Dark Washu is draw in third volume of Tenchi Muyo
Welcome back to The Strip’s little section specifically made for great anime and manga, “Otaku Corner.” I know everyone’s getting back into the swing of things (school, work, college), but this is also a great time to enjoy a great manga series that has it all: comedy, action, adventure, cute female leads. One of my favorite series has all of those things including a main character that is a lucky man to have four beautiful women living in the same house. Tenchi Masaki and his gang of lovely women star in more great adventures in Volume 3 of the “All New Tenchi Muyo: Dark Washu.”
Written and drawn by Hitoshi Okuda and published by Viz Media, Dark Washu is the continuation of the last story in “Tenchi Muyo: Doom Time,” in which Washu Hakubi’s most powerful invention, the “black crystal,” designed as the perfect security system, was taken over by the evil Dr. Clay. Tenchi and company fought the black crystal who copied the real Washu. Despite winning the decisive battle, the dark crystal returns to exact vengeance: It becomes Washu vs. Washu, which takes up the entire third volume.
Fellow otaku, despite this smackdown of genius against genius, this is truly great work 
worthy of any Tenchi fan with no punches pulled on every page, complementing the well-thought out plotline and artwork. It was also great to see Tenchi’s father and grandfather make brief cameos, as it is rare to see them in manga form.
The battles also have their moments of heart tugging. When Tenchi and company rally to assist Washu in the final moments of the battle, Dr. Clay is vanquished for good and Dark Washu is rebuilt as a new character and Washu’s new lab assistant, Tama. The bonus story with Ryo-oh-ki facing the battle of the bulge, which has its own mix of cuteness and comedy, is also enjoyable. Viz Media also deserves credit for keeping Tenchi Muyo fun to read, thanks to the team of adaptation writer Freed Burke and translator Lillian Olsen, who remained on task. Tenchi is fun and action-packed minus the regular clichés.
The All-New Tenchi Muyo: Dark Washu is a great manga to read to celebrate the end of summer with a good mix of action, adventure and comedy. Now I have to take care of a craving for carrot cake, which makes me wonder am I becoming like Ryo-oh-ki?
Brandon Beatty is editor-at-large of Gaming Insurrection. He can be reached by email at gicomics@gaminginsurrection.com
