ZOM 100 was kind of a wild ride but I think that’s exactly what it wanted to be!
Ok so on a whim a few months ago I decided to just buy a bunch of volume 1 manga that I didn’t know anything about and figured if I found something I liked I would continue it. This has backfired horribly. Not only did I like most of the series I started but I absolutely loved receiving a box in the mail full of manga to discover and going through them one at a time in the evenings. It was like a different adventure every day!
And then, I did it again… This is not a cheap hobby by any means! I should just read digital versions. I really really should. And to kind of slightly justify it in my mind, I want to at least share my experience with you guys! Here’s what I thought of ZOM 100.
Why I Picked up ZOM 100
This is going to sound really silly. First I liked the cover and that’s pretty much 70 to 90% of my thought process whenever I pick new manga. This one is very pink! Sign me up. Second, I thought ZOM 100 sounded a lot like Mob Psycho 100 and I like Mob Psycho 100. It is a little embarrassing when I see it written out like that!
Official Summary
Surviving a zombie apocalypse beats a dead-end job any day!
After spending years toiling away for a soul-crushing company, Akira’s life has lost its luster. But when a zombie apocalypse ravages his town, it gives him the push he needs to live for himself. Now Akira’s on a mission to complete all 100 items on his bucket list before he…well, kicks the bucket.
In a trash-filled apartment, 24-year-old Akira Tendo watches a zombie movie with lifeless, envious eyes. After spending three hard years at an exploitative corporation in Japan, his spirit is broken. He can’t even muster the courage to confess his feelings to his beautiful co-worker Ohtori. Then one morning, he stumbles upon his landlord eating lunch—which happens to be another tenant! The whole city’s swarming with zombies, and even though he’s running for his life, Akira has never felt more alive!
My First Impression
Oh this is actually a work place comedy? It’s pretty witty. Wait it’s not a work place comedy. This is fun…
What I liked
I don’t think I’ve ever said it out loud. In fact I might not have realized it myself. I like Zombie stories. I just do!
There is something almost tangible about Takata’s description of soul-sucking and ego-crushing work. I have never had such a horrible job but there were aspects I recognized under the exaggerations and I really related to it.
Speaking of work, it’s relevant because the protagonist is an adult. And actual grown-up with a job and responsibilities and a mindset that is different from a high school student. Not necessarily more mature but you know! What I’m saying is that Akira is a full-fledged grown-up like you might meet in any professional setting. He doesn’t have arrested development or go back to high school or anything. He’s just allowed to be an adult. And the mood and comedy that stem from changing the demographic of the protagonist are different from 90% of action manga I have read.
I thought it was funny and actually really hopeful. This first volume just put me in a good mood. I liked it as a manga and I bet it would be a super fun anime.
Any drawbacks?
For me, there really weren’t any in the first volume. There’s a setup for a romance storyline so I guess we’ll see the execution on that but it’s not really explored so far.
It is what you would call horror-comedy. Think Shaun of the Dead. That happens to be a genre that I love but it’s niche. And acquired taste if you will. Personally, I have no idea why someone wouldn’t like it but I bet some don’t. I tried to find a negative review to get an idea but it’s pretty new so there aren’t tons out there. Only found the ones that thought it was funny…
So yeah, it’s the type of manga I like. I will be getting more volumes when they come out. It is violent and there’s some nudity so be warned I guess? If you have read ZOM 100, let me know what you think! I’d love to have someone to talk about it with.
This looks and sounds like such an entertaining read!
I really had fun with it
Looking into it, the anime adaptation will run in July. They got the Makima voice actress to play the girl. Judging from the first panel you shared, it seems like a good choice.
I’m a little more interested in this show now. Thanks for increasing my expectations, Rin-chan. If I don’t enjoy it, I’ll know who to blame.
Reading your post, I like to see zombies as an allegory for working-class adults, crushed by responsibility. Funny to think about it. As a minimum-wage worker, your sole purpose in life is to put food on the table. You pursue that goal relentlessly, if inefficiently. You can hardly think about anything else, because you’re too mentally tired to. You keep going through the same boring routine, day after day, with no end in sight. You’re stuck with this deadening life, and you feel like it will never let you go.
The parallels are amusing. To become a zombie is to lose your childlike sense of adventure, to lose your full range of emotions, to lose freedom from responsibility. While escaping from zombies & the lifestyle they represent, no doubt Akira feels “alive”. 😅
You went in deep from a derpy little post but I’m pretty sure it’s what the author was aiming at.
You could say I was in a similar situation not too long ago, so maybe I’m projecting.
But really, what got me thinking about allegories was your mention of Shawn of the Dead. It reminded me of Dawn of the Dead, where the zombies enter the mall & quickly resume their zombie-like consumer routines. Mindlessly going after useless stuff, even though they don’t need it.
I watched this film as a kid, and it struck a chord. Having just left a conflict zone, some of my classmates’ obsessions seemed absurd to me. Blowing their allowance on collectible cards, buying more games than one person could ever play, showing off new designer handbags to their friends… At the same time, children our age were having their most basic needs unmet. For the cost of one overpriced Louis Vuitton bag, you could help resupply a hospital for a day, or pay an aid worker for a month, or feed an orphan for a year. I thought it was so messed up.
Anyway. I digress.
We are reading deep and into this slapstick horror comedy!
Read it and loved it! I did something similar to you although I resevered a load of volume ones from my library and worked my way through them. I think I’ve done sixty something now. It’s so much fun dipping into each of the worlds and like you I enjoyed pretty much all of them.
Anyhow, I started reading this book in my kitchen while waiting for the kettle to boil and then read the whole thing without even making the cup of tea. That almost never happens to me.
I love how it showed Akira’s awakening as he realised that he didn’t have to go to work anymore. The second volume is just as much fun. This is definitely a series I would invest in.