Comics / Manga

Banya: The Explosive Delivery Man: Volume 1

By Leroy Douresseaux
March 26, 2007 - 16:59

The cover image without the various slugs and logos.

A mailman takes extreme pride in his work, delivering essential mail and packages although there is widespread war across the land in Banya: The Explosive Delivery Man, Vol. 1, a manhwa (Korean comics) by Kim Young-Oh.

War rages between the humans and the monstrous Torren, a race of bloodthirsty, bestial, man-like creatures.  Banya works for the Gaya Desert Post Office, and he truly believes in the company's motto:  "Fast. Precise. Secure."  When he agrees to delivery a package from a wounded human warrior to its final destination, however, he and his partners - de facto boss Mei and his sidekick Kong - may be in over their heads.  A quintet of dark, highly skilled fighters are on the package's trail.  Now, Mei and Kong are trying to protect Banya, and he has his hands full with more Torren.

When I first read TOKYOPOP's Manga adaptation of World of Warcraft, I was astounded by the art of Jae-Hwan Kim, a Korean comic book artist.  He drew each panel of the Warcraft Manga in a lush, detailed style - something that has to be a test of patience as well as skill and dedication.

On Banya, Kim Young-Oh has blown my mind again, and his beautiful art makes this manhwa title the best I've read so far.  Each panel on every page is like a single illustration, deserving of and receiving pretty much the best the artist can give.  This almost painterly approach requires the cartoonist to be both a master draftsman and a talented artist accomplished in figure drawing.  What Kim Young-Oh is doing is rarely seen in American comics (Wendy Pini, Alex Ross, Steve Rude, and Barry Windsor-Smith to name a few).

Of course, comics are more than pretty pictures alone.  Visually, Banya is a tightly crafted action tale.  Thanks to the English adaptation by editor Philip Simon, the tart action/comedy dialogue and the fast pace of the martial fantasy come through quite clearly.  This is one of those comics where the eyes are racing across the book, and I found myself getting hungrier for more of this with each page.  I highly recommend Banya: The Explosive Delivery Man simply because I'm already looking for Vol. 2.

Thanks to barnesandnoble.com for the images.

 

Last Updated: January 17, 2025 - 08:20