This might be the slowest-burn horror story I've ever run into. And I admit, part of my dissatisfaction with this series lies in my expectations goingThis might be the slowest-burn horror story I've ever run into. And I admit, part of my dissatisfaction with this series lies in my expectations going in. The initial premise seemed to be painting the titular house as something supernatural, housing horrors akin to the Backrooms, or maybe Poltergeist. But the reality is none of those things; this isn't even The Amityville Horror. The Strange House is a bad version of the old Tom Hanks movie, The Burbs, where the only things the main characters have to base their conspiracy theories off of are the floor plans. There aren't any suspicious comings and goings witnessed by the neighbors. There aren't lights on at odd hours of the night, or strange noises, or shadowy figures digging holes under cover of darkness. No one has snuck in to try and get to the bottom of things. The Strange House is still, almost in its entirety, nothing but people sitting around, looking at blueprints, and coming up with the most ridiculous, baseless assumptions about the people who lived in and built these houses.
I have run into scarier things on Zillow Gone Wild, where at least you can look at an actual photograph and shudder at the fact that somebody actually had a prison cell in their basement, or a stairway that leads to a cave system, or whatever. But this? This is just, "These houses are laid out kinda weird, so clearly the people who lived here were assassins for hire, and they used this layout to transport the bodies!" It's terrible, it's repetitious, and not a bloody thing ever actually happens. Even the new character who gets introduced, who has connections to the family pretty much just sits around and talks about the floor plans.
I take it back: This isn't a slow burn. This is a kid at summer camp rubbing two sticks together and getting nothing but blisters for his effort....more
I stumbled across this series during a sale, and I was intrigued. Even if I've never been as fond of architectural horror stories like House of LeavesI stumbled across this series during a sale, and I was intrigued. Even if I've never been as fond of architectural horror stories like House of Leaves or Skinamarink as a lot of people, the concept of a place as being a source of menace in and of itself has always had potential. And the synopsis of The Strange House was so vague (there's a room that shouldn't be there) was so vague, I found myself wondering how far the author could take that premise--especially considering this isn't a one-off manga. The answer is somehow simultaneously "too far," and "not very far at all."
Most of the breakdown of the "too far" part invariably involves spoilers, so here goes: (view spoiler)[So, the room that shouldn't exist is directly under a child's room which has no windows. It might serve as a hidden passage between the kid's room and a bathroom, as if the people living there were trying to hide the child from outside eyes...and instead of making the unsettling-yet-believable hypothesis that there's horrific child abuse going on, the protagonist and his friend immediately assume that the couple was using their child to murder guests, and chop up their bodies to transport through the hidden space, undetected. (hide spoiler)] It's...a pretty big stretch, to say the least.
Which brings us to the "not very far" half of things. Most of this volume involves people sitting around, looking at blueprints, and trying to figure out what the anomalies on the floor plans might mean. It can be a little interesting at times, but it's all speculation; no one goes to these places or investigates these things. Ultimately, it hits the same way as tooling around on a conspiracy theory message board for a bit--just people throwing wild conjectures around with nothing but their own convictions to back them up.
I did pick up the second volume of this during that sale, which is the only reason I might continue on with it. If you really like scrutinizing blueprints, you might get more mileage out of the beginning of The Strange House, but for me, the continual leaps of logic, and very little actually happening fell flat. Maybe there'll be some actual stakes in volume 2, but I'm not terribly hopeful....more
All right! The city is behind our heroes, and it's time to head for the absolute point of no return as they descend to the 7th layer...right? Sadly, wAll right! The city is behind our heroes, and it's time to head for the absolute point of no return as they descend to the 7th layer...right? Sadly, wrong. Half of this volume is spent on the backstory of a corpse they stumble across. I...really don't care about that at this point in the journey. Sure, it does establish another character they run into, but I'm not terribly thrilled about that either, because their crossing of paths seems like it's leading into another time sink of a stop. I really just wanted to see what else the Abyss had in store for them, but instead we've got another slew of characters who are going to take up their time for who knows how long?
And yes, there's the chance that this group might end up being as endearing as the last group we got to know, but we just got done with that arc. And that really does illustrate some pacing issues with Made in Abyss: It seems like it took almost no time at all to get down to the 5th layer, but since then progress has really slowed down. Which is a shame that's compounded by the fact that the 6th layer...really doesn't have much to distinguish itself. The effects of ascending are a lot worse, and I guess the creatures tend to be bigger, but aside from that? Compared to an upside-down forest, or giant bowl-shaped plants filled with pools of acidic water, the 6th layer kinda looks a lot like the 1st: some unusual plants and the occasional weird rock, but fairly indistinct. The 7th layer is heavily implied to be a reality-bending maelstrom of chaos; I would very much prefer to be seeing some of that, rather than palling around with another group of hollows who've set up shop in the 6th layer.
I still like the series overall, but this volume was a bit of a disappointment....more
I'm really going to miss some of these characters we've gotten to know over the past few volumes. I know deep down, I had to expect Riko & Co. would hI'm really going to miss some of these characters we've gotten to know over the past few volumes. I know deep down, I had to expect Riko & Co. would have to leave them behind at some point--if nothing else, they can't survive outside of the city. But I'd grown fond of Maa, and Moogie, Majikaja and that little cyclops girl who it seemed like Tsukushi was trying to build up into something more than a background character. It's sad to see them go.
But after a difficult and complex confrontation, it's time to move on to truly uncharted territory. It's going to take some time to adjust to getting back to adventure mode, after so much time spent in one place, yet I can't deny wanting to find out what lies ahead....more
I initially wasn't sure if I liked Faputa much. But she's gone from this weird, feral animal with way too much power to...well, she's still all those I initially wasn't sure if I liked Faputa much. But she's gone from this weird, feral animal with way too much power to...well, she's still all those things, but she isn't any of them by choice. It's just her nature. And the development she's had over the years--her attachment to Reg and Gaburoon, the hints of civility and hope for the future that arose from those connections, the pain of being alone for so long and the internal conflict that arose because of it--in the end, all of that has ended up in conflict with what she was born to do. She's complex and sympathetic, but also utterly alien and horrifying in her mindset and abilities.
There is no way this ends well for anyone involved. Even discounting the damage Faputa and Reg have already caused, they aren't the same people they were when they first met. Even if their confrontation doesn't end in death, it's going to irrevocably change whoever is left standing.
And what a confrontation it's been: a fight on both physical and psychological fronts. Sadly, the former of those does dip back into an issue I've had with Made in Abyss in the past: the fight scenes can be so frenetic at times that it's not always clear what's going on. But that's really my only complaint about this volume....more
Getting back to this series after having caught up to what was translated way back when volume 7 was first released. And...man, Tsukushi still doesn'tGetting back to this series after having caught up to what was translated way back when volume 7 was first released. And...man, Tsukushi still doesn't pull any punches.
Volume 8 is largely a flashback from Vueko's point of view, and initially I wasn't sure how I felt about that. But the more I read of it, the more it really helped flesh out Vueko, the Three Sages, Faputa, and even the Golden City of Iruburu, itself, as characters. The latter in...more ways than one. The history of all of them is really, really messed up and horrific in a gothic/cosmic sort of way. It also sets up what has the potential to be a very violent confrontation in the near future.
That said, this current arc is shaping up to be my favorite in the series, so far. The journey down through the previous layers kept new and novel things coming at Riko & Reg; the tense standoff and eventual fights against Bondrewd made for an engaging ramping up of the stakes after that. But finding this city, with all these interesting characters and strange rules--and then learning how it all came to be--has really provided an interpersonal element I didn't know I wanted from this series. Sure, Reg, Riko, and Nanachi have had interactions with other folks leading up to this point, but they always felt like stepping stones to their continued descent. In this arc, Iruburu is such an established presence in the Abyss, itself, that their time spent among the denizens there feels like it carries more weight.
There's some excellent (if incredibly disturbing) worldbuilding in this volume, and it sets the stage for events that could have a real impact on people who live in the Abyss. Up until now, that sort of thing hadn't even really seemed like something to consider. That's part of what makes Made in Abyss so engaging: you never really quite know what it's going to throw at you. And while a lot of it is...distinctly uncomfortable, Tsukushi generally makes you care about the characters involved. It's not quite at the same level of human drama as Berserk, but it's at least in the same ballpark. And that's pretty high praise, in my book....more
Comedy manga can be very hit-or-miss, and unfortunately Unmagical Girl falls squarely into the latter category. It takes the same approach as somethinComedy manga can be very hit-or-miss, and unfortunately Unmagical Girl falls squarely into the latter category. It takes the same approach as something like Magu-chan God of Destruction, but is nowhere near as successful at it (that one was genuinely funny until they kept loading on characters and it got unwieldy). Mayuri is a college girl who doesn't have any friends, but when she boots up her late father's old computer where he worked on an obscure anime before he died, her tears at his memory bring some of the characters to life. In short order, she has an out of touch magical girl living with her, and hijinks ensue. Except, the jokes rarely ever land; Nirbrave (the magical girl) doesn't understand something about the world, the puts on a ridiculous face and/or blows something up, lather, rinse, repeat. It gets tiresome by the midway point, and I don't see any real evidence that Yokoyama is ever going to switch up the formula.
I've read worse things, but there really isn't much to recommend in Unmagical Girl, unfortunately. There are far better comedy series out there....more
Oh...oh, this is good. I mean, Fool Night had started out pretty good in the last volume, with a unique premise, distinctive art, and a surprising empOh...oh, this is good. I mean, Fool Night had started out pretty good in the last volume, with a unique premise, distinctive art, and a surprising emphasis on human drama, and while volume 2 continues all of that, midway through things take a darker turn that elevates the story even higher.
It's going to sound strange, but the best way I can describe it, is that Fool Night is beginning to feel like a high-quality Batman story--one of the arcs that focuses on detective work and lunatics lurking in the shadows; not the ones where he's fighting godlike beings. There's a killer on the loose, his motives are inscrutable, he's not entirely human, and he has ties to one of the major players in the story. It's that last part that really kicks the door wide open into a world of conspiracies, tense alliances, and Toshiro having to hide his abilities even from his nominal allies. It's now a full-on murder/mystery thriller, focused on a case whose resolution (or lack thereof) promises dire implications for society at large.
Fool Night was well worth a read when it was a sci-fi tinged exploration of the human condition, but now that there are stakes higher than Toshiro's two-year transfloration time limit, the story has really come into its own. While it can be a slow burn at times, this series is shaping up to be something truly memorable....more
I wasn't expecting the second story arc to be followed immediately by a short story anthology. As with most collections like this, the quality varies,I wasn't expecting the second story arc to be followed immediately by a short story anthology. As with most collections like this, the quality varies, but it's hard to rate each one like I'd normally do, since so many of them are interconnected to some degree. Instead, I'll try to summarize.
Volume 4 is at its best, when it helps build upon the overarching storyline. It's nice, conceptually, to learn more about characters like Magicaloid 44 or Numurin, who didn't get fleshed out much before they died...but at the same time, they died without impacting the larger story much, so it's hard to be too invested. But when we get glimpses behind the motivations of certain others, or even the occasional look behind the scenes at the most recent villain, this collection feels more worthwhile.
And really, my biggest complaint remains the same as it's been for awhile: I don't know why magical girls exist in this world. Put aside the gross mismanagement that seems rampant in the Magical Kingdom--recent real-world politics seems to suggest that isn't so farfetched after all--I just mean, why are magical girls a thing? There isn't some big, existential threat like an evil organization or demons for them to fight against, which relegates them to performing really small, inconsequential acts of kindness, like fixing broken bikes most of the time. And even then, they're not supposed to let anyone know they exist, so...why do you need to be able to fly, or throw kunai with unerring accuracy, to find someone's lost dog?
It's like if you had a story about giant robots, who weren't built to fight aliens, or even other countries, but instead just...warn ships about bad weather on the ocean, or something. Do they really need to exist, if that's all they do? I have the same problem with Magical Girl Raising Project, and while the manufactured fights, and the death games are entertainingly-written, none of it explains why magical girls are a thing at all. I'm really hoping that gets addressed in the next volume....more
This last volume of the series is certainly the most interesting, but it's also the most rushed. There are massive plot points dropped in about Shin aThis last volume of the series is certainly the most interesting, but it's also the most rushed. There are massive plot points dropped in about Shin and Lewin, the two demon brothers, which I don't think have been mentioned prior to this. And their introduction, development, and resolution in a single volume feels like a hurried, last minute attempt to build tension, when they could've been given time to develop more naturally through the series as a whole. Instead, we've spent 80% of Splendid Work faffing about with episodic fetch quests to get the prince's magic back, which don't even matter because (view spoiler)[an injury he sustained during the fight with his brother before the series began is keeping his body from reabsorbing his own magic. (hide spoiler)]
Still, for all its breakneck speed and info dumps, at least worthwhile things happen in volume 5. It isn't enough to raise the series out of mediocrity, but at least it manages to be a bit more engaging and memorable than most of what came before it....more
The larger plot is finally kicking into motion, but it seems like they're going to cram almost all of it into the next volume. Instead, this one ends The larger plot is finally kicking into motion, but it seems like they're going to cram almost all of it into the next volume. Instead, this one ends with a look back at Rose's past that fleshes out her personality a bit--which is to say, any amount at all. There's a bit about Ivy's past too, which adds a melancholy side to her always-cheerful demeanor.
Volume 4 isn't bad, but it never rises above the middle of the road quality of the series as a whole, either. And for the life of me, I don't see why these books have such high ratings on here....more
Lather, rinse, repeat of the last two volumes: The girls get jobs, find fragments of the demon prince's magic, and take them back from the people who'Lather, rinse, repeat of the last two volumes: The girls get jobs, find fragments of the demon prince's magic, and take them back from the people who've been using them. The hints of a larger, overarching plot from the end of the last volume only really resurface again at the very end of this one, so that's progressing at a positively glacial pace. Though, at least now, the rival team of maids (which still seems needlessly silly) has a visual on our heroes, so maybe, maybe something of substance will happen in volume 4.
Because in all honesty, nothing the girls have done so far seems to have mattered. The prince doesn't seem any stronger or more powerful than when they started, and while they've ostensibly improved the lives of a few underworld denizens, we've only seen one of them come back into the story at any point. Splendid Work really feels like it's just spinning its wheels at this point, doing absolutely nothing to distinguish itself. If I hadn't picked up all five volumes in a sale, I would have stopped reading before now....more
I discovered after reviewing volume 1 last night, that this series is 5 volumes long--so that bundle I picked up is the whole thing. May as well polisI discovered after reviewing volume 1 last night, that this series is 5 volumes long--so that bundle I picked up is the whole thing. May as well polish it off sooner rather than later.
Volume 2 is more of the same, with the cliffhanger from the last volume getting resolved in pretty short order. Really, pretty much everything in Splendid Work gets resolved in short order, and it's really to the series' detriment. A siren who's lost her powers and is being forced to sing at a restaurant? A nightmare who sells perfume that lets people dream whatever they want, but brings bad dreams to those who've stopped buying from her? These are potentially all interesting story arcs...but they all get resolved in like, 20 pages or so, with no indication that any of these characters will ever show up again. As such, nearly everything that happens feels disposable, or downright skippable for all the impact it has.
I say nearly everything, because thankfully there seems to be the faint glimmer of an overarching plot that might finally give us something more than the very episodic nature of the story (and I use the term loosely) thus far. I think it's a little silly that the emerging antagonists are a rival group of maids, but at this point I'll take what I can get.
Still, the art continues to be good, and some of the scenarios are creative--even if they never get a chance to fully develop or breathe. The series is still largely forgettable thus far, but the promise of a deeper plot on the horizon has saved the rating from dropping by a star. We'll see if volume 3 capitalizes on it at all....more
I went into this, thinking it was going to be a supernatural slice of life series, only to have it turn into a sort of underworld take on Charlie's AnI went into this, thinking it was going to be a supernatural slice of life series, only to have it turn into a sort of underworld take on Charlie's Angels, but with less fanservice. See, once Sumire turns into a nekomata, and realizes that her human owner has died, she finds her way to the Demon Realm, she has an attempt made on her life, and is saved by a pair of maids working undercover for a deposed demon king, trying to recover the scattered remnants of his lost magic. Since Sumire can see magic, she joins Ivy (an android), and Rose (an undead) in their quest, and the rest of the volume is a pretty episodic "villain of the week" setup, where they pose as maids for various demons who've ended up bits of the demon king's magic, to steal it back.
It never feels terribly complex, and it's hard to pin down a genre for this series, really. There isn't a ton of action. There's comedy, but it doesn't seem the focus. None of the trio's jobs have lasted long enough for there to be much mystery. But for as hard as it is to label this with a genre, it's even more baffling that it's rated OT for Older Teens. There's no nudity, the what action scenes there are, are largely bloodless, and it's not like it even deals with particularly heavy subjects. Really, the most objectionable thing is one panel where an undead character pokes his tongue with a quill pen to use his blood for ink--and even that isn't all that explicit.
The characters are likable enough I guess (Ivy definitely has the most personality so far), and the art is pretty good, but nothing about The Splendid Work of a Monster Maid stands out so far. Still, I did pick up a pack of the first five volumes during a sale in the final days of RightStuf, so I'll probably stick with it that far at least. But if I hadn't, there's no way I'd be looking to read volume 2 anytime soon. It isn't bad; it's just very unremarkable so far....more
I have very mixed feelings about this one. I'm generally pretty open to "monster girlfriend" sorts of series, and I've enjoyed several others to varyiI have very mixed feelings about this one. I'm generally pretty open to "monster girlfriend" sorts of series, and I've enjoyed several others to varying extents (The Elder Sister-Like One, Today's Cerberus, etc.). But there's something about Sachi's Monstrous Appetite that just feels...off.
Why does Sachi look human (most of the time), when all the other watari seemingly always look like the monsters they are? Why does she attend high school? The "manager" character clearly represents some sort of organization--but what is it? What effects, if any, do the watari have on normal people when they build nests in an area? It just feels like the reader gets a lot of this thrown at them, without any real sense of coherence or rhyme & reason.
The art is somewhat hit or miss, too. The creature designs are generally good (when you can make out what they're supposed to be), but the human characters go from expressive and detailed, to pretty minimalist.
I wanted to like this series, but there are a lot of misfires along the way, as if Chomoran was just glossing over establishing material, to try and get to Sachi's moral quandry over her desire to eat Makie, vs. the feelings she has for him. I don't hate Sachi's Monstrous Appetite, but right now, I'd be hard-pressed to go out of my way to track down more of it. 2.5 stars, rounded down, because it's so inconsistent....more
After the fight with the "Iron Wall," much of this volume is Roue and Chrome venturing around, hoping to find someone who knows how to get to Heaven LAfter the fight with the "Iron Wall," much of this volume is Roue and Chrome venturing around, hoping to find someone who knows how to get to Heaven Land so they can revive Zett. It becomes almost a slice-of-life story for awhile...until they catch wind of someone who might be able to point them in the right direction, and we find ourselves with the looming prospect of a tournament arc.
See, the gear who might have that info is an old battle command model named Wodan, and he spends his days running never-ending fights at a makeshift colosseum, ostensibly to give combat gears with nothing else to fight for a sense of purpose. I've seen tournament arcs show up, greatly overstay their welcome, and ruin otherwise-good sci-fi manga before (looking at you, Battle Angel Alita: Last Order...), so the prospect of Heart Gear sinking into one--especially this early on--was distressing, to say the least.
Thankfully, several elements come into play that should save this series from that fate. A potential usurper to Wodan's position is currently causing trouble at the colosseum, making a drawn-out series of fights seem unlikely. Also, an actual resident of Heaven Land has taken a rather keen interest in our heroes...for better or worse, which further promises to complicate matters, and make them more interesting than a side plot that's just a bunch of battles. Plus, as an added bonus, we're introduced to No. 06 (AKA: "Rock"), a disaffected camera gear who wants to film art, not just ultimately meaningless carnage. I like Rock. He has personality, spirit, and an unexpected amount of depth, and I really hope he joins Roue and Chrome when they leave the colosseum.
All in all, I'm continuing to like Heart Gear. It's well-realized post-apocalyptic sci-fi, with likable characters and excellent art. I do still have my reservations about just how resilient Chrome seems to be (there are a lot of explosions at one point), but I'm still willing to give that a pass for now, because I want to see where this story goes....more
I stumbled across this on the shelf at a local game store, and thought it looked cheesy enough to be worth the price of admission...I wasn't expectingI stumbled across this on the shelf at a local game store, and thought it looked cheesy enough to be worth the price of admission...I wasn't expecting it to actually be good.
Tank Chair survives by the Rule of Cool, and by having some really good art. Nothing in this world makes any sense. Genetically-modified super gorilla gang bosses? Snipers with telescoping chameleon eyes? Mind-altering octopus parasites? I have absolutely no idea what the rules are for this world, or how anything works, but for as bewildering as this ride is, it sure as hell is flashy and entertaining.
Nagi was quite a skilled assassin, until he took a bullet to the head, protecting his sister, Shizuka. He lived, but he's comatose and wheelchair-bound, and the only thing that can bring him back to lucidity is the murderous intent of someone directed at him. So Shizuka has taken it upon herself to put Nagi in the most dangerous situations she can, in hopes of finding a killing intent strong enough to permanently snap her brother out of his trauma. It's an absolutely bonkers concept elevated to sublime levels of ultraviolence and absurdity by the mutant freaks I alluded to in the previous paragraph.
The art is great, the action scenes are simultaneously absurd and creative, our heroes are fairly likable so far, and I guarantee you will never quite know what the story is going to throw at you next. As long as you're not expecting too coherent of a narrative, there is one hell of a good time to be found in Tank Chair. I'm reminded of the time I picked up Magical Girl Apocalypse on a whim, and ended up getting invested in that insane world and the characters within it. It's a little early to say for sure, but I have a feeling I might be in for a similar experience with Tank Chair....more
Japan has a strange and lengthy history with Spider-Man, dating back to the '70s, with a venerable manga adaptation, and even a live-action show (whicJapan has a strange and lengthy history with Spider-Man, dating back to the '70s, with a venerable manga adaptation, and even a live-action show (which is absolutely wild, and 100% worth tracking down!), and extending into the present with Fake Red. And this one is the most authentic and accurate take I've seen, while offering something new at the same time.
Fake Red takes place in New York, features a number of classic (and more recent) villains, from Scorpion to Screwball, and even has the old-school web shooters. But it flips all that on its head by having Spider-Man be AWOL, and having a normal teenager find a discarded copy of Spidey's suit, and ending up trying to fill the shoes of a superhero. It's an interesting take on the great power/great responsibility trope, backed up by some likable characters and relatable problems both in and out of the suit. I have some questions (such as how the villain behind Peter Parker's situation got access to some of the things he did, as well as why Yu [the normal teenager] didn't run out of web fluid), but all things considered, it's a decent side story. Plus, the art is pretty good, effectively straddling the line between Japanese and American styles.
If you're looking for a different take on a classic American comic book hero, you could do a lot worse than Spider-Man: Fake Red....more
I'm always up for obscure superhero stories, new and interesting takes on the format, or deconstructions of the genre, so when I saw the first two volI'm always up for obscure superhero stories, new and interesting takes on the format, or deconstructions of the genre, so when I saw the first two volumes of Junk at Half-Price Books for five bucks each, I figured I'd give it a try. Sadly, it turned out to be none of those things.
Junk is essentially the story of what would happen if you gave a super suit to an incel. Hiro is a completely irredeemable human being. He has no job, is dropping out of school, is actively hostile to everyone in his life who (for some reason) cares about him, isn't very smart, and yet feels like the world owes him everything. He's such a sociopath, that after he's the direct cause of an accident that kills his parents, one of his first thoughts is, "well, the ticket I had to see my favorite pop idol burned up in the house, but now I've got an inheritance, so I can buy another one off of eBay." Our hero, ladies and gentlemen. And that's not even getting into the attempted rape.
But this is ostensibly a story about superheroes, right? So let's talk about that. Hiro gets his suit by entering a drawing on a website which will only have two winners. And he's so dumb and/or unobservant, that he assumes the drawing is for some kind of action figure. Instead, he gets sent a superhero kit in the mail, that generates a suit for an hour at a time that gives him super strength and toughness. And of course the other suit goes to someone else in the general area, and of course that other person is a lady, and of course Hiro sees her as standing in the way of everything that he wants to do with his newfound powers.
And what does he want to do with those newfound powers? Well, pretty much just cause massive property damage and loss of life, really. At one point, he gets so petty and delusional, that he tries to stop his pop idol crush from canceling the autograph session she was holding, by donning his suit and trying to subdue the drug addict outside the venue who's posing a danger to himself and others...but dropping a scaffolding on him from a tall building. And then he gets pissy because the lady superhero shows up first and steals his thunder.
The side characters aren't much better, being thinner than the paper they're printed on. The art is...an acquired taste, if you're charitable. And even the translation is sub-par, peppered with errors like "convenient store" instead of convenience store.
There is really nothing to recommend Junk to anyone, unless you're writing a paper on superhero tropes and you need examples of failed attempts at subversions or something. Even though I own the second volume of this, I think I'd be hard-pressed to ever read it after how bad this one is....more
Continuing the trend of the last installment, volume 6 is more about Haru and Ryou than Chiyo and Yuu--and I'm okay with that for the most part. Haru Continuing the trend of the last installment, volume 6 is more about Haru and Ryou than Chiyo and Yuu--and I'm okay with that for the most part. Haru is a more interesting character to me than Chiyo, since she's been on this plane of existence longer, and has a feel for how some things work (vs. Chiyo's "born sexy yesterday" archetype). The problems begin when the two pairs part ways at the end of this volume. And there are more than a few of them.
First, Haru deserves better. Ryou will never truly care about her, and her dogged attachment to him is heartbreaking. Second, it's made clear that these two will continue their story in a spinoff series at some point down the line, all but guaranteeing we won't be crossing paths with them again in the main storyline. Third, and perhaps the biggest...I really don't know where Chiyo's and Yuu's story goes from here.
For the rest of The Elder Sister-Like One, there's always been this sense of looming catastrophe in the background, and it was heavily implied that it was all going to come crashing down once Ryou recovered, and came home from the hospital. But...that's happened now, and everything seems to be okay. There's no obvious threat or reason why Chiyo and Yuu can't be happy together heading forward. Maybe something will crop up once the summer ends, and Yuu has to go back to school, but it's unclear what that will be. There was a passing mention of how Ryou opened pretty much every arcane door he came across in his quest to bring back his cousin, but I worry that's bringing things too close to "monster (girl) of the week" territory.
That is, if these volumes were released often enough for that to be the case. Volume 6 came out over a year ago, as of this writing, and there's no sign of volume 7 on the horizon. Yet Pochi claims that she (or someone at least) is also going to be writing a side story for Haru and Ryou? I worry it's going to be quite awhile before we get any answers to anything, and until then we'll have to make do with this strange low point in the story....more
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