Golgo 13 6

Every volume of this series is perfect in its own way.  I don’t think I will like another volume as well as I liked the one about sniping the satellite and the Princess Diana conspiracy, but each one is thoroughly enjoyable in its own way.

There are two different types of stories in this volume.  The first one is the type where Duke Togo is hired to do his thing and then doesn’t show up again until the end of the story, and the second is the type where he involves himself in things so that what goes on actually involves him.

The first features an American Intelligence agency dabbling in soviet spy activity.  One of the men who got several spies killed is being held on murder charges (his spy background is not known to the public, he is in prison for killing his wife, basically so he could flee the country without any loose ends).  He is going to be executed, and the case is hotly contested by the public for the death penalty being cruel and unusual punishment.  Basically things are set up by the Intelligence agency so that the man can walk out of prison with a pardon, but someone outside the agency whose brother was killed as a result of this prisoner doesn’t really want this to happen.  The end to this story is just great, there’s a twist that made me literally yell out when I figured out what was going on.  Some of the details of the story are lost on me (clearly, since I can’t remember if the Intelligence agency is the CIA or FBI), but the plot and the cause and effect stuff that’s set up is all crystal clear.

The second case features Duke Togo being hired to figure out who is impersonating the pope and why, and what happened to the real Pope (in this case, Pope John Paul II, not Benedict or John Paul I or Paul).  Duke Togo initially declines the job, which is being offered by the Freemasons or something, but he takes it when it is phrased in a different way “I want you to find the fake pope and kill him, and then I want you to find out who is responsible for kidnapping the real pope and kill them.”  It was one of the most badass things I’ve ever read in a manga, and kind of unexpected in that circumstance.  Duke Togo is given an in via a cardinal who has been groomed for years to look like Togo for just such an emergency, and then he starts, you know, doing his thing.  I liked both stories equally in this volume… I would say I liked this story better plot-wise, but the twist at the end of the first story was just too good.

The extra content in this volume are copious notes on how many women Duke Togo has had sex with, what their nationalities and jobs were, and what positions were used during what years.  Plus an alarming number of articles speculating about his virility, his fondness for prostitutes, and the size of his penis.  God I love this stuff.