Hell's Paradise 01

地獄楽 [Jigokuraku] #1

by Yūji Kaku, Yuko Keller (Translator)

Zum Tode verurteilt sitzt Gabimaru der „Seelenlose“ in seiner Zelle und wartet auf sein Ende. Die Scharfrichterin Sagiri jedoch erkennt hinter dem leeren Blick des Meuchelmörders einen unauslöschbaren Überlebenswillen und gibt ihm eine zweite Chance. Im Wettrennen mit anderen Schwerverbrechen soll er auf einer paradiesischen Insel das „Elixier der Unsterblichkeit“ finden. Der erste, dem das gelingt, wird begnadigt. Doch das verwunschene Eiland entpuppt sich als Hölle auf Erden, denn der fruchtbare Boden, auf dem exotische Pflanzen und wundersame Insekten gedeihen, wird gespeist von Leichen – und bis jetzt ist niemand je lebend zurückgekehrt …

Genres: Manga, Fantasy, Horror, Comics, Historical Fiction, Action, Graphic Novels

208 pages, Paperback

First published April 4, 2018

About the author

Yūji Kaku ( 賀来ゆうじ, Kaku Yūji) is a Japanese mangaka.

Reviews

[rain]

i see the protagonist is a man who's very whipped for his wife. things are looking up 😌

[James DeSantis · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was so weird sometimes but somehow I couldn't put it down.

This starts off with a ninja named Gabimaru The Hallow and he's being sentenced to die. But every time they try to kill this guy he somehow survives. Trying to get his neck chopped off? Nope. Burning him to death? No effect. This whole time Sagiri, a woman Samurai, is trying to find out if he really wants to die. Once we get past the first chapter of learning who Gabimaru is we get into the main plot, finding a elixir to keep people alive forever. So Gabimaru and Sagiri are forced to work together.

This is a pretty brutal series. Gabimaru fighting style is quick, brutal, and we're talking about necks being torn out, legs chopped off, and more. It's not for the weak stomached, that's for sure. Sagiri also deals with a lot of pent up fear, and tus it is shown as demon like creatures clawing at her naked body, so if nudity is a thing you don't like this isn't for you despite it not being used "sexual". But the main heart of the story, these two broken characters working together, is interesting. Not to mention the stakes are high and some "major" characters I thought would be around awhile die off real quick.

For a new series it kept me in even if I feel it rushes so quick sometimes. I'll be checking out more though. A 4 out of 5.

[Afi (WhatAfiReads) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Is it me or am I already hooked with the series :')


I didn't know what I expected but it far exceeded my expectations. I was already crying in Chapter 1 and just going 🥺 over Gabimaru.

Short Summary
Gabimaru is known as an assassin with no feelings, hence its nickname, Gabimaru The Hollow. When a coup on him ended him on him on the list of death row criminals, he was offered a chance to find The Elixir of Life on an island that is called "Paradise on Earth" but the men returned from there were all dead. Its a dangerous place hence the title of the series, Hell's Paradise. There, he'll pair up with a swordsman partner and the rest of the criminals in a race to find the elixir.

Personal Thoughts

I would say that these series was very gore and very graphic but its very character driven. I liked that its straight to the point, has little filler scenes and just straight up introduced the character and his drive to be a "person". I already liked Gabimaru. He's a bit funny and quirky but he's super powerful despite his small size. The setting is during the time where ninjas and samurais are, and it made the story extra fun. For now, I would say I'm actually invested in the series. Honestly can't wait for the rest of the volumes but definitely can't binge read this, cause its a tad heavy.

And also, CANT WAIT FOR THE SERIES TO ACTUALLY BE ANIMATED! I hope they don't eff it up cause honestly, there are some scenes that I felt like... Okay.... can they actually.. animate this? hahah.

[Afifa Afreen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story has everything I love: morally grey protagonist, strong female characters, and sinister world that's against your survival. When something beautiful as nature and flora are out there to kill you, that's when you should grab your skirts and run in opposite direction. Looking forward to see where the story goes.

[Katherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Sólo de pensar en lo que me va a tocar cargar a partir de ahora... ya me pesa el alma"

El manga nos cuenta la historia de Gabimaru el vacío, un ninja espectacular, quién por desertor lo condenaron a muerte, pero para él la muerte no es tan fácil.
Se entera de puede ser absuelto de sus crímenes si realiza con éxito una misión en la que todos han fallado, pero querrá seguir con vida?

Una historia buena, interesante, que nos va relatando la personalidad y pensamientos del protagonista, quién desde el inicio da a conocer la lucha interna que posee.

Un dibujo que me ha encantado, tanto los detalles en los escenarios como en personajes.

Definitivamente seguiré leyéndolo, la dosis de brutalidad en los enfrentamientos, como la belleza en el dibujo y la historia que se está construyendo han captado toda mi atención.

[Briar's Reviews · Rating 3 out of 5]

This manga was not for me, but it is quite the adventure! It's packed full of action and thrills throughout the entire book.

If you're looking for a mature manga with a constantly, fast moving pace then this book is up your alleyway! Gabimaru, a famous and brutal assassin, tries to earn his freedom and escape his circumstances. His quest lets him murder anyone, and do what he pleases to earn back his freedom as long as he meets the requirements set out for him.

There's lots of violence and gore throughout this book. It didn't bother me at all, but for some reason this book just didn't click with me. I can't quite put a reason on it. Either way, I still think it's mighty cool! It's definitely an adult manga, which I've been craving more of lately.

I did think the art style was pretty cool. That drew my attention in and helped me finish this book.

Three out of five stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and VIZ Media for providing me a free copy of this book in exchange of an honest review.

[Mir · Rating 3 out of 5]

The only elements that interested me were the psychological/philosophical ones, and the guy turning into a plant.

But I'm not the audience for extreme violence. It bores me. Oh, more dismemberment of randos. Oh, gratuitous titty while the female lead gets groped by monsters. Yawn. But if that's your thing there's lots of it here!

[Benjamin Uke · Rating 3 out of 5]

The protagonist, Gabimaru the Hollow, is a ninja captured during an assassination and is sentenced to execution. However, due to his superhuman ninja training as the top shinobi of Iwagakure, nothing seems to kill him.

A mysterious "sword tester" (executioner) Yamada Gabimaru the chance to be pardoned of all crimes if he finds the elixir of life on a mysterious island thought to be paradise. The previous five expedition teams sent to the island returned with dead boats full of flowers. This time the Shogunate sends a group of death row convicts. The convicts are each given a "parole" executioner, who they must return with in order to obtain the pardon.

As far as premises get we have a combination of Indiana Jones and the Hunger Games which uses criminals as participants. As expected theres lots of blood and gore, castmembers die, and there's probably going to be fanservice.

[Martin Iguaran · Rating 4 out of 5]

Esta es la segunda serie de manga que me he propuesto leer, después de "Spy x Family". Ya está terminada, lo que tiene el beneficio de no tener que esperar meses y meses por un volumen nuevo.
El apartado visual se compone de dibujos precisos y claros, donde descollan particularmente escenarios naturales repletos de belleza. La historia no se queda atrás: un asesino legendario, Gabimaru el Vacío, es capturado por el gobierno y condenado a muerte. Junto con otros reos, recibe la posibilidad de escapar al cadalso con la condición de viajar a una isla lejana y conseguir el elixir de la inmortalidad. La isla es un supuesto "paraíso", y digo supuesto, porque casi enseguida descubrimos que prácticamente todo en ella está hecho para matar personas.
El uso de presos para misiones suicidas no es un argumento nuevo en la literatura, pero el espacio en que ocurre la historia, la ambientación de época, y las excelentes secuencias de pelea crean los condimentos de una aventura trepidante. Falta un poco de desarrollo de personajes, porque salvo Gabimaru y su guardián, Sagiri, del resto sabemos los nombres y casi nada más. Es posible que eso cambie en los siguientes volúmenes. Pero se recomienda si les interesa una historia con mucha acción y algunas escenas un tanto truculentas.

[Dark River]

OMG I cannot fucking wait to a) keep reading this and b) watch the anime because MAPPA knows what I want and them doing the dark trio is 👌 to begin with.
What a time to be alive.

[Daniella · Rating 3 out of 5]

I started this manga off thinking that it really wasn't for me and I wouldn't enjoy it. The main character seemed pretty one dimensional to begin with, and the only thing that kept me going was the bad ass executioner lady character. This manga is kind of a mix of criminal heist, adult Naruto mixed in with battle royale.

Gabimaru the Hollow is an extremely feared ninja from a prominent clan, after meeting and falling in love with his wife, he tries to leave the clan with her to live in peace. His village however set him up on his last mission, leading him to being captured by the shogunate.
Gabimaru and several other criminal ninja are told that they can earn back their freedom and a full pardon if they travel to "the other side", a heaven/hell location on a remote island, and bring back the elixir of life. They are free to murder their fellow ninja as required. Each criminal is assigned a keeper from a ninja clan specialising in executions, the ability to behead someone with a single strike, the keepers are neither friend nor foe but are there to ensure that the criminals follow the terms of their agreement. One of these terms also includes their hands being bound at all times, which is especially troubling when the entire island seems out to kill them. Gabimaru's keeper is one of, if not the only, female executioner in the clan. Sagiri struggles with not being able to kill without remorse as if expected of her position. At the same time Gabimaru struggles against the upbringing that drilled into him to be emotionless and hollow.

All in all I was more drawn in than I thought I would be, and whilst I wouldn't necessarily continue to series, I can see this being very popular with it's target demographic.
It's also worth mentioning that this a mature manga (17+) as there is a lot of death and gore. Also a trigger warning for parental abuse.

Thanks to Netgalley and Viz Media for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Baal Of · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mediocre all the way through. It's not actually bad, just kind of meh. Variations of superhumanly tough criminals I've seen a hundred times before. The main character is supposed be sympathetic because he just wants to be with his wife, but I just couldn't muster the slightest amount of caring about him. And the inconsistency. He's already proven he can't be killed and yet the enforcers kept threatening to cut off his head, and kept trying to attack him with swords, so I felt no sense of danger, just ennui. This character is boring to me in the same way Superman is. Overpowered and bland. The artwork was fine, but nothing amazing, and the gore was also just average at best. I feel no need to continue reading the series.

[Sara Cantador · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5/5

No os negaré que tenía algo de miedo con este manga, y reconozco que el comienzo ha sido extraño cuanto menos. Como terminé de ver Naruto hace poco y me tiene obsesionada, en cuanto vi esta novedad de ninjas, dije: esto tiene que ser para mí. Francamente, no soy amiga de la sangre y esas cosas, pero por algún motivo este primer tomo me ha mantenido híper enganchada. Aún estoy debatiendo qué hacer a continuación, más que nada por lo de la sangre, pero de verdad que no descarto continuar la historia.

¡Os iré contando!

[Kristin · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not for me. Another historical shonen with violence and gore. Also in a lot of the panels the faces were left blank like they forgot to draw them.

I received a free e-arc from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

[Brandie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a good book. I was surprised, I don't normally read this style of book, but the story was so good and it left me wanting to know what happened. I will be buying vol 2 as soon as it is out. The illustrations were amazing and was easy to understand once I started reading the book.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A manga full of violence and gore, but I was drawn to it. The convicts and their escorts and the weird island, most of all the art style is good enough to draw me in. 4 stars!

[Amy Imogene Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very very cool! Beautiful, almost trippy artwork given the island’s body horror/plant horror concepts. The main characters are a bit bland so far, but frankly the concept and art are strong enough to stand on their own for this first volume. Looking forward to continuing.

[Sara · Rating 2 out of 5]

Gabimaru is a reluctant but skilled and nearly indestructible ninja. He is sentenced to be executed, which is no easy thing. They try boiling him, burning at the stake, and various other tactics, before he gets recruited for a suicide mission: to find the Elixir of Life on a mysterious island. So far, all missions the shogunate has sent to the island have resulted in total loss of life, so why not send a rag-tag, cutthroat group of murderers on death row? Each criminal is assigned a baby-sitter in the form of elite executioners, just to keep them from wandering off. The prize for the one who finds the Elixir? A full pardon!

The first half of this story had so much promise. I appreciated the speed at which details of Gabimaru's life were revealed. Gabimaru and his executioner, Sagiri, are such an interesting pair. But, in what seems like a missed opportunity, we jump from the Shogunate making the deal to, "hey look, we're all already on the island!" The mangaka is clearly setting up the story to be a type of Hunger Games where murderers are pitted against each other. So why miss the opportunity to show the adventure of sailing to this supposedly hard to reach place, with potential for murderers to cause other shenanigans? My other major disappointment was that, of the two criminals we meet first on the island, both monologue the exact same evil plan: to eliminate the competition so they can take their time looking for the elixir. Almost word for word!

While the art style is heavily detailed, the action sequences leave much to be desired. Given that the criminals and their executioners are all skilled killers, the fight scenes are supposed to convey a quickness and lethal talent. Thus, many are quick and have large jumps in movements between panels, which can be difficult for readers unskilled in filling in their own choreography. However, my biggest frustration was the size of the sound effect words! Many of them covered a majority of the art in the action scenes, making it difficult to see details like who is holding what sword, what direction weapons/people move, and so forth.

This review was made possible by an advanced reader copy from the publisher through Edelweiss.

[Sassy Sarah Reads · Rating 1 out of 5]

Hell's Paradise Volume 1:Jigokuraku by Yuji Kaku

1 star

This should've been right up my alley. I am conflicted. Is horror manga not for me? I doubt it because I love Attack on Titan and Death Note, but this was not it. I wanted to love this, but I low-key kind of despised it. The concept has promise. We follow a man who is known as The Hollow and is about to be executed. Every execution attempt does not work and the woman interviewing him reveals why. He still wants to live even though he claims otherwise and he is being given the opportunity to be pardoned of his crimes if he travels to an island that is supposed to be Paradise. However, every time they send people out for expeditions they don't come back. Or if they do they aren't humans anymore, but flowers. Interesting premise, but I didn't care for the art style and it didn't work for me. Maybe I would prefer the anime, but even then I don't think so because the plot did not interest me and I could care less. I am sad. This could've been really good, but I think the storyline is what killed it for me. Also, what's up the random sexualized drawings of woman's boobs and butts. Why were they randomly naked in title sequences? What purpose did this serve, but to continue to perpetuate my issues with the sexualization of women in comics and graphic novels? It made NO SENSE and it had nothing to do with the plot or storyline. I am confused. Anyway, this was a flop and I don't even care if he ever gets back to his wife nor what is really going on the island. I am unbothered and sad because I was supposed to like this one.

Whimsical Writing Scale: 1

Character Scale: 1

Plotastic Scale: 1

Art Scale: 1

Cover Thoughts: The colors are beautiful. I love the cover, but it's the only art in this whole 200 page manga that I cared about.

Thank you, Netgalley and Viz Media, for providing me with a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hmmmm…I’ve wanted to pick up Hell’s Paradise for a little while now after hearing generally positive things about it, and whilst it was reasonably interesting, I didn’t much care for the art style (it just didn’t work for me like some others do) and I didn’t learn as much as I would have liked to about the MC, Gabimaru the Hollow.

HP also reminded me of Suicide Squad which was a hot mess of a film and something I do not want to re-watch :( the story takes a group of criminals and tasks them with finding the elixir of life on an island (equivalent of paradise) where very few return, and when they do, they have flowers growing out of them…but only one pair can survive meaning they will need to kill the other competition in order to ensure their success!

I also didn’t understand why Sagiri was prone to being depicted naked when she remembered her past kills…and what, if anything, that served…

Taking into account the premise, I should have liked Hell’s Paradise more than I actually did, although the art style, messy panels, and Gabimaru (there was something about him I just couldn’t “dig” - if that’s the right word) all made this a fair 3 star read.

I’m undecided whether I carry on with this series as I have a lot of other manga titles I want to get to first but we’ll see.

[Kai Van · Rating 2 out of 5]

the art style was nice and the story concept was okay. overall, I just didnt care for it. it probably just isnt for me, but it felt a bit like the movie suicide squad? with tons of info dumps on character intros that basically amounted to nothing cuz a bunch of them died pretty quick. the action scenes were nicely put together, but it still felt like a lot of nothing happened. I know their setting up for the rest of the series, but I was mostly bored. itll probably be good for someone else, but I wont be continuing, myself.

thanks to netgalley for an ebook copy!

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think the phrase for this is "grimly fascinating" - in several meanings of "grim."

[Mahdiye HajiHosseini · Rating 4 out of 5]

شروع خوب، شخصیت‌های عجیب، اتفاق‌های نامنتظره.
حد اعلایی از فریک بودن، طراحی‌های ویرد. جز حجم بالایی کلمات خاص ژاپنی که سخته برام و کمبود توضیحات مترجم واقعا لذت بردم ازش.
گابی‌مارو هم شخصیت کیوت و بامزه‌ای داره، برخلاف تصویری توی چند صفحه اول ازش ساخته شد واقعا گوگولیه ولی خوب نمیدونم چرا به شدت انتظار دارم بازهم چیزی از خودش رو کنه که متفاوت باشه با چیزی که تا الان نشون داده و بازم راوی بهمون در این مورد دروغ گفته باشه.

[Kike Ramos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hace mucho que vi el anime y la verdad es que la animación no me encantó. Pero algo que sí recuerdo muy bien es la impresión que tuvo la premisa conmigo y, sobre todo, la relación de Gabimaru con Sagiri. Así que un día random decidí comprarme los 13 tomos, pero apenas los estoy comenzando. Definitivamente volvió a cautivarme como en ese entonces y el conflicto emocional de los protagonistas es algo que engancha rápido. Puntos extras porque Gabimaru se ve bastante lindo en el manga. Además el arte del manga en definitiva se ve más cool que en el anime

[Han · Rating 4 out of 5]

So much potential here! Picked this up because it was recommended for readers who like Chainsaw Man. Screw needing to save the world or people you love and doing it for justice/revenge. Denji “just want to touch a boob” (Chainsaw Man MC) and Gabimaru “the simp” (Hell’s Paradise MC) both only having 1 reason to stay alive (which is for ✨women✨) is new favorite manga storyline! 🤣

I’m excited to read more and see where this goes.

Also the anime is coming out sometime this year and by MAPPA, so I know it’s going to visually amazing. All the flowers on the island will be aesthetically pleasing. I just know it.

[~G~ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Review for the entire series:

The first chapter was a very good opening. The story started strong and went on with an intriguing world bulding in a mysterious setting, fun chemistry between characters (characters themselves were not really good though, as most of them lack any depth) and an interesting theme (contrasting things/people in harmony - acknowledging both your weaknesses and strengths)

Then in the second half of the manga, the story lost its momentum and became repetitive and predictable and I didn't like the pacing and forced developments.

The first half was totally gripping. Maybe it was my fault for reading too much into it, but I think eventually it didn't deliver what it had promised. Reading the last chapter I was just happy there are no more chapters left...

It could've been a lot better as a short story in my opinion. But 13 volumes? Nope.

Still not bad, but pretty underwhelming and forgettable thanks to poor execution.

[Subham · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was cool! Its about this guy named Gabimaru whose gonna be executed for some stuff but they can't kill him and we slowly learn his bloody history and he can be forgiven by the Shogun if he procures the Elixir of life from a hell-heaven island and its dangerous and so he along with his executioner, Sagiri go there and find some wild things and crazy stuff happens. Its a good one and explores the concept of hollow evil men being redeemed by love as is the case with the lead who just wants to return to his wife and the enemies he faces are interesting, and its a ragtag group of people. We are just getting started here but the manga is really cool atm. The art is lovely and some scenes are just mesmerizing.

[José · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hacía rato que no me enganchaba con un manga así que elegí este que me venían recomendando desde hace tiempo.

Me gustó mucho, Gabimaru me parece un personaje interesante y el arte es muy bueno.

A ver cómo sigue.

[Liam · Rating 4 out of 5]

a good solid start to the series. sometimes Vol 1 can be a bit average. interesting MC. will carry on with the series.

[Márk · Rating 4 out of 5]

Voltak benne unalmas részek inkább ilyen 3,8 csillagot adnék neki. Viszont megadom az art style nagyon jó volt és ahhoz képest nem nagyon hosszú 13 volume, sőt pont jó méretű a story ennél rövidebbnek nem lenne jó ha hosszabb lett volna akkor meg már nagyon ki lett volna húzva az egész.