Violence Jack

Origin

Nobody seems to know who he is or where he came from. What is known about Jack and his origins is that he only seemed to appear after the Great Kanto Hellquake destroyed the land and upheaved life as everyone knew it. Some people believe he came from the stars. Others believe he was born from the disaster.

When he first appeared in the world he was completely unknown. Nobody even knew his name. However, he was given his current moniker by his very nature. Jack, after the oversized jackknife that he carries. Violence, because wherever he goes, people die. And for most of the series, that was as far as anyone knew about him. All that was clear was that Jack was not entirely human.

Later on in the series, the connection to Devilman is made clear as his origin. Jack is in fact the revived form of a fusion between Akira Fudou and the demon Amon, and he was sent to the ruined world to finish his fight with Satan and his forces of evil.

Creation

Violence Jack was created by Go Nagai as a continuation of the Devilman series. At first the connection wasn’t apparent, but hints were dropped as the manga progressed.

Character Evolution

Personality

Jack says very little, preferring actions to words. When a situation presents itself, he will resort to violence first. No negotiations are needed for him. Reason, diplomacy and tact are completely out of the question for him. If anything is going to get done, he will do it first and learn the details later. And when he gets going, people die. Not just his enemies. If anyone, guilty or innocent, man or woman, adult or child gets in his crossfire, they too will die.

His propensity for impulsive violence is not done out of malice or a lack of knowledge of how to do anything else. Instead, it’s done purely out of necessity. Jack knows that the world he lives in is not a kind place, and that only power matters. The only answer to the violence that surrounds him is to meet it with greater violence.

Despite how Jack will kill anyone, regardless of who they are or what they have done, he is not without a sense of justice or compassion. He knows good from evil, and he will empower those who feel they are downtrodden, defend whoever he deems worthy of his services and do his best to make those who are weak even stronger. Because those who do not become stronger will not survive

Appearance

Even from a distance one can tell that there is something unsettling about Jack. His 7’ 10” height alone is enough to unnerve the weak of will. Described by many as having the muscles of a gorilla and the fangs of a wolf, his eyes are also said to have the fiery energy of the big bang behind them. And his wild, shaggy hair lends more to his appearance as an animal. Who or whatever he appears to be, that fact that he may not be human is apparent.

His clothing does little to make him seem approachable. Clothed only in rags, Jack appears as if he had never known a civilized life. At times his clothing changes, but it always appears shabby and torn. The one constant article of clothing that Jack always wears is his yellow scarf.

Major Story Arcs

Kanto Slumtown

One year after the Kanto Hellquake ended the civilized world of the region, Jack happened upon a group of children that had carved out their own territory in the wasteland. Unfortunately, that territory is coveted by a rival gang who wishes to acquire it. Jack resists in an effort to defend the children. In doing so, he rouses the attention of the worst possible enemy. The leader of every major gang in Kanto, the dreaded Slum King.

Hell’s Wind

Like a blowing wind, Jack has wandered into a town of law-abiding survivors who are trying to rebuild a normal life for themselves. This small hamlet seems to be the closest that anyone has ever come to recreating civilization before the disaster. Unfortunately, that same mysterious wind that has brought Jack to town has also brought the cruelest of the local gangs into their midst: Hell’s Wind.

With the superior firepower that they have stolen from an abandoned military base, Hell’s Wind eviscerates everything that has been built, and defeat Jack in combat after a brutal battle. The gang returns to their base to replenish their munitions before they return to finish what they had begun. Can Jack recover in time to defend the town again?

Mondo’s Fierce Battle

Two of the worst killers in Japan, Saotome Mondo and Mido Tatsuma, have escaped from prison and are on their way to Kanto. To them, the lawless land will be a paradise for men like them. After fighting off the first gang they encounter, they cross paths with Violence Jack. For reasons unknown to them, Jack tells them that they are unfit to live in Kanto. And even though they survive the encounter with him, Jack still has his doubts about their future, knowing that he will see them again.

The Dragon Fortress

The Slum King has put a hit on a young girl. And somewhere in the wasteland, that girl is running scared from the assassins who tail her. A chance encounter with Violence Jack saves her life, and he takes her to find refuge with a married couple. Unknown to Jack, they plan to collect the bounty on the girl and take her to the feared stronghold of the King: The Dragon Fortress. Blood will cascade when Jack learns of the betrayal. But will he be able to keep the girl alive?

El Dorado, City of Gold

Mondo and Tatsuma have made their way in Kanto. They’ve fought with the local gangs and have lived to tell the tale, earning them the respect of some of the more powerful leaders in the region. One particular gang has need of their special skills. Their willingness to resort to unspeakable acts and their lack of any kind of conscience or emotional attachment to others is exactly what is needed to find a lost bank vault that is rumored to be filled to the brim with gold.

The vault is located in a building that had sank underground during the Kanto Hellquake, and has since come to be known as El Dorado. El Dorado is guarded by a surviving group of the Japanese Self-Defense Forces, now little more than just another one of the gangs. One that’s equipped with heavy artillery and specialized training for neutralizing threats to the gold that they have gone mad guarding since the Hellquake struck. But it’s not only they who are looking for the gold.

Violence Jack has come to town in order to find the gold for his own purposes, and every major gang is flocking to get Jack to join their side. Unfortunately, Jack only works for those who he deems worthy of his power, and has instead created a wave of murder that sweeps over the area. Mondo takes advantage and begins to hatch a plan to use the circumstances to his benefit, but possibly at the cost of his humanity. In the end, Jack will be faced with his greatest challenge yet. From the Slum King. From Mondo. From the ambiguous future that is yet to come.

The Hell Towns of Kanto

So great was the Kanto Hellquake that entire buildings were swallowed up by the ground beneath them. Without any way to immediately return to the surface, rudimentary towns were made within them. As one group of people attempts to tunnel out of one of these so-called ‘Hell Towns,’ they uncover something completely unexpected: Violence Jack

As soon as he is uncovered, Jack is introduced to the three factions that are trapped there in one of those subterranean buildings. First is the group of law-abiding civilians and authorities. The second is a gang of lawless criminals who follow the rules of the wasteland. The third is an all-female group who has their own separate reason to escape, besides rejoining society. All have their reasons for Jack to join them, and Jack’s choice will shape the future of them all.

The Gale Dragon

For a long time now, Mondo and Tatsuma have been wandering the wastelands of Kanto, trying to stay alive and exist as best as they can. During their travels, they witness a terrible sight. The Dragons, the Slum King’s elite troops, are carrying out a raid against one of the shantytowns that has been constructed. Not for any personal gain. Only to practice their skills of quelling the populace.

Shortly after decimating the townspeople, and all of the buildings in it, the Dragons catch a glimpse of Violence Jack wandering the countryside and decide to increase their glory by being the ones who defeat him. In moments, Jack finds himself facing the entire force of the cavalry. The full power of the Dragons rains down upon him, and during the encounter secrets are implied about Jack’s true purpose in Kanto and where he may have come from originally.

The Sumo Devils of Kanto

While he is traveling through the wasteland, Jack is ambushed by a group of men who are wearing sumo uniforms. A group who Jack can tell are nothing more than monsters who were created by the Hellquake. Never one to tolerate the presence of monsters in the land, Jack takes it upon himself to rid the world of their presence.

These men happened to be members of one of the gangs. One who have modeled themselves after sumo wrestlers for their girth power. They make their living by extorting supplies from other groups of survivors, and offering their own twisted form of protection in return. After tracking down the men who his attackers worked for, Jack manages to rescue two people before they are executed by the sumos.

Whether it was his intention or not, the evil gang takes out its humiliation on the locals, prompting the survivors that Jack had rescued to seek revenge. And they begin by hiring the services of Jack. As it stands, Jack faces a group of opponents with power to match his own, and who have already defeated enemies his own size. But Jack has a reason of his own to fight them. And a greater reason to win.

The Reaper Police

Even though Kanto has become a lawless wasteland, there is one group that tries to maintain law and order. But just like everyone else, they have become little more than just another one of the gangs that roam the land. One made up of former police officers who have begun to abuse their authority in an effort to bring peace to the land. So harsh are their methods that they’ve become known as the Blue Reapers.

In a place where the police are just as bad as the criminals, or maybe worse, a stranger comes to town. A woman who claims to be Violence Jack. At first, nobody believes her. But she carries the same oversized jackknife that has slain so many, and she seems to incite murder wherever she goes. Much of that murder becomes directed at her, and she’s able to fight it off as deftly as the genuine article.

Word spreads to the Reapers that Violence Jack is in town, and their leader vows to defeat him. During a citywide search, the woman called Jack goes on the run from the Reapers, but mysteriously disappears. In her place, the Violence Jack that is renowned appears. However, Jack has no idea who this woman is. Truly, the two people are connected. As are Jack and the leader of the Reapers. Between them and the impending arrival of the Dragons, horror is certain to follow.

King of the Beasts

When the Hellquake struck, a zoo was destroyed. The animals who survived roamed free, and the vegetation that simulated their habitat grew uncontrolled. And with them, the survivors who had been trapped in that place became little more than animals themselves. A man who called himself Kibara has elected himself the king of that region, and rules with the same savagery as the beasts he tames to do his bidding. As it happened, Jack had seemingly been summoned by the turmoil that was happening there.

At the same time, a young man named Shingo Hibiki has found his way into that semi-tropical valley. Though he was barely noticed before the world was upended, he finds that he is able to make a comfortable living in the wild land as a hunter-gatherer. He even has managed to make a few friends, both human and animal. But these friends do not protect him from Kibara’s warpath.

Through whatever power he has, Shingo calls for help. He begs and pleads for the universe to show him a sign or grant him some boon that will help him rescue the community that has accepted him. And like a bolt out of the blue, Violence Jack appears. In a land where everyone, human or otherwise, is against him, Jack will need more than his normal repertoire to win. In addition to everything else, vital clues are alluded to the nature of Jack’s purpose in Kanto.

The Hyper Grapple

After the Hellquake, a new sport has become popular with the violent and the lawless. They call it ‘The Hyper Grapple.’ Barely anything about it resembles a sport. More like gladiatorial combat that is styled to vaguely resemble professional wrestling. Only the toughest fighters are able to make a career out of it and live to enjoy the benefits.

As an out of work grappler named Iron Muscle waits for travelers to ambush, he meets someone unexpected: a woman who is also a grappler, named Fiery Venus. She informs Iron Muscle of a tournament that is being hosted by Susano-O, the leader of the Susa Gang. Shortly after Fiery Venus leaves, Violence Jack shows up. Iron Muscle tries to ambush him, but finds Jack too powerful. When he comes to after their fight, Iron Muscle finds his body is surging with an unknown power.

In the floating city that has drifted out into Tokyo Bay after the Hellquake, Venus has made her way to the tournament dome. After her, there comes a man who looks surprisingly like Violence Jack, but claims to be the vagabond Iron Muscle. And after his arrival, the real Violence Jack arrives to discover the secrets of the city and its mysterious leader, as well as the true origin and purpose of this brutal blood sport.

The Iron Castle

Wintertime has come to Kanto, and another one of the gangs has become more active as of late. A group of martial artists who are practitioners of a deadly form of karate have begun terrorizing the populace in an effort to become the most powerful gang in the land. However, another gang of martial artists opposes them. One who is trying to use the discipline as a way of maintaining peace in their land. Where there is conflict, there is violence. And where there’s violence, there’s Jack. Between the two warring factions, Jack will dig up the relics of each of their pasts and pit them against each other in a showdown that neither gang may survive.

The Black Forest

Already Jack is on the run. The Ogre regiment of the Slum King’s troops have tracked him down and cornered him in a small, confined area of the land. There, Jack begins to take advantage of his surroundings to whittle down the numbers of the soldiers, before his real target arrives. But before he is able to defeat them all, they seem to simply let him go in order to await the arrival of the Slum King.

As they tail Jack, the Ogres realize that Jack is leading them to an area known as The Black Forest. A place where Jack would have an even greater advantage against the mounted troops. Just as he planned it, the Ogres retreat and allow only the Slum King to enter. There, Jack tries to expose a vital weakness of the King’s as he duels him once more.

Advent of the Demon Lord

Even within the Slum King’s elite Dragon troops, there is an even more elite regiment within them. The Rouge Drake: an all-female band of soldiers, some of them from the King’s personal harem. And they are roving the land, searching for anyone or anything that defies the will and sensibilities of the King. As it so happens there is a band of survivors who are made up of the remnants of a dilapidated catholic school. The survivors are known as The Saints, and they do their part by helping the sick, elderly and starving. However, there are even outliers in their groups.

Among the teachers, there was one who had taken advantage of the students and was ostracized for his unsavory desires. As he wanders the wasteland, he becomes even less than a human. His desires and hatred for others turn him into a monster. An event that doesn’t go unnoticed by Violence Jack.

By the time that Jack has arrived at the ruined academy, things have gotten as bad as they can get. With his newfound power, the monstrous teacher has quickly gathered followers to join his cult where he is worshiped as a god. A cult that bases itself around sexual debauchery and hedonism. Jack’s new mission is clear. He must destroy the cult at its head. But what can he do against a power that can set an entire population against him and create more monsters? Even out of the Rouge Drake?

The Backcountry Academy

Unknown to most people, there is a small corner of Kanto that has remained relatively untouched by the chaos that has ravaged the land. A tiny farmland has been built around a single-room schoolhouse, which is occupied by a single, solitary teacher. Day by day, he waits for a student to come by so that he may live out his passion for education. One day, a teenage boy claiming to be Violence Jack arrives and decides that he would like to enroll in this odd little school.

At the same time, the woman who once called herself Jack is in the process of fleeing the assassins that have been sent after her by the Slum King. And at the same time as that, the real Violence Jack is also under attack by assassins who have more artillery than what is normally seen. And as they are both on the run, the boy called Jack meets with the assassins who have been sent after him as he is in the middle of a school day.

The connection between the three seemingly unconnected people is deepening, and the purpose of Jack’s existence is heavily alluded to. He is searching for someone. Someone who will help him to end the rule of the Slum King forever. But first, he sees fit to send a message to the employer of the assassins who have been sent after him.

The Slave Farm

Not even human trafficking and slave trading is taboo in the Kanto wasteland. And a man who calls himself Kraken has become the most renowned slaver in the land. Not only does he raid villages far and wide to bring new slaves into his business, but he even forces them to breed with one another in order to create new assets of human property. And with the Slum King backing these endeavors, the reign of terror seems unstoppable.

As it happens, Violence Jack has been overpowered and is taken to the hellish farm of Kraken. The slavers believe that they know who they have caught and decide that the best thing to do is to gouge out Jack’s eyes so that he would have no choice but to follow their orders. This proves to be a mistake, as Jack flies into a blind rage, but he is quickly subdued by Kraken.

Also among the slaves is a young woman named Kikuno. She herself was beholden to the whims of others even before the Hellquake, and sees in Jack a spark of hope. Without the guards knowing, she begins to befriend Jack and smuggles meals to him in his imprisonment between his days of backbreaking labor. Through Jack, another secret is revealed, and her connection to Kraken comes to light. Between the two of them, they plan for something big to happen. Something that could mean the end of everything for everyone, should anything go wrong.

The Iron Kaiser

Somewhere in the wasteland, there is another who opposes the Slum King. Someone who doesn’t appear to be human. This stranger who has come from seemingly nowhere appears to be a machine made only for killing. Or perhaps he is simply wearing heavily mechanized armor? Whoever he is, he doesn’t care who gets in his way. If they are a fortress of soldiers or a village of survivors, he stomps onward, killing any person and destroying any obstacle in his path.

In another place, the boy called Jack finds another boy his own age named Yu Ozomi. Yu claims to have been specifically targeted by the stranger, who has become known as The Iron Kaiser. For reasons unknown to him, the Kaiser has marked him specifically for death, and will follow him no matter how far or where he runs to.

The boy called Jack wishes to protect Yu, but Violence Jack tries to dissuade him. Jack senses a much deeper connection between Yu Ozomi and The Iron Kaiser. One that goes as far back as before the Hellquake. Whatever it is, Jack will only keep a vigil over the boy, knowing that whether he lives or dies is up to him, and also know thing if he dies that the power of the Kaiser will go unmatched. Even by him.

Honey

In New York City, a woman named Honey Kisaragi has learned exciting news. Her missing brother has been found alive after the two of them were separated by being put up for adoption when they were both very, very young. After spending much of the fortune that she had inherited from her adoptive family, she learns that he is in the worst possible place: Kanto.

Undeterred, Honey goes to Kanto to find clues to his whereabouts. With each stop she makes, she finds herself only marginally closer to finding him. But with each stop, she meets an unexpected stranger: Violence Jack. Jack tries to constantly dissuade Honey from searching for her brother, telling her that it will only bring her misery if she learns the truth of him. Honey, however, is determined to see it through, so Jack decides to watch her closely while he prepares his own plans.

Counterattack

All the stops have been pulled. The Slum King desires a duel with Violence Jack in order to solidify his rule over the land. And as if drawn to one another, the two enemies meet. Jack accepts the challenge, and they two begin their fight.

Both are resolved to not end in a draw this time. No matter what power the other one has, they are determined to never yield. In the end, the duel is won by Jack, who leaves the severed head of the Slum King in the wasteland where he will be forgotten after his humiliating death.

The Demon King

The worst has happened. As Jack waits for it to arrive, the demon king, the devil himself, is reborn in Kanto. His true purpose is revealed. All of the enemies that he had ever faced were only pieces of a greater whole. Shreds of an evil soul that had split itself up to cover the land with its evil. And Jack is finally able to face the progenitor of this soul and send it back to Hell once and for all.

Answering the call to action, Jack assumes his true form and enters the battle to decide the fate of the world once and for all. In the end, it seems that none of Jack’s efforts were in vain. Everything that he had done was to ensure his victory. And by the time that Satan is vanished from the world, Jack has gone with him.

Nobody ever truly knew who he was, and as the years have passed, future generations have seemingly forgotten that Violence Jack ever existed. But to the weak who he gave his strength to, to the hopeless who he offered his light, they never forgot him. The series ends with Jack overlooking the rebuilt world, before he disappears.

Powers

The powers that Jack has seem to vary from each time he appears, displaying a broad spectrum of unnatural abilities. This may be due to his nature as something that isn’t entirely natural in the world that he inhabits. But there are also several powers that remain constant, and others that only seem to be implied.

Superhuman Strength

No matter how many enemies approach him at once, Jack is able to fight them off with ease, can lift an ATV like it was nothing, and is able to catch an oncoming missile and throw it away.

Superhuman Durability

Normal attacks do nothing to Jack. He may be stabbed with a sword, fall from a great height, crash a vehicle at top speed, or take more than a hundred bullets and still not die.

Healing

In a matter of hours, Jack is able to heal from the most grievous wounds. On a few occasions, Jack is seen to be able to heal the wounds of others as well.

Animal Command

Jack is able to bend most animals to his will. Mostly, he will force them into a frenzy, making them kill indiscriminately.

Illusions

People who are around Jack experience terrifying visions of things that have been, things that may come to be, and things that simply scare them.

Necromancy

On at least one occasion, Jack has been seen to raise the dead.

Shapeshifting

Thought it’s never seen in full, Jack’s presence is often preceded by a golden bird flying across the sky and landing in some unknown location. Shortly after, Jack is seen walking the land. Whether Jack takes the form of this bird is never confirmed in the comics, it is heavily implied that this may be how Jack travels such great distances in such a short time.

Earthquake Generation

It is never truly confirmed, but Jack seems to be able to generate powerful tremors in the earth around him. Whenever they happen, it’s always in circumstances where he is in an advantageous position, as though he were able to predict them, and always at a time when he needs them to happen the most.

Storm Generation

Like other things, it is not known if this is actually one of Jack’s powers. However, lightning storms and tornadoes seem to conjure in his presence. Especially when it seems to work to his advantage.

Possession

Though it’s never explicitly stated, it is heavily implied that Jack may be able to inhabit the bodies and minds of other people as a way of lending them his power.

Size Manipulation

Each person who sees Jack claims that he is a different size. Sometimes he’s only slightly over seven feet tall. Other times, he’s seven and a half feet. Another person may describe him as being eight and a half feet. Others still claim that he’s over ten feet tall. In one instance that may have only been symbolic of his power, he was seen to be over twenty feet tall. Regardless, Jack’s height tends to vary, but he is always enormous.

Dimensional Travel

At least one time, Jack is seen bringing other people into a pocket of space and time that exists outside of the normal world. A place that is implied to be Hell itself.