The inhabitants of the Megastructure are rarely human. The world is populated by Silicon Life—cyborgs and androids who view humans as pests or illegal residents—and the Safeguards, a defense system designed to eliminate unauthorized humans.

BLAME!: A Masterclass in Visual Sci-Fi is a seminal cyberpunk manga written and illustrated by Tsutomu Nihei

The protagonist is , a mysterious man of few words who wanders this labyrinth armed with a powerful weapon called the Gravitational Beam Emitter . He is searching for a human with the Net Terminal Gene , a genetic marker that would allow someone to access the city's control systems and stop the chaotic expansion.

He fired.

[The World of Blame!] │ ├── The Megastructure (Physical chaos, infinite growth) │ ▲ │ ▼ [Disconnection] └── The NetSphere (Digital order, locked away) ▲ │ Requires └── Net Terminal Genes (Extinct/Mutated Human DNA)

The plot follows , a silent, enigmatic cyborg walking the endless levels of the Megastructure [1, 2].

The setting features endless networks of pipes, wires, and decaying steel beams.

Tall. Sexless. White. The face was a smooth oval with no features except a single horizontal blue slit. A Safeguard.

Compare Blame! to Nihei's other works like or Knights of Sidonia .

High-stakes battles; Level 9 Safeguards; deep descents into the Megastructure’s core. The Finished Conclusion

Blame! was first published in English by Tokyopop from 2005 to 2007, and this release was nominated for a Harvey Award. After going out of print, Kodansha USA re-released the entire series in a deluxe, large-trim edition between 2016 and 2017. This edition is widely considered the best way to experience Nihei's intricate artwork, as the larger pages do justice to the sprawling, detailed cityscapes.