In a future where still-functional relics of a high-tech war wander the streets of otherwise peaceful Japan, eager rookie Koga joins the SHWD, a grizzled group of office workers-meet-special forces. Under the tutelage of the grumpy but caring Sawada, Koga gets prepped for her first mission out on the field - but is she ready for the horrors that await?
SHWD (which stands for "Special Hazardous Waste Disposal") is an action sci-fi yuri manga by the artist sono.N. After beginning as an original doujinshi, it is now published in the magazine Comic Ruelle. The manga is currently being translated into English by Lilyka Manga, and individual "episodes" can be purchased through their website.
This work provides examples of:
- 20 Minutes into the Future: Besides taking place in the year "20XX," the existence of the Dynamis implies that humanity has advanced enough to begin manufacturing bioweapons.
- The Ace: Leo is known as the ace of the preprocessing disposal group at the Fukuoka branch office but she has her own baggage.
- Action Girl: Sawada, Koga, and Leone all count.
- Affectionate Gesture to the Head: Sawada pats Koga on the head after her first mission is a success.
- Leo affectionately pets Koga's head after she shoots a Dynamis.
- Amazonian Beauty: Koga's absurdly strong physique is drawn attention to several times, particularly in her introduction, in which her thick arms are given as much attention as her generous bust.
- Sawada may be a lot slimmer and shorter than Koga and Leone, but she's still quite muscular in her own right. The manga even opens on a scene of her working out in a sports bra, with lots of attention paid to her toned arms.
- Badass Normal: All of the main cast could count but special mention goes to Sawada, who doesn't even use a gun to take on the Dynamis, getting up close and personal with them with her knife instead.
- Brown Note: The main threat of the Dynamis is the sound wave they're able to emit that's capable of affecting a human's mental state. Koga describes the sound as feeling like "a filthy hand is rummaging through your mind and soul," and hearing it has driven many people to madness. A document in Episode 4 mentions that effects of the sound include hallucinations, paranoia, suicidal ideation, and violent tendencies.
- Conditioned to Accept Horror: In Episode 5 Koga is stunned to learn that a SHWD employee went berserk during a disposal and killed 5 of his teammates after forgetting to take his suppression drug. What horrifies her more is how nonchalant her fellow employees are about the matter, even mentioning that cases like this used to be a lot more common.
- Dark and Troubled Past:
- Koga witnessed her mother killed in front of her by a Dynamis as a little girl.
- Leo lost her young daughter to a Dynamis attack and the resulting trauma gives her intense panic attacks at the mere sight of children. She also mentions that joining SHWD led to the dissolution of her marriage.
- Nonaka was present at a Dynamis incident where her father was driven mad and killed every child there except her before being taken out by one of his fellow Yakuza. The resulting trauma not only stunted her body's growth but caused her to eschew the idea of having any loved ones, as the victim of a Dynamis will be most violent to those they care about most.
- Doesn't Like Guns: Sawada refuses to arm herself with a gun during battle and doesn't team up with anyone who uses guns, meaning that, until Koga showed up, she had been fighting alone. She manages to fight the Dynamis with knives instead.
- Don't You Dare Pity Me!: Nonaka tells Leo as much after opening up to her about her past.
- Dysfunction Junction: Every major character so far has some sort of trauma or neurosis related to the Dynamis. As Leo sums it up:Leo: There isn't a single person... who's actually sane here.
- Emotional Regression: Infantile regression is one of the symptoms of Leo's trauma, manifesting in her having a meltdown and lapsing into a suicidal state when her handgun is suddenly confiscated.
- Get A Hold Of Yourself Man: When Leo has a meltdown after having her gun taken away and seemingly turns the gun on herself, Nonaka is able to snap her out of it by slapping her clean across the face.
- Gratuitous English: Being from America, Leo peppers her speech with a lot of English.
- Older Than They Look: Nonaka is twenty-eight years old but can easily be mistaken for a young girl. This is because of a Dynamis incident that occured when she was ten years old, stunting her body's growth.
- Public Bathhouse Scene: Koga and Sawada go to a bathhouse after Koga's first mission since the only showers at the office (at which they're the only two women who work there) are unisex.
- Sensor Character: In a variation, Nonaka realizes that her body being extra susceptible to the sounds of the Dynamis means she can effectively turn herself into a living Dynamis radar. This helps the team track an unusually small Dynamis, at the cost of her baring the full brunt of a Dynamis attack. A supervisor mentions that they may be able to use this method again in the future, horrifying Leone.
- She Cleans Up Nicely: Koga shows up in a kimono at the end of Episode 1, and Sawada even compliments her on it.
- Trauma Button: Leo has two: the presence of children due to being reminded of the death of her young daughter and having her handgun taken from her even though it's always unloaded.
- Unstoppable Rage: Due to her trauma, fighting the Dynamis can drive Koga into this state.
- Workout Fanservice: The very first page of the manga is a scene of Sawada doing push-ups in a sports bra, with lots of focus given to her sweaty, toned arms.
- Episode 2 features a similar scene of Sawada, this time doing lat pull downs, conveniently showcasing her toned abs.
- The side-story "Sports Day Edition
" is basically just 24 pages of this, with Koga and Sawada competing against each other in various activities like tennis and judo.
- Yakuza: Nonaka turns out to be the daughter of a Yakuza.
- Year X: Koga signs a document in Episode 1 that reveals the date to be "April 2nd, 20XX."
- Yuri Genre: It's an unusually slow-burn, action-oriented take on the genre, but the mangaka has confirmed that this is indeed a yuri story.
