Books like Tokyo Ghost, Vol. 2: Come Join Us

"The ghost of Tokyo has come for you all."Remender and company don't disappoint. I may be biased toward his philosophical-psychological bent, but his writing is incredibly thoughtful if sometimes purposefully crude to serve his allegory. Mostly though, I'm super satisfied with how this mini-series ended. Dark and tragic, but surprisingly with hope.If Eden is found, it's only natural that we destroy it. At the end of Volume 1, Remender left us on a huge cliffhanger: Led was forced to juice up or die while Deb was equally forced to inject herself with Sensei Kazumi's godlike anti-tech serum, followed by the detonation of a massive bomb which destroyed Tokyo and revealed Led standing in his full constabulary gear and motorcycle. Talk about a thrill ride. Talk about relapse. While Volume 1 was moderately dark, violent, and perverse, Volume 2 takes it further. Like being severely pornographic. I'm talking genitalia, blowjobs, fetishes, even necrophilia. It crosses, nay, obliterates that line. Yet contrastingly this volume is also more fun and spiritually transcendent. Like the opening scene with the nymphomaniacal Miss Muffet and Little Jack Horner. Or Davey discussing his plan in cyberspace while go-karting with Mao, Hitler, and Stalin. Or nature taking back the world, led by our female protagonist."Every cent you earn is torn from the flesh of the earth."Satisfyingly and tragically, we get that change necessary for main characters. Led, Deb, and Davey (as I suspected) all transcend themselves. What I enjoyed about their journeys is the unpredictability. Davey's trajectory was fairly average for a super villain, although the cyberpunk/video game slant is very cool. But Led and Deb continue their complexity, their story full of love and tragedy, numbness and clarity. I like that even in the end Deb still isn't 100% pure, still human, still vulnerable. And damn it, Led is a brilliant character to watch on a downward spiral. Can't say I'm surprised, but I think he finds redemption. So there you have it. 10 issues come and gone. I wish there was more. But Remender did his damndest in less than 300 pages, writing a dark electric world full of scathing allegory, creeps and samurai, nihilism and romanticism. Sean Murphy and Matt Hollingsworth are still my favorites, having mind-blowingly brought this world and its players to life, dark and mechanical, light and arboreal.