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20世紀少年 [20th Century Boys] #2

20th Century Boys, Band 2

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In seiner Kindheit dachte Kenji sich mit seinen Freunden einen Plot zur Zerstörung der Welt aus. Doch das Endzeitszenario des unbedarften Jungen wird jetzt durch die Hand des “Freundes“ nur allzu real und Bakterienangriffe in San Francisco und London bedrohen die Menschheit. Was wird als nächstes passieren und wie sind der “Freund“ und seine Anhänger zu stoppen? Die einzige Person, die das weiß, und somit die ganze Welt retten kann, ist Kenji. Also trifft er eine Entscheidung und tritt seinem Gegner alleine gegenüber…

420 pages, Paperback

First published February 29, 2016

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About the author

Naoki Urasawa

371 books2,974 followers
Urasawa Naoki (浦沢直樹) is a Japanese mangaka. He is perhaps best known for Monster (which drew praise from Junot Díaz, the 2008 Pulitzer Prize winner) and 20th Century Boys.

Urasawa's work often concentrates on intricate plotting, interweaving narratives, a deep focus on character development and psychological complexity. Urasawa has won the Shogakukan Manga Award, the Japan Media Arts Festival excellence award, the Kodansha Manga Award and the Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize. In 2008 Urasawa accepted a guest teaching post at Nagoya Zokei University.

Series list (not including short stories collections):
- Pineapple ARMY (パイナップルARMY) 1985-1988, written by Kazuya Kudo;
- YAWARA! 1986-1993;
- Master Keaton (MASTERキートン) 1988-1994, written by Hokusei Katsushika;
- Happy! 1993-1999
- MONSTER 1994-2001
- 20th Century Boys (20世紀少年) 1999-2006
- 21st Century Boys (21世紀少年) 2007
- PLUTO 2003-2009, based on Tezuka Osamu's Tetsuwan Atom
- BILLY BAT 2008-2016
- Master Keaton Remaster (MASTERキートン Reマスター) 2012-2014
- Mujirushi (夢印-MUJIRUSHI-) 2017-2018, collaboration with Musée du Louvre
- Asadora! (連続漫画小説 あさドラ!) 2018-ongoing

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5 stars
2,422 (61%)
4 stars
1,328 (33%)
3 stars
169 (4%)
2 stars
13 (<1%)
1 star
5 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 220 reviews
Profile Image for Sarah Aubert.
628 reviews368 followers
March 6, 2022
Still trying to keep my thoughts brief, but I like this SO MUCH. It's getting harder and harder to stop reading!
Profile Image for Artemy.
1,045 reviews968 followers
January 20, 2019
3.5 stars

20th Century Boys continues jumping between timelines, flipping the story on its head, misleading its readers into thinking it’s going one way while actually going into a completely different direction. With all its mysteries, new character introductions and foreshadowing, the second volume didn’t remind me of Stephen King’s IT as much as it did Lost, which I don’t think is a bad thing. However, the tone of the book is walking a very thin line between an exciting thriller and ridiculous, making-it-up-on-the-fly nonsense. I really can’t tell if Urasawa knows where he’s going with this book at this point, but it’s an interesting ride so far that also looks stunningly good thanks to his unique art style, so I’m on board for now.
Profile Image for Vinicius.
921 reviews46 followers
March 22, 2026
No segundo volume de 20th Century Boys, o clima do quadrinho muda, pois, tudo que fora apresentado na edição anterior ganha um tom mais sério, de que consequências acontecerão com os personagens e a tensão construída leva o leitor a acreditar nisso.

Na primeira metade do mangá, acompanhamos Kenji lidando diretamente com o partido da Amizade. Ele se infiltra em um dos cultos, realiza investigações sobre a identidade do Amigo (com base no que ele possui do passado de sua turma da escola), conversa com outras pessoas a respeito do culto e sofre um ataque direto dos seguidores do Amigo.

Nesse sentido, há uma ruptura do Kenji do primeiro volume, que se ve impotente e não sabe como agir e nem com quem conversar a respeito. Aqui, após um "surto" que ocorre com o personagem e ele resgata seu passado ousado com o rock, ele toca sua guitarra sem se importar com o seu entorno (até cita o famoso show dos Beatles tocando no telhado, Rooftop Concert), e há a virada de chave em sua vida.

Após esse episódio, Kenji fica mais sério e busca combater o amigo, assumindo uma responsabilidade, que até entao, ele estava receoso em ter.

Já na segunda parte do volume, acompanhamos um personagem denominado como Xogum, que será revelado que o mesmo fazia parte da turma de Kenji. Mas antes disso, acompanhamos sua vida em Bankok.

Na cidade, Xogum é uma especie de faz tudo/mercenário do submundo, que aceita diversas tarefas para sobreviver, demonstrando ser uma figura respeitada pelos demais e que possui uma bondade e senso de moralidade - mesmo sendo mercenário.

Embora ele ainda não saiba sobre o Amigo e o Partido da Amizade, a notícia chega até ele de maneira inusitada e com muito clima de conspiração, carregando uma tensão instigante para ele e para o leitor.

Por fim, o personagem sofre algumas consequências por se envolver, mesmo que rapidamente, com seguidores do Amigo, mas consegue sobreviver, vindo a somar na luta contra esse culto.
Profile Image for Whitney Jamimah.
921 reviews76 followers
June 20, 2022
Okay, this volume was AMAZING! 4.5 stars!

I felt way more grounded in the story for this installment. Though I had a bit of a hard time getting into a good groove with the first installment I appreciate the set-up and the slightly jerky intro that Urasawa created for us in the beginning because there was none of that in this second volume, the stage was set in its entirety and it was full speed ahead. We got a few answers and many many more questions in this volume. I am in love with the mystery that Urasawa is crafting, all I want is more of this story and world!
Profile Image for Martin Iguaran.
Author 4 books362 followers
June 7, 2026
¿Qué se consigue si mezclamos sectas apocalípticas, recuerdos de la infancia, ataques bacteriológicos, revelaciones familiares y robots gigantes?
La respuesta es un MANGA GENIAL.
En este segundo volumen vamos calentando motores. Ya sabemos el probable nombre-pero no la cara-del líder de la secta, "Amigo". Se revela que Kenji y él son mucho más que solo amigos de la infancia, y parte del volumen se traslada a Tailandia, a mostrarnos en qué andaba Otcho, el amigo desaparecido. Entre medio, un salto temporal nos traslada al año 2000, cuando "Amigo" es cada vez más poderoso y ya se ha infiltrado en el gobierno, la política y la policía japonesa (al igual que como pretendía hacer la secta de Shoko Asahara, los que pusieron gas nervioso en el metro de Tokio y también tenían delirios apocalípticos, una clara inspiración para la historia).
¿Quién es el anciano capaz de predecir el futuro? ¿Quién es Amigo y por qué decidió fundar su secta? ¿Qué rol tendrá Kanna, la sobrina de Kenji? ¿Cómo vencerán a un robot gigante de 50 metros?
Tendré que seguir leyendo para enterarme.
Profile Image for P.E..
1,099 reviews790 followers
July 23, 2026
A Riff Picking Up Speed



Inshuu Manjoume, Friend's PR officer

Kenji infiltrates a meeting of Friend's party, the reader can get a better view of what feels off about this sort of death-cult. Cringe comedians, inane musicians, and the unparalleled clout Friend has on his followers.

As Friend seems to follow Kenji's scriblings and childish predictions from elementary school as his guidelines, Kenji decides to gather his gang of friends, trying to stop Friend's cult in its tracks, before December 31, 2000, the date set by the cult for some sort of viral Doomsday. They retrace the past of Friend who is likely to be Kiyoshi Sada, a former schoolmate, and a wretched whipping boy.

The plot speeds up, as Kenji and Yukiji stumble on the infamous Inshuu Manjoume, revealing that a bomb will go off at Haneda airport. Shortly after, gangs of cultists storm Kenji's konbini, trying to kidnad Kanna (who is revealed to be not only Kenji's niece, but also Friend's daughter). Finally, we learn more about Otcho "Shougun" and his background story - a sad one at that, as Otcho sacrificed his family life to his career, never managing to save time for his wife and son before the latter dies in a car accident. What follows is his life in Thailand and his recent fight against a local drug factory near the Thailand-Myanmar border, affiliated to the nefarious and omnipresent Friend...


See also:
Remina
L'oiseau bleu
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch
Heart of Darkness
Japon, la face cachée de la perfection
7,153 reviews84 followers
April 10, 2020
Great story! More of a mystery manga, we're a bit more in the «present» in this one and less in the childhood part. Slower than what I usually read as manga but a very intriguing and thrilling story! I was a bit unsure with this series and just pick it because a lot of people I respect the opinion were saying it was really worth it, but they were right! Totally worth it!
Profile Image for Maro.
65 reviews3 followers
May 18, 2023
Things are really starting to pick up. It's gonna be troublesome to put this series down.
Profile Image for Aradeea.
75 reviews6 followers
August 24, 2024
El resumen del principio hace milagritos jeje 👌 Con ganas de saber más sobre AMIGO
Profile Image for Des Fox.
1,145 reviews21 followers
April 11, 2019
I really loved the first perfect volume, but this one is where I begin to understand Urasawa as an artist. He's a master, that much is already evident. Sometimes I struggle with manga over western comics because of the translation factor. But that just isn't much of an issue here. These characters are humans. The core of that humanity is captured and on display no matter the language spoken. Otcho makes a wonderful addition to the cast, and I am very excited to watch him and Kenji roll through the rest of this series.
Profile Image for Ame-lit D’Arroult.
365 reviews2 followers
July 21, 2023
Encore une fois une très bonne lecture. Cette histoire est vraiment intrigante et semble très bien ficelée. On a quelques révélations qui font plaisir mais on a toujours plus de mystère. Notre personnage principal évolue et les enjeux auxquels il fait face sont de taille. On a aussi de nouveaux personnages qui semblent très intéressants. Je passe un très bon moment de lecture avec cette saga.
Profile Image for Oliver Bateman.
1,609 reviews93 followers
September 14, 2025
Urasawa’s big sci fi mystery deepens. Rich, evocative art, and it’s a wonder how the uniquely structured plot fits together. Can he stick the landing across 10 more books? We shall see, but highly recommended thus far.
238 reviews1 follower
February 11, 2022
Todo funciona a la perfección acá. Dudo que siga así hasta el final, pero hasta ahora es una obra maestra absoluta.
Profile Image for Diego.
12 reviews
May 26, 2026
Esto está avanzando muy rápido y quedan 9 tomos más
Amigo, Amigo, Amigo
Profile Image for francesca.
160 reviews
May 23, 2024
fortunatamente per una volta ho ascoltato i suggerimenti di alice…😁
Profile Image for Jagoda.
31 reviews2 followers
May 12, 2023
Chciałabym zostać „przyjacielem”
Profile Image for Maëlys.
29 reviews4 followers
March 31, 2025
Toujours autant banger
Urasawa ce génie
Profile Image for Minerva Morse.
278 reviews1 follower
May 16, 2026
20 SEIKI SHONEN KANZENBAN 2 (SHOGAKUKAN © 2025)
20th Century Boys The Complete Edition 2 (Elex Media Komputindo © 2025)
by
Naoki URASAWA
Ari Nirwana & Sissy Nurvidati Rahim (Translator)

Cerita berlanjut dengan si sekte ini sudah menguasai Jepang dan ada di setiap aspek kehidupan dan bahkan ada partainya. Wedyannnn~ Di Thailand seorang pria yang disebut Shogun bekerja secara ilegal dan membantu korban human trafficking buat kabur. Tapi naasnya dia malah ketemu anggota partai Persahabatan, ditambah telepon dari Kenji bikin Shogun ini akhirnya balik ke Jepang dan bantuin Kenji untuk menghentikan sahabat.

Di buku ke-2 ini makin edan aja ceritanya. Di sini juga ditunjukkan nasib profesor yang hilang waktu di buku pertama yang menghadiri konferensi robot (kek obrolan para penulis mo bikin film sci-fi). Di sini masih belum diketahui siapa sahabat ini yang mengaku ayah dari Kanna (keponakan Kenji), dan misteri tentang Sadakiyo yang katanya nguping obrolan mereka waktu kecil. Terlebih lagi si ‘Sahabat’ ini ngajak Kenji main dan memintanya untuk mengumpulkan semua temannya yang kalo ditotalin sama Kenji jumlahnya 9 orang. Mana lagi gue udah suudzon kalo ‘Sahabat’ ini si Occho! Siapa sangka yang mau nyamperin Kenji dan berjuang bareng dia ini malah si Occho. Ya amponnn jadi gak sabar baca komik yang ke-3 dan liat perjuangan duo ini buat ngumpulin temen-temen mereka.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Pcabrer.
17 reviews
August 11, 2026
3,5 ⭐️

Después de que dejé este segundo tomo abandonado hace como dos años, y una vez reeleído también el primer tomo porque si no no me entero de nada, retomo esta serie para, espero, completarla esta vez. Será un largo camino, pero me parece que será muy interesante.

Es una historia bastante compleja, con un montón de personajes y diferentes tramas; no es el típico manga que te encuentras actualmente, es un manga de diálogos, detalles, misterios. Te dejo esto por aquí para que dentro de 30 capítulos digas: "Ah, vale", cosas así. Es un manga demandante en cuanto a que requiere la atención del lector y no te va a enganchar con un dibujo estelar y unas batallas épicas. Es de cocción lenta, y me gusta.

Respecto a este tomo en concreto, sí que la trama de Otcho en Tailandia se me hace un poco pa qué pa qué y bastante alejada de la principal, pero entiendo su función y por qué está ahí; lo demás, genial.

Nuevamente odio Goodreads por no dejarte poner tres estrellas y media.
Profile Image for Matthew Manchester.
982 reviews94 followers
March 18, 2026
This series is incredible and is also for serious readers and thinkers. This manga isn’t slop. You can’t just gloss over a page. It engages your full mind, dread filling every page, Easter eggs all around yet without you realizing it. (The reread of this is gonna kick)

What should be praised the most though is how the story is unfolding. It’s slow, patient, only giving you what it wants you to know. You’re left in the dark and then every chapter or two the author gives you a bite of information and changes everything you’ve been reading. The plot twists are wonderful.

This is a S+ tier story and I can’t wait to continue it.

(Didn’t realize till now that the author also wrote Monster and the reinterpretation of Pluto. So….the man is truly the goat)
Profile Image for Sheila López.
117 reviews5 followers
November 3, 2023
El segundo volumen de '20th Century Boys' continúa con la intrigante trama de misterio y conspiración que Naoki Urasawa ha tejido magistralmente. Los personajes siguen siendo cautivadores y la narrativa mantiene un ritmo envolvente. Las revelaciones y giros inesperados mantienen al lector ansioso por descubrir más. Sin duda, una lectura imprescindible para los amantes del thriller y el manga de calidad.

Parece ser, que empieza ya la acción...
Profile Image for Sarah Schanze.
Author 1 book13 followers
June 11, 2019
I'm so amazed Urasawa can make a seemingly silly story premise into something so believable (especially these days, hah hah) and suspenseful. I've been checking these out from the library but I should just buy them.
Profile Image for Loay Mohammed.
190 reviews11 followers
August 10, 2023
20th Century Boys Second Volume, Continues To Build Upon What Have Been Set in The First Volume, it Expands The World a Bit More & Flesh Out More About The Cast & a Few New Ones. The Point That Made me a bit Frustrated is That It Still Remains Overly Mysterious That You Sometimes Feel Like Urasawa is Holding The Information From You Until He Wants To Reveal it & We Haven’t Seen The “Friend” as a Character.
Profile Image for Nelliamoci.
789 reviews122 followers
April 7, 2024
È incredibile il ritmo di questo secondo volume che, forse addirittura più del primo, trascina il lettore in questa storia pazzesca. I personaggi sono studiati in ogni dettaglio, le storie si incrociano perfettamente: viene voglia di divorarlo in un secondo. Bellissimo!
Profile Image for the_deepest_black.
241 reviews10 followers
Read
September 13, 2024
"Silny wie, co to słabość. Słabość to tchórzostwo; tchórzostwo to posiadanie czegoś, na czym ci zależy; osiadanie czegoś, na czym ci zależy to bycie silnym" (255-256).

"-Jesteśmy przyjaciółmi, nie? - Oczywiście, Mei [...]. - I widzisz? Masz jeszcze jedną ważną rzecz" (258).
Profile Image for Felippe.
61 reviews20 followers
September 8, 2025
O desenvolvimento dos personagens continua bom e os pulos temporais também. Parece ter fôlego para manter a história interessante mesmo parecendo que o desfecho está próximo.

Um dos detalhes que mais gostei deste e do primeiro são as referências aos heróis japoneses de mangá e tokusatsu.
Profile Image for Blanca.
78 reviews9 followers
January 17, 2019
Woooow! It was a minute since something caught me this way!! I couldn't put it down!!! I'll have to suffer from curiosity till I get the next volume, though *already dies from desperation*.
Profile Image for Elettra Petricola.
Author 7 books9 followers
February 13, 2022
Arrivato ieri e letto oggi tutto d'un fiato, veramente bello non vedo l'ora di leggere il terzo volume.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 220 reviews