Reading this manga, I was first struck by the clichés: there's the best friend from childhood, the bishie heart-breaker with heart-breaking past, hot-tempered delinquent, psycho-killer--the gang's all here! Or are they? As the manga went on, each character developed interesting twists and depths that delighted and surprised. The plot is the same way: it's a jail-break story, one from a vast collection that all start to sound the same after a while. Lucky Dog BLAST overcomes this hurdle by adding a new dimension in the first chapter--the main character's unexpected promotion--which complicates the characters' goals and motivations to the mastermind's chagrin and the reader's pleasure. In addition to interesting characters and inner-circle intrigue, Lucky Dog BLAST offers an off-kilter sense of humor and a series of mysteries at a steady, page-turning pace. Finally, you've got to love the main character, Gian Carlo. He boasts a reputation as a genius escapee, smooth-talker, and of course, lucky dog. But it's when he talks himself into trouble, when he gets too cocky or has to back-track at top speed that I liked him the best. He's a genius--but he's also extremely human, which is about 90% of why I actually love this manga.

Happy reading!