Versus 1

バーサス (Versus) #1

by ONE, Bose, Kyoutarou Azuma (illustrator)

The compelling and long-awaited new action epic from ONE, the author of One-Punch Man and Mob Psycho 100! Humanity cowers in fear in a world ruled by demons...but a brigade of humanity's 47 strongest heroes band together in a final attempt to wrest the world back!

Centuries ago, humanity’s natural enemy, Demons, invaded the world and defeated humanity. The Great Demon Lord and his generals have since dominated the world, while the human race lives on in fear. In desperation, a group of 47 people gathered from around the world undertake a last-ditch effort to save humanity from ultimate annihilation. These heroes swear to defeat the demon army and win back humanity’s freedom, but they have no idea the desperate measures that this battle will drive them to embrace...

Genres: Manga, Fantasy, Comics, Science Fiction, Shonen, Graphic Novels Comics, Graphic Novels

224 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2023

About the author

Manga creator ONE first created One-Punch Man as a web comic, where it quickly went viral, garnering over 10,000,000 hits! Along with One-Punch Man, ONE also writes and draws another series called Mob Psycho 100.

Reviews

[BlaireReadsTheThings · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you NetGalley for the digital ARC of this volume.

Hero Hallow just got his butt kicked. Along with most of the other heroes trying to rid the world of the demon lords, Hallow has failed at his mission. When he meets up with his mage brother, the world as he knows it shatters. A merge between Hallow's world and 13 other worlds has occurred and instead of finding the help they were hoping for, they have found more problems. Or have they?

I love this so much. This is the same author as the Mob Psycho 100 manga and I am so here for it. The story is very well-developed and you can tell that they already have a plan and are ready to execute. I will definitely be reading more and anxiously await the anime that is sure to come.

[Oli · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 (read first few books)
interesting concepts, great story potential.
Probably has too many characters to actually have me care for them as individuals, but that might change over time!

[Rick · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first volume of Versus was a fun ride. I went into it knowing nothing, but based on reading the blurb afterwards, a lot of the cool pieces are left as a surprise for the reader. The character designs are great and the world building is a blast. If an initial volume is designed to pull in the reader and get them coming back, this definitely did that for me.

[James DeSantis · Rating 3 out of 5]

A weird mix up of traditional fantasy at the start but soon worlds connect from all different types of genre. We get a military soldier unit, we get mini titan creatures, magic users, ect. A lot of it feels weird mash up but at the same time the comedy of ONE from one piece and mob psycho does come through to make some scenes pretty funny. Also the art is solid but not mind-blowing, but some cool fight scenes with bloody endings to some characters. I'm not fully sold but I'd check out volume 2 and see if it grows on me!

[IvyInThePages · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rating: 4.95 leaves out of 5
-Characters: 5/5
-Stories: 4.75/5
-Writing: 5/5
Genre: Fantasy, Scifi
-Fantasy: 5/5
-Scifi: 5/5
Type: Manga
Worth?: Yes!!

Hated|Disliked|Meh|It Was Okay|Liked|Really Liked|Loved

Want to thank Netgalley and publishers for giving me the chance to read this book.

Wow wow wow! I absolutely loved this manga. I haven't read something like this before. Won't say what really happened because I want you all to experience it yourself but wow. Honestly loved it. I think if you like groups going out and fighting bad guys and comedy then you'd like this. Reminded me a bit of Fairy Tail.

[Reading_ Tamishly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you, Kodansha Comics, for the ARC.

This one gets really messy with all the fights and the shouts as there should be for such a plot and the characters involved!

Demons invade the human world and of course intense fights would follow and this manga is exactly that!

Read this with the younger audiences who love games and cartoons! It will be worth it.

[Sophy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a crazy story, I am interested in what will happen next. This story has multiple universes and needs help, so they do a spell to bring help from another universe, but things don't work out the way they thought they would. Things get crazy fast.

[Cecille · Rating 4 out of 5]

The sheer scale of the story they're promising here feels ridiculous, but this volume was so over-the-top and entertaining, it's got me curious to see if they can pull it off.

[Raven · Rating 3 out of 5]

I feel like this series can really become the next big hit. I love the chaoticness of it, but it really is just too much. I feel like if the next volumes really sand out what the heck is going on then it could become really interesting. But as of right now... Even my ADHD brain was having a hard time keeping up

[Strawberry Bee · Rating 5 out of 5]

‘Versus 1’ is ONE’s newest manga and it does not disappoint! The manga is an intriguing concept where humans are on the brink of extinction against the demon army. Our main character is a designated hero who goes into battle against one of the demon lords. But while humanity has been using heroes to distract the demons, the world’s mages have a separate plan in the works that should (SHOULD, BIG SHOULD) prevent humanity from becoming extinct.

Phew, it’s hard to explain this one without spoilers. The manga manages to balance a wide range of characters and settings without loosing the reader. Which is pretty difficult to do. I can only image the cork board in ONE’s office. The visuals, which I will leave you too look at yourself, are stunning. A lot of time and effort has been put into developing into this story, and it does not disappoint.

Thank you Netgalley for providing an eARC for an honest review.

(Review is also posted on @tealiterature Instagram)

[Enairolf]

Ce manga traînait dans ma PAL depuis un petit moment maintenant. Ayant les deux premiers tomes, je me suis dis qu’il était temps de les lire. Le résumé m’a pas mal intrigué et j’étais curieuse de découvrir cette histoire. J’ai passé un bon moment pendant ma lecture. L’histoire est hyper originale et c’est plutôt prenant. On se laisse prendre au jeu et on a envie d’en apprendre plus sur tout ça!

Dans ce premier tome, l’armée des démons a envahi la planète et menace d’éradiquer l’espèce humaine. Pour les vaincre, une ultime offensive est menée : 47 héros spécialement entraînés sont envoyés à travers le monde pour abattre les 47 rois-démons et le seigneur à leur tête. Mais lorsque cette mission tourne au désastre, la guilde des mages décide d’utiliser le dernier recours de l’humanité : ils parviennent à ouvrir un portail interdimensionnel pour appeler un autre monde à l’aide ! Seulement, rien ne se passe comme prévu… Les deux mondes fusionnent et ces humains d’un autre univers qui auraient dû être leurs sauveurs sont eux-mêmes sur le point d’être exterminés par leur propre ennemi naturel…

Ce que j’ai aimé dans cette histoire c’est son originalité. De base on est dans un monde de fantasy, avec des héros, des démons etc. Et puis d’un coup on se retrouve avec des mecs en habit futuristes et surtout des robots. Mais ce n’est pas tout parce qu’on va aussi parler de titans, d’extraterrestres ou encore de parasite. C’est clairement le multivers quoi! Et ça m’a beaucoup plu. Comme je le dis j’ai trouvé ça tellement original. C’est plutôt drôle à lire également. Franchement je me suis laissée embarqué dans cette histoire un peu wtf et c’est très plaisant. Peu importe le monde, il y en a treize en tout, il y a un point commun. Dans chacun des mondes, l’humanité est en grand danger et ils ont besoin d’aide. Le personnage de Zeyvi m’a bien fait rire, lui qui pensait avoir enfin l’aide qu’il voulait, il s’est bien planté! J’ai aussi adoré Hallow, le héros. Je suis hyper curieuse de voir ce que la suite va donner parce que bon, faut bien l’avouer, ils sont tous dans un sacré pétrin là! Ils sons tous dans le même monde avec plein d’ennemis différents, clairement c’est la pagaille!!

Cette histoire originale m’a bien plu. Ce premier tome pose les bases de l’histoire et on a tout de suite envie d’en apprendre plus sur la suite de l’histoire. On se pose également pas mal de questions sur ce qu’il va bien pouvoir se passer pour nos héros. C’est un premier tome réussi pour moi et je m’en vais de ce pas dévoré la suite!

[Siina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Versus is quite an interesting scifi series actually! There's this ONE vibe in it too and humor. I do like this "heroes above all" view that is somewhat twisted, well, a lot really. The story is set in a world where there are demons and humans are on the losing end. The Great Demon Lord is all too powerful, heroes die and the mages summon help. Other humans get summoned from different realms combining them and it seems humanity is losing everywhere. All the groups of people have different enemies, but it seems they can switch those and perhaps save what is left of humans. The setting is great, although I do hope it's not just fights after fights. I wish there will be something more in the series, so it wouldn't just be a copy. But! You never know.

The art looks nice and works well with the story line. The different enemies look great and the view angels vary creating this nice ongoing movement. The characters still need more persona though, and I hope they will gain it so that we feel something for them. An interesting start surely and you can never have too many scifi series, haha.

[Matteo Calvano · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first volume of Versus, a new project by ONE, bose and Kyoutarou Azuma, answers the necessity of summing up the whole amount of different tropes and repetitions you can find inside the overused isekai genre. Utilizing the most satiric genre about the quoted one, the anti-isekai in which the worlds collide around the characters, Versus integrates a war among natural enemies of humanity with an entire multiverse ready to fight them. The best thing is observing how a normal fantasy setting is slowly invaded by unconnected things one another but yet finding a unique artistic coherence, thanks to an incredible character design and a way of narrating the sequences which is always clear, despite a lack of experimentations in dialogues and interactions. However, the imagination and self-awareness for starting a production in which 13 worlds help each other in order to win this eternal fight is so unbelievable I can give me trust in this new production.

STYLE: 4
WRITING: 3
STORY: 4
WORLDBUILDING: 5
RHYTHM: 4
CHARACTERS: 3,5
VILLAINS: 5
ARTISTIC FEATURE: 4,5
ATMOSPHERE 4
EMOTIONAL IMPACT: 4,5

FINAL VERDICT: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

[Teresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley, Kodansha Comics, and ONE: bose for the opportunity to read this manga in exchange for an honest review.

Well, this is a weird on (in a good way...I think).

47 heroes are selected, one for each of the demon kings. The heroes are sent out to destroy the demon kings and regain the world back for humanity. It's a bit bleak though...The 11th hero is in a rut, but a strange group with specialized weapons (firearms as opposed to swords) comes and obliterates a group of demons. Has the call been answered? While they may think that, the group has actually sought them for aid to fight against these AI robots that have taken over humanity. Can the two groups help each others worlds across dimensions?

This manga offers an interesting genre blend of fantasy and futuristic technology. The art is great, as expected of the mangaka of One Punch Man, and some of the characters are certainly more intriguing than others. This is definitely a fun action-packed manga that fits the shounen genre.

[✧ Beanie Reads ✧ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!
2 stars

Honestly, the blurb for this book is bad. It doesn't prepare you at all for the concept as you go into the book. And the concept isn't necessarily bad. It's actually very interesting, though also very strange.

The premise is basically a spell draws multiple worlds together, each world having their own natural enemy, and them attempting to team up to help each other.

So, again, interesting, and again, the blurb did very little to show what actually makes this story unique.

Unique or not, though, I just couldn't get into this. Something about the execution came off as flat. None of the characters really stuck out. The protagonist didn't even super feel like they stood out from the others. Overall, the first volume doesn't start in a way that is gripping, but it's interesting enough, and I could understand people wanting to read onward for premise alone. I, however, am not one of those people.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

The concept is simple: the hero and humanity is absolutely powerless against their current enemy, but another isekaied world has the weapons to combat the enemy easily. Next, the real hook: for 13 worlds isekaied into one place, they need to figure out how to pit their natural enemies against each other. It is a super ambitious story where each world is a different type of dystopia genre (ie robots, zombies, kaiju, survival game, aliens, nature, etc). The main draw of this manga is actually the author ONE, who created One Punch Man and Mob Psycho 100. The artist is also very good and draws the fight scenes very well. Great localization with the translation and lettering.

Overall, I am intrigued in the super huge isekai crossover enemy battle concept and the action is making me want to read more. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you to Kodansha and Netgalley for giving me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Siobhain · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have to confess I haven’t read the One-Punch Man manga but I was intrigued by this one and I am so glad I was. This was a strong first volume with a lot of set up for the series overall. The characters didn’t have a lot of development but that is understandable for the first volume of a series, especially one that may be more than a few volumes. The art style took a little while to get used to but by the second chapter I was fully immersed. The panels offer a nice balance between text/speech and artwork and the readability is brilliant. I will definitely be following this series and also reading One-Punch Man now.

As always thank you to Netgalley and Kodansha Comics for the copy to review, my reviews are always honest and freely given.

[Lexa Riffe · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is such a chaotic and fun ride. The world building and character development is great, and you can see that it will continue to get better as the series goes on. This is a cool high fantasy / anime / sci-fi match up. If you enjoy the humor in one piece, you'll enjoy this as well.
The art is good and brings you into the story. If you enjoy the whole group of misfits banning together as a found family this is right up there in the same category as fairytail and Edens zero.
There is pure chaos, and it is showing so much promise and potential to be a really great manga series, hopefully one that gets its turn for an animated series as well.

When the worlds collide, the story begins.

Thank you NetGalley and Kodansha Comics for the Digital ARC for Review.
#Versus #NetGalley

[Vincent · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked early One-Punch Man (up until the interminable monster association arc started dragging and draggin) so I was curious what Versus would be about. I tend to think ONE is best at coming up with an intriguing premise and playing out some of the consequences.

Here we have what at first seems like the start of a quest, with heroes and parties and retainers/vassals/minions against a evil (in this case "demonic") foe but which soon turns into a multiversal story instead. I like how this introduction volume didn't delay in introducing the players and some of the problem, though I don't know if I will be able to keep track of all the factions introduced.

Intrigued enough to see where this is going.

[Meg · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.85⭐s
-
47 heroes gather to save the world from the ultimate annihilation - I was HOOKED from start to finish! It's action packed from page one making you wanna know what happens next - I read this in one sitting!
Also, the artwork? *chef's kiss*

I don't want to give any spoilers, but what happens in volume one opens up to the possibility of so many 'spin offs' in the future, and I honestly hope it happens! Loved this story!

Thank you Kodansha Comics & NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

[Céline DDL · Rating 4 out of 5]

Un premier tome qui place le décors de l’intrigue, un peuple humain qui cherche de l’aide en ouvrant un portail afin de trouver un monde pouvant les aider à affronter les démons qui sont en train de les décimés et tomber sur un autre peuple humain qui cherche également de l’aide car les robots de leurs mondes veulent les exterminer. Ensemble ils chercheront une alliance afin de s’entraider dans leurs luttes mais… Est-ce aussi simple ? Pas sur ! Tout ce tient de bout en bout, et on veut connaître la suite avec impatience

[Ije the Devourer of Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

Action all the way as worlds collide and humanity has to unite with different peoples in order to defeat different enemies across the different worlds.

I really like the way this story unfolds and it clearly shows that a gripping series is going to emerge from this first volume. The story is engaging with all the powers of friends and foe to be deployed in the cause of freedom! Bring on the heroes. Definitely a series to follow.

Copy provided via Netgalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

[Naricadou Nicolas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Acheter après avoir vu l'édition en collector, et comme je suis un gros iencli d'édition limité, j'ai craqué sans savoir se que c'était.

Et je suis agréablement surpris du résultat, j'ai beaucoup aimé ce premier tome et le concept est très alléchant : 13 mondes issus d'un multivers fusionnent et devront s'allier pour vaincre l'ennemi naturel de chaque monde (démons, titans, virus, robot, dame nature, etc)
hâte de découvrir la suite !!

(pour les collectionneurs vous avez eu qu'elles version ? moi j'ai eu le monde des parasites 😁)

[Chiral H.M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first volume of ONE's new series continues the author's trend of wild and creative genre bending concepts! The art is also fantastic! I love the journey just in this volume from the size and scope of the story at the start to the end where we learn more and more about this clever setup. Highly recommend this one and go in blind if you haven't read anything about it!

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

[BreAnna (Bre'sBooks) · Rating 3 out of 5]

**ARC provided by NetGalley for honest review**

The manga volume one of Versus by author ONE had an interesting premise. Humanity is on the brink of extinction and through their final attempt to call another world for help, they find that humanity is in danger in other worlds too. They come together to try to save and fight alongside each other, pitting the enemies against one another. This was a pretty good volume, nothing wowed me, but I might pick up another given the chance.

[ANTHONY FLORES · Rating 4 out of 5]

Un manga un poco diferente para lo que vengo leyendo.

Un manga de fantasía donde el ser humano está siendo destruido por muchas cosas. Prácticamente el manga o la historia trata sobre como el ser humano tiene que sobrevivir a los enemigos naturales.

Algo que está interesante de como van a salvar a cada humanidad porque, para variar, intervienen mundos interdimencionales donde el humano es cazado por diferentes cosas.

Tengo interés de como terminará esto

[D E X · Rating 5 out of 5]

HMM...LETS TRY A MANGA WHICH HASN'T BEEN MADE INTO A FAMOUS ANIME WHICH MY BROTHER WILL JABBER ON ABOUT
THIS IS WHAT I'M LOOKING FOR
AMAZING
OUTSTANDING
I HAD MY PHONK BLASTING OUT WHILE READING THIS AND IT MADE THE FIGHTS FEEL LIKE I WAS WATCHING AN ACTUAL ANIME
WITH THE INTENSE SCENES, THE ACTION THERE IS NOTHING I WOULD CHANGE
IT IS DEFINITELY RECOMMEND
I AM SO EXCITED FOR NUMBER 2
WELL DONE, ONE, FOR ANOTHER MASTERPIECE

[Laura Villazán · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ahora manga en alemán :)

Tardo muchísimo en leer estas cosas madre mía. Bueno, llevo leído algunos mangas en alemán y la verdad es que la historia no me ha llamado mucho la atención. Tiene un toque cómico (cosa de la que no soy muy fan en general) y de aventuras. Como solo me he leído el primero no sé cómo seguirá pero bueno, han creado una premisa bastante curiosa así que puede que después mejore.

De momento para mí fue simplemente entretenido y ya está

[Rayco Cruz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Me ha parecido una historia estupenda, original y muy entretenida. La premisa, con esos mundos amenazados por enemigos naturales, me ha parecido muy interesante. El dibujo también es muy bueno, con unas escenas de acción inteligentes y bien llevadas. Los diálogos son bastante buenos y el worldbuilding, aunque hemos visto aún poco, promete un montón.

Muy recomendable.

[78sunny · Rating 1 out of 5]

1,4 von 5 Sternen
Ich gebe selten so eine schlechte Bewertung aber dieser Manga hat mich extrem gelangweilt. Die Charaktere hatten für mich null Tiefe, ich fieberte kein bisschen mit, der Zeichenstil an sich war gar nicht schlecht aber viele Szenen waren einfach zu hektisch.
Ich habe den Manga in der limitierten Edition und das ist der einzige Grund warum er im Regal bleiben wird.