Kaguya-sama: Love Is War Review

Posted on February 26, 2023 by dreager1

It is finally time to review the Kaguya manga! I finished this one back in 2022 but of course it is a pretty big title so reviews like this take a while. It was a title that really surpassed any ideas or predictions I would have had about it. I certainly wouldn’t have assumed it would have reached my top 15 of all time the way that it did but here we are. While the series may have limped its way to the ending with the final arc, the rest was all amazing and it’s a series with tons of replay value. It’s all super emotional with lots of great character development and writing all the way through. I don’t think we’ll see another series that’s part romance like this ever be quite as good. Kaguya just nailed the comedic romance bit.

The basic premise of the series quite directly follows the title. Kaguya is extremely wealthy and belongs to the Shinomiya family which owns a good chunk of the world. She is a member of the student council and has some of the best grades at school. Everyone knows her as the most popular girl that everyone respects but she has one secret which is that she is in love with Shirogane, the student council president. Meanwhile Shirogane’s family isn’t wealthy at all but he managed to study hard enough to go to this prestigious academy and even become the president. What he lacks in family reputation and status he makes up for in hard work and dedication. He hopes to eventually win Kaguya’s heart as well.

The thing is, neither one can admit to this because the first one to confess their feelings would lose the war. Love is a power struggle and so admitting your love first would cause you to be at a massive disadvantage. So they have to each scheme to get the other one to confess first but that is easier said than done. Can they pull this off or will they only end up getting into trouble? Snooze and you lose after all as someone else might show up so time is ticking. Additionally there are two more council members in the comedic Chika and the depressed Ishigami. Together this student council is going to have a lot of fun!

Right off the bat I have to say that I really enjoy the premise. See, you are automatically avoiding the “sudden” romance that destroys most romantic plots. The main two have liked each other for a long time now, in fact well over a year passes by with nothing happening in chapter 1 since they are too afraid to make any moves and that’s not even counting that they liked each other prior to the series starting. So this is a slow burn romance and there are no rebounds to think of. They’ve liked each other from the start and that’s just how it is. So already we’ve got several wins here. Now of course this is only focusing on their romance as not every romance here is great but the main one is important.

The contest also adds a nice spin on things since as the reader you know that both characters like each other but of course they don’t realize that. So that’s a fresh dynamic as well and you get to see their inner thoughts as they work on the mind games. That is the best success of the series which is that it also works as a very psychological series. The characters talk about what love really is and how the mind works as they all try to play each other like a fiddle. I always figure the one weakness of being too detailed is if someone isn’t a genius then the plan won’t work because it overestimates what the response will be. That risk is lessened since the characters are in such a distinguished school though.

Both Kaguya and Shirogane are at the top of their class too so they know what they are doing. Shirogane may have the slight edge in grades but they are really neck and neck. I also like the overthinking in the manga because it is fun to do that in real life as well. Like if a girl hands you a ticket to a baseball game. Is that a subtle date, just a friendly gesture, is it a test? You have to ask yourself a million questions in an instant and come up with the right answer all in a split instance. There isn’t time for hesitation or doubts since both would also work against you. The manga will freeze this moment as you see the everyday possibilities floating in Shirogane and Kaguya’s minds. A lot of the thought trails are very realistic as well.

Everyone does this to an extent because your mind is always active even when time is frozen. It’s why there are all kinds of time displacement techniques you can find online which are super interesting. Like trying to see how long you can keep your eyes closed and count up before you end up falling asleep or losing count. Losing yourself playing sports or video games and then trying to match that time doing something less fun. Your mind can easily trick you into thinking that one hour is quick in one moment and then long in another. It’s all pretty fascinating but I digress. Needless to say that the psychological elements here are fantastic without a doubt.

The artwork is also very solid. I will say that it is a series where you will notice the artist reusing character expressions and poses with different characters a lot, particularly if you binge the series. It is probably hard to avoid in a slice of life title like this though because there are only so many things you can do and ways of having the characters talk before it all starts to blend together. It’s always very clear what is happening at any given time though and the simple style works very well for the series. Even when there are long blocks of text and essays you are able to read them all without any issue. That’s the sign of a great title after all.

The writing is great and a lot happens here. The series initially starts off very upbeat with some drama but it’s mostly either in a parody kind of way or not meant to be taken too seriously. Gradually this begins to change as we get some origin stories that are legitimately emotional like Ishigami’s. Then this leads up to a climax that is very serious with high stakes in the last arc. I would say that the series is much better at the light arcs than the serious ones and that makes sense because it’s the kind of series that this was crafted to be. It got to be a really famous title because of all the witty banter and fun gags/writing. I can see why the author wanted to end on a serious note but the problem is just that it was hard to take things too seriously.

What I would have done is make the final arc less action packed. Yeah you heard me right, for once I would remove the action because it just didn’t feel right and gets a bit cheesy when you see the kids doing so well. Instead I would change this to be more of a mind game thriller. Have the heroes trying to find a loophole in the will or they have to go through a bunch of games in order to defeat the villains. The high stakes could be signing a contract that they will work for the villains if they lose or something. I feel like this would be much more in line with the rest of the series and would have worked really well. It would still have a serious tone and be something more like Liar Game than Indiana Jones.

For the comedy side, I won’t say every joke lands of course since that’s not possible but the reason this series is elite is because most of them do. The series has higher peaks in terms of humor than most titles could even dream of. The main cast is also very solid which leads to a whole lot of great banter and dialogue moments. The series would not be nearly as good if the characters weren’t solid so the series had the right priorities here. You get a strong core of characters and move from there. I liked all members of the student council quite a bit. Put Ino, Chika, and Ishigami in any similar setting and they likely outpace the main characters there. I’d then go a step further to say that Shirogane and Kaguya would shine in any setting, even one that is not similar. The characters are just really well crafted at the school and this includes the classmates. Only the villains aren’t very interesting which takes us back to the final arc again.

The series has its share of story arcs as well like with vacations or dealing with a romance but like an action series where each arc is clearly defined and I break them down, I’ll likely just incorporate those events while I talk about the character that it’s relevant too. So lets jump into this cast now and I’ll also talk about their respective romance plot and any important developments that came into play for them. This is a fairly long series so you can bet that a whole lot did happen over time.

Naturally we have to start with Kaguya herself here. After all the series was named after her so you could say that she is the main character. While you could say that, I would argue that Shirogane is still the true main character here. It’s pretty close to 50/50 but I just feel like we see his perspective just a tad bit more and he tends to jump start the biggest moments in the series. The dynamics between the two characters are what really causes the series to shine and I liked that Kaguya has a cold edge to her. Later on in the series we get to see her in her original icy persona and that worked really well.

I’d really be up for a prequel going into more details on that part of the saga. In a way there may not be many more details to show so I’m not sure how feasible it would be to make a long series but I’m sure they could at least do a mini series on it. We briefly see the dynamic after Kaguya retreats into herself but that’s it. Kaguya has several personalities within herself all fighting for control and I enjoyed the court scenes there. At the end of the day Kaguya is always someone who is ready to give good advice and really help out. She has really solid friendships and dynamics with all of the council members. It’s another strong part of the series since it can be easy in a series like this to miss one or two combinations but the series goes out of its way to make sure that each character interacts with each other and gets their own dynamic going.

The ending of the series involves Kaguya’s family a great deal so as you can imagine they really get to step in as well and we see how they had a real impact on her life and values. The school really helped her to become a lot more normal over time. The series also plays up how she can be naïve in some things well without overdoing it and making this an annoying trait. It also never forgets that she is a genius so she picks up on things really quickly.

Then we have Shirogane who really worked hard to try and stand out for Kaguya. It wasn’t easy but by getting the best grades and leading the council he put himself in a very good position there. I like his confidence which serves him well in battling Kaguya during their debates. Kaguya is better at planning and setting up intricate traps while Shirogane’s strength is in his quick reactions and thinking off the cuff. That ends up working well in challenges where she catches him on the back foot like with the umbrella trick. He has less family drama to worry about although throughout the series we know that something happened involving his mother but surprisingly that plot barely gets much of a payoff. She shows up at the very end but super briefly. This allows Shirogane to focus more on the main school adventures which works well enough though.

He also does take his job as president very seriously and is always trying to help the other students succeed. You can always count on him to do the right thing even if it means that he might lose some sleep. Managing to perform all his duties while leading the school in grades was really impressive. This guy really put in the work and never had any doubts of waivered in his path. He was just a really strong character through and through.

Chika is the main comedic character here although to an extent you can say they all are so that might be abbreviating her character personality a bit too much. She is meant to be a full foil to the other characters because she doesn’t overthink anything. She is quite intelligent but mainly just does whatever she wants and is always hard to predict. As a result she ends up being a great wildcard in their constant battles which works great to really expand the dynamics. Often times she will crush both of their plans and they have to scramble to set something up.

She doesn’t have a romance plot going on so she is able to just focus on being the comic relief. There is also a subplot where she fights the ramen kings and that was always entertaining. I am always up for a good ramen even if it’s not one of my favorite foods. I would end up eating it more like her as in I would just dive in while all the kings have very elaborate and intricate ways of doing this. Chika keeps the crew grounded and is always good for a lot of laughs. She knows how to manipulate people as needed given her family history of politicians and works in well among the group. Even her backstory is suitably humorous even while being a bit more serious.

Then we have Ino who joins in a bit later than the rest of the group. Her thing is that she is really big on following the rules. While it may sound like that would be easy for her to be integrated among the group you have to remember that while they are good at their jobs, they do mess around a bit. So what Ino brings to the table is that she often gets disillusioned with the group or misreads a situation causing her to panic. It takes her a little while to really get used to the group and stop panicking at the antics. She probably has the saddest backstory next to Ishigami’s as well so she had to go through a whole lot. Ultimately she did get through it all though and fit into the cast well.

I would say that she is a lot of fun either way and she does add a lot to the dynamic which is the important thing here. She interacts with Ishigami the most and given the composition of the group you would probably figure they will have a romance right? Well yes that is a big part of their plot but this romance is one that I can’t get behind quite as much. For one, I liked their banter as friends and rivals which would really be lost if they went that route. Additionally Ishigami already liked Tsubami a lot o it would feel a bit too soon for him to be changing sides like that. So this romance I could only possibly support if it didn’t happen until well after the end of the series like with a sequel title or something. Even then I would like them to delay it for as long as possible so we get more banter.

Of course this carries over to Ishigami’s side where I can confirm I wasn’t big on the romance there. His first one with Tsubame works reasonably well as him not really realizing his feelings of gratitude for what they were and falling for her. At least that’s the way I interpret it since she effectively saved his life along with the rest of the group and so that ended up turning into affection. I don’t think he would have really been ready for the relationship there and of course it would have also taken time away from him hanging out with the crew and just having fun.

As it is I really enjoyed the early Ishigami with how paranoid and depressed he was the whole time. He had a nice deadpan kind of humor that worked really well here. Still I did appreciate that he had one of the biggest character arcs in the series. I would even go as far as to say that it was the biggest because he almost completely changed character personalities by the end. He really became a new person after the whole cast helped him out and it was nice to see. The series has really good inspirational beats like that scattered throughout. You know that he’ll be fine going forward and gone are the days where he wasn’t sure of himself and basically got bullied into submission.

Hayasaka may not be a member of the council but I would say she’s the next biggest character here. She advises Kaguya on all romantic matters and is also just a great butler. She takes care of everything around the manner and serves all kinds of roles as needed. At school she even has her happy persona so that she can still guard Kaguya there. Ultimately this even leads to her getting a real character arc of her own as well as a bit of a tragic romance since she also likes Shirogane but you know there is no hope there. Some things just aren’t meant to be after all.

Her personality really stands out due to how serious she is. Even when she is putting on a mask, you can see the real her the whole time. She brings a whole lot to the table and I also liked the friendship she had with Shirogane by the end. In some ways they knew each other better than their best friends since they didn’t have to wear any masks or pretenses while around each other. At least not after Shirogane figured her out anyway. Hayasaka is a character who is easy to root for because she had already sacrificed so much in order to help Kaguya. She’s just a very selfless kind of character.

I wasn’t a big fan of Nagisa. Half the time it’s hard to know how genuine her romance plot even is because it feels like she just enjoys messing with everyone. Her boyfriend is no better. It’s hard to even know his name so because of that he’s always referred to as “Nagisa’s Boyfriend”. That’s not a very good look for the guy now is it? Both of them are mainly around just to be annoying or to break Maki’s heart since she liked the guy first. Well, snooze and you lose so I wouldn’t blame Nagisa for that one. I just felt like these two didn’t add a lot to the series and their gags were fairly expendable.

Now Maki is a character that I actually found to be very sympathetic. She just ended up liking the wrong guy. Basically he was taken so now she has to get over him but that’s a lot harder than it sounds if this is the person you really wanted to be with. The reason you think of the term rebound when someone moves on quickly is because it seems like that person wasn’t as important as you made it out to be. For Maki it hurts a lot because she was just a tad too slow and very nearly could have had him. Additionally he was the only boy she wanted and nobody else will do. Perhaps in time she will be okay but it’ll take a long time.

Unrequited feelings where one person just never confesses always ends up being really emotional and I find those romances to be really interesting. Maki took the high road in not actually confessing afterwards and that’s the right move because you do need to back off when someone is off the market. Usually this also comes with an unconscious filter where you stop being so attracted to that person but other times it can take a minute so you just have to calm down and keep your distance in the meantime. Maki does stay strong throughout and only breaks down among close friends. She’s a great character to look to on how to act when the going gets tough.

Then you have Kei who gets a decent role as Shirogane’s kid sister. Her role never gets huge or anything but she’s a fun enough character. She actually makes you feel bad for him since by all accounts he has done a great job of being her big brother but she tends to be in a rebellious phase when he’s around. I wouldn’t even say he’s being overprotective at any point but jut tries to be supportive. Fortunately she really looks up to Kaguya so that sort of helps balance things out. I would also say they do get along even if they banter from time to time.

Shirogane’s father is a guy who really got to be a lot of fun by the end of the series. He is always ready with something crazy to say and put everyone on the spot. The guy is also great at multitasking as we find out that he has managed to be a great gamer on the side. This guy has many talents and is just hilarious whenever he shows up so he ends up being one of the more likable characters. He also appeared just enough where you got to see him doing a lot but none of his gags or gimmicks ever got overplayed.

Osaragi is easily one of my least favorite characters in the series. She is a girl who doesn’t really know what she wants to do and ends up taking it out on everyone else. She doesn’t accept responsibilities for her own mistakes and has an excuse for everything. She gets a backstory but all it did was remind me how bad she was of a character. If anything I felt like she looked worse and worse as I went through the series even though you’re supposed to at least feel bad for her later on. It just felt like she caused all of her problems on her own and they kept on snowballing and snowballing the whole time. Turning her back on Ino was definitely the worst offense of all though.

Tsubami gets a big role near the middle of the series/end of the beginning. Ishigami liked her and she was a really big focus in his whole road to recovery. She definitely has a hard time making up her mind though and in a way she did a number on the guy even though she wasn’t a bad person. She just made some mistakes along the way. Ultimately I didn’t mind her, I thought she was good overall and a solid reflection of someone trying to do the right thing but just not knowing what to do. For example she did reach out to Ishigami initially to help him get out of his shell and enjoy life more. The problem is that the kindness meant so much to Ishigami that he fell for her afterwards and she wasn’t able to deal with it.

It’s hard to know what to do when someone likes you and you just can’t return the feeling. You feel a bit responsible if you were really friendly the whole time because even if that wasn’t the intention you start to wonder if maybe you were flirting a bit accidentally. So she didn’t end up handling this well for sure and ultimately just ran into one of the risks of being nice.

Mikado is a character who didn’t do a whole lot but he did have some potential. He is a tragic character in the sense that he has always liked Kaguya but you knew that he was doomed from the jump. I give him props for doing his best to watch out for her and help out in the final saga even though I was naturally hoping that they wouldn’t get together. The romance just wouldn’t have been a good idea there but he took it well and stayed gracious so that’s good. I had a soft spot for the character.

The Shinomiya villains are mostly all pretty similar. I can’t say that I cared much for any of them to be honest. Sure some were nicer than others or at least didn’t appear to be cruel for no reason but for the most part they were all just not very interesting. You really didn’t care about these guys in the slightest and it’s another reason why the final arc was weaker. You needed to give them some purpose and a reason to exist if you wanted them to enhance the arc. Maybe if they had been introduced earlier that would have ended up helping a lot.

Overall, There you have it. That’s Kaguya in a nutshell. It’s a top tier title with great characters and just a lot of fun overall. You will be investing a lot of time into the series and it is worth every second. It’s not every day you see a series like this and so I was sad to see it go. I’d highly recommend checking it out right now. Who knows, maybe some day we’ll get a sequel series although it doesn’t feel like one is needed. I would hope they could all go on some kind of big retreat for a month in the mountains or something so we could get a lot of fun banter there even though they are grown up. In a lot of ways having them in the school setting is part of the magic though so you do need that.

Overall 9/10

Super Smartphone Review

Posted on February 10, 2023 by dreager1

Super Smartphone is a title that really didn’t last very long. I suppose 23 chapters is still enough to cross the 20 mark but even still it’s a shame. It had a ton of potential and could have really ended up being a great title. It starts off trying a little too hard to be like Death Note. You have the really quirky detective like L but one who comes off as eccentric for no real reason and then Kyu as the rational genius who is lacking in emotion. Gradually the series started to find its own identity and even got a whole villain group…but then the series just ends. I’ll give the author credit for this though, he didn’t throw in any time skips or a rushed ending. It just ends as the battles are about to start although it mentions they will eventually come up with more chapters in the volume release to be scanned at some point.

The series begins by introducing us to a genius named Kyu who is super depressed. His younger brother went missing when they were kids and is presumed dead at this point. Now Kyu struggles to find the energy to do anything and just sleeps through life. One day he finds a special phone in his bag, a super smartphone if you will. It tells Kyu that it can search for anything in the world so on a whim Kyu uses it to search for a little girl who had been kidnapped recently. The phone is able to find her and Kyu manages to save her life just in time. Naturally he uses it to try and find his brother but mysteriously an error message prevents him from looking anything up about the brother.

The phone is cryptic about why the brother can’t be searched but does say that Kyu should start earning points. You earn points by using the smartphone and morality isn’t considered. For example using the phone to hack into someone else’s phone will grant you points and doing other things that a normal phone couldn’t possibly do. Kyu then uses his genius intellect to figure out that this implies other people have smartphones as well and it’s a race to the top. Whoever gains an unknown amount of points first will win. Earning points also unlocks new features of the phone like the ability to shield yourself from electronics and scanners. The downside to this is that this can also make it obvious who you are if you shield yourself too much. Kyu is also a a disadvantage because he doesn’t aim to commit any crimes with it while the others will without a second thought. Can he pull this off?

So like I mentioned earlier, I believe what hurt this series and got it cancelled is that it’s trying too hard to be the next Deathnote at the beginning. For example you get long conversations with the phone saying something cryptic and Kyu going off on a speech about how the phone let a lot of things slip with that one sentence. Yeah it can come off as smart but often times it also feels like he is making massive jumps in logic that only just so happen to turn out to be correct. It doesn’t hurt him as a character, I actually like his confidence quite a lot. It just feels like the author is taking shortcuts in making this a very cerebral series.

So what changes in the second half? It becomes a bit more of a thriller series. It’s still about the mind games of course but now we’re getting active battles between geniuses like in Phy Brain as opposed to the classic game of cat and mouse. This works for Super Smartphone a whole lot better than the former approach and really gets things moving in the right direction. The concept of a smart phone battle against others who can hack everything as well is just really interesting. The series does a good job of exploring the ins and outs of that too as each character has to be careful in how they attack. One user may be physically strong like a body builder, one might be rich and have a company to protect him. Others could be kids who never really use the smartphone and this makes them difficult to detect.

It should go without saying but you can’t tell anyone about the smartphone either or it will vanish and you are out of the competition. As long as you have the phone it is easy to get rich and achieve all of your desires but at the same time it also means you will be a massive target so that’s something that you will have to really think about. I’d say you could have made this a fairly long 100+ chapter series with the hero trying to find each owner every 20 chapters or so until you’ve found them all and had a big climax. I’d also expect them all to be fighting each other a lot and making for some good 3 way battles. You can’t really trust anyone with a smartphone after all so that would make for some really fun battles.

The art here is pretty good. It’s actually better than I would expect for an initial series like this. Unless the artist already did another series which is very possible, I tend to forget kind of quick who drew what but this looks like an experienced veteran. The chapters are really easy to read at least. The writing is good too. It may use some shortcuts but on the whole it does capture my attention which is important. I wasn’t bored during the read at all and it makes for a really good marathon.

Kyu is a good lead. He’s confident in his deductions and wants to find his brother which makes for a good character motivation. He does tend to get depressed quickly and while he usually bounces back sometimes it takes longer. It feels like this would have become a longer character arc if the series kept going. Like the way he represses his emotions on a daily basis makes the outbursts worse or something. In the end he starts to learn that sometimes you also need physical power in addition to your mind which is an important lesson. Yeah it would have been fun to see how he did in the battles to come.

His childhood friend Yuika doesn’t get a huge role but I bet she would have been appearing more if the series went on. She’s nice enough and always tries to help Kyu out. She’s just kept in the dark on the smartphone business so there is only so much that she can do. Then we have Nagi who is the L of the series. She’s got a bit of a temper and doesn’t believe in playing nice with people. She’ll jump into her statements right away and delivers them bluntly. She is unable to keep up with any of the smartphone holders at all though. We know she is a genius as they keep saying this a lot but it would be nice for her to get some wins. It’s understandable that she would be at a disadvantage for now so maybe they would build it up as her getting more wins down the line. Perhaps it’s realistic but she was a big underwhelming the whole time.

The main villain of the series is Zenichiro. He’s the first enemy smartphone user to make a move and the fun part about him is that he’s a rich millionaire celebrity. So even without the smartphone he had a lot of power. Just think of everything that he can do now that he has one? The possibilities are near endless and it makes things interesting for the battle with Kyu because beating him intellectually just won’t be enough. You’re going to need some muscle to get past his bodyguards as well. Zenichiro is also super confident in himself as well and it makes him a tricky opponent. The guy has a good amount of character development and was a lot of fun here.

Then there is Moura who is the worst villain in the series. He’s the classic not very smart guy who tends to get into trouble and is being manipulated because of that. I like the idea of not every owner being a genius but can’t we have a villain who is just of normal intelligence? I know they would probably get wrecked quick but it would be better than someone like this. Yes Moura gets a sob story and a lot of emotional character development but I never really ended up caring about the guy at all. He just came and went in an instant. He’s gone and then it’s time to move on.

Imura is super devoted to Zenichiro which is his whole gimmick so I can’t say that I was a big fan either. I mean it’s great that he’s loyal but the guy comes across as super desperate the whole time. You roll your eyes when he’s on screen because Zenichiro is so mean to the guy and doesn’t hide his disgust but Imura doesn’t realize this. I guess he’s not a genius in the situations that count.

The series ends as two of the other smartphone characters are introduced in Boken and Rei. Rei is a really timid character so she’s going to have a tough time in these battles so it’s good for her that Boken is here. Boken is smart and also a good fighter so physically he’s ready for anything. It’s safe to say that he’s not a super genius like Zenichiro and Kyu but he knows enough to get around and is used to using his phone. I expect he would have been a fun friend/rival to have around. He had a good first impression with me at least.

So in the final chapters we see that there are 12 smartphone users in all and we’ve only bumped one of them off. That means there are still 11 and the series was gearing up for some kind of round table elimination game. It’s all vague so we don’t know what it was but they mentioned something about voting others out. If it was an Among Us type game where they had to vote people out in each round that could have been really interesting. Almost like a Liar Game setup but the conditions and win criteria weren’t explained yet. We only just met all of these guys in quick one shot panels before the series ended. Then suddenly there were also aliens involved in the mix which was an interesting wrinkle.

I love the idea of aliens and such just running in to cause trouble and mess with humanity but it is an odd thing to add so suddenly at the end. They seem to have super powers that make them way too much for humans to deal with too like the ability to possess others and freeze people in an instant. Maybe this was actually going to take a really unexpected route and be an action series instead. One thing’s for sure, there was a lot of potential here so hopefully it gets a sequel series soon. If not, maybe the last few chapters will do more with this but at least it’s an epic cliffhanger to end things off with. This is the kind of ending you want to see as it keeps on building your hype for a sequel.

I do think the twist about what the smartphones are at the end was really lackluster though. I don’t think it was thrown in at the end because it was cancelled. To me this was planned from the start but eh….I wasn’t really into it. It could make things more personal in a way but since the A.I. are pretty much emotionless and just serve as devices the twist doesn’t enhance the story. I think doing it more like Wixoss would have been a lot more effective in having each device really feel truly unique. Who knows maybe that would be an upgrade once you got enough points, it’s hard to say.

I’d also like to see more 3 way conversations like the first battle with Zenichiro if we get a sequel. With 12 users out there or at least 6-7 left that we haven’t seen there should be ample opportunity for that. I did like the phone conversation quite a bit and that was before the series really hit its stride. So focus on fun dialogue battles like that in a tournament type setting and you’re all set. You could even structure it in a debate sense like how this one was about convincing the detective on who to trust. Do that in a battle where you have to convince the other smartphone users on who to vote out and we’d be seeing a lot of great dialogue.

Overall, I’d recommend checking this title out. It’s got a lot of detailed dialogue to really get you interested in what’s going on and the premise is unique. A super smartphone is a cool invention and I would like to see Shonen Jump try more cerebral series like this. With how successful Death Note was you’d think more series would be trying to give that type of story a big push and yet it doesn’t really happen. I guess it’s hard to not just jump in with another action series and of course I won’t complain about that since I love my battle titles but you could still do more like this. Of course it’s always a debate on if you should check out a series that’s been cancelled but I always recommend it. You’re seeing a story that didn’t make it all the way through and it’s nice to try and figure out why people didn’t like it and what it could have done differently. For the record, they should have introduced the 12 owners right away to set up this grand battle of wills right off the gate. It would have totally removed the Death Note comparisons and it’s also the most interesting part of the story so you would get everyone hooked immediately. At least if you ask me that’s the right way to go about it.

Overall 7/10

The Comiq Review

Posted on January 28, 2023 by dreager1

It’s time for a murder mystery title. This oneshot starts out more with the feeling that it’ll be a title about creating manga but quickly escalates from there. The art wasn’t my favorite, it’s going for a retro look but it’s still very clear and easy to read. You’ll be taken through a lot of twists and turns, I feel that some make previous scenes feel a bit odd but the manga encourages you to read it a second time at the very beginning so I suppose this is intentional. It’s a good manga in the end even if it could be more solid.

The series follows Ryota, an up and coming manga creator. His series is more of a classic Shojo title but the ratings aren’t great. He even cringes when he hears people reciting the lines out loud. I dunno, if you’re writing something shouldn’t you be proud of people talking about it? I would have thought he would have been more thrilled even if the lines are a bit cheesy. Well, one day his sister Mihana submits one of his chapters to the legendary author Seiya for review but the guy panics and shuts down the livestream.

It appears that something set him off and Ryota then starts to pick up the pieces. See, in this world there is a program where prisoners get to draw the backgrounds for your manga and so this guy named Baba seemed to have put in an element that looks eerily similar to a calling card left at the scene of a murder. Now the cops are interested in Ryota as well so Ryota is really in the middle of this. He can request a new artist or stop writing the manga but he thinks that Baba may be innocent and this is a last ditch effort to save himself. Baba cannot speak so he can only communicate through artwork. Can Ryota solve the puzzle or is he about to step into something much bigger than himself?

So you’ve got the direct case here and the objective on how to solve it but the series could have benefitted from being an actual series. It took a full two paragraphs to really describe the plot because it’s fairly involved and then the manga throws in a whole villain group near the end. This could have absolutely been a 4-5 volume series as Ryota gets closer and closer to the truth. Because it’s so short everything has to move fast so the pacing is really good but it also relies on the villains making some extremely sloppy mistakes in order to get caught.

One really nice thing about the way Ryota solves the case involves background noise which I thought was a clever way to tie everything together. Baba was giving hints through background art after all so background noise being the deciding factor was a good parallel. I’m not sure if that was intentional but I like to think that it was. Ryota’s also a solid character the whole time. He’s quick on his feet and ready to help out. If his gut instinct was wrong and he was helping out a murderer then that would be dicey but it’s important to follow your intuition and he doesn’t hesitate.

Ryota is able to hold his own when talking to the villains too and doesn’t back off. A character who isn’t nearly as good is his editor Mr. Aimochi. My problem with Aimochi is not just that he’s unhelpful but he actively hurts Ryota in the case by constantly getting in his way. He doesn’t want to give any info and practically threatens Ryota to stop talking about the whole murder case. I really don’t think Ryota was overstepping in those scenes and it is a shock to learn that your artist is a convicted murderer. You’d think Aimochi would have just been a little more understanding.

The detective meanwhile was a lot more reasonable. Yes he’s still got to follow protocol and is also a bit of an obstacle for Ryota to get past but at least he will listen once Ryota has his attention. Ryota’s sister Mihana is good even if she can be a bit harsh with his manga. When she submits it on the air and Seiya mocks it she turns on Ryota so fast. Cmon now that’s when you have to side with family over a celebrity. Seiya was clearly shook so she should have interpreted it as his being jealous instead. Now that would have been a good moment. She does help him out later on though.

As for Baba, I think he could have handled the whole thing much better. It’s great that he drew something but what were the odds of anyone really noticing it? That was like a hail mary with a 1% chance of working. Yes at this point it’s one of the only things he could do but before jail he could have made a move. It’s a bit hard to get too into this without spoiling the twists at the end but part of the issue is that Baba was very passive about the whole thing. If he had quickly told his side of the story through writing or something that would have helped a whole lot.

The whole villain group is also really crazy and out of the blue. They act really threatening and just feel a bit out of place here. When Mihana enters the group hideout it’s like a base right out of Shonen Jump. You’ve go several members and the big bad but how does nobody know about this place? Then the sort of blackmail/hold they have on Seiya is weak at best. I don’t really get why he was hanging around and still being a part of this. It’s like everyone was just trying to move on from the past but you’d think that he would have wanted big time revenge on the main villain right? Actually I think it’s time to jump into spoiler land a bit so skip the next 3 paragraphs if you haven’t read the volume yet. It’s time for a bit of a semi deep dive.

So basically there is no “Seiya” and that’s just the code name for the members of the Pumpkin Club. The leader is a rich girl who liked the “Seiya” we know in the present so she murdered his father and forced him to work with her. She also implanted chips into everyone’s heads to send them pain jolts whenever she wanted. Eventually he fell for one of the girls in the club and they tried to run off but the leader foiled the plan and forced the heroine to jump off the building and commit suicide. So…..Seiya then began to work for her again and covered it up while using Baba as a scapegoat.

Here’s where the tiers fall off the truck for me. Why would Seiya possibly not just murder the leader right then and there? She has two bodyguards yes but that’s it and they weren’t there at the scene of the crime. If you don’t want to be a vigilante then you go to the cops and try to convince them. The only thing you cannot do is continue to work for her and pretend that nothing has happened. Right through to the end Seiya is still doing her dirty work and threatening Baba.

I feel like the twists weren’t very well thought out. Sure, it’s intense to have a whole villain group running around and zapping people but did it really make a whole lot of sense? I don’t think so and even with a re read I don’t think that would change. Seiya’s actions don’t match up with the flashback at all. It just makes him look even worse as a character to be honest because he doesn’t stand up for himself at all. If you won’t even make a stand to avenge your friend then you’re probably never going to make a stand.

Well, we’re back from the spoilers. On a final note, as I mentioned the art isn’t great. The retro style makes for an interesting angle but I think it all could have still looked a bit more streamlined. The art is still very clear and easy to read though so you will have no problems breezing through this one. The writing is also sound enough to keep you engaged. I may not agree with some of the twists and the way things played out but you still want to read all the way through to get to the answer of the mystery and that only happens when you’re really engaged with what you’re reading.

Overall, The Comiq is a story that doesn’t go down the path you’re expecting it to go. This does mean you will be at the edge of your seat wondering what will happen next but the conclusion won’t quite live up to the hype. I think this just should have been an ongoing series instead of a oneshot, particularly with the group around. Otherwise I’d say that the best thing to do would be to not introduce the group at all. Play the climax straight with one person and it would flow a little better. Either way I would recommend checking this one out though, it’s certainly a quick read as it is.

Overall 6/10

The Elusive Samurai

Posted on January 26, 2023 by dreager1

The Elusive Samurai is a classic action tale set in the samurai era sort of like Kenshin. The setting reminds me of Dynasty Warriors the most to be honest though with fighting over the land. Old settings like this usually aren’t my thing and the main characters are a bit young so it can be hard to picture them going up against the stronger foes but the battles are definitely solid. The series is also certainly not afraid to get super intense that’s for sure. I’ll have a review up for the series once it’s over. We’ll see if the main character can survive on evasive techniques alone or if it’s time for a big timeskip soon!

Overall 5/10

Wall-E Review

Posted on January 21, 2023 by dreager1

The Wall-E movie was fun and a bit different from your average flick with how the main character doesn’t really talk much. So it’s more of a visual title in the end. The manga decided to change things up by adding a narrator the whole time. I understand the move since you’re worried that readers will get bored or finish too quickly without anything to see but unfortunately the dialogue does tend to be rather cheesy. This isn’t going to beat the average adaption but it’s still not bad it’s just not as good as it could be.

Basically the story follows Wall-E who is a trash compactor robot that is very lonely. There isn’t anyone around anymore and he just wants a friend. Well one day he meets a robot named Eve and he figures they can be friends. It’s tough goings at first since she’s mostly emotionless but by the end they get to be good friends. Along the way they even end up helping out the human race who have all grown very fat over the years since they didn’t have to exercise at all. With Earth contaminated they all live aboard a spaceship and have everything they could ever want. It’s like a paradise but one that has gotten the humans really lazy and unable to contribute anything. I do have to say that this is mainly the humans fault though.

It’s an interesting look at what paradise can do to you and it’s an argument that the heroes have made in a few different titles whenever paradise is brought up. If life is too perfect then the idea is that people will stop trying to improve themselves and innovate because there won’t be any reason to do so. I would say the main issue with this idea is that it’s basically saying to stop trying to make things perfect because of a possible issue but one that shouldn’t even be relevant.

It’s actually impressive that humanity came up with this advanced ship and everything to avoid Earth being too poisonous all those years. I also liked that the manga didn’t make the humans look super corrupt or anything like that. I feel like half the time in these things the humans all end up being evil for no good reason. In this case it’s actually a robot trying to mess things up so that was appreciated. The captain actually stayed strong and did his best to try and help save the world.

In a way the only double edged part of this is that the human plot is way more interesting than the robot one. You just don’t care about Wall-E and Eve too much next to the captain and his crew. I know it’s an emotional tale with those two but because they can’t talk too much it does mean that there is only so much they can contribute to the story. You aren’t wondering what’s going to happen or what trials they will encounter. Instead you’re just waiting on the human parts where there is a lot of danger.

I will say that the artwork is decent though. It does a good job of capturing what was happening in the movie and the character designs are on point. It’s not a very action packed series so it’s not like the artist is being super tested here but it’s still a good showing. I was satisfied with how the manga looked and it makes for an easy read. You will definitely be knocking this one out very quickly.

It’s also just a very wholesome adventure so this is one you can recommend for all ages. Kids, teens, adults, everyone can have some fun here. The only downside is again that there just isn’t much danger for most of the adventure. There is a villain near the end with the robot but that threat goes by in the blink of an eye. I think adding in an Evil Wall-E would have been good or maybe giving the evil robot a super form so he could fight with that. It may be a bit outside of what the story was going for but it could still work really well.

I always remember thinking that Wall-E looked a whole lot like ROB which was pretty fun. If he had that stern personality as well I think that would have worked out well here. I would argue he is going more for friendship with Eve at first but just doesn’t know much about feelings and so that’s how it starts to turn into a bit of a romance but it doesn’t really work because they barely even know each other. It would be a very rushed romance in that sense and so it isn’t the strongest part of the film. I’d say they should have just cut that aspect out of the manga because it wasn’t really needed. Give Wall-E a good friend and the story works out well.

Overall, Wall-E is a good story but the manga doesn’t really add anything to it. You could probably have just as good a time watching the movie and maybe an even better time. This is like the cliffnotes version if you don’t have time to watch the movie but want to talk to people about the story. The narrator is also just really cheesy so he doesn’t help with things. He’s sort of trying to tell you how you’re supposed to feel about every scene but does so in a very heavy handed way. It’s still a decent story but one that may feel a tad boring at times.

Overall 5/10

Kuroko’s Basketball – Replace Plus Review

Posted on January 16, 2023 by dreager1

This is a series I was reading for a very long time until it finally finished. The original Kuroko’s Basketball was excellent and I enjoyed the sequel a lot as well. This one’s more of an “Eh” kind of series though. It’s a comedic slice of life title that can be borderline 4 koma at times although usually it’s still traditional. It’s basically about the characters messing around and having fun the whole time. The only catch here of course is that the cast isn’t the most varied in terms of their personalities. They’ve all got their gimmick that is dialed up to 11 for the series but that’s about it.

There isn’t exactly an ongoing story for the series either but I have to say that it’s impressive how the series ran for 10 volumes. That’s surprisingly good and so there are a lot of different stories here. It’s a series that is very easy to just turn your brain off and check out at any time. I would say that is its biggest advantage. None of the stories are going to be bad either. Maybe some of them will be a bit dull but they tend to be very consistent. You watch the characters all overreact to classic situations and there are a whole lot of different scenarios you can put them in.

The artwork isn’t bad. It’s close enough to the original where you can easily recognize all of the characters so there’s no issue there. It’s not quite as high tier as the main series would be but I can’t think of a time off the top of my head where a spinoff beat the main title anyway. Additionally this series is focused more on comedy as it is so that’s where the focus would be anyway. As long as the art is good enough to be clear then I don’t have any issues on that front.

It feels like it can be a bit harder to go in depth about this series as well just because it’s all pretty straight forward. Either you like the anthology type stories contained in the series or you don’t. For my money I just don’t have much of a strong opinion on them one way or the other. They make for a fun enough read as you go through but it’s why the series is right in the middle. I wouldn’t have any reason to read it again but if someone wants more adventures with the Kuroko gang then this is a solid recommendation. They are all still in character after all and this works as a way to see them outside of the matches.

The main series had a good amount of character development either way but this one helps to take a step further by constantly having them hang out outside of the game context. It’s almost like you have a whole series that would usually just be a bunch of bonus chapters. It’s always a pretty interesting way to think about this. I could absolutely picture these chapters just being shown at the back of each volume. It’s almost like how the slime diaries could just be bonus comedy bits at the end of main episodes.

This one has no fanservice issues or any real demerits but at the same time there is also less happening here on a story level. Occasionally you will have a more serious mini arc like one where two of the characters go to an abandoned school to find some basketballs. That worked pretty well in context and was probably one of the more engaging stories. Other times it’s just a matter of finding somebody or getting part time jobs to help grab some money. The stories have a lot of variety in what is happening even if the tone and atmosphere of them are often the same. They make for easy reads but it’s probably not the best series to marathon because then it might get a little repetitive. Of course whenever someone tells you not to marathon something that doesn’t sound good because it will always feel like a bad thing no matter how it is phrased.

Personally what I would have done here would have been to give some kind of central focus that would make all of the stories more interconnected. I think the easiest way to do this would have been some kind of summer camp. So the heroes are all taken somewhere where there is no basketball and then all of the stories happen there. It would take them away from their comfort zone and even if the stories are anthology style, it feels like they are connected because of the new landscape. Of course alternatively you could have some kind of a big overarching plot as well. It’s not like these things are necessary but I do think the series would have stood out more as a result.

Alternately you could have more of the stories taking place at the same time so it all feels like one big adventure. For example you can merge the chapter where the club all gets jobs to raise money with one where the main heroine is trying to convince Kuroko to go out with her with one where there’s a big party going on. Just keep everything going as more of a serialized comedy as opposed to anthology. It’s no secret that I’ve never been a big fan of the anthology format. To me there is no winning there because each story is so short. Either the story is weak and drags the good ones down or it is good and then it ends before you can really enjoy it. By going with these short stories you are effectively always behind the curve and there just isn’t much opportunity to change that.

If you did longer stories that had more of a full continuity to them then the comedy would really have a chance to excel and soar to new heights. That is definitely the best way to go if you ask me. I also think it would make this easier to marathon. You can probably think of many comedy and slice of life titles where you’re eager to see what happens next because there are still dynamics that continue and some kind of goal at the end. This one doesn’t have that which is why it just feels like a bunch of bonus chapters all stuck together.

Additionally because of this the series will try too hard to be funny. Now the link is not necessarily true that being an anthology will have you try to hard but it does make sense to me. Because the stories don’t continue then they have to try and cram all of the random gags in as quickly as possible. Usually this just means repeating the same jokes like Kuroko being invisible. The main series does a better job of the comedy because of this as it gets to make the most of the little moments between games while this one is just trying to throw everything at you all at once. Some jokes may land but more often than not you’ll just keep reading without much of a smile. Fortunately the stories are still interesting enough where you want to get through them even if you aren’t laughing though.

Overall, Kuroko’s Basketball is a solid franchise and it’s always cool to see more installments but this one won’t be moving the needle for you much at all. It’s a series that you will read and then once you put it on the shelf that’s probably the last time you will think about it. There aren’t any deep themes to unpack or serious plots to have fun with. It’s not even super funny so at the end of the day while there are no negative aspects to the series and it is in no way bad….it’s just not going to be keeping up in the end. You should only check this out if you’re a huge fan of the franchise but otherwise you can skip this title.

Overall 5/10

Pokémon Journeys Review

Posted on January 16, 2023 by dreager1

Pokemon Journeys was a really ambitious anime that brought a ton of old characters back. It was like a trip down memory lane and really worked well as the final big stop on Ash’s journey. A lot of people who stopped keeping up with the series made sure to come back for this one and you can absolutely understand why. It was such a big deal for Ash to be competing against other champions and the nostalgia was off the charts. This manga series chronicles those adventures to an extent but it’s only 4 volumes long so it ends up being a very abridged version.

The series starts off by introducing us to Ash and Goh (Go, Gou…it’s spelled so many different ways but I’m used to Goh the most so I’ll use that one for this review) as they set off on their journeys. Ash wants to become a Pokemon master, a trainer who is without peer. To this end he is gearing up to enter the World Coronation Series which is a massive tournament with around 1000 trainers. You have to keep winning to rise up the ranks until you are in the top 8. Only at that point are you entered into the bracket segment of the tournament where you will be fighting with other opponents with the highest of stakes.

Meanwhile Goh wants to catch every Pokemon that ever existed. This includes Legendaries and of course it is a very ambitious task. I don’t think anyone has ever caught all of the Pokemon in this world and it’s hard to picture that changing. There are so many hundreds of Pokemon and then a lot of them need to be evolved as well so you will need to spend time to train them up. I’m not sure if Goh has that kind of time although of course it would be great if he could pull this off. The two of them meet up and form a duo as they go along the region and have their big adventures. Will they be able to accomplish their objectives and get along?

Right away you can see how the series is moving at a super high speed though. Some Pokemon captures are basically off screen and I’d say this feels more like a “Best Hits” collection than anything else. It’s sort of like the manga is adapting all of the stories they felt would be the most exciting and that’s absolutely a valid approach but at the same time that also means if you are reading this without watching the show then you won’t get the most impactful experience out of it. It just goes by really quickly the whole time. In some ways it reminded me of the Dinosaur King manga which may feel a bit random but it was also a really quick adventure. That one did have more of a focused plot though because it chose to take a different path than the show.

That probably would have been the best way to go with this one if they knew that the volume count would be limited. Still, it’s always fun to see Ash around which is why I’d say that this series is pretty good. I don’t think you will find it particularly memorable in the end but Pokemon adventures are typically always good by default. You get some fun fights here and Ash is always a solid main character. By this point in the series he is very experienced and has a lot of good tactics. You can count on him to do well with Pikachu and so of course they do tend to shred most of the competition.

Meanwhile for Goh he’s not my favorite character yet but he has potential. Mainly he gets teased a lot by Gary and tends to lose those fights but Ash was also verbally defeated by Gary all the time back in the day. It’s not really something to feel bad about as a result. It’s just how it goes and of course Gary has way more experience on his end than Goh does. I like Goh’s goal of trying to catch all of the Pokemon though. Even if I think he’ll never pull it off, it’s something different than the previous rivals and helps to really switch things up. If he can just be a bit bolder and more ready to fight then that would help him out instead of making excuses that he’s just not used to battling. Nobody’s buying that after all.

The artwork is good but not great. The manga likes to go all in with the facial expressions and it’s clear enough but at times there aren’t a lot of details. To me this looks more like what I would consider a cash-in manga to be. It works out since that’s effectively what this title is but I’d still like to be surprised with something a bit more high end like Pokemon Adventures. The fights are on point though and that’s what counts.

It’s also nice to see Leon a bit even if he only has time for two quick matches. The guy would go on to become one of the strongest of all time after all so you really want to see what he can do early on. I remember when this fight happened in the anime as well. Ash definitely did pretty good all things considered and I like to think that if Pikachu had just a bit more time that he could have pulled out the win. He still has a lot of speed and experience on his side after all. At least it wasn’t a blowout. At this point I just don’t think that any Pokemon can possibly hope to crush Ash like that.

Raihan, Bea, Lance, and other trainers are all around as well. One strong aspect of Pokemon has always been the really solid supporting cast and that doesn’t change here as well. All of these guys are fighters and have made it this far for that reason. Seeing Ash be able to brush shoulders with all of them is great and shows how far he has come. Honestly I wouldn’t have minded if they just cut right to the giant tournament and just adapt every battle. In a way that’s really what put Journeys on the map although I know people enjoy the normal episodes as well. It’s just that the World Coronation Series is too exciting to miss out on and it’s a shame that the manga couldn’t adapt more of it.

Of course Gary also shows up here which is nice. It’s still too bad that he’s not as much of a fighter nowadays since he was so good. I hope he gets a big fight at some point in the future. He has grown up though which is impressive in itself since Ash hasn’t really changed all that much. It does help the theories that someone froze Ash’s time somehow and that would be an intense plot point to explore. As one of the last Ash adventures I suspect this manga will grow even more nostalgic over time.

I feel like almost all of my complements to this series feel like they are back handed ones. It’s just not trying to do anything special or be anything more than a standard Pokemon manga though. It’s going through the motions and that’s really all that you need it to do. It’s a very easy read that you can pick up at any time and just blast through. There aren’t any big character arcs to speak of or any big overarching plot to complete like in Legendz. So that’s also why there isn’t a whole lot to say because it’s just quickly adapting episodes and moving fast. How much you enjoy it will depend on how much you like Pokemon. At the end of the day I do like the series a lot though so even a mini manga like this will be fun for me and I would still recommend it to anyone out there. You can’t really go wrong with more adventures for Ash and Pikachu after all. They’re still the classic Dynamic Duo for a reason.

Overall, Pokemon Journeys is a good manga but one that almost feels like a commercial for the show. If you like this title then you’ll want to go and watch the episodes to see how things end. Of course if you pick up from where this one left off then you will be missing some adventures since the manga does a lot of skipping around. I think the skips make sense to some degree but they could have done it a bit smoother so that it wouldn’t be obvious that something was skipped. For example I don’t think the manga should skip any Pokemon captures or battles that are referenced later on. We get that with one of the rematches here where it’s odd since we didn’t see the original. You’ll have a good time either way though and if you see this on the shelf you may as well pick it up. It’s a nice way to zoom through the early parts of Journeys and then you can jump ahead to the big part of the tournament.

Overall 7/10

Behind the Scenes!! Review

Posted on January 8, 2023 by dreager1

As a romantic comedy manga each series faces a lot of tough calls in terms of who will get paired with whom. Often times the romantic rival is cooler than the main heroine or main hero depending on who the lead is but you sort of can’t deviate from the main path. Then for the one who loses out you have to have a rebound ready and that’s usually where things get tricky. Well you don’t “have to” and in face you shouldn’t have a rebound ready but most series do and this one goes for one of the worst possible final ships possible. It is right there on the level of God of High School and it’s hard to see which one is worse. They’re neck and neck…I guess the other one is probably a little worse but it’s tough either way. It does hurt this title’s momentum.

The series revolves around a character named Ranmaru. He’s rather timid and doesn’t really like to be around people. Ranmaru is very detail oriented though and that helps him a lot when it comes to noticing things that most people would usually miss. He ends up joining the special effects art club led by Ryuji though. Ryuji is a fairly bold character who is the outgoing type and while you’d think that he may not get along with Ranmaru as they’re so different, it really works out. This is sort of a safe space for Ranmaru to really get used to being with people and becoming more confident in himself.

Timid main characters like this usually aren’t my thing so I wouldn’t say that Ranmaru ever ends up being one of my favorite characters. His romance is mostly tragic as he likes Ruka but is too shy to actually speak up about it. So for the most part he just ends up being good friends with her and can only watch as she gets farther and farther away. It’s an emotional plot for sure but one where you feel like if he just spoke up a bit then it wouldn’t be such a big deal. Instead he’s digging a bigger and bigger hole for himself that will be difficult to get out of.

It’s only in the final volume or two really where he starts to truly get out of his shell so this is a series where the side characters really have to take control but I wouldn’t say that they really do. This isn’t the strongest cast all around. The main standout character here would probably be Ryuji. He’s the tough character a series like this needs to push everyone along. He does really well in that role to be sure. Ryuji also has his own tough backstory to get through and he’s really just putting up a tough front.

It adds some good depth to his character as he isn’t actually past everything and just does his best to move forward. He isn’t someone who is trapped by the past and makes no excuses for himself. Still, he just keeps on moving forward no matter what happens. By far he was the best character here. The main heroine Ruka is also good. She’s great at arts and crafts. Ruka likes Ryuji but is unsure of how to let him know about this when they have such a good friendship and then she has a lot of pressure from her family which makes it difficult for her to hang out with the crew a lot. That’s probably the toughest situation to get past since the others mostly just have to fight their inner selves to move on but she has actual people to deal with.

I feel like the series doesn’t spend as much time on this as you would expect but it still makes for an intense storyline. Ruka is also the main focus of a lot of the series in other ways with how she is connected to Ranmaru and Ryuji so you will have no shortage of screen time for her. If anything Maasa is the one who loses out here as she really wants a boyfriend but is mostly reduced to that one character trait. Well, I suppose she really loves slasher films which tends to scare the guys off.

As you go through the series you absently think she will probably be paired with one of the other guys but that’s about it. You never figure that she will be an integral focus in the series and well that is exactly what happened. Maasa seems like a fun character but doesn’t get much to do. Then you have Izumi who is really talented and tends to stick out for his good looks but he doesn’t really know about his past. This is probably the most serious plot in some ways. It ends up being connected to Ranmaru’s cousin Soh as she wants to be there to help him recover and lead into a romance subplot.

I give the series a lot of credit for how this plot goes. Izumi is flattered of course but he still treats Soh as more of a kid and doesn’t take the whole thing too seriously. He basically just tries to help her get past her infatuation and keep it moving. She is a bit younger than him so it would be hard for that to work out but additionally he just doesn’t see her in that way. Additionally the memory issues have also affected his ability to actually have real emotions so that was another thing to consider. He got some good points for that and also for generally being a nice guy even when he is being absolutely crushed by not even knowing who he truly is. That’s something that’s hard to simply deal with.

Finally you have Tomu but he never really got to do much. He’s always around as one of the main members and we know that he used to be a bit of a delinquent before falling in with the right crowd but that’s about it. He doesn’t get any big plots or shocking reveals so it feels like he’s just along for the ride. Maybe it’s good to have a character like that but I feel like you could cut him out and nothing would change. If that can ever be said about a character then usually it means that he should have been scrapped.

Finally you have Soh who deals with a lot of confidence issues like Ranmaru. She has carefully crafted a public image of being the really cool girl though in a way to avoid attracting attention to herself. That may sound contradictory but it actually does work really well. Put it this way, if you seem popular and are always surrounded by a few friends, strangers won’t approach you and you can just head home without worry. If you stick out for being anti social or quiet then people are probably going to walk up to you. Either to bully you if they’re mean or to try and talk to you if you seem lonely.

I thought Soh’s strategy was really good and she was actually being proactive in handling her weakness which is something that boosted her past Ranmaru. I just didn’t see Ranmaru putting in the same level of effort. Not saying he had to match her but this is why she was ahead for me. It also makes for a fun dynamic between them at home where they can be more open with each other but you still see how they are awkward at talking in general. At least having someone you can talk to is always a huge relief and that helps both of them keep going.

I would say where the series succeeds is that the angle of being a special effects group is really unique. It’s cool to see them help with the designs for different movies and shows and you get a lot of fun facts for setting up different practical effects. You may not be able to put most of them to use because you’d need specialized equipment to start with but it is shown quite plainly so you can try this at home if you do get the materials. It’s a fresh take as you would usually be focusing on the movie stars.

Additionally the series may be laidback but it makes for an easy read. Even if the characters may not stand out, you’ll be entertained all the way through which is important. I had a good time with the title. It feels a bit short by the time it ends and I didn’t think every plot got to be wrapped up (Like the ex delinquent not really doing anything) but as a result it also doesn’t drag out.

Now for the series issues, the ending really hurts it quite a bit. There will be spoilers for this paragraph and the next one so don’t read on if you haven’t read the series yet. As this is a romance series the final pairing is quite important after all so you don’t want to know about this before the right time is here right? Okay so here goes. Ranmaru ends up with Soh. Now to go into more detail on this, Ranmaru moved in with his cousin Soh and her folks as the series begins but he wasn’t always around there. Japan also treats that dynamic a little differently but either way it is the worst possible ship you could go with. I don’t care if they’re 5 times removed, it’s still a bad look. Even in series where they aren’t related but lived together for a while as a pseudo family like in Attack on Titan I tend to vent on that because it’s not a good relationship.

If you’re family or treated as family then that’s a no go. Do not pass start, don’t collect your reward. It’s just a non starter right from the jump and it felt like the series needed some rebound for Ranmaru since he was doomed with the main heroine due to how timid he was the whole time. This wasn’t the answer though and it was such a bizarre ending. A bad ending is one that you remember forever and so unfortunately this is now the legacy of the series. I don’t see how it can really come back from this and of course it hurt with the score for me as well. Definitely one of the weaker endings I’ve read in a bit. It’s no Attack on Titan of course but definitely a weak ending either way.

The art here is okay but not great. I remember having a hard time keeping character straight at some points and anytime I can mix up any characters (Unless there’s a narrative reason for that) I always take it out on the art. It can also get a little cluttered during some of the set pieces and design moments. It’s not bad but the art is below the average of what you tend to see from the Shojo titles for me. Maybe if the series went on longer that would have helped the artist clear things up but as it stands I wasn’t impressed.

We get a lot of good inspirational quotes and moments in the series as Ryuji tries to help Ranmaru stand strong. Part of Ranmaru’s character arc is about getting braver on his own as opposed to waiting for someone else to help him. I thought this was sound, you won’t always have someone out there to back you up. That being said, you absolutely can and should seek out advice and use any available resources to get past your fears but the final decision will be on you. Ryuji may be a tough character but he never held back on the advice and his tough love approach worked really well with Ranmaru. He would also let the kid have a break when he needed it and gave him space during the tough times.

In a way what this series lacked was more humor. I mean there are jokes and such as this is a fairly light hearted series but for the most part I would rarely find it funny. I liked the faces that Soh and Ranmaru would make when they were being timid as the author gave them really great facial expressions but that was it. Those visual humor moments were really the extent of what the series would throw at you. You had the really strict member of the movie club who had his dynamic with Ryuji and such but those scenes wouldn’t typically land as being quite as funny. As a result this series goes through the motions and is reasonable about it but I find that being funny can help a series and its replay value immensely. Every time you laugh or crack a smile is when the series has just risen up even if just a little more for you. It’s no surprise that all of the best romance titles are the ones that are part comedy like Nisekoi and Kaguya Sama. It just makes sense because when you laugh with the characters it is another way of truly connecting with them and so you naturally get more invested in the journey.

Overall, Behind the Scenes!! lives up to its name as sticking behind the scenes with the crew for the most part. This worked really well and it is part of what made the series solid in that area. It’s really just the romance that holds the series back but since that’s a major part of the series it is not something that’s easy to ignore. A sub par ending just doesn’t help matters at all and this has no real replay value. Without a lot of humor to stick up for the series or some grand climax, it will be lost in the wave of Shojo titles and can be safely skipped. I’d be interested to see another series try to tackle this angle. It’s probably not one that most should try for as it is more limited in how many fun situations you can craft around it but at the same time for a non action title, what really matters are the characters and interactions. You can make any backdrop work with good enough writing.

Overall 5/10

Cardfight!! Vanguard G: The Prologue Review

Posted on January 7, 2023 by dreager1

Cardfight Vanguard is one of the greatest franchises of all time without a doubt. It always delivers on amazing duels and constant moments of hype and amazement that you just would not have seen coming. The series is just built different and it’s cool that it got a fun little prologue story like this. It’s a bit of an AU as things happen differently than in the main series but it’s fun to see Chrono return for the G part of the series. We get 2 duels here within the 5 chapters which is a pretty good mix I’d say.

The series starts off with Chrono scaring off some bullies who were picking on a weak cardfighter. He is always defending the weak but doesn’t really know what to do with himself. Well that changes when he finds a deck in his locker. He figures that he can sell this for good money and then take the world by storm but he is confronted by the store’s assistant Kamui who insists on dueling Chrono first. Just tossing out the deck would be a waste and his boss Shin also agrees. Chrono will have to fight hard to get past these two veterans. The man called Shin also seems very suspicious with how much he knows about Chrono. Playing these duels may end up teaching Chrono more about his past so that’s another good incentive to this fight now. Fight hard Chrono!

The chapters are all fairly short so I can only imagine that this was a very small volume even once it was released physically. Hopefully you could buy it at a discounted price and then it would definitely be a really good pick-up here. The art is solid and it captures all of the characters that you know very well. The character proportions are on point without a doubt. The action scenes are good and it’s all very clear so you couldn’t ask for much more from the series. A good amount of effort was put in and this could have been really fun as a long ongoing as well. You can never have too much fun with more and more Cardfight spinoffs coming out after all. This could have been another long one to add to the list.

As the main character Chrono is pretty good here. Unlike his main version he actually doesn’t come close to giving up or forfeiting this time. That’s a weakness that he has in the main series as well as the anime but in this prologue he fights all of his matches all the way to the end. That’s exactly how it should be for an up and coming duelist. You have to take the losses along with the wins. Chrono is a very solid character as a result and he fights really hard considering that he’s just getting started. He’s certainly ahead of the curve.

Kamui’s role isn’t super big but he was always a main character in G so it’s fitting that he got his own duel here. As one of the originals I would always expect him to absolutely crush Chrono though. I know Cardfight is set up in a way where the matches will almost always appear to be close but at least you definitely shouldn’t have any doubts about who will ultimately end up winning the match. Then we have Shin who is a lot more mysterious looking than usual. What I liked here is that Shin acts a little more like himself from the prequel anime. I believe this pre dates that one but it’s just nice to have him as a very serious adversary and cardfighter as opposed to being a washed up storeowner who can’t fight anymore.

Shin’s portrayal here is good and he actually does remember the good ole days. His deck was solid and he helps Chrono to pass his limits which is certainly a big deal. He works really well as a final boss in a prequel as he gives Chrono just enough info to get him interested in the game while also maintaining the mystery that this is only the tip of the iceberg. Chrono will still have a lot to look forward to and so you have cameos from characters like Ibuki and Tokoha who are around.

There isn’t a whole lot to say though because even if you merge all 5 chapters of the series it’s barely longer than one of those big One Punch Man chapters. It’s a very quick read that it just here to get you to see a fun pair of cardfights. Fortunately that’s all that I need in order to have a good time. The duels are good fun with a solid amount of detail put into them. They explain enough of the rules to where you should be able to follow along. They don’t bother to explain some of the more intense rules like stride riding but you can just figure that it’s a really impressive move.

At his best Aichi always does tend to beat Chrono for me but Chrono starts out stronger and this manga really shows why. He is already able to stand up for himself right from the start and he is quick on the uptake. It took Aichi quite a while to really believe in himself and that’s just not a problem that Chrono has. This prologue really gets you interested in re watching some of those classic G battles.

Overall, As a prologue I would say the goal of the manga should be to try and get some new fans into the franchise. With that in mind I would say this succeeds as it gives you a lot of reasons to come and check out the show real quick. You see enough interesting characters in the background and cool dueling mechanics to make you want a little more. With that in mind you should definitely check this one out. It really has no issues and it’s not like it’ll take you very long to read it either. It’s just two quick duels and you’ll get a flavor for what the franchise is like.

Overall 7/10

Phantom Seer Review

Posted on January 5, 2023 by dreager1

Phantom Seer is a manga that may have ended early but it certainly still got a whole lot of traction. You would recognize the cover art anywhere and it did get people talking. It succeeds well as a fun supernatural title and it’s a shame that it had to end so soon. The main cast was rather solid and in particular they did a good job of giving the main heroine abilities that were not just supportive but also physical powers to get there in the frontlines. It’s a well written title and I’d still recommend checking it out.

We kick things off with Riku, an ordinary schoolgirl except for the fact that she has a 6th sense for danger. If there is danger approaching then she will know about it in a vague spider-sense kind of way and will try to help people out. She really likes helping people and will actively go around to accomplish that while others would be more passive. She’s a big contrast to Iori, a mysterious guy who is said to be able to talk to spirits. He tends to just be by himself in a dark room and people rarely notice him. Their fates get intertwined as Riku nearly loses her life to an evil spirit.

Basically her 6th sense is a double edged sword as it attracts monsters and bad luck to those around her. Iori is sort of an exorcist by trade and his sister Yayoi orders him to help Riku out until she can either master her powers or they get the spirits away. The issue is that Iori just wants to be a normal guy. He doesn’t want to deal with any of this but he is rather intimidated by his sister so reluctantly he helps out. Additionally he isn’t quite as cold as he tries to make himself appear. That said, there is a reason why he is so aloof and wants to be normal. Iori is a bit of a living contradiction as well as there is one monster he wants to slay before he becomes completely normal so in a way he should still be practicing hard but doesn’t want to do that.

It’s a pretty solid pre arc as we slowly start to learn more about the characters. I’d say that once we learn more about Iori’s past and meet the monster is really when things start to go into high gear though. Additionally there’s a fire character we get towards the end of the series who is a blast. The manga’s strongest aspect is absolutely the character roster because they’re all fairly solid which is still hard to do. I would consider this to be a stronger cast than even some bigger Jump titles.

Riku has no hesitation in trying to be a good person. She does her best to help out everyone around her and when Riku learns that her own powers put people in danger then she works hard on surpassing that. She is constantly working to improve herself and even gets her own Shonen training arcs. Riku never takes a backseat here and just feels like a true Shonen lead the whole time. Her water presence/divination type abilities were also unique both visually and in how they work. Basically she can summon barriers that destroy anything they come into contact with along with basic healing abilities and blasts of holy water that can damage foes. The more the series goes the more she is able to master these abilities and use them in a whole variety of ways.

Phantom Seer actually sets up its own power system which may feel similar in some areas to Muhyo and Roji with the summoning but goes a step further since other characters have their own style of fighting. Maybe calling it a cross between that and FMA would be the best way to describe it. Iori can control shadows and turn them into solid weapons which is definitely really useful. He can also summon monsters but fighting up close is definitely his specialty. This makes for a lot of great visuals as you’d expect.

Iori starts out a bit rough with how he just really doesn’t want to help. If not for Yayoi forcing him a lot of the time he would really just take the easy way out and mind his business. Yes by the end he is definitely a lot more selfless and someone you can rely on, but how much of that is because of his revenge or true character development can be hard to see. If the series had gone on longer we could have seen more of him as a hero with his newfound goals. This is a series where the side characters tend to outshine him for sure but he’s still good.

Later on in the series we get another powerful ally in Tsumuji, but unfortunately she doesn’t get a ton to do before the series. She’s part monster so she has actual abilities and gives us a fairly solid mini arc in dealing with an evil counselor villain. It’s always rough being part monster since that opens you up to a few new weaknesses like being mind controlled and manipulated but ultimately she is someone you can count on when there is nobody at the controls. Perhaps she is more of a villain at the start since things almost got dicey for Riku but in general I tend to like Tsumuji’s character type.

She’s very outgoing and will just go for whatever she wants. No beating around the bush or hiding, she just goes for it. Meanwhile the villain was one of the more petty ones in Kanzaki though. He’s just your average creep who wants to wreck lives pretty much just for the fun of it. He doesn’t exactly have great aspirations beyond testing the limits of his chimera type creations and without any human shields he would go down really quick.

Before going back to the villains we also have Yayoi as an ally. In fact she is considered to be one of the strongest exorcists in history which is really impressive. Whenever characters talk about her it is always with a whole lot of due respect and reverence. I would have liked to have seen her fight a bit more though. I feel like the series was hinting that something may have happened which is reducing her powers or maybe she’s using a lot to seal something off screen but there was something off here. She is so powerful and yet she almost never aids the heroes in fighting. I’m sure she would have been the focus of a really great arc in the future.

Yojiro is an ally who basically lets the heroes know if monsters are near or quests to take. I like how he’s very chill about this though. He will just casually be walking into a villain’s lair with the group even though deep down he knows he’s not the most powerful fighter or anything like that. He’s just not scared and is content to live at a rather casual pace which is admirable. I like that he isn’t worried or anything like that. He doesn’t get as much to do as you’d expect considering how early he appears in the series but he’s fun to have around.

Kenma is more of the true rival of the series. He doesn’t like how Iori handles things (And you can’t really blame him) since the kid doesn’t want to work hard and never trains. Kenma does things by the book and you can bet that he has been training a whole lot. The whole thing has to be super annoying for him because no matter how hard he trains, he can never catch up to Iori in power. Sure, he can get strong on his own and has some really loyal tengu type creatures but he just has more limits. At the end of the day they’re still friends but Kenma just wants to push him farther.

Now for the best character in the series, Kurose. This guy is always cool, calm and collected. He can be a bit of a flirt but he’s not obnoxious about it the way most characters are. His flame abilities are cool and there’s even a full bonus chapter with him teaming up with Yayoi. You get the feeling that nobody else would be able to keep up like that. His powers are very impressive and he feels like a pro. The perfect guy to watch over the heroes while they are still learning the ropes. Without him they definitely would have been in some real trouble on quite a few occasions. I’m not surprised that he’s so high as fire characters tend to be great.

Senjudoji is the big master villain here. She’s ultimately the one behind the tragedy that really put Iori in a bad space mentally. She goes after all people who have a 6th sense ability like Riku. They are called Beckoning Hands and she even took down Iori’s old friend Yukizuki. So their fights are super personal to be sure but the frustrating thing for Iori is that she really is quite powerful. A simple rage boost would not be nearly enough to take her down. She’s just in a completely different league.

Maybe if he had been training….then he’d be in a better spot. It’s still my main complaint against his character because if you want to avenge your friend and fight the big fight then you have to train. I don’t care how powerful his strongest shadows are, they just won’t be enough against someone like this. There is a really great subversion towards the end of their fight as Iori is consumed with rage and getting wrecked which was handled really well. It makes Iori look better s a fighter at least because he thought things through with the twist but it doesn’t take away from the fact that he really should have trained. Senjudoji definitely makes for a very impressive villain though. She has a ton of tricks up her sleeve and is quite strategic. She hasn’t lasted this long for no reason after all.

Then we get the Dollmaster Amelia, or at least she assumes that role for a while. She’s one of those villains who is very quiet and distinguished the whole time. She acts very polite but all the while she is still as evil as can be. She’s also really powerful as it’s hard to hit her with all the strings and puppets in the way. I was definitely impressed with her combat style and how she goes about it. Then we have the true Dollmaster Reta who is more of a kid so she may no seem quite as imposing or intimidating but she can fight really well too. I mean in a way she is stronger as the true one so you have to take that into account.

We also got a new hero for this arc in Kondo. She’s a solid close quarters fighter. She probably debuted a little too late so there isn’t a whole lot of time for her to do much but she did well with the time that she had. I think she would have added a lot to the dynamic if she had just gotten to keep on appearing a little more. If the series ever returns she would be in a great spot there. Likewise Yukizuki doesn’t appear much but as a character who was dead prior to the series beginning that definitely makes sense. She seemed like a likable character though.

The series gets a whole lot of credit for the artwork. It’s really very impressive with a whole lot of memorable moments and it’s all super clear. I had a tough time even choosing which images to use for that reason. There are a lot that just pop out at you. I was also on the fence about the horror image because it is really intense but it does a good job of showing some of the horror visuals you can come across here. That scene was probably the darkest moment in the whole series. That character was basically forced to do the villain’s bidding since the villain was already inside her. It’s like she was dead but still alive and the more you think about it, the more disturbing it gets.

Phantom Seer isn’t afraid to get a little violent and dark like that as it goes on. I wouldn’t say it crosses the envelope but it’s not quite as light as the average Jump title. The villains definitely aren’t messing around here with how much they loathe the humans. It’s too bad that we didn’t get to see two members of the villain group fight though. We got a big splash page with all of them appearing but then the rest of the series only focused on the puppet master so there was no room for them. At least because of that the puppet master fight wasn’t rushed which is good so you could really enjoy that as a main arc.

Usually I talk about what I would have done to try and keep the series from being cancelled but it’s tough here because I can’t think of any real errors it made. The series had a very clear goal and developed all of the characters really well to get there. I wouldn’t really change anything. I guess for some minor stuff you could make the fire guy appear earlier, maybe make Iori a bit more heroic but they’re not the kinds of things that would help you avoid the series end axe. So it just got a bad shake and that happens sometimes.

The author does a good job of still making the ending feel like a real finale though. Sure there are definitely a lot of plot threads still going on but at least this big fight is done and the characters have learned a whole lot so that still works in that sense. It’s a satisfying journey all the way through with a lot of great action and story beats throughout. There may be a lot of titles with evil spirits and exorcism but I’d say that the series differentiated itself well enough. It also kept most of the characters at a fairly even power level which is always tricky to do. So a lot of characters would still be relevant for the next fights.

It’s also nice because then you can still have a lot of fun banter with all of the characters as they get to follow along to each adventure. Riku’s friend from school gets completely written out after chapter 1 but otherwise everyone else still sticks around. The series is very disciplined as it avoids any real fanservice and you can see that it’s a series that is confident that it can hold its own without relying on any cheap tricks like that. I’ve definitely got a lot of respect for a title like this. With the cast slowly growing more and more with new fighters it also felt like the author really wanted to expand the universe into something big which is the tragic part here. It was a slow burner just enough to know the characters well while being fast enough that something big happened in each chapter. I guess lasting to 30 chapters is still better than a lot of the cancelled manga nowadays though.

Overall, Phantom Seer is a really solid action/horror series to check out. It definitely becomes more action oriented as the series goes on but the artist never holds back with the big horror splash pages. Those always spook you as much as possible. It’s a fairly short read at around 30 chapters so you can definitely blast through this series and see what you think. Who knows with how things get revived from time to time maybe there will come a day where this one can make a comeback.

Overall 7/10

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