Now that Keita knows the truth about humans and Mototsumitama, can he deny the logic of Reishin’s plan? Is Reishin really so evil?
Creative Staff
Story: Dall-Young Lim
Art: Sung-Woo Park
Translation/Adaptation: Christine Dashiell
What They Say
Kuro and Keita’s glimpse into the past has left them with more questions than answers. Their path clouded with uncertainty, the partners seek another audience with Ghost to gain a better understanding of what they have seen and what lies ahead. If it is indeed true that humans and Mototsumitama exist outside the will of Tera, then perhaps Reishin Shishigami’s end goal is starting to make its own kind of sense…But does the will of Tera truly demand such a high price from humanity?
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
With Keita’s help, Kuro not only pulls through her illness inflicted by her Battle Gene, but they also unlock her hidden memory of how humans and Mototsumitama interacted early in their history; a history which complicates things for Keita. Kuro doesn’t care what happened in the distant past, all she cares about is killing her brother and achieving her revenge for the death of her clan. But now that Keita knows the true history of the world and what the Doppleliner system is, he needs more answers about why Reishin is trying to rule over all the Mototsumitama.
Their only connection to Reishin is one of his generals, Ghost. I don’t think they should trust Ghost, because what would he have to gain by going against Reishin? Regardless, Ghost is the only person willing to talk to them, whether he speaks the truth or not. Kuro isn’t so happy about seeking counsel from Ghost, but she eventually agrees. Once the three of the sit down together, Ghost finally describes Reishin’s full plan to change the world forever. No one can deny that Reishin’s plan is logical, and will possible save the planet, or at least alleviate some of the pressure humans are placing on it. But, Reishin’s logical plan comes with a terrible price, and there is no guarantee his plan will actually work and not accidentally kill all the humans on Earth.
Whether or not Keita decides to continue as Kuro’s partner and try and stop Reishin, remains to be seen. However, we finally get a glimpse of the true plan Reishin is trying to initiate. In addition, Akane’s doppleliner finally makes another appearance and gives us a glimpse of what she is planning and how she hopes to avoid her own fated death since Akane is the root. All good stuff that should come to an explosive conclusion in the next and final volume of what has been a great series.
In Summary
Yen Press is doing a great job with the production of this series as it nears its completion. This volume has numerous color pages in the front and more at the beginning of the last chapter in this book. It is a nice touch and appreciated by fans. I also enjoyed the addition of a summary of all the volumes in the series leading up to this volume. It was nice to read the summary of all the books and relive Keita and Kuro’s main adventures before reading the next and final volume.
With only one more volume after this book, I’m looking forward to it but also saddened that the series will be finishing. ‘Black God’ has great art, and the main character has developed from a jerk kid living off the kindness of his childhood friend, to a good guy that cares about those around him and someone that can be counted on. That level of character development is always appreciated and fun to see when done right. I’m really looking forward to the next volume and seeing how the series will wrap up.
Content Grade: B+
Art Grade: A
Packaging Grade: A++
Text/Translation Grade: B+
Age Rating: 16+
Released By: Yen Press
Release Date: January 22nd, 2013
MSRP: $12.99
