Age Rating: Older Teen
Genre:  Action/Supernatural
Price: $9.99

The Toga strike back!  Going on the offensive, they take Tobei's friend Itsuki as a hostage to draw Tobei out.  Meanwhile, Sena, the mysterious man with the blinding white aura of darkness, puts together team EX-a group of five highly specialized people with sublime power.  The first item on their agenda will be quite a blast!

The battles are starting to get longer, and less episodic in this volume.  There is more character development as Tobei struggles with changes happening inside him.  Changes that are affecting his ability to use the Togari.  These changes however don't turn out to necessarily weaken him.

Tobei's time in the present has started to have an effect on him.  From Itsuki to the old homeless man, he is meeting people who seem to genuinely care for him, something he never experienced in his past life.  Even though he is outwardly gruff, their feelings and the lives he is saving seem to be changing him.  He is letting go of his anger and hate, and is starting to move away from the darkness that has held him for so long.  But it isn't going to be easy.

Itsuki's kidnapping seems to bring out a rage in Tobei, even though as he comes to her rescue, he denies that it is for her sake, and he is only doing it for himself.  Though we're still given reason to doubt Tobei's motives, his association of Itsuki's helplessness with those of Tobei's past victims, nearly makes him physically sick.  It's the beginning of a conscience, something he's never had before.  It's the light starting to break through the darkness, and he's not quite ready for that.

This shift from all the external, episodic fighting to the internal conflict that Tobei is starting to experience, helps keeps Togari fresh and interesting.  Even though the battles with the toga will continue, how Tobei deals with these new feelings, while still having to keep Togari powered with hate will be interesting.  At the moment, Tobei seems to see himself as hate personified, and he sees this reflection in the first EX member he fights, Wish.  He ends up helping her too, while still in denial about it.

I really enjoyed this aspect of the book.  While we've seen Tobei denying that he's trying to help anyone but himself, in this volume, he doesn't seem as venomous about it, particularly after Itsuki's rescue.  He has come to realize that he isn't as alone as he always thought, and he can have a home to go back to.  His darkness has been hiding some light it seems, just as the light given by Sena hides the darkness of the Toga.  But it seems to frighten a part of him, as his dream shows.  This internal conflict gives Tobei the added dimensions he's needed to keep the reader's attention.

While there is more internal conflict, it doesn't weigh down the story or the volume.  The scenes are short but poignant, making their point with little ambiguity.  Even when they appear during a battle, it doesn't slow things down.  The battle shifts from external conflict to the internal, and still brings things to an end.

Togari's storytelling continues to intrigue me and keep me interested, even as the plot moves toward bigger and longer fights.  This might be a good title for comic book readers who might be curious what this manga thing is all about.

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