Awesome / Kaiju No. 8

"This is definitely not something meant for humans."

• In the very first chapter, Kafka knocks Ichikawa out of the way of an attacking Kaiju and tells him to escape, intending to stay behind and buy time while he calls the defense force. He does this despite knowing he doesn't have a chance against the Kaiju.
  • Mina saving Kafka and Ichikawa immediately upon arriving, destroying the Kaiju with a hail of gunfire.
• Pictured to the right: Kafka using his Kaiju form's strength to save the life of a mother and her child by decking a massive Kaiju square in the face, then finishing it off with a punch so powerful it literally blows the monster to pieces. Kafka himself is dumbfounded at the sheer strength he managed to put into those hits.
  • For added awesome, it's the same type of Kaiju as the one that attacked Kafka and Ishikawa the previous day and sent them to the hospital. What appeared to be a hopeless fight doomed to end with their death a day ago became a Curbstomp Battle that Kafka ended in two hits, and he could have killed the monster in one hit had he used all of his strength from the get-go.
• Kikoru shows off her ability with the defense force suits by effortlessly lifting the company car Kafka was using and tossing it aside. Kafka ends up showing her up without trying by picking it up and righting it, thanks to figuring out how to partially transform and keep it hidden.
• Later on, Kafka saves Kikoru (and exposing his kaiju powers to her in the process) from the resurrected test Kaiju with a One-Hit Kill, causing it to disintegrate in layers. And immediately one-shots a Yonju spawn that tried to surprise attack them.
  • Points to Kikoru, however, for having taken it down beforehand (Kaiju No. 9 brought it back), and buying time for the other examinees to escape (all after being shot by Kaiju No. 9's Finger Gun to boot). In addition, despite the fact that she was literally at death's door at the time, Kikoru was able to discern that No. 9's invisible bullet attack requires the Kaiju to perform a specific hand movement making it possible to dodge the otherwise imperceivable projectile. She would later on impart that knowledge to Reno, contributing a headstart to his and Ichikawa’s survival after an encounter with Kaiju No.9.
• A non-combat moment of awesome: Kafka has stated to Hoshina, Mina's current partner, that his goal is to fight by Mina's side as her partner. And when Hoshina asks if that means he wants to replace him, after a moment of indecision, Kafka states that's exactly his intention.
• Samigahara Subjugation Arc
  • Kafka identifying the reproductive organs hidden inside the Yonju during his first mission, disarming a very dangerous trap set up by Kaiju No. 9 before it can even start. And for bonus points, this ends up getting Hoshina to promote him to a proper member of the force, despite him likely still suspecting something's off about Kafka.
  • Mina showing off her power to Kafka, letting him know just how far he has to go before he can keep his promise. By bombarding the Fungus Kaiju with shots long after it's killed.
  • Reno and Iharu vs Kaiju No. 9 ends with the two needing Kafka to bail them out in Kaiju form but they put up a good fight beforehand, almost managing to at least damage No. 9 through creative use of special ammunition in a desperate gambit. The only reason they fail to at least inflict significant damage is due to No. 9 using Kaiju corpses as a shield. They do end up managing to buy enough time for Kafka to arrive as Kaiju No. 8, however.
  • Kafka, upon arriving, proceeds to get some payback for Kaiju No. 9 nearly killing Reno and Iharu, dominating the entire fight. He blows through No. 9's offence, even when he tries a barrage of Finger Gun attacks, powers through his attempts to use Kaiju bodies as a shield, and even stops his attempts to flee when it's clear he's going to lose, leaving him near dead on the ground and with his core exposed. The only reason he got away was Defense Force grunts arriving and distracting Kafka before he could destroy No. 9's core, allowing him to recover enough to escape.
  • After the fight with No. 9, Kafka ends up fleeing the Defense Force troops quickly after a makeshift smokescreen, finishing up alone in an alleyway. Time to change back, right? Nope. Hoshina arrives and the chapter ends with him putting on his game face and cutting Kafka in his Kaiju form, revealing that when he said he was best against smaller Kaiju, he wasn't joking. The final two pages have him getting permission to disengage the limiter on his suit, meaning Kafka's in for a hellish fight if he wants to survive and escape.
  • In the fight itself, Hoshina ends up putting Kafka on the defensive for most of the fight, with Kafka only able to win because his superior was trying to gauge Kaiju No. 8 (Kafka) and his abilities (Although it should be noted that Kafka didn't want to end up killing Hoshina with his own strength, meaning his own hands were tied). Still, his gambit to get away, allowing Hoshina to strike his midsection and catching the blade, gives him the opportunity he needs to break the sword and get away without harming his superior.
• Raid on Tachikawa Base Arc
  • Seconds after the raid starts, Kafka not only identifies the invading Kaiju involved but immediately realizes something's up due to that type of Kaiju, Wyverns, operating alone. He immediately passes on the information to Hoshina before passing on info on the Wyvern Kaiju to the rest of the squad, putting his knowledge of Kaiju to work.
  • Kikoru, after the other squad members have trouble getting behind the Wyvern Kaiju to to attack their weaker backs (due to them covering each other), brute forces it and cuts down one of the Kaiju using a huge axe. Through their thicker front armor.
    • Bonus points for the above: It's a custom weapon made specifically for her, due to her high power. Something usually reserved for Captains and their second-in-commands.
  • Hoshina managing to bait the Wyvern leader Kaiju into chasing him into the training ground, where he can unleash his maximum power without fear of getting others into the crossfire. And he starts out by cutting off the Kaiju's arm after getting hit with one of its punches. It gets worse for the Kaiju from there.
    • The Wyvern Kaiju leader manages to get one after being dominated by Hoshina during the entire fight and seemingly having its core hit by growing to standard Kaiju-size after seemingly taking a fatal hit. This leads to Hoshina,who specializes in smaller Kaiju and struggles against larger ones, unable to inflict significant damage for the rest of the fight, nearly getting him killed in the process.
  • Right as Hoshina is about to be killed by the Wyvern Kaiju leader, Mina returns to save the day, making her presence known by blowing off the Wyvern Leader Kaiju's right arm before requesting for her suit limiters to be disengaged, similar to Hoshina earlier.
    • Hoshina's struggle should be noted too. Even though the clock has run out on the suit and he can't use his full power, he keeps throwing everything he has at the Kaiju. All this after taking another punch from the behemoth as well. And when Mina arrives, he's more than happy to pass the baton.
    • Kafka, before Mina shows up, is more than willing to fully transform to save Hoshina, knowing it'd mean exposing himself to the Defense Corps and signal the end of his own life. He only stops because of Mina's arrival.
  • Mina immediately taking the Wyvern Leader Kaiju to task, blasting massive holes in it. And once Hoshina and Kikoru give her an opening, barely anything in the torso area is left.
    • Props to Hoshina and Kikoru for giving her that opening too, both of them pushing themselves over their limits in order to secure it. Especially for Hoshina, who's already gone over his limit.
  • The Wyvern Leader, dead to rights, reveals that he got all the Wyvern Kaiju to combine to form a giant living nuke to take the Defense Force stationed there with him. Kafka's having none of it, rushing in and turning into a Kaiju, ending Chapter 31 with a roar to the heavens and taking the bomb out in the next chapter with one punch, saving the base. Unfortunately, he takes enough damage in the process that he ends up getting easily captured afterwards, leading to the next arc.
• Kaiju No. 8 Captured Arc
  • The fight between Kafka (as Kaiju No. 8) and Isao Shinomiya (using a weapon formed from Kaiju No. 2), as described by the onlookers, effectively becomes a clash of two numbered Kaiju, and it's as impressive as you'd expect it to be. At the same time.
    • Kafka is also fighting against the Parasite Kaiju who has hijacked his body, trying to take back control before Isao is killed.
    • The apparent end of both fights, with Kafka forcing himself back in control of his body by plunging his hand into his own chest to force the parasite to stop, saving Isao's life in the process.
    Kafka: I... I am not Kaiju No. 8. I'm Kafka Hibino.
• Mina pulling off an AKIRA slide using a tiger.