Highlights
- Combat Power in Kaiju No. 8 is crucial for Defense Force members, enhancing their stats and skills in battle using kaiju cells in their suits.
- Higher Combat Power scores lead to faster, more skilled fighters who can defeat kaiju more easily, like Shinomiya's rapid success on the battlefield.
- Understanding Combat Power is essential for viewers to appreciate the capabilities of characters like Captain Mina Ashiro and Vice-Captain Soshiro Hoshina in Kaiju No. 8.
Kaiju No. 8 is this anime season's top performing science fiction anime, combining humor, action, and monsters to create a story that has captured the hearts of fans around the world. Because of the anime's fast-paced storytelling, sometimes details are left out, leaving the audience puzzling about what the characters are talking about, or how something works. While none of these questions make the show unwatchable, understanding them better does make for a better viewing experience overall!
Today we are going to take a look at Combat Power. The phrase is thrown around a lot in Kaiju No. 8, especially when the Anti-Kaiju Defense Force becomes more important to the plot. The characters are always talking about Combat Power, and what their score is, or what other character's Combat Power scores are. But what exactly is Combat Power? Why is it important, and how is it measured? Read on to find out more!
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What is Combat Power in Kaiju No. 8?
Combat Power is something that can only be accessed by members of the Japan Anti-Kaiju Defense Force, and that is because it is directly linked to the combat suits that they all wear. Only members of the Defense Force have access to these special suits, which are able to augment the wearer's stats and make them more powerful. The suits are able to do this because they are actually made from the cells and muscle fibers of kaiju themselves! All members of the Defense Force wear these combat suits in battle as part of their required uniform, and the suits are one of the main reasons that humans are able to stand up against the power of kaiju.
Combat suits are also directly connected to Combat Power, which is why it can only be accessed by the Defense Force, since they are the only ones wearing the suits. Combat Power is a number that can show how attuned to a combat suit a person is when they are wearing it. Members of the Defense Force that are able to attune to their combat suits better have a higher Combat Power score, and by extension, are much stronger and more skilled on the battlefield. A user's Combat Power shows how much of their special combat suit's latent power they will be able to harness, and how much of their own stats the suit will be able to boost.
Combat Power from combat suits is specifically called Unleashed Combat Power, meaning how much power that person is going to be able to tap into and use. Combat Power is measured by the combat suits themselves, and is able to be tracked for each individual person alongside other important things like their vital signs and locations by the administration of the Defense Force. The suits output the score directly on a display, so Combat Power is not something that has to be guessed or estimated - it has a very real score out of 100%, and this score for each Defense Force member is tracked by the division leaders on each mission and training session.
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What Can Combat Power Do?
People with higher Combat Power are more powerful fighters, and are able to move faster, attune to their weapons better, and defeat more kaiju. This can be seen most easily by looking at Kafka Hibino versus Kikoru Shinomiya on the battlefield. They have Combat Power scores on the absolute opposite ends of the spectrum. When Shinomiya first puts on her combat suit, she scores a very high Combat Power score, and later obliterates the competition when doing a physical trial against real kaiju. Because of her incredibly high Combat Power score, she is able to traverse the terrain faster than her squad mates, and delivers killing blow after killing blow to numerous kaiju quicker than anyone else is able to.
Meanwhile, when Kafka first puts on his combat suit, his Combat Power is 0%. This also correlates directly to how he is on the battlefield, where he struggles to keep up with everyone else and complains about how heavy his weapon is. Without any Combat Power, his suit is not able to help him at all. While he does his best to support his squad mates, it is with his heart and mind, because his Combat Power is certainly of no use.
High Combat Power scores directly affect how easily a member of the Defense Force is able to neutralize kaiju on the battlefield, and what kinds of weapons they are able to use. The more a person can attune to their combat suit, the higher the score it, and the more formidable a fighter they will be. Understandably, some of the Defense Force members with the highest Combat Power scores in the manga and anime are Captain Mina Ashiro, Vice-Captain Soshiro Hoshina, and as mentioned above, Kikoru Shinomiya. All are shown as extremely capable and talented fighters who are able to take down even the biggest Honju - and make it look easy. This is all thanks to their Combat Power!
Watch Kaiju No. 8 now on Crunchyroll.
Kaiju No. 8 (2024)
Production I.G's Kaiju No. 8 is a Spring 2024 anime based on Naoya Matsumoto's Shonen Jump+ manga. Set in an alternate version of Japan, the story follows the Anti-Kaiju Defense Force as they try to protect the nation from monster attacks.
