Battle Angel Alita Volume One: Rusty Angel

"Battle Angel Alita"'s unique defining feature, more than its casual attitude towards ultra-violence and wholesale repurposing of "Blade Runner"'s worldbuilding as commentary (Zalem serving the same purpose as the latter's offworld colonies is the tip of the iceberg), is its wild narrative seemingly constructed by throwing darts at a board. The dart that determines the direction of the first volume lands on a dude in the form of "issues-long fight against big scary guy", crammed full of speed lines, thought bubbles, and explanations of ephemera. It ain't all bad here, but newcomers might want to consider starting on volume two.

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