s ready to be a killing machine.
Yes, it’s aliens. COSMOS takes insurance claims to the moon and back, with interesting results. Its first storyline about a rogue alien trying to avoid paying back his loan of 1.2 million…space bucks? (It’s not exactly clear what sort of money aliens use.) Soon, it goes into a full-blown action sequence involving sniper-shot baseballs before it’s revealed why Aizawa is on Earth in the first place. And before you ask, baseball is part of the reason.
After this incident, Mizumori is convinced by Rin to go to Cosmos. He meets the head, who looks exactly like a certain tokusatsu hero children all over Japan know. Mizumori’s still not entirely sure he’s up for the task, until he aids in an investigation involving a missing spacecraft and a teeny tiny universe inside of a bento box. From there, things get crazy!
I’ll stay this: this story isn’t as zany as Hard-Boiled Cop and Dolphin. Compared to that, COSMOS is tame. However, when you watch two aliens battle it out on a train, with Rin showcasing her own level of strength like it’s nothing, you get a sense that Ryuhei Tamura hates the mere concept of sanity in his stories. But just because the premise is kooky doesn’t mean it’s not heartfelt, as evident by how Mizumori treats one of the aliens at the end of the investigation.
Speaking of heartfelt, the final chapter in this volume is something that comes out of left field. One of Mizumori’s coworkers is an alien in disguise, and it turns out she’s under investigation by Cosmos. But when the truth behind the situation is revealed, it transforms into a heart-wrenching story about why we must cherish the time we all have left. Even the appearance of a cute talking cat won’t keep the waterworks from pouring out of readers’ eyes.
It’s easy to see why the likes of Rumiko Takahashi, Tite Kubo, and Hiromu Arakawa have showered praise for COSMOS. A tale of insurance claims sounds dull on paper, but Tamura goes all in to make it both interesting and entertaining. Who knows what sort of alien beings Mizumori and Rin will have to consult with next time? But for now, COSMOS has filed a claim that’s easy as pie to approve right off the bat!
FINAL GRADE:
Promotional consideration provided by Chantelle Sturt of VIZ Media.
