It began with a mysterious hand popping through the ground. Any curious party would grab hold of it to see what would happen. Sadly, that hand had plenty of danger in its palms, as it pulled in Zen and his entire family. After the chaos, Zen found himself literally without a leg to stand on. Welcome to the world of Suzushiro Yasuda’s Bootsleg, a contender for the hottest new shonen around!

Seven years after those events, Zen finds himself constantly training for the day that Shake Hand appears again. With a nice prosthetic to keep him moving, Zen spends his days running errands and sparring with the town’s sexy doctor Lily. But when Zen finds the location of where his prosthetic came from — along with its maker Tsubaki Haikazuki — Shake Hand makes his grand return. Thankfully, Zen’s shiny leg winds up not being an ordinary replacement; it’s a source for some crazy-as-hell power!

That’s when Zen is pulled into Tsubaki’s organization: the Bootsleg. There, he meets some fellow victims of the mysterious Hand-Red, all with their own need for vengeance and a knack for wearing killer shoes. From the speed king Elio to the blacksmith Masamune, everyone has their own reason for taking down Hand-Red. Just one problem: despite fighting for 100 years, Bootsleg has yet to defeat a single member of Hand-Red!

Yasuda takes his time with building the world of Bootsleg throughout its massive first volume. You immediately get a sense of how dangerous this setting is, as well as how these characters do their best to get stronger every day. Zen, Lily, Elio, and Masamune all push themselves to their limits for the sake of defeating those who took their families away. Some have a chance of being saved, whereas others — especially Masamune’s family — are long dead. It’s that level of determination that pushes the organization to fight to protect and save those who are near and dear to them.

And when it comes time to fight, Bootsleg loves to keep its readers wowed! You already get a good sense of how amazing the battles will be solely from the way Zen and Lily spar. But when Red-Hand’s Shake Hand, All Abord, and God Breath You enter the foray, the action is incredibly stunning! Seeing Elio running towards the train All Abord while Zen gives it a mega kick brings forth some gorgeous visuals. Every dent, scratch, and bump is drawn with such fantastic detail, to the point where one could easily hear the mayhem this manga is showcasing!

There’s also a good sense of humor that’s present throughout the first volume. One can easily see how close Zen and Lily are, with the way the doctor teases Zen into wanting to bathe with him. Elio’s cocky attitude gives way to some solid banter between him and Zen, which becomes stronger once they start living together. Member Lingzi has her own quirks as well when it comes to her boots, to the point where it comes close to being a kink of some kind.

As for Masamune, there’s more drama from her than comedic moments. With Zen, Elio, and Lily still holding out hope to save their loved ones, the blacksmith is filled with sorrow knowing she can’t do anything to bring her family back. It’s why her battle with God Breath You has more rage filled in the fight, as we see a woman with absolutely nothing to lose throw everything she can at the thing that stole her happiness away. How she teams with Elio and Zen towards the end is the first beacon of light that enters Masamune’s essence in a long time, and how she’s finally welcomed into Bootsleg is a sign that she might have more of a reason to live than she initially thought.

Bootsleg is one badass shonen! The characters, art, action, and attitude that flow through its pages will hook any fan of the genre right at the get-go. This tale of vengeance and fancy footwork may share some similarities with other manga, but its execution aids in it being a giant breath of fresh air. If this level of coolness continues throughout its narrative, then you can bet that Bootsleg’s feet won’t ever fail on ya!

Bootsleg is a standard shonen manga with enough individuality that I can see it appealing to some of my readers.
There are certainly comparisons to be made to Fullmetal Alchemist, and the work suffers a bit for it in some ways, but also is a solid readalike for manga devotees.

"May this flickering soul ignite into a raging Inferno!"

Bootsleg, is an incredibly interesting story of young adults growing stronger as they pursue revenge on the demons that have stolen their loved ones from them. While also finding a family along the way.
Bootsleg itself, is an Artisan's Syndicate dedicated to stomping out the Red Hand. "...{their] shoes will serve you on your journey... Those who leave will not be missed. Those who stay will be fitted with leather and a soul"

The action scenes depicted in the manga, make me crave to see this series animated because I'm sure that it could be gorgeous and I am honestly excited to get to watch the characters that we meet within the pages of this book continue to grow.

I will definitely be continuing this series.

"We'll write their epitaph with the words at our feet. Our Requiem."

Bootsleg was so, so good! It has a such a fantastic hook, getting me invested in this story right from the get-go. You can’t help rooting for such great characters like Zen and the Bootsleg gang! The art style was charming and fun, while also being extremely well suited for the story and action-packed scenes. I enjoyed this manga so much that I went to look for its continuation immediately after finishing this volume. I can already tell this is gonna become a favorite of mine; I can’t wait to dive further into this story.

Bootsleg Volume 1 by Suzuhito Yasuda operates on an interesting premise, but its execution leaves a little to be desired. I enjoyed the action scenes, but I also found them chaotic at times. It was a little difficult to keep track of characters' movements throughout fight scenes. The pacing also dragged a bit after the first couple of chapters; however, I'm still hoping to read more of this series since I do think it's fairly fun overall.

This manga follows a boy named Zen, whose family were killed and his left leg taken by a strange supernatural villain named Shake Hand. Zen has vowed revenge, and wants to track down Shake Hand.

I was intrigued by the concept for this, and liked the beginning, but soon found myself not enjoying it because of how the female doctor character, Lily, was portrayed. She’s seemingly a lot older than Zen, but for some reason is obsessed with giving him a bath for no reason. I gave up reading the manga when he walked into her house and found her mid bath and saw her naked. Her being obsessed with him was gross with the age difference, and there was no reason for her to look and act like that.

There are some interesting ideas in this series and the action scenes are visually pleasing! However, as I was reading, I felt the story was fairly average at best, and the fan-service elements were more distracting than anything. Part action, part mystery with possible harem elements, it's not a bad mix if that's what you're in the mood for. I hope it finds a more unique groove as it goes.

I'm going to be honest here; I didn't know what I was getting into with Bootsleg Volume 1. It had a dark and foreboding cover, which caught my attention. Still, I was not prepared for what I found on these pages.

Zen was just a young boy when Shake Hand murdered everyone around him – Zen's family included. The killer also took Zen's left leg – an insult to injury and all that. Now Zen is on a quest for vengeance, but he will need help and training to get it.

Luckily for Zen, there's an artisan syndicate sworn to stop Shake Hand. Naturally, Zen wants in on the action (and the revenge, don't forget that bit!).

Okay, so I wanted to like Bootsleg Volume 1. The beginning reminded me of Fullmetal in terms of tragic backstory meets graphic nature. However, the comparisons end there. While I don't regret reading Bootsleg Volume 1, I don't think I ended up enjoying it as much as I had hoped.

The art style is busy – and on the whole, I don't mind that style, but it did make the fight scenes challenging to decipher at times. So I think that took away some of the impact and power of what we were being shown.

The other characters in this volume surprised me, though I wish we could have gotten to know them better. Most introductions felt shallow at best, especially for the ones that I was most interested in. I'm hoping future volumes will solve that issue.

OMG I LOVE THIS SO MUCH!! CAN WE HAVE THE ANIME NOW!!! A bit of FMA at the start i was like where is this going but the more i read i love the lore about this world and about the hand and shoe society and magic. I defiantly want to see more of this world and adventures because the action scenes are just amazing and the characters are so unique but also so familiar.

A surprisingly good shonen in the immensity of the genre, with a boy who lost his leg and his family because of a vicious entity. The hero is impulsive but also full of intelligence and the story is fast action packed. A delight.

First I would like to thanks to Netgalley and Kodansha for the Arc of this manga in exchange for a honest review. The story to this manga is so different to any other that I have read, A really very original story, it surprised me a lot. I enjoyed this manga more than I probably should have! I really liked the different characters even though they were pretty young and I like the art style even though it was black and white. The ending left we want more, I want to read the next one immediately.

I really like the concept of the story. It's very engaging and I read the whole first volume really quickly because of how engrossed I was. I really like the characters, too, though I wish it didn't have the perverted tropes that plague so many series. It is so deeply uncomfortable seeing teenagers--and such young teenagers--sexualized. Aside from that, this series has potential.

At seven years old, Zen's left leg and his entire family are swallowed up by a mysterious being known as Shake Hand. Zen isn't the only one to suffer such a fate. People all over the world are being attacked by these "gloved hand" entities. Zen is lucky enough to be given a prosthetic replacement leg and over the next seven years he trains, hoping to be strong enough to take his revenge on the monster who swallowed up his family. One fateful night, his eyes are opened and the creature known as Shake Hand comes back to finish the job. Saved by the members of a syndicate known as Bootsleg, Zen is asked to join the group and take down these gloved monsters.

A pretty decent action anime, with each introduced character having their own monster nemesis and reason for joining Bootsleg. Every one of them has been gifted with a special pair of shoes to enhance their special talents. It has a lot of fun quirky moments and plenty of chances to cheer for the heroes. I just find it a little strange that in all the time this organization has existed, not one person has defeated their nemesis. Now it looks like everything is left up to Zen and his new friends.

Unfortunately, I was unable to read and review this title as the file would not load no matter what I tried. Thank you so much for the opportunity regardless, I am very appreciative!

Huge thanks to NetGalley, Kodansha and the author for providing an e-ARC of this manga in exchange for an honest review. All of the opinions expressed in this review are my own.
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I really liked the artwork in Bootsleg and a lot of the design element were unique such as the look of the enemies' gloves.

Bootsleg has a lot of typical shonen elements but not such that one gets bored reading it. I liked Zen and his hardworking personality and also liked his rival/friend Elio (who seemed to be verging closer to the friend territory near the end of this volume).

Aside from the unnecessary fanservice, this was a fun read that I want to continue in the next volume!

Overall rating: 3.5/5 stars

What a chaotic shounen nightmare. All the boys are tiny teenagers, and all the women are busty and flirty and what even is human anatomy? What are tiddies for? They are for catching tiny teenagers with, of course. Also the thirsty af fanservice of a minor? I think I've said enough :D

I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I had a great time reading this volume! The opening scene when Zen first loses his leg reminded me of the beginning of Fullmetal Alchemist. I'm not sure if that was purposefully done or not since they both feature protagonists who use prosthesis and who are fighting to get their families back in some way or other. The fact that this manga stars so many characters with prosthesis was the main reason I became interested in reading it, since I believe there should be many more characters who possess one out there. I also liked that Zen trained his entire body hard to become strong, which in turn gave power to his prosthesis, rather than it suddenly making him superpowered just by having it. It was also good see that they included a scene that depicts him giving his prosthesis regular maintenance before bed, and taking it to be worked on for upkeep.

Zen himself was a pretty fun character. He reminded me a lot of other shonen protagonists, but that doesn't mean I don't still have a soft spot for such a hard worker. Elio was also similar to other rivals, but I appreciate how he's already started to open up some by the end of this volume. I look forward to seeing how the two's friendship will progress.

The female characters in this first volume were also quite interesting and different at their core personality. The woman who created "Bootsleg" and does repairs on their shoes is my favorite out of them all. It's nice to see an older woman with visible wrinkles and age (who can also hold her own against enemies) with an important presence in a series like this. The other two female characters were likeable over time as well, but I could have REALLY done without the fanservice., especially when it came to the younger of the two. I had to remove a star because of my distaste for it.

The highlight of this manga would have to be it's incredible action scenes. Full of energy, strong linework, great character expressions, and unique lettering for sound effects, I truly had a great time envisioning them animated. I thought the designs of the "gloves"/enemies were unique as well, and made each battle unique. If this series ever became an anime, I think it would be very well-received for its fight scenes and interesting mechanics when it comes to the variety of prosthesis and how they are used.

I'll absolutely be picking up volume 2!

Even just the cover gave me FMA vibes, let alone the first chapter.

I wasn’t the biggest fan of the art style, or how the characters were drawn but that wasn’t enough of an issue to negate any of my enjoyment of the volume. There’s a mystery from the start with Zen’s missing family and Shake Hands and doses of action throughout.

I did find it a bit slow to start after the initial shock intro that caught my attention, and I did think it was a little but juvenile here and there with certain things, for example the bad guys name.

It’s a pretty standard shounen, but Zen’s determination and dealing with the loss of his leg really makes it stand out.

I honestly came into this one expecting not to like it, but willing to give it a chance because I was desperate for a new shonen manga to follow, and I have to admit that it blew me away. I don't know if it was the low expectations, but it kept throwing stuff up that I enjoyed and that caught my attention and made me care about the characters and setting.
It's a mishmash of so many shonen manga that have come before it, but it takes those known ingredients and creates a recipe that I enjoyed from beginning to end. It's also weird in just the right way to make me think it has potential going forward.
The art is pretty standard fare for the genre but I see potential in the dynamic posing and panel layouts. I'm giving this one the first volume benefit of the doubt and hoping that the art will stand out a bit more in future volumes.
One thing I do think it has too much of is the fan service, but I'm also aware that it's mostly aimed at a target audience that I am not a part of. Would I like it more if there were fewer upskirt shots and boobs? Definitely. Will the overabundance of them make me quit reading? Definitely not.

Very happy thanks to NetGalley and Kodansha for the introduction to a great new series!

*Given a free copy from NetGalley in return for an honest review*

I’m usually the type that loves Shonen manga but this one felt like a bad mix of Fullmetal Alechemist and My Hero Academia. The plot just felt like unoriginal mixes of other shonen throughout the years. The characters were also extremely single dimensional copies of other established characters.

Unfortunately I don’t think this is a series I will continue. 1.5 rounded up because there’s a dog.