According to the dictionary, a “censor” is, among other things, a wartime official who reads all communications to delete classified or dangerous information. That's not too far off from the way we more typically see “censor” and “censorship” used, to refer to someone who removes so-called "morally objectionable” material, an arguably more dangerous definition. But the characters in Ryu-ichi Sadamatsu's Cosmic Censorship seem to fall into the former category – although in their case, they've come from the future to “censor” the past for reasons that aren't entirely clear.

For one of the censors, a young man calling himself Roger Penrose, that goal includes saving high school girl Maki Makino – and he's been at it for what to us is years. (Roger mentions at one point that what was ten years ago for Maki was just a few months ago for him, because of time travel.) In an alternate version of our world, the Earth is in bad shape (maybe not so alternate?), with volcanoes erupting everywhere and meteors falling from space. People have largely gotten used to it, with cellphones broadcasting alarms and shelters everywhere, and of course, injuries like the one that befell Maki in her childhood not being all that uncommon. As a little girl, Maki was trapped under a fallen overpass, lacerating and breaking her leg, and she was saved by a young man who told her that he was an alien. Years later, he appears again to save her from another disaster, and he tells her that he'll keep doing so. The universe wants Maki dead, and for whatever reason, Roger does not.

This being science fiction, the entire story is also wrapped up in strange mechs that the Censors can summon and bizarre aliens with destruction in mind. How all of those things work isn't made clear in this volume, which is frankly more than a little confusing. But that confusion feels deliberate. We're seeing the world through Maki's eyes, and she doesn't have a clue what's going on. She's learning about Roger and the Censors in real time, and we're right there with her, stuck trying to decide if Roger is an outlier in wanting to save Maki and being open about his role and time travel or if the other Censors we meet are the rebels, trying to make sure that Maki either dies or is tucked out of the way. Rather than being a net negative, this confusion works decently well to keep readers on their toes, although if you like to fully understand what's going on at any given time, this may not be the book for you.

Among the mysteries is Roger's name. At one point, Fuuka, another Censor, shows Maki a fake Interpol badge which bears the name “Roger Penrose” alongside her picture and the female gender marker. This suggests that “Roger Penrose” is a code name for Censors traveling to the past, doubtless taken from the real-life British mathematician. The Nobel-winner has written books on the relationship between physics and consciousness, suggesting that at a point in the future, he hits upon a method of time travel, leading to Censors (or perhaps just time travelers) taking his name as an alias. Since the Roger that Maki knows is using the name and has a mech, that could suggest that he's legit, something supported by the fact that he refers to Maki as an Oracle, a profession he implies is highly important and respected. Does that mean that Fuuka, Caesar, and Skipper are all rebels? Or is it Roger who's striking out on his own for reasons unknown? More than the question of why he wants to keep Maki alive, this feels like the central mystery.

The writing in Cosmic Censorship is a bit all over the place. This isn't at all due to Molly Rabbitt's translation, which is doing its best and renders the book very readable, but more seems to be a result of Sadamatsu trying to keep the story as vague as possible about what's going on. The art is similarly a bit messy, but Sadamatsu's use of panels is solid and creative, showing a good sense of when to go for two-page spreads. There's some moderately ridiculous fanservice where Fuuka is concerned; Censors are one of those manga professions where men get to be covered from neck to toes while women are running around in chaps and underwear. Because nothing says “safety” like exposed skin over your most important organs and arteries.

Titan's release is compact, and I admit that the price point – a dollar more than Viz's physical books of a similar trim size – seems a touch high given that the interior pages are thin enough to see through a bit. They're not transparent, but you can still see black spaces shadowing through. But the story is fun if confusing, and I could see this adapting very well to anime with its engaging fights and intriguing world. It's a series worth at least another volume.