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Ratman #1
Ratman Volume 1
Shuto Katsuragi is a shrimp that can't catch a break. He wants to emulate his favorite super hero, Mr Thunder, but instead he gets teased all the time for his height and he can't win any fights. The one thing that keeps him going is his love for super heroes, which he shares with his classmate Mirea Mizushima.
208 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 26, 2007
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
December 9, 2019
Do you like One Punch Man? How about My Hero Academia? Want to see where they got some of their core ideas? It's no stretch to say that both of those series, as good as they are, owe significant debts to Ratman.
A hero ranking/licensing system, run by a quasi-governmental organization? Check. A protagonist who wants nothing more than to be a professional hero, but has a physical limitation preventing him from doing so? Check. Heroes that are often more concerned with making it rich, or rising in popularity, than actually saving people? Check. Moral ambiguity as to who the real villains actually are? Check. Some of these aspects apply to one of the mega-popular series I mentioned, more than the other, but Ratman tackled all of them first. And so far, it's doing it pretty well, and adding in a lot of comedy, as well as a twist that puts our "hero" in a position he never wanted, nor bargained for. It's probably the best deconstruction of the superhero genre that you've never heard of.
Of course, the question then becomes, if it's so good, why haven't you heard of it? Well, this series was being translated by TokyoPop...starting in mid-2010, when things were going very, very poorly for the company. They'd lost the rights to a lot of their biggest titles, once Kadokawa decided to start publishing its own manga in the West, and profits were tanking (the impending death of Borders didn't help). Long story short: the company fell apart (more or less), after translating and publishing only three volumes of Ratman...out of twelve. 75% of the story never made it over here, and nobody picked it up after TokyoPop folded--presumably because they still owned the rights to at least the volumes they'd put out.
And that's a damn shame, because Ratman is a fun read so far. It's not as flashy as One Punch Man, or as character-heavy as My Hero Academia, but it's got a lot of heart, it does a decent job of subverting your expectations, and the comedy is actually funny most of the time. The three volumes available should be pretty cheap if you can find them (I think I paid about $1.99 apiece for mine), and it's worth having even in this incomplete state, for the significance of the impact it had on some of today's top series. Just be prepared to turn to other avenues to continue the story after volume three.
A hero ranking/licensing system, run by a quasi-governmental organization? Check. A protagonist who wants nothing more than to be a professional hero, but has a physical limitation preventing him from doing so? Check. Heroes that are often more concerned with making it rich, or rising in popularity, than actually saving people? Check. Moral ambiguity as to who the real villains actually are? Check. Some of these aspects apply to one of the mega-popular series I mentioned, more than the other, but Ratman tackled all of them first. And so far, it's doing it pretty well, and adding in a lot of comedy, as well as a twist that puts our "hero" in a position he never wanted, nor bargained for. It's probably the best deconstruction of the superhero genre that you've never heard of.
Of course, the question then becomes, if it's so good, why haven't you heard of it? Well, this series was being translated by TokyoPop...starting in mid-2010, when things were going very, very poorly for the company. They'd lost the rights to a lot of their biggest titles, once Kadokawa decided to start publishing its own manga in the West, and profits were tanking (the impending death of Borders didn't help). Long story short: the company fell apart (more or less), after translating and publishing only three volumes of Ratman...out of twelve. 75% of the story never made it over here, and nobody picked it up after TokyoPop folded--presumably because they still owned the rights to at least the volumes they'd put out.
And that's a damn shame, because Ratman is a fun read so far. It's not as flashy as One Punch Man, or as character-heavy as My Hero Academia, but it's got a lot of heart, it does a decent job of subverting your expectations, and the comedy is actually funny most of the time. The three volumes available should be pretty cheap if you can find them (I think I paid about $1.99 apiece for mine), and it's worth having even in this incomplete state, for the significance of the impact it had on some of today's top series. Just be prepared to turn to other avenues to continue the story after volume three.
June 1, 2025
I came across this manga earlier in the year. In a world where super heroes keep the world safe, young Shooto Katsugari dreams of becoming one. When he is offered the chance by a mysterious stranger he accepts without hesitation - only to realise that he has just been signed up by the super villain team and not the super heroes. As the newly minted supervillain Ratman he is obliged to obey his villain overlords - but still finds a way to use his evil powers to the greater good.
This is an amusing twist on the regular superhero fare, and one I quite enjoyed.
This is an amusing twist on the regular superhero fare, and one I quite enjoyed.
June 17, 2021
Je pense que c'est la traduction... L'histoire était correcte, les illustrations sont belles, mais c'était si mal écrit et enfantin que j'avais du mal à y croire. Une chance que lire un manga ce n'est pas trop long.
June 16, 2022
Apparently, I'm an outlier, but I really like this manga! It combines a clever story with a sense of humor with distinct, recognizable characters. The art, while not impressive, adds well to the telling of the story.
I have three volumes of this and I anticipate wishing I had more.
I have three volumes of this and I anticipate wishing I had more.
February 5, 2018
This was my first time reading a manga. Reading from right to left took a second to get used to but after that, it was fun. A hero themed story with a twist. Teenage humor with light sexuality. The art was good but I would have appreciated it more if not in black and white. I might search out Vol. 2
March 20, 2016
This manga was hard to get through. Not because it's slow or because I didn't care about the characters or anything. It's more because it felt extremely forced and jumbled and like it didn't know what it wanted to be.
Does it want to be a super hero comedy? A drama? And action movie? What is this?
You follow a character who might just be shorter than Edward Elric, Shuto Katsuragi. Shuto wants to be a hero. He wants to fight bad guys and save the day because it's the right thing to do. He isn't interested in fortune and fame. Just with saving people.
He ends up getting involved with a criminal organization by signing a contract he didn't read and becoming their super villain henchman, "Ratman" (dumb name, I know). He then has to go do evil things for them and in the process realizes that the heroes he idolized are actually jerks who are only in it for the money.
I've seen other super hero anime and manga (such as Tiger & Bunny and HeroMan ) that I think worked better and a western/eastern superhero fusion. Part of the problem was how front-loaded this series ended up being. You get info-dump after info-dump and back story crammed in all at once. Once all the junk was finished, I kind of liked it? Not enough to make up for the first three chapters or so, but once all the back story was done it got better.
The comedy is very much hit or miss. The goofy henchmen, "Jackies," were entertaining enough, but much of the other jokes just felt half-assed at best. There are panty shots and nudity that are attempts at comedy, but the way they're done just... don't work for me.
And then there are parts that seem out of place in a comedy (if this is what it's trying to be). Ratman's first encounter with a "hero" is a good example. It had a jarring transition from the comedy just panels before.
The characters are only okay. The Jackies were the best part and are probably the only characters I remember much about in this series. That's a problem, since they're just supposed to be laughs in the background, not the thing you're supposed to remember.
Also worth mentioning is Tokyopop's abysmal translation. You get strange dialogue like "Mooooom! Onii's doing weird ceremonies in his bedroom again!" For those who don't speak Japanese, "Onii" is not used correctly here, even for a "I'm going to stick to the original for authenticity!" translation. You'd usually say "Onii-san" or something like that, not drop the honorific. For a Japanese minor like myself, this just made me cringe.
I think I'm going to pass on the rest of this series. The "good parts" just weren't enough to hold my attention.
Does it want to be a super hero comedy? A drama? And action movie? What is this?
You follow a character who might just be shorter than Edward Elric, Shuto Katsuragi. Shuto wants to be a hero. He wants to fight bad guys and save the day because it's the right thing to do. He isn't interested in fortune and fame. Just with saving people.
He ends up getting involved with a criminal organization by signing a contract he didn't read and becoming their super villain henchman, "Ratman" (dumb name, I know). He then has to go do evil things for them and in the process realizes that the heroes he idolized are actually jerks who are only in it for the money.
I've seen other super hero anime and manga (such as Tiger & Bunny and HeroMan ) that I think worked better and a western/eastern superhero fusion. Part of the problem was how front-loaded this series ended up being. You get info-dump after info-dump and back story crammed in all at once. Once all the junk was finished, I kind of liked it? Not enough to make up for the first three chapters or so, but once all the back story was done it got better.
The comedy is very much hit or miss. The goofy henchmen, "Jackies," were entertaining enough, but much of the other jokes just felt half-assed at best. There are panty shots and nudity that are attempts at comedy, but the way they're done just... don't work for me.
And then there are parts that seem out of place in a comedy (if this is what it's trying to be). Ratman's first encounter with a "hero" is a good example. It had a jarring transition from the comedy just panels before.
The characters are only okay. The Jackies were the best part and are probably the only characters I remember much about in this series. That's a problem, since they're just supposed to be laughs in the background, not the thing you're supposed to remember.
Also worth mentioning is Tokyopop's abysmal translation. You get strange dialogue like "Mooooom! Onii's doing weird ceremonies in his bedroom again!" For those who don't speak Japanese, "Onii" is not used correctly here, even for a "I'm going to stick to the original for authenticity!" translation. You'd usually say "Onii-san" or something like that, not drop the honorific. For a Japanese minor like myself, this just made me cringe.
I think I'm going to pass on the rest of this series. The "good parts" just weren't enough to hold my attention.
June 30, 2015
A superhero story! Plenty of humour in this world that comes across as a pastiche of the American superhero. It's a corporate world protected by corporate-owned superheroes and 15yo Shuto wants to be a hero more than anything else. Only problem is he's short, not even 5 ft tall, and shrimpy. It took me about half the book to get into as I couldn't get comfortable with who the intended audience was supposed to be: it was funny and even cute at points feeling like a kids book but in no certain terms was it as the language was highly mature teenager-speak and while there is no sex, it is sexualized and up-skirt shots are common. At the half-way point, the plot actually set in and kind of grabbed me. I don't like the main character at this point, but the minions (called Jacky) are awesome). There is a theme running behind the scenes attempting to ask the question "just what is a hero really" which I hope becomes a bigger part of the plot. Will certainly move on to volume two hoping for more development.
July 27, 2013
Une surprise agréable...
Le début est un shônen classique : un jeune garçon rêve d'être un super-héros. L'idée de base est intéressante : il vit dans un monde où les super-héros, vrais ou pas, pullulent, au point que certains représentent des marques commerciales (comme les sportifs aujourd'hui).
Le garçon gagne des super-pouvoirs... de façon inattendue ! Et en conflit avec son éthique...
L'histoire est carrément loufoque, tout en restant dans des limites, sinon réalistes, du moins logiques. L'auteur ne se prend pas au sérieux, tout en satisfaisant à son plaisir de dessiner des super-héros (à la japonaise, style Bioman et compagnie).
Entrainant et vif, amusant et intrigant, j'ai hâte de voir la suite.
Le début est un shônen classique : un jeune garçon rêve d'être un super-héros. L'idée de base est intéressante : il vit dans un monde où les super-héros, vrais ou pas, pullulent, au point que certains représentent des marques commerciales (comme les sportifs aujourd'hui).
Le garçon gagne des super-pouvoirs... de façon inattendue ! Et en conflit avec son éthique...
L'histoire est carrément loufoque, tout en restant dans des limites, sinon réalistes, du moins logiques. L'auteur ne se prend pas au sérieux, tout en satisfaisant à son plaisir de dessiner des super-héros (à la japonaise, style Bioman et compagnie).
Entrainant et vif, amusant et intrigant, j'ai hâte de voir la suite.
April 19, 2010
Strangely(?), I loved this. I guess 'cause I'm a sucker for cute, and while this is an action-comedy, the comedy element is heavy on the cute side. (The action also isn't very prominent thus far, and there are great themes/philosophical questions around what it is to be a hero.) The characters are interesting and distinct and will, I think, prove well-developed. Concept is great, setting and plot are solid. There's a whiff or two of potential romance.
I'm really, really looking forward to the next one.
I'm really, really looking forward to the next one.
January 13, 2011
Interesting premise: in a world full of superheroes, Shuto's big dream is to someday join their illustrious ranks. Instead, he finds himself with super-powers, but tricked into villainy. The characters are likeable, I like the art, but I could really have done without the gratuitous panty shots, which I think must be what gives this an Older Teen (16+) rating.
April 3, 2012
I actually didn't think I'd like it after reading some of these reviews, also the beginning wasn't as appealing as the beginning of any book should be, but I ended up really enjoying it. It took some turns that were humorous and added to the story, the end of the volume made me really hope for the main character, Shuto. I'll be picking up a second volume when i come across it!
January 21, 2016
Quick thoughts: Intentionally absurd and over-the-top, which could get irksome, but works so far (once past the forced introductions of premise and characters in the first couple chapters).
While a mishmash of cliches the concept of a wannabe hero forced to play villain in a world where corporate heroes aren't what they seem has potential. And the Jackies are hilarious.
While a mishmash of cliches the concept of a wannabe hero forced to play villain in a world where corporate heroes aren't what they seem has potential. And the Jackies are hilarious.
August 19, 2012
It was good, kept you interested. I haven't really read any Mangas before so I don't have much to compare it with.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews