For those who are not well versed in Japanese culture, “mujina” is an old Japanese term referring to both the Japanese badger and the Japanese raccoon dog (tanuki), causing confusion. When it comes to folklore, mujina are frequently depicted as yōkai that shapeshift and deceive humans. You can see the latter description in the world depicted in the latest serialized series, Mujina Into the Deep from Inio Asano, a master of which you would call the depressingly dramatic manga.
The world of Mujina Into the Deep is one that is strange, if a bit familiar. The mujina in this case are represented as these quirky homeless outsiders who are also assassins. By this point, the Japanese child assassin is something that westerners are familiar with – even Quentin Tarantino has made a reference to it in his own filmography. Opening with not one, but two prologues, the first of which introduces one of the two main protagonists, Ubume, in a high-speed chase through the rooftops of Tsukumo as a mujina.
The second prologue introduces to our other main protagonist, Terumi Morgan, who bitterly accepts that he shouldn’t expect a lot from life, though he wishes to remain close to his stepson despite his ex-wife saying otherwise. As he just wants to meet his deadlines at work and watch his adult content in peace, a bout of Covid sends Terumi on a collision course where he meets Ubume and a runaway girl.
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Asano has tackled insane, but successful mash-up of genres in Dead Dead Demon’s Dededede Destruction, and is trying to do a similar thing here, mixing quirky assassins with a story that touches upon human rights, social media influencers and sex trafficking. Although this title is closer in tone to Asano’s earlier titles, Mujina Into the Deep never seems to hit that dramatic chord.
When you read Goodnight Punpun and A Girl on the Shore, both show children being prepared for the harsh world of adulthood where everyone is messed up in their own way, but at least there are protagonists that you somewhat root for. In Mujina Into the Deep, you don’t find much sympathy towards Ubume who seems like every cold assassin with a heart of gold, or the cynical Terumi, of whom Asano himself seems more interested in. Towards the end of this volume, the story is steering towards the theme of found family, though you might find more emotional engagement in the subsequent volumes.
The one saving grace of this book is Asano’s incredible art, which combines highly-detailed backgrounds and the author’s traditionally quirky and expressive character designs. Whilst he has never been a great illustrator of action, Asano showcases some skill in presenting the set-pieces that showcase the rooftop-hopping, sword-wielding antics of the Mujina. While there is content that is bloody, there are also scenes that feature sex and depravity, which isn’t quite as gratuitous, but still feels tacky in a story that has the pretense of any substance.
For those who have been on board with the depressing tone you’ve come to expect from Inio Asano, you may feel disappointed over the shallowness of Mujina Into the Deep, whose mashing doesn’t quite come together as Asano would have hoped.
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