Black Lagoon, vol. 5 (Rei Hiroe)

[chomiji]

Revy and Rock's Japan experience continues as they ally with Ginji, the sword-wielding yakuza enforcer, to rescue Yukio, the young leader-apparent of the Washimine-gumi, from the hands of the thugs associated with a rival family. Later, Rock's feelings about Yukio's situation lead him to a terrifying confrontation with Balalaika. The arc ends - as one might expect from a yakuza story - in tragedy, but not until there have been a couple of really incredible fight scenes, and some surprising ... well, given who's involved, I can't call it tenderness. But it got me where I live.

Black Lagoon vol. 5 (review)

Revy really is Onime-no-Kyo's long-lost little sister.

The scene where she and Ginji take out the kidnappers was just great. Of course she's not going to bother giving that creepy punk Chaka the gunfight he wants. I love her trash-talking as she hands him over to Ginji. And that smile of hers ... yeah. Kyo's little sister. Or possibly Manji's.

Balalaika has not yet passed the Moral Event Horizon. In her awesomeness, she's managing to strut along the edge without falling over. Rock is amusing her, and she values Revy. And I love when Balalaika sneers at the guns the Kosa Kai have brought, and then later in the same scene, uses one of them in the shootout: "Hmmm ... this gun wasn't actually too bad."

I don't know whether Viz should have translated anego, which is what I presume Revy is calling Balalaika, as "sister." That's usually slightly disrespectful in English, unless you're talking to a nun or your actual sister. I'm not sure what they should have used instead - maybe "ma'am."

The fight between Revy and Ginji was sad and awesome at the same time. The double-page spread that had them facing off, with Rock and Yukio looking on - each in their own frame - reminded me very much of a noire version of similar face-offs in SDK.

And smilla, I'm not sure Yukio cut her throat with Ginji's sword. It really looks like she stabbed it right up through the soft spot underneath her jaw (or allowed herself to fall onto it in that position). Look at the scene at the bottom of the page where she's collapsing onto Ginji's body ... the blade is coming out just below the base of her skull, with her hair flowing on each side. (Although I don't see the sword at all in the last scene in that chapter, where Rock and Revy are looking at the bodies.)

And Revy's standing up for Rock against Balalaika? And fretting that watching Yukio's suicide would scar him? And Rock's pulling the sword out of her leg, and half-carrying her afterward? >melts ... !<

(And yeah, artillie was right - the omake is kind of tasteless, given what's just happened.)