Billy Bat

[MangaDex]

 

[Bracketier]

This series is fantastic! It's hard for me to say, but it is probably my favorite single manga series of all time.

Volumes 6, and 17-20 were released by a team that isn't hosted on MangaDex due to their watermarks, but you can download it all here: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/ptdiim8ez869jti/AAAtcRJ_EOcPc-jotb0iGnPGa?dl=0

I hope you read and enjoy this incredible series!

 

[Burning_Hammer]

The missing chapters are on Mangastream.

 

[Ced1106]

Stick with it through 34. 🐇🐇🐇

 

[biply]

Pretty sure urasawa has just gone senile. A classic Urasawa branching story taking place over decades but has an even worse ending than usual, an ending that is basically a nothing. A hollow appeal to be good people and not have your differences that is connected not at all to the rest of the story in any way. It's as if Urasawa wrote one short story about being a good person (because the last chapter would absolutely work as a mediocre short story) but also had this huge manuscript for a spiraling story of a magic prophet bat thing that had no ending and nothing even approaching an explanation, even on a metaphorical level.

A greasy associate editor calls Urasawa, who struggles to pick up his cell phone due to getting tangled in the tubes for his oxygen container. "Hello Mr. Urasawa, can we join these two manuscripts together so we can publish a thing with your name on it?"

"erurhrh who is this? are you my son?"

"I'll take that as a legally binding yes, thank you."

this review has gone on long enough, this series is shit and I'm very very angry I finished it rather than dropping it like a smart person would. Fuck this manga.

 

[goronyanpai]

I agree with what biply said. Honestly, I'm impressed yet ... pretty disappointed.
I have this feeling of emptiness. It's fantastic but it's so confusing. Moral of the story conveyed to me but still confusing.
This manga tells the story of good people and bad people. People who dream and carried away with power. It all started with imagination and amazingly--how possible, it's funny--it affects humanity. Isn't this like brainwashing? Depictions of people who fall with their greed. And it just Billy the Bat.

 

[Koal]

This was a good manga all the way until the end, that ending didn't make any sense

 

[4V29LN0n]

It’s not as good as his classics. Pluto, 20th Century Boys, etc. The missing chapters don’t help.

 

[MergenOndar]

Amazing story. I've just finished re-reading it, and yup, I still love it.

 

[HoneyPopper]

I don't feel... as satisfied with this as with his other works...
It just seems like

Spoiler

Billy Bat is an almighty being that decided to pull a prank on humanity. One bat told them to do this, then just for the sake of argument the other bat told them the opposite, and then the Final Bat was just a dick. The humans were taking their words too seriously, and couldn't think for their own.

I get that they were criticizing the world around us, and how we're easily influenced by outside factors.. but...
In my personal opinion, they didn't do a good collaboration on this one. Monster was brilliant, Pluto was amazing.
Billy Bat is..... I think they got confused of their own story at some point.
I hate to say it, but this was not a smooth read for me. Thrilling, but not smooth.

 

[akirialy]

Not Urasawa's best work but enjoyable read all the same.

 

[seripenunjang]

Spoiler

It's just like all Urasawa work, it's his trademark, He doesn't know how to end his story. Yeah I get that,in the end, arts is the thing that will save humanity, because it will give use hope to built a better mankind. But do we really have to go to 165 chapter with this time travel, spy, mythic stories to go to that conclusion???? Even 20-21 century boys and pluto have the same treatment (I haven't read the monster, soon).

In my opinion, the three bat were the representation of the three Hinduism main Gods, Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva. Creator (the one in the moon), protector and destroyer (white and black). But does it means anything? Not really, they were just trolling humanity all along. I don't get it, no ones get it.

The Billy bat, Chuck, and Billyland of course is a jab to Mickey Mouse, Disney, and Disneyland. Maybe soon Disney will buy some petrol and water refinery company? Only times will tell.

Still I always enjoy this branching out story. The branches are more short and have more intersection than the other comics before, so I didn't find it frustrating to read a whole new character and plot

That's it I guess 7.8/10

Mod Note: Please use spoiler tags when talking about chapter-specific or future events.

 

[ShionSakamoto]

THIS work IS A HIDDEN GEM
LIKE REALLY HOW everything connects is just so amazing i can not believe he thought up so much!

UwU

 

[Bohrain]

Classic Urasawa. Meaning that he always starts out strong. He is pretty good at handling a plot that doesn't flow chronologically, changes character focus and so forth. But the final act always sucks ass, he just outright doesn't know how to conclude a story.

 

[Cacaaw]

One of the worst things ive ever read. I give this masterpiece a 10/10.

 

[Ompel]

I might be missed it but I want to ask something about The Scroll

Spoiler

was the machine in the scroll ever explained?

 

[ShionSakamoto]

Nevermind
Starting was AWESOME AS F the middle even better but ending was meh but then again
we didnt write it so yea still good Worth a Read.
HE did a lot BEtter on YAWARA!

 

[mug3n]

It's a decent read but the author clearly didn't know how to end it properly. He tried to chew more than he could by adding more and more elements which became more and more predictable and tired as chapters went on.

Spoiler

It's pretty hard to do a good time travel story and even harder to do it about suspense, this work shows you have to think steadily through it before putting it into paper or else it will fall apart at some point .

But props for him to still doing what he knows to do, stories like this are needed in the manga landscape.