Tower Dungeon 5

タワーダンジョン [Tower Dungeon] #5

by Tsutomu Nihei

Having joined forces, unit seven of the Royal Guard and the newly arrived members of the Anti-Nausea Alliance forge ahead through the Dragon Tower. Though it was already crawling with monsters, the ancient monolith somehow continues to become more and more dangerous thanks to the Necromancer's undead thralls—but this intrepid band of nine warriors and one crow-goat fight on nonetheless. And, in the midst of desperate battle, the shocking tale of Aridelia's past is finally revealed…!

Genres: Manga, Fantasy, Comics, Graphic Novels, Seinen, Fiction, Horror

160 pages, Paperback

First published September 9, 2025

About the author

See also 弐瓶 勉.

Tsutomu Nihei (弐瓶 勉 Nihei Tsutomu, born 1971) is a Japanese manga artist. His cyberpunk-influenced artwork has gained a strong cult following. He has a relatively large community of fans in Germany where his manga Blame!, NOiSE and Biomega were published by Ehapa. Blame! was also published in France and Spain by Glénat, in the US by Tokyopop and in Italy by Panini Comics.

At first he studied architecture and later it is shown up in his manga works with drawing huge structures. This became one of his general theme that makes his manga unique. His works are usually in black and white. He is also an avid fan of the video game series Halo, as he mentions in his commentary section in the Halo Graphic Novel.

Taken from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tsutomu_...

Reviews

[Urbon Adamsson]

PT Os nossos dois grupos de amigos uniram-se finalmente num só e continuam a sua ascensão pela torre.

Neste volume, ficamos a conhecer melhor o passado de Aridelia, uma das personagens mais misteriosas do grupo, revelando novos detalhes sobre a sua história e motivações.

Tsutomu Nihei continua a demonstrar porque é um mestre na arte de contar histórias de aventura.

--

EN Our two groups of friends have finally joined forces and now continue their ascent up the tower as one.

In this volume, we learn more about Aridelia’s past, shedding light on the history and motivations of one of the group's most mysterious members.

Tsutomu Nihei once again demonstrates why he is a master of adventure storytelling.

[Isabela]

É uma obra que funciona muito bem dentro daquilo que se propõe.

Até agora, Tower Dungeon não decepcionou. Tivemos um primeiro volume um pouco mais lento, mas até onde a história chegou, a narrativa continua fluida e despretensiosa.

Por se tratar de uma dungeon, um universo com o qual muitas pessoas talvez não estejam familiarizadas, gostei muito de como ele consegue explicar as coisas sem precisar ficar se repetindo ou tornando a história cansativa. Nada é rebuscado ou difícil de entender… uma torre, vários monstros, uma princesa em apuros e guerreiros. Pronto.
O modo como Nihei trabalhou esses personagens foi bem legal. Existem piadas, dramas, mortes, os seres mais peculiares possíveis e um único objetivo… salvar a princesa.

Vou continuar acompanhando! Adorei!

ENG:

It’s a work that works really well within what it sets out to do.

So far, Tower Dungeon hasn’t disappointed. We had a slightly slower first volume, but from what we’ve seen so far, the narrative continues to be smooth and effortless.

Since this is a dungeon story, an unfamiliar universe for many people, I really liked how it manages to explain things without constantly repeating itself or making the story feel tedious. Nothing is overly complicated or difficult to understand… a tower, several monsters, a princess in trouble, and warriors. That’s it.
The way Nihei developed these characters was really cool. There are jokes, drama, deaths, the most peculiar creatures imaginable, and one single goal… save the princess.

I’ll definitely keep following it! Loved it!

[Sol]

Ugggghhhhhhh please stop with the maggots Nihei, I can't take much more of this. I don't know why calling them maggots instead of worms makes it so much worse but it just does. I was actually gagging a few times reading this and he's honestly not even getting that gross with it.



Killing off Carache so unceremoniously is an inexplicable choice to me. He was personally menacing to the heroes, visually creepy and intimidating, and a completely hateable asshole. He even just introduced a new character with a grudge against him, so ???? The Necromancer himself remains a wildcard. He's building an army of undead to do...presumably something bad. He kidnapped the princess, is hiding in the dragon tower and wants the jewel...for some reason. He's extremely underspecified as a villain. Any other series, I would expect this is a setup for a Did Nothing Wrong twist, but Nihei's never been one to write deep villains. But Sidonia and Aposimz' villains at least had a clear and coherent goal they were working toward. At this point, the Necromancer hasn't even reached that fairly low bar.



Now, there is one thing that makes me think Nihei's cooking. The latter half of this volume is devoted to a long flashback for Aridelia, explaining that she's a Necromancer possessing the corpse of her knightly lover. Her origin is mysterious, but given that Necromancers were nearly exterminated long ago, it seems a fair bet to say she has some connection to the newly christened Fecalmancer. This flashback also sheds light on the dead king. Certified gigachad going around befriending monsters instead of killing them. He befriended Aridelia, so he clearly wasn't excessively prejudiced against Necromancers. Why, then, did the Fecalmancer kill him? Old beef? Overarching goal? Just an asshole?



I also wonder if Nihei is going to tie the dracomorphs and the Necromancers in some way. Aridelia recreates the appearance of a dead Dracomorph, and her transformation abilities get her mistaken for one until the old scholar realizes what she really is. The existence of Necromancers is a bit of a twist on the "despised magical minority" trope. The existence of any individual Necromancer isn't really that big of an issue. It's their capacity to create so many offspring so quickly, and the damage they could do. Aridelia might be a good person, but can we be sure that she'll always kill all of her maggots? What if she's knocked unconscious? What if she just decides to stop doing it?



Aridelia falls into one of Nihei's more recent authorial fetishes, the gender-bender love interest. This started with Izana in Sidonia, then that effeminate boy in Aposimz, now Aridelia. I give Aridelia a much higher danger rating for Lilicen's victory than that excavator tomboy. Izana and Tsumugi were basically neck and neck for 90% of Sidonia's run, and Lilicen is NOT an adorable penis-tentacle. Then again, the boy in Aposimz never amounted to more than a strange joke. I'm not even sure if he was supposed to be gay, or secretly a girl, or what.



Dorias is this manga's USB companion, another Nihei staple. I like it a lot already, its (she's?) opinionated and a bit of a prankster. I wasn't sure at first if it was serious about the "tell me you love me" thing or was just messing with him. Good contrast with Titania from Aposimz.

[Ignacio]

La huida de la emboscada del anterior tomo conduce a criaturas espectaculares (¡ese golem!), nuevos paisajes de/desde la torre (¡esa escalera externa!) y un flashback con la historia de Aridelia. El mundo y los personajes, dentro de su sencillez, ganan atractivo.

[Mangrii]

Creo que baja un poco el ritmo con respecto a los dos anteriores, pero ARIDELIA.

[Jose Mezquita]

Muy bueno, la historia crece, al igual que el mundo en que se desarrolla.

[Cohen Muters]

3.5. Loving this series, it has a very unique atmosphere that feels refreshing to read and all the designs are amazing. I do really hope the group is whittled down and the fairies leave though, we’re losing the tension and dynamics from the previous books right now. Also, the romance bits should definitely slow down, it’s being forced too quickly. I am the number one Eriquo fan.

[Jennifer]

The beginning of the book was slightly boring to me, because the adventurers were just going up the tower intermittently, though I'm glad that both groups introduced have now united. We get a magic "justification" for Lilicen always flashing people when she casts fire spells and some eye-rolling juvenile fighting and declarations of love from Yuva and Lilicen. (I realize I've subjected this in myself by reading a series oriented towards teenage boys, but also, sigh.) The best part of this volume was learning more about Arridelia's backstory. Thank goodness one of the characters scavenged a smithing kit to repair her armor #sarcasm Otherwise, she'd be walking unevenly with one boot and wearing half a pair of pants with one ass cheek hanging out.

At this point in the series, I have a better feel for the vibe that the creator was going for, so even if I find Yuva and Lilicen simultaneously boring and annoying, I realize that they are intentionally made this way as a trope of the genre, and also that others find them humorous. I'm still curious about the overarching story and history of the setting, which is being doled out one morsel at a time with the tower trek and fighting as a diverting and moody backdrop.

[Enol Martínez Perez]

Quinto volumen: el grupo avanza y nos presentan más del pasado de los personajes. La historia de Aridelia me arrancó un trozo de mi corazón. Me decepcionó algo la muerte de Karash. Por como lo presentaron parecía que iba a ser un adversario duro hasta que llegasen ante el Hechicero de Mierda (adoro como Churafi lo nombro y ahora es su nombre oficial jajajaja).

Supongo que los únicos adversarios serán los peligros de la propia torre. Una pena ante quien se postulaba como un adversario para conseguir a la princesa. Me habría gustado que le hubiesen dado más presencia contra el grupo y la historia

[Leanne]

I'm really liking this series. The art is astoundingly unique in a weirdly nostalgic way. It's a classic dungeon/tower fantasy, complete with a princess to save, but all the worldbuilding and creature biology makes this super fun and gross in a great way. It's reminding me a lot of Dungeon Meshi and Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind. Can't wait for vol. 6! (so mad it's new and I have to wait urgh)

[HowardtheDuck95]

A stellar followup to the last volume, which already had me completely enraptured. Instead of dragging out mysteries, Nihei provides some neat payoffs here, but in doing so, also opens up the doors to really interesting directions. This series might frankly have the most original take on Necromancers I’ve seen in years. The way the world and its creatures as a whole feel tangible in spectacular ways. And the action keeps you at the edge of your seat. Honestly almost shed a tear at the female knight’s story.

I can’t wait for the next volume. Keep em coming.

[Joshua C. Pipkins]

An outstanding fantasy comic. Uses minimalistic environments and sleek character designs in tandem with horrifically detailed creatures and horror elements to create something that feels unique yet familiar.

I’m a big sucker for quest fantasy and also fantasy horror, and this hits all the right spots!

[Benjamin Bauer]

When Tsutomu Nihei veers into shonen sentiment, there's body horror, ovipositors, filicide, and necro-maggots. Great stuff. Slimy like a worm on the insole of a wet rain boot, with the constant threat of violent death, but sweet!

[Aaron Meyer]

Learning more about Aridelia and what she is was actually rather epic. With this small breather, other than the weird zombies chasing everyone and all, I think what's coming in the next volume will be crazy.

[deLibroenLibroconAJ]

Le voy a dar cuatro estrellas porque simplemente me tiene enganchado y lo disfruto, pero tengo dos quejas: las batallas duran muy poco y tengo la sensación de que pronto va a terminar... Espero estar equivocado.

[Iván Pedro]

La historia avanza y poco a poco vamos conociendo más del mundo, de los personajes, de los intereses de cada uno y cada vez, con ese ritmo pausado, me atrapa más. 5 estrellas por dibujo, por guion y por todo...

[Museo De Mierda]

tsutomu nihei dijo protect the dolls y aquí lo respetamos por ello

[Alfonso Junquera perez]

Poco a poco vamos conociendo mas detalles acerca de la ambientación mientras los ¿heroes? escapan como pueden de los peligros de la torre.

[Štěpán]

The dialogue is not the best, but our main cast is lovely, and the world is full of horrors.

[Shatiel]

Che bella la storia di Aridellia e son contenta che il gruppo finalmente si sia unito!

Forza Eroi!!!

[Jett]

absolute cinema

[Helena Jackson]

Wow, this is just awful! Everything feels so fetishized. What in the world was the goal for the tone of this series? Ugh. At least I can move on to something else now.

[Yaiza]

4.5⭐

Ahora me da pena Aridelia :(

[Sel]

Por el momento es la obra de Nihei que menos me está enganchando. Acostumbrada a sus otras obras, las escenas estilo shonen me sacan de la trama.

[Ocean]

This was one of the better volumes of this journey. I really enjoyed getting some backstory of our necromancer companion.

[Jeremy Martin]

THIS SERIES IS SO GOOD. EVERYONE SHOULD BE READING IT.

[TxD]

Gang.

[James]

Revelations about party members. A major goal is achieved. Necromancers as a race of mutable insectoids is new. Reformed Unit Seven of the Royal Guard.

[Aaron Donogh]

The story got a bit messy in this volume. I'm curious how long this thing will be in total. This is maybe the coolest and most unique version of a necromancer that I've seen in some time though.

[David Turko]

4.5 I love these characters, and their friendship honestly reminds me a lot of LOTR. I really want these goofballs to come out on top.