Ah and the bloody factor picks up! Definitely two-sides of a coin. It is always interesting when it is human v. human during a zombie attack. Wonder where they will go next.

This series succeeds when it plays with the tropes of zombie movies and contrasts it with the oppression of modern life. This volume didn't do that so much and instead seemed to lean into storytelling tropes and scapegoats.

ZOM 100: Bucket List of the Dead is a stellar series that brings action, relatable hopelessness, and even more relatable hope. In it, after spending years slaving away for a soul-crushing company Akira’s life has lost its luster. But when a zombie apocalypse breaks out he embraces his chance to finally live and complete his bucket list which has things as big as becoming a superhero and as small as playing a video game on a big screen. Zom 100 Volume 5 is written by Haro Aso and features art from Kotaro Takata. The series is published and localized in English by VIZ Media through its Signature imprint. The volume features a translation by Nova Skipper and features touch-up art and lettering by Vanessa Satone.

Last volume, Akira reunited with his family and returned to his hometown which has faired pretty well thanks to heavy machinery put in front of the tunnel. In addition to the heartwarming reunion, our trio added a new character to their group: a German national who loves everything about samurai and has the skills to back it up. Now in ZOM 100 Volume 4, Akira is looking to cross another item off his bucket list: show his parents the appreciation they deserve (oh, and apparently get dreadlocks along the way which is probably the only thing wrong with this series).

There, he reunites with former college classmate-turned-dropout Kanta Higurashi, whose bucket list of his own is less living and more about burning society even more to the ground than it already is. Higurashi is all about getting revenge on the world that failed him which puts Akira and the people he loves in immediate danger. With a crew that works as bizarro-world versions of Mizazuki, Ryuzaki, and Beatrix.

Unlike the other volumes in the series, ZOM 100 Volume 5 is four chapters in the same area titled “Hometown of the Dead.” Additionally, this volume does a lot of work to build up happiness before ripping it all away. In that way, the tension and action that Aso executes help push the series into new territory. The introduction of darker versions of characters we already know helps to showcase how awful the world can be and has always been. Up until now, Aso has shown us the wholesome, now he shows us the chaotically evil, even ending on a cliffhanger.

Unfortunately, ZOM 100 Volume 5 has a number of missteps. First, the dreadlock. I don’t have much else to say other than ask “Why?” Outside of that though, having the sexual assault and domestic abuse as the main motivators for two of the evil characters is so heavy-handedly done. Sure, they’re evil, but their dialogue is beyond cringe—not because they were made to be this evil, but how it was written. Now, this can easily be a translation issue, but it does affect the way the characters land. However, all isn’t lost as they do get a great comeuppance.

ZOM 100 Volume 5 is an interesting volume for the series. It has a lot of moments that are extremely well done, namely the shift in tone. That said, it also has pitfalls. As a whole though, ZOM 100: Bucket List of the Dead continues to be a series worth checking out even with its mistakes.

Akira finally makes it home to cross it off his bucket list, but his is not the only bucket list in the village...

For Libraries: Adult suitable: fans of the rest of the series will be clamoring for this volume.

Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead Volume Five is set entirely in Akira’s hometown.

Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead Volume Five
Written by: Haro Aso
Publisher: Shogakukan
English Publisher: VIZ Media
Release Date: February 15, 2022

The “slacker NEETs” who found Akira’s bucket list at the end of Volume Four end up playing an important role in the volume, although their major role comes later in the volume. At the beginning, we are shown Akira and his companions, along with other people who have fled to the country to get away from the zombies, living their lives. Some of the city folks who came to the village start talking about how much the hard work and the country life saves electricity and how a conservation-friendly style of living keeps them self-sufficient. In some respects, this dialogue kind of bogs the story down a little, but at the same time, it’s needed to the reader can understand the mindset of the city folks who have fled to this village.

Akira achieves one of the goals on his bucket list, which is to try out dreadlocks. It turns out one of the city women in Akira’s hometown ran a dreadlocks salon in Tokyo. I have to say that I agree with Akira’s father when he says that the dreadlocks don’t look good on him. I thought the dreadlocks made Akira look rather goofy.

Meanwhile, Kenichiro sees a young orphaned girl and her dog, and he works at becoming friends with her so she won’t be lonely. Beatrix also learns about the hydroelectric water wheel that’s in the town, and how it powers the electric barrier fencing that keeps out the zombie boars. Both of these events are important for what happens later in the volume. There’s also a great scene between Akira and his father where his father encourages Akira to find his dream and chase it. This time that he spends in his hometown with his parent helps Akira to knock another item off of his bucket list.

It’s also revealed that Kanta Higurashi, the leader of the “slacker NEETs,” knows both Akira and Kenichiro from university… and that he hates them. We see that Kanta and his group come up with their own bucket list, with their main focus being on two goals: “Fuck up society” and “Turn everyone into zombies.” About 60 pages in, Kanta and his group launch their plan and disrupt the idyllic life that the previous pages of the volume were depicting. Kanta and his group remove the vehicle that was blocking the tunnel that serves as the main entryway to the village, and now everyone has to try to protect themselves as the zombies bear down on the village.

The remaining 100 or so pages of the volume focus on the zombies attacking Akira’s hometown. During these pages, our four main characters get their own storylines. Kenichiro has to save the orphaned young girl and her dog, and he finds himself up against a man who is bitter about life and blames his wife for all of his issues, although it becomes clear from the man’s dialogue that he was basically ignoring his wife and child and being a jerk. The conflict between Kenichiro and this man is basically resolved by the end of this volume.

Beatrix, who is trying to flee the village with the villagers, discovers that the electric fence has been tampered with and heads to the water wheel to turn off the electric fence. Unfortunately, her way is blocked by one of the “slacker NEETs,” and the two of them face off against each other, although the “slacker NEET” seems to be at an advantage with a chainsaw.

Shizuka lures some of the zombies away from the village, and they seem to have problems finding her when she hides in a corn field. Unfortunately, one of the “slacker NEETs” finds her in there, and it turns out his goal is to force his tongue down a woman’s throat. Of course, Shizuka doesn’t want this, so continues fleeing through the corn field.

Near the end of the volume, Akira’s father tells Akira to watch over his mother and the others who are hunkered down inside their house. Akira’s father goes out to take on the zombies, but his health issue acts up. Right at the end of the volume, Kanta appears and holds Akira’s father hostage. If Akira comes out and allows himself to be zombiefied, Kanta will release Akira’s father.

I thought this ending made for a great cliffhanger. How is Akira going to be able to save his father without becoming zombified? That’s the main thread that’s making me interested in reading Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead Volume Six in order how to find out how Akira will get out of this predicament.

Just like with Volume Four, Volume Five ends with a bonus chapter that would have to take place in the series before Shizuka joins up with Akira and Kenichiro on their journey. In this bonus chapter, Kenichiro wants to join a dating app to in order to have a hook up with a hot girl. After finding a way to access the internet, Kenichiro joins an app, and the humor derives from the various responses he gets from people who like his profile. The punch line happens at the end of the chapter, when he thinks he’s finally going to get what he wants. While this chapter shows another item being scratched off the bucket list, that’s really all this chapter is worth it for. I didn’t care for this bonus chapter, and it kind of broke the mood after the cliffhanger ending of Volume Five.

Even though I may not have been overly impressed with the bonus chapter, I think that Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead will still appeal to readers who have been reading and following the series up to this point. The change of pace with the arrival of the zombies really ratchets up the tension, and the action that takes place during the zombie attack helps to make the later portion of the manga a little quicker of a read.

After Akira returned home to his parents' village in the relative calm of Vol 4, it was sadly inevitable that there wouldn't be an idyllic pastoral happy-ever-after on the farm. Enter stage left moody goth drop out Kanta, a former schoolmate of Akira's, with his nihilist group of outcasts. Kanta has a bucket list all of his own, but it's the antithesis of Akira's, filled with destructive and twisted things to do, before he accepts his fate and joins the zombie hordes.
Kanta is a little too convenient a baddie, but suitably evil and truly awful in his chosen role. It just bordered a little on a zombie pantomime for me.

Self-sufficient isolated farming is the way to survive a zombie apocalypse... unless you made enemies in your previous life.

This volume of Zom 100 is a little different from previous ones. It focuses on Akira's family and one major bullet point of his bucket list: repaying his parents. I think this is a strong message to take-away: appreciate how much your parents have given you in life, and find a way to somehow give back when you are an adult.

The talks of self-sufficient living was very interesting as well. Obviously, in a zombie apocalypse, you have a much greater chance of survival if you can find a place to live off the grid, produce your own energy, food and live peacefully. I think that even without a zombie plague, it is important for everyone to remember where they are getting energy and food from and never take it for granted.

Then we have the very strange "Bucket List War" that brings up some of that fun weirdness that I look for in Zom 100. A strange band of bullies make their own "evil" bucket list of terrible things they want to do. When confronted with Akira, they challenge him to see who can finish their list first... what a strange situation. It does touch on the subject of freedom and impeding on the freedom of others in an unique way.

All in all, I wasn't sure going into this volume that it would bring me the same joy and amusement I got from previous volumes. However, this one touched on some very important topics with self-sufficiency, freedom of living, and family bonds. While still keeping the fun, eccentric tone of the series.

PS: I also love how they always introduce characters with their names and former jobs from pre-apocalypse days.

I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the author Haro Aso, the publishers VIZ Media LLC and the NetGalley team for providing me with an Advanced copy. I cherished this opportunity to read it in exchange for an honest review.

This is a definite improvement from the last volume. The stakes have risen and our bond of characters are fighting for their lives against a swarm of zombies unleashed by a nihilistic blast from the past.

It’s interesting to see a different perspective to the end of the world. While we’ve seen it through an optimistic lease where it’s a new lease of life where characters can start over, we get to see it from people who just don’t care about other people because of their grudges from the past.

I’m eager to see what happens next with that cliffhanger. I can’t wait!

Bucket List of the Dead continues with Volume 5 and it picks up where we left off with the gang in Akira's hometown. They live it up and praise the benefits of living in a self-sustaining rural utopia for a bit, which conveniently doesn't mention the limited career options and lack of peers for young people, but I digress. Unfortunately a group that looks like the polar opposite of our main cast appears and chaos ensues. I guess it was too much to expect the good times to last, but it does leave you on a cliffhanger as you await volume 6. There is a bonus chapter about dating apps during a zombie apocalypse which, while funny, definitely ends up like how you would expect.

Akira and his friends are spending time in his home town helping the villagers. While there, they discover a former college acquaintance is also in the village. He and his group also have a bucket list...to do whatever they want including turning the village into zombies. They break down the barrier and let the zombies in. It's a battle of the bucket lists! Who will survive?

Thank you to NetGalley and Viz for a free advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Zom 100 Vol 5 has the same mix of action and comedy readers have come to expect in the series. But I found myself getting distracted from the action because of the locs the the main character Akira had for the majority of the volume. Although I can see how it fits his character in that he wasn't exposed to many things before the zombies appeared, it just rubbed me the wrong way.

The volume ends on a cliffhanger with the promise that the stakes are only rising from here on out.

Art: Kotaro Takata
Sotry: Haro Aso
Translation: Nova Skipper
Touch-Up Art and Lettering: Vanessa Satone
Design: Jimmy Presler
Editor: Karla Clark