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Title:  Junk - Record of the Last Hero #1

Author:  Kia Asamiya

Publisher:  DrMaster

ISBN:  9781597961078

May Contain Spoilers

Hiro, a high school student, has become a shut-in due to an incident with a group of bullies.  As his parents worry about him and wonder how get him involved in life again, he mindlessly surfs the web, refusing to leave the comfort of his room even for meals.  Coming across JUNK, he enters an online contest to win one of two JUNK monitor kits.  Thinking the prize is an action figure or model kit, Hiro is surprised a few days later when a package arrives at his door.  Soon, he finds himself with the power to do whatever he wishes, and must make a choice; will he use this gift for good, or for evil?

While I sympathized with Hiro and his traumatic episode at the hands of some high school thugs, I found his overall personality abhorrent.  After winning the JUNK kit, and discovering that it’s a suit that gives him unprecedented strength, he goes on a rampage, literally terrorizing his little section of suburbia.  While I agree that it would be bring a certain amount of satisfaction to intimidate and torment the very people who mercilessly bullied and cowed you, Hiro takes events to the extreme.  Relishing in the power that the suit gives him, he ruthlessly tracks down his tormentors and exacts his revenge.  When things don’t quite go as expected, and he causes the death of his parents, he shows hardly a shred of remorse. Instead, he religiously clips every article about the mysterious masked man from the papers, reveling in a huge ego rush.  What kind of monster did his parents raise, anyway?

He soon encounters the other JUNK kit, and is perplexed when its wearer asks whether he’ll use his power for good or evil.  Will he become a god, or a devil?  Scoffing at such thoughts, Hiro is determined to use the power of the suit only for his own pleasure, and others can decide which path he’s following.  The two begin battling it out, heedless of the death and destruction they cause. 

Normally I would find Hiro’s inner struggle over good or evil fascinating, but I’m not convinced he’s going to actually take much time to think it over.  He is thoroughly unlikable, and he makes Light Yagami of Death Note look like a boy scout.  An Eagle scout, at that.  Hiro’s every thought and action is centered around one person - himself.  It was rather amusing that a canceled autograph session with his favorite idol caused him to go on yet another destructive binge, but this again showed how selfish he is.  I wonder what he was like before the bullies had their wormy way with him, and am really starting to doubt he was a model citizen to begin with.

If you are a fan of big explosions and people running around in skin-tight unitards, JUNK is just what you are looking for.  If you’re looking for some major soul searching and a character who is struggling to rise above himself, the jury is still out.

Grade: C

Rated for 15+

Review copy provided by the publisher, DrMaster Publications