This manga collection had a lot of promise but just wasn’t my cup of tea.

Four Lives Remain contains four short stories from Tatsuya Endo’s earlier years writing and illustrating. I feel I should say, that while I know of SpyxFamily, I haven’t read it, so this was my first real foray into Endo’s works.

The book had a lot of promise for me. The cover illustration is beautiful, and I liked the video game-esque table of contents. I liked reading Endo’s notes at the end of each chapter about how the story came about and his own thoughts on his work. Honesty, those pages endeared me to him more than the stories themselves and led me to giving this book a higher rating overall.

The biggest drawback to this book is that while there are four short stories they’re all exactly the same. Once you’ve read the first one, you might as well be done, because the next three are basically the same thing with a different setting.

Additionally, I found the characters to all be deeply unlikable. Like the plot, they’re all pretty much the same person, so that definitely didn’t help in making me root for them. The villains are all comically evil and bumbling and the heroines were all extreme Mary Sues. They’re disagreeable, underestimated, and prone to violence. I’m all for strong (literally) female characters, but give me an ultra-powerful woman who also likes a pretty lipstick not a surly and standoffish woman.

The illustrations aren’t my favorite. I tend to like smoother, less exaggerated illustrations, but I do actually think they fit in with the theme of this book well. The stories are dark and gritty, and the artistic style really lent itself to that vibe. The violence is visceral, and that comes across better with the bold linework and exaggerated scenes.

Endo also has a great grasp of setting. While the plots, characters, and devices all followed formulaic guidelines, I found Endo’s settings to be unique. He managed to fit so much backstory and history into each of the settings without the stories feeling bogged down by exposition. He has a fantastic ability to create intricate worlds with dynamic and fascinating magic systems.

Of the four stories, the third was my favorite. It deviated the most from the mold of the other three stories. I hate to say it, but the female lead played less of a part in this story, and I think that actually helped my enjoyment. She was still important and had some kick-ass moves, but I think seeing less of her actually aided this story. She also acted in a more dynamic way, showing weakness while still being powerful. I also liked seeing the dynamic between her and her companion; the two worked off each other well unlike the characters in the other stories that constantly broke away to act alone.

Overall, this book was a big miss for me. I think to a standing Endo fan, this book is a nice piece of history and provides additional content. I could also see it being a hit for someone who wants a new read without needing to commit to a series with multiple volumes.

While I was unable to really engage much with the stories themselves, I found the evolution of Tatsuya Endo's art particularly fascinating. The first story showed especially the influences of Shonen Jump classics like Bleach and One Piece, and other hits like Trigun. As the collection continues, you can really see Endo's style evolve, and especially the development of architectural-drawing-as-setting in the final piece. This collection doesn't feel as vital as, say, the Tatsuki Fujimoto "Before Chainsaw Man" collections, which really showcase Fujimoto's unconventional and striking perspective that existed even in his earliest work, or the wry meta commentary on manga development in Izumi Tsubaki's Monthly Girls' Nozaki-kun (especially if you read it alongside her earlier manga, Magic Touch). However, it's still an interesting look into process and development of a manga creator finding their way.

SPY x FAMILY is, without a doubt, one of the big anime and manga hits of our time. Tatsuya Endo’s action-packed domestic spy series continues to wow audiences with every new episode. But what was he doing beforehand? Even if you’ve read Tista and Blade of the Moon Princess, you’re still not getting the whole story. Fortunately, there’s Four Lives Remain: the latest collection of one-shots tracing a hit manga creator’s work before their big series. What will you find inside? Read on!



Four Stories

Four Lives Remain contains four one-shots. Western Game is Endo’s debut one-shot from 2000, following Elena Fiscuff as she enters a school for bounty hunters in a crime-riddled world. Blade of the Moon Princess, also from 2000, is the predecessor to the three-volume version we’re all familiar with: a sci-fi-tinged retelling of the tale of Princess Kaguya. 2001’s WITCH CRAZE introduces a world where witches are hunted for their powerful blood. And PMG-0 from 2004 reimagines The Three Musketeers with a female D’Artagnan and lots of guns.

All four stories show the same mix of dark drama and unexpected silliness that Endo has become known for. But that’s not all this volume contains. Endo indulges his love of game design and creates a printable board game at the end of the book! Throughout the book, you’ll find patterns for game pieces based on his many manga characters. Photocopy the pages and print them out for a four-stage adventure!



The Art

One of the best things about compilations like this is seeing your favorite manga artists growing into their style. Four Lives Remain is no different. With decades of experience and a team of assistants at his disposal, Tatsuya Endo’s work looks more stunning than ever. But even in the rougher panels, his unique art style shines through. His shifts from gritty action to silly chibis were as fun then as they are now. And even though he reuses character elements and designs (by his own admission), everyone still looks fantastic.

Endo mentions that he only got the go-ahead to redraw one section of the book because it was (allegedly) just that rough. While we understand the desire, we’re really glad he didn’t get the all-clear to overhaul everything. Seeing Endo of 25 years ago laying down his first professional manga panels is inspiring!



The Vibes

Four Lives Remain shows us that, while Endo’s art may have improved (as any dedicated artist’s will), his art and story trademarks have remained strong. For instance, he loves visiting existing stories—two stories in this volume are adaptations of existing tales, with WITCH CRAZE drawing names and inspiration from Arthurian legend.

Best of all, he’s not afraid to get silly, occasionally even breaking the fourth wall. Balancing that silliness with compelling action and drama is part of what’s made SPY x FAMILY such a hit. As we see here, that’s a long-standing strength of Endo’s… and one that get stronger and more refined with each new volume of manga.

It is interesting to see some of Endo's stories pre-"Spy x Family". As with the other early-work anthologies recently published by VIZ, I was entertained but not necessarily wowed. Still, I don't think that's the point. Of course single chapter stories aren't going to be nearly as effective as multi-volume (in some cases) masterpieces. It's entertaining, nonetheless, and worth reading for fans of the mangaka's later works.