Are prophecies that are manipulated for a specific end still prophecies?
Creative Staff
Story/Art: Yoshinobu Yamada
Translation/Adaptation: Sebastian Giner
What They Say
Akira and the gang meet another group led by “Clairvoyant Mami,” someone made famous by TV and magazines, who claims to be able to predict the future. Mami predicts Akira’s death, but Mariya catches her in a lie. However, Mami also sees a vision in which a crocodile kills them all – and her group is really killed by one. Akira is barely able to save Mami… but does that mean her prediction of his death could still come true?
Content: (please note that content portions of review may contain spoilers):
Mami finds herself in some real danger as her vision of death for the manager starts the cycle of those who have been manipulating her prophecies to their own ends onto the path of thinking it may just be time for the girl to meet with an end of her own that she didn’t see coming. Sengoku and Mariya meanwhile have discovered just who has been using Mami’s predictions for their own gain and have decided to try to put a stop to it themselves- but when Mami’s latest prediction seems to be coming true will the perpetrators pay the ultimate price and will Mami’s vision of her own demise be fulfilled?
With their previous safe ground now destroyed the survivors will have to try to find a new place where they can rest even temporarily and it seems that the imminent threats of danger haven’t caused all the boys to grow up just yet as some of their number decide that having a popularity poll of the girls is a good way to pass the time. Unfortunately this little act is discovered and so the girls also have a similar poll in order to get back at the boys and while this act might usually be the kind of thing that hurts feelings and self esteem in a common setting, in a world where death waits ready to pounce behind every blade of grass (and may be some blades of grass as well) the act of having people pause to think of who they want may prove to be a tool that pushes a few into making some incredibly bad decisions as well as contemplating how to take advantage of the situation to get the person they want. Even when surrounded by so many ways to die the most lethal creature may still turn out to be man.
Probably the most interesting thing about Cage of Eden (even beating out its amazing creatures) is what kind of light that gets shone on the cast that are encountered throughout the series and this current volume is no exception. The volume really hits its high notes as the author plays with the idea of fate and premonitions as he uses a rather sympathetic instrument to start the question and surrounds her with some rather horrible and greedy people who have decided to use what she see to their advantage, but once some of Mami’s visions start coming true without manipulation the question of if she also is going to meet a bloody end allows for the author to play with the idea of inevitability and it provides a fair amount of entertainment, even if his answer isn’t all that novel when looked at as a whole. Still this arc with its dangers immediate and foreseen creates the real strength of this volume as it plays out its workings.
Not quite as strong however is the next half of the book where the transition from just escaping with their lives turns into a popularity poll with a seemingly sparse amount of time between the two. For some reason the idea leaping right into this idea as the next arc just feels rushed, like it might not have been better for it to have taken place with a greater (seeming) time in between the latest brush with death before jumping into something both a bit more light hearted in terms of the poll as well as obnoxious behavior from the male cast. While this transition may seem like a bit of lemons, it is saved and turned into lemonade by the author being able to move past this rather inelegant pivot as he gets the chance to take apart some of the members of the group even further as they have to deal with some of their feelings- physical and emotional- and some decide they have to choose to act now to express themselves before they are beaten to the punch while one member already knows he is beaten and so he decides that elimination is the way to go.
These moments where some characters have to deal with the discrepancies of their actions and words while others have to decide what to do with their emotions puts the series back onto a firm footing as it is at its best when dealing with its human characters and their strengths and failings as it explores just what it is about one person that gives them the strength to try to rise above their limitations while others give into their desires and try to exploit others and it remains an entertaining and thoughtful work because of that.
In Summary
When the prophecy of death is in the air will it turn out that those who have been causing the predictions to come true will have a new target or will it be that they merely have been the instrument of fate and thus also doomed to become victims when the wheel of destiny turns to them? And when the boys indulge in some of the more common pursuits of those their age, will what they think of as a simple game turn out to be the crux of a brand new and deadly danger from within for some of the surviving group members? With its amazing art work and ability to turn a critical eye on some of humanities best and worst aspects Cage of Eden continues to show why it deserves serious consideration on any manga fan’s bookshelf.
Content Grade: B+
Art Grade: A-
Packaging Grade: A
Text/Translation Grade: B+
Age Rating: 13+
Released By: Kodansha Comics
Release Date: February 19th, 2013
MSRP: $10.99
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