WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Chapter 1 of Kengan Omega, available in English on Comikey.
Although Kengan Omega is a sequel series to Kengan Ashura, the first chapter proves to be the perfect entry point for new readers. A fighter at the top of his game delves into the world of underground martial arts, and quickly discovers just how elite the best of the best can be. Kengan Omega introduces the world of the Kengan matches with all the mystique and awe it deserves. If ever there was a jumping-on point, this is it.
Though it is preceded by Chapter 0, Kengan Omega doesn't reveal what the Kengan matches are truly like until Chapter 1. While the story began with the character Koga following a lead on his research to the nondescript Yamashita Corporation, he quickly discovers that there is more to the world he seeks to explore. The company only has 3 employees, and though he dismisses the janitor he meets as a nobody, he turns out to be Yamashita Kazuo, a figure readers from the previous series will recognize well.
Yamashita started the former series in much the same position as Koga, completely unfamiliar with the world of underground martial arts and totally out of his league. While Yamashita is not a fighter himself, he has an extraordinary eye for talent. He sees something in Koga that intrigues him, and in Chapter 1 readily agrees to show Koga what a Kengan match is really like. Koga is astounded to find that a world-renowned MMA fighter from the United States is participating in the matches, but his astonishment only grows when that fighter easily loses to his opponent, Imai Cosmo.
As one of the top eight fighters in the tournament of the original series, Imai Cosmo established a reputation as the King of Grapplers for his unparalleled skills. In the two years since Ashura, he honed his striking skills to further balance himself as a fighter, and in just a few quick blows he takes his opponent down. Koga's entire concept of what defines a world-class talent is destroyed, and Yamashita warns him that if he were to join the Kengan matches right away he would just get hurt. Ever determined, Koga agrees to become a fighter's apprentice to hone himself into someone worthy to fight in the Kengan matches.
Part of Koga's determination seems fixated on Tokita Ohma, one of the best fighters from the original series who seemingly died by the story's end. Readers familiar with that story may be shocked to discover in Chapter 1 that a man bearing a remarkable resemblance to Ohma is alive, and much like Imai did, the new arrival makes quick work of one of Katahara Metsudo's elite guards. Metsudo recognizes the mysterious man's face, and when he introduces himself as Gaoh Ryuki he is further puzzled by the connection to the seemingly slain fighter.
Both storylines lay the seeds for further possibility, promising ever-increasing heights of skill in the fights ahead. Both Ryuki and Koga seem determined to enter the Kengan matches themselves, but just how worthy either combatant is remains a question for future chapters. Luckily, new readers have the perfect introduction to begin that discovery themselves, and with Kengan Omega officially translated into English and freely available they have the perfect means to do so for the very first time.
