Glad to see some science fiction manga getting localized. This definitely has potential to fill in the void that some of my students are feeling post Attack on Titan... It's a bit shaky in the first volume, but I can definitely see the potential. I found the body horror really well done!

**ARC provided by NetGalley for honest review**

Fungus and Iron 1 by Ayaka Katayama was quite the crazy ride! This manga takes place in a world where mind controlling mushrooms have taken over the world and enslaved most of the human race. I know, I know...WHAT. One young man Dante, who is dyslexic and super strong, has always questioned the ways of the Amigasa men's ward, and soon finds a reason to start fighting...it sounds insane, and it is, but I didn't hate it. Please note there are several scenes of graphic body horror, so mature audiences recommended.

This book had an interesting premise. Unfortunately, all of the characters make extremely dumb decisions which interferes with my suspension of disbelief. The main character is described as being an “idiot” so his dumb decisions are justified. But other characters and organizations behave foolishly with no explanation. The evil dystopian organization that has killed multiple workers for inconsequential reasons refuses to kill Dante despite the fact he’s immune to their brainwashing. Because he’s strong. Wouldn’t it make more sense for them to kill him because he’s strong and they can’t control him? The rival organization makes decisions that are just as foolish.

Before I dive into my review, I just want to point out that I am a sucker for nice covers. I adore the blue hue found on Fungus and Iron Vol. 1, which may have influenced my decision to read this one. Just a teeny tiny bit.

Fungus and Iron Vol. 1 is a bit difficult to describe. It's sort of a mixture of 1984, classic dystopian elements, and manga tropes. I almost feel like it was trying to do too much at once, but I'll get to that later in my review.

Dante is a bit of an oddball, to put it kindly. He lives in a world where a mushroom has taken over the planet. It does so by taking over the minds of its hosts – including people. Think cordyceps fungi (the fungus that turns ants into zombies) but for people.

You'd think that would make Dante a hardened guard, fighting to keep himself alive alongside all those he cares about. Well, some of that is true. Mostly, Dante survives on sheer dumb luck.

So, as I hinted at above, Fungus and Iron Vol. 1 feels like it tries too hard to be too many things at once. It's a dystopian tale with romance, action (alongside gore), manga tropes, and even a 1984 vibe. It's all too much for a relatively short period of time.

The result is that it just feels...shallow. I don't feel like I know Dante. I know that he's a lucky idiot, but being able to say that doesn't mean that I actually know him, does it? Honestly, I didn't even like him all that much. I certainly didn't find myself rooting for him.

There lies one of the problems here. I wasn't emotionally invested in the story. I think part of it is due to the issues I mentioned above. The other part is probably the pacing. Maybe if we had been given more time to know Dante and his love, I might have been able to care a little bit more.

Ultimately, Fungus and Iron Vol. 1 was a flop for me. However, if you're looking for a read with lots of action and gore, this might be right up your alley.

This is a darker. more dystopian take on a battle story. I liked the world-building and want to get a feel for the setting more. The battle scenes were detailed and visually pleasing. While I wasn't as thrilled that the general plot so far is "boy meets girl and wants to meet girl again," there are worse setups and goals. This one is looking to be a bumpy, but interesting ride. It's probably safest not to have a favorite character in this series.

Wow, this manga is actually amazing. I'm so thankful I was able to get an ARC from NetGalley bc man this manga is definitely worth a read. There was only one time that the illustration was not clear, so I backtracked, after I then saw it was explained what occurred; besides that though the art was clear and very nicely done. Dante's character I really enjoyed, him trying to come to grips with his own humanity and what he himself is fighting for. The one plot twist I enjoyed and was definitely surprised by. I cried when one thing occurred in the story bc it's easy to relate with these characters emotionally despite the different circumstances. But man this is definitely a MUST READ, and I cannot wait to see what else this author will do. I will immediately pick up the second volume without hesitation when it's released.

The plot focuses on a soldier who is immune to the mind-controlling effects of a military organization known as Amagasa. Here we follow his journey as he falls in love, and joins with the rebels to work behind the scenes to take Amagasa down. It has great scenes here and there, but midway through, it falls down a troupe-y shounen route. Ended on a sour note for me, but I'd be willing to give it another shot in volume 2.

expected more originality of a world overgrown by mushrooms. Special, overpowered Dante just charges through a generic dystopia and is even in text called an idiot. Lacklustre comes to mind as a monicker
Once the way you think changes the things you see will instantaneously shift.

The art style of Fungus and Iron is appealing enough, and the general premise of a world overrun by fungi is quite interesting. Unfortunately the execution is rather weak. Dante the special kid not influenced by mushrooms, reminds me a bit of Darrow in Red Rising in his messiah like “not like the others” qualities. The world itself has a rather generic dystopian feel like the Aeon Flux movie feel, with some 1984 mixed in (there are literal hours of rage).

That idiot’s more stupid than I ever imagined says someone about Dante halfway in, and that seems a fair enough assessment. The world is very uneven, with mass killings, chainsaw torture and suicides but also pastry eating in a cave. It all feels very black and white and instrumental, with the protagonist constantly being unconsciously competent (and grossly overpowered), like a kind of One Punch man without the humour.
Unpredictable and useful is most of the times not the same, and the sacrifice to keep Dante alive near the end makes no sense at all. And how does dyslexia explain not reading (or the main character surviving, especially when someone with an ear infection is being executed as not being sufficiently useful)?

This is a science fiction/dystopian world where this form of government has forced men and women to be separated and controls them using a type of fungus. But our main character… he was never able to be controlled and always had his own thoughts.

This was a lot more interesting and captivating that I originally thought it would be. Dante going from confused soldier to a rebel was some great character development and I can’t wait to see how that continues to go in future volumes.

This is definitely an adult series as there is quite a bit of gore but it added a darkness to the story. Dante is pretty lighthearted so some of the dark plot twists really shook him up and I’m interested to see how that morphs him!

If you like weird fungus, a dystopian world with mind control, death, assassinations and rebel meetings— check this one out!

4/5⭐️

This was quite interesting!! I really liked the dystopian aspect of it, and the artwork was really great as well. I loved how mushrooms and fungus seem to also play a big part in this story, and I am really looking forward to seeing where this story goes!

Fungus and Iron 1 was a good manga about a dystopian soldier. The world the reader is placed in was different and wild. The main characters, Dante and Aoi, were something special. I enjoyed reading about them and how their neurodivergent gave them power. It gave me a lot of Captain America and Divergent vibes.
The overall design of the characters through the illustrations were really impressive especially towards the end of the manga.

Thank-you for this copy.

This was very strange. It's a post apocalyptic society in which men and women are separated, the men are brainwashed by fungus infecting their brains and used as fodder and soldiers. The plot vent super confusing with no clear plot until about the 100 page mark.

Fungus and Iron surely is something else. It kind of reminds me of Attack on Titan, since the art is similarly crude and the atmosphere is the same. The cover looks great by the way! Dante is a soldier living in Amigasa. The city is a nasty place where everyone needs to think alike or else you get killed. Amigasa supposedly wants to keep humanity in control. Dante is dyslexic and thus hasn't been brainwashed so badly. He cannot stand the killings and he cannot understand the way the city operates. On a suicide mission he meets a girl that changes his path and he now joins the resistance. It all happens quite fast in this first part already, which is a shame. I enjoyed the fungus part though and I wished we had got into it better. The best soldiers can use iron to harden themselves and this was also awesome. In a sense this series would need more time to build the world, but otherwise it's surely great.

The art looks crude and dirty even, which works out amazingly well. The plot is great and reminds me of certain countries in our world, which makes this all the more intriguing. It seems this series is on hiatus though. I hope it continues and gets deeper into its desperate world!

Thank you to netgalley and the author and publisher for allowing me access to the eARC of this book in exchange for a review.

Apologies for the late review life has been hectic.

Overall I thought this manga was boring and lacked a hook it didn't draw me in and keep me interested but after reading it I ca firmly say I will not continue the series. i personally don't think this was for me and the art style was beautiful but the story wasn't for me

Thanks to Netgalley and Kodansha for ARC.

the art style was really amazing, I loved every small details in art, the description sounded so good so I was really excited for this book. When I started reading Manga I Loved Dante's Character most,and let's talk about Gore, I definitely loved the Gore parts, it's was done really well, the Gore parts were pretty intense so If you don't like Gore then it's not for you. Storyline was okayish, it's was not best or worst. Can't wait for next Vol

This story, Fungus and Iron, has a great deal of potential. In a world that seems to have separated the haves and the have-nots into two war-like factions one group, the Ether, is working their hardest to sabotage and undermine the Amigasa - a cruel group that seems to believe human life is only as valuable as it's usefulness. It could be that part of that cruelty stems from the interaction humans have with the dominant life - fungus.
When Dante, a soldier who doesn't fall in line with the program, meets a girl for the first time his whole life changes. His journey as rebel fighter and wielder of "iron" is perilous and leads him to deal with his thirst for violence and the accompanying distaste of it. The dichotomy is interesting.
There is a definite sense of other manga series in here - My Hero and AOT come to mind. I would love to see Dante's character fleshed out a little more and I am excited to see what happens with Aoi (the female protagonist). This book ends with an introduction to more powerful members of the Ether and Amigasa and I look forward to learning more about them. I could see middle and high school students really enjoying this series.

In the end, this felt like Forrest Gump meets 1984 - with none of the charm of the first and insight of the second. Instead, we have what even the narrator calls an idiot just bumbling through a dystopian authoritarian sci fi future. But of course, he will be a unique snowflake variety of simpleton who manages through brute force or luck to defeat all obstacles in this terrible future. Cue lots of horror, terror, torture, and gore for everyone else.

Story: A special kind of mushroom has taken over the planet, planting itself inside brains to control the human population. There are those who have not been implanted and are rebelling and a rare few who have a natural immunity to it. Dante is one of the latter and he begins to question why the soldiers are so indoctrinated to hate those on the outside. When on a patrol mission that should have got him killed (thanks to a supervisor who doesn't like his non conformity) instead allows him to meet a pretty girl from the women's counterpart army barracks, he begins a path of rebellion against the hierarchy.

So what we have here is every dystopian from the 1990s/early 2000s. But because this is a manga aimed at young men, it's extremely gory and horrific. Eyeballs are systematically poked out, limbs ripped off, brains implanted without anesthesia with the mushrooms, routine tourture scenes, lots of killing, etc. Of course, we'll have super powers (thanks to the mushrooms) that our main character will have to learn in order to level up. It's very 'seen that, bored now', to be honest.

The art is naïve and reminiscent of e.g., a modernized Dragon Ball Z. Despite the gore, the appeal really seems to be more for a teen/preteen target audience. It's not hard to see where the plot will go but then again, it's doubtful there is going to be any originality based on what we have seen so far.

The art suggests steampunk but it isn't - this is dystopia (sci fi). So it is your bog standard military story with cruel captains and evil scientists. Again, no awards for creativity here. The characters themselves are rather simplistic and not very engaging or interesting. The author looks to want the readers to continue to see how Dante levels up and gets the girl rather than creating a character-driven storyline.

In all, there was nothing to like here for me. Violence for the sake of titillation, a non threatening cutesy girly love interest, a simplistic clown of a main character, and a story we've seen before - 20 years ago. Reviewed from an advance reader copy provided by the publisher.

So good ! I loved the art a lot especially at the second half of the manga. This reads a bit like Shingeki no Kyojin/Attack on Titan but better-- telling of a war between a side called Amigasa and the other called Ether. Dante, the protagonist of this manga, is a kid with dyslexia who is very different from his peers and this leads us to navigate the world and his struggles together with him.
Unfortunately, the one thing keeping me from giving it a 5 star rating is the fact that I was not able to fully engage with the story in the first quarter and it took a while before I was able to start loving the story.
Overall, this was a great quick read and I'll definitely look forward to seeing more from this series :)

This got me hooked. It feels like it would be a good movie or easy to adapt into an anime. There's a dystopian setting, a hint of romance, a ditzy main character. I'm excited to see where this story is going to go. Super fast paced and action filled.

Review to come March 10th on blog/goodreads/etc..

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange of an honest review.

For the first part I was a tad confused on what was going on, but as the story went on we learn that this is a post-apocalyptic world ruled by mushrooms, yes really. Apparently they took over humanity years ago and everyone is under the influence in various degrees. We have two factions, the faction our MC belongs to which is very violent and very much into war, whereas we have another faction called Ether who is trying to save the world/survive, and yes, they know how weapons work, but they aren't as organised as our MC's faction. You really don't want to belong to the MC's faction though, holy crap. People get killed for being weak, having disorders, someone was even beaten and shot for having an ear infection... Yup. 

The whole eating iron and getting stronger was just so weird, I finally do get the whole Iron and Fungus though now. The fungus I was already clear on because hello world taking over by fungus, but the iron was a bit of whut? But now that makes sense, well, not sense, but you know what I mean. XD It was quite funny to see Dante eat metal though I wonder how his body was so easily accepting that, I mean, he has eaten human foods until now. 

I loved the meeting between Dante and Aoi, it was so adorable! I do hope that these two meet up again, because seriously, I need some more light-hearted moments. 

There are some fun twists and unexpectedness like the one on page 73 (for me at least it was that page). 

I just hadn't expected it to be so gore-filled. Haha, my stomach at times wasn't too amused with things. We see people get crushed in full detail by rocks, see our MC get cut open, see heads and blood fly around, there is enough torture. It did fit with the story and what it was about, but really, haha, I hadn't expected it. XD So be warned! 

All in all, I am still a tad confused on what the hell is going on in the manga. We get some weird characters and weird stuff is happening that confuses me greatly. But I am also interested in this manga, great fight-scenes, pretty good post-apocalyptic story though I also hope that one day we get some more information on how the world was taking over and what happened those days. I really liked the art, very shounen, but also very good! I will give this series another volume at least!