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Reviewed by Lori Henderson The attack brought on by Balgus and his master Art has resulted in poor Hikaru’s kidnapping! The stakes are raised and that means Kouhei must stand up to the challenge. Will unlocking the hidden power within him be enough? And is it worth the cost of fearing the ones he loves? And is it worth buying this manga? I’m still on the fence about this series, and this volume didn’t really help to sway me either way. I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing. Tokyopop keeps trying to hype this manga up to be more of an action title than it really is. About two-thirds of this volume was dedicated to Hazuki and Kouhei’s relationship, with just some fighting in the final chapters. And it wasn’t great fighting at that. Kouhei’s hidden power is to be able to not only see spirits, but to be able to “erase” them. But it is a power that he must take on slowly. So, of course, he conspires with Hazuki to see her, and he nearly loses his mind with fear when he sees her hugely demonic aura. So, he then spends most of the volume, huddled in a corner, trembling and screaming at Hazuki to get away. Hazuki, being the spoiled brat that she is, keeps whining to see Kouhei. When she finally does, she’s rejected by him, making her decide she should just leave. The only real action comes at the end, during the exchange of Hazuki for Haruka, when Kouhei, having finally overcome his fear, comes to the rescue. The battle is really only for Kouhei to show off his new powers, since everyone else is pretty much useless. Even Hazuki, after “kissing” Kouhei, can only evade Art, who is obviously more powerful than her. This is just another lackluster volume from a series that has been rapidly going down hill. The characters have been dulled down, the most interesting ones having been killed off. Hazuki has become downright annoying, especially when she is supposed to be cute or funny. The relationship between Hazuki and Kouhei feels contrived. They look and act more like brother and sister rather than lovers. And the whole mystery about what happened to Kouhei’s mother has been completely forgotten in favor of this “relationship building” plot. I usually don’t mind these kinds of slowdowns in a story, as long as they serve a purpose, and don’t drag down the story. Here though, it has nearly killed the series, losing all the momentum and interest that the first five or so built up. I am really, really hopeful that this is just a transition, and we can get back to a real story. Kouhei’s new powers, and this hope are just enough to get me to check out the next volume, but this series on notice. Things really need to pick up soon, because, if this is the “all-time high” for demons and magical battles, then this series is in real trouble. Interested in writing for MangaLife? We're always looking for talented reviewers and columnists, so drop us a line! Charles Webb Editor-in-Chief, MangaLife.com |
1 September 2010
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