Blood Rain #9

Volume 9 of Mio Murao's Blood Rain, published by Soleil Manga in 2006, keeps the tension simmering with a cover that brings two figures into uncomfortably close proximity — a cool, sharp-eyed young woman and a man whose grip on her suggests anything but calm. The green-tinted palette and grid overlay give the whole composition an unsettling, clinical edge that suits a series marked by its mature, psychological intensity. Labeled pour public averti (for mature audiences), this installment clearly continues to push the boundaries that have defined the series.