Title:  Resident Evil Vol.1: Marhawa Desire

Story & Art by: Naoki Serizawa

Volume 1 opens up with a mysterious cloaked figure stalking around in the shadows looking up to no good.  You know, the typical Resident Evil bad guy intro.  A young student walks into a classroom and is attacked violently by a zombified student and killed.  Professor Doug Wright is summoned from Singapore by Mother Gracia, Headmaster of Marhawa Academy. Doug seems like a well to-do fellow and his nephew, Ricky Tozawa, a smart young man who ends up accompanying Doug for extra credit in class.

Upon arrival, they meet Bindi and Alisa, and Gracia reveals the infected student from earlier who the school has managed to contain. Doug and Ricky search the premises for any signs of the source of the infection but turn up nothing. B.S.A.A. members Chris Redfield, Piers Nivans, and Merah Biji are sent to see Professor Wright after containing a viral outbreak  in an undisclosed location. Later on, Ricky is bitten by an infected Alisa but she is restrained by the academy’s guard detail. Bindi and Gracia have a heated moment after Bindi confronts her about a couple of missing students.

The next morning Doug and Ricky are shocked to see that Ricky shows no signs of infection and begin searching for any signs of infection. In an attempt to cover up the infection, Gracia and the staff restrain the two zombified girls and set them on fire inside an isolated building. Doug confronts Gracia for her actions but she doubles down in her decision to protect the school’s reputation.  Ricky and Doug decide to leave the academy and report the incident to the B.S.A.A. without Gracia’s aid.  

Ricky and Doug realize that they’re stuck in the academy and decide to resume the investigation.  A group of maintenance men descend into the underground control room as part of a monthly inspection but the group is infected.  The volume ends with Doug and Ricky, along with Senior Instructor Ray Hsu and Special Advanced Security Guard Tahir Kapoor deciding to descend into the control room to dispose of the infected faculty.

The Verdict: In the end, Resident Evil Vol.1: The Marhawa Desire is a pretty sweet introduction.  Ricky and Doug are great protagonists and the suspense just keeps building and building as they investigate this ever growing disaster. I do like the relationship between Ricky and Doug. Gracia is impossibly insistent on keeping things secret. Bindi was a pretty cool character.

Naoki Serizawa shines through his well-handled narration and great art style.
The zombie attack at the beginning is a pretty strong introduction and definitely sets the tone. Things do jump off pretty fast but not in a cheesy way or overplayed way. The character designs are distinct, except for the numerous students. There’s fan service, of course, because of the school girls but I don’t think it’s bad (though I don’t care much for fan service).

We get to see B.S.A.A. members Chris, Piers, and Merah but hopefully they have a bigger role next issue. Serizawa does a great job of setting up this thrilling horror story with interesting characters in a bad situation. Hopefully in the next issue there will be more light shown on some of the supporting characters such as Bindi and Gracia. Resident Evil Vol.1: The Marhawa Desire gets 3 out of 5.