Nothing can keep Excel down! Except, you know, herself….
Creative Staff
Story/Art: Rikdo Koshi
Translation: Kyoko Kondo
Adaptation: Carl Gustav Horn
What They Say
Is the Il Palazzo commanding ACROSS real or fake, and what does that mean, exactly? The original reunited team of Excel, Hyatt and Elgala stand before the throne of their lord—only for Excel to perform a blasphemous gesture of disloyalty, and for Il Palazzo to issue the most shocking order Excel could ever imagine! As Shiouji comes to realize the truth about both his father and his mother, Matsuya is ready to make a decision that will open the forbidden door at last. Warning: you have been misled!
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
This is it, the grand reveal that many an Excel Saga fan saw coming. Or guessed at during the darkest hours of the night. Okay, I don’t imagine many people were deeply considering the weirdness at work behind the scenes here. Shiouji’s family proves to be the most mad of scientist families, and indeed his mother isn’t as she seems, in more ways than one!
Matsuya and the gang are finally released from the base, only for them to turn back out of some misplaced sense of duty. Sure, Watanabe goes back for Hyatt, Sumiyoshi for a robot girl, and Matsuya… reluctantly for Iwata. What it really comes down to is them wanting to see this out to the end. Umi is there too, trying to help out her friend ‘Teriha.’
However, before we can get to the good stuff, prepare for pages upon pages of the vaguest dialog to ever grace this series. Remember all those frustrating moments in previous volumes where characters would say things like “that man” or “it couldn’t be…” and just trail off? More than half of this volume continues that grand tradition, and considering the fact that we’re in the second to last volume, I could almost scream.
Despite the absurd heights the series reaches to keep secrets from it’s readers, I can’t deduct points for it. Not when there are such amazing points of brilliance scattered about in between the explosive final battles between robot women. Moments like Excel inelegantly breaking Hyatt out of a tank, and Elgala swinging around Excel like a rag doll.
Yes, there are many discussions about cores and the difference between real and fake cores, different models of robots, and a son attempting to surpassing his father. Still unsure of what has been going on? Don’t worry! Elgala doesn’t have a clue either! Thankfully our lead character steps up to save us from this cycle of torment.
Excel enters the action in the most glorious, self affirming, double-paged Excel moments of the series. Returned to her body she needs only fleshy fists to beat down her adversaries and subordinates alike. She also, true to form, puts on her puffy-shouldered jacket and shorts because the bodysuit is too immodest for Excel’s taste. I’m happy to report that yes, Excel is truly back to her old self.
Well, at least for a few moments. One wrong line from the impostor Il Palazzo is enough to trigger Excel to confront her leader. Yet, even Excel is powerless to follow through with her threat when she doesn’t know why her lord abandoned them. Luckily, Excel has a few… friends… to snap her out of it. Or try to. And when that fails they drag her along anyway. With everyone gathered in the same place, attempting the same goal, you know that the end has arrived.
And that end is whatever is behind a locked door in the ACROSS base that only Excel can open.
In Summary
What’s behind door number 1!? That’s question that the few, the proud, the Excel Saga fans want to know! It’s been a long, strange, often obtuse trip to get to here. Excel, prone as she is at the end of this volume, has finally returned to her original form. Il Palazzo, however, is still MIA. Will the heroines of Excel Saga save the world, or destroy it? Is the ultimate evil behind the locked door? Il Palazzo’s soul? A doomsday device? The truth awaits us, hopefully, in the final volume. This is going to be the longest six months in the history of manga, or at the very least the history of series.
Content Grade: A –
Art Grade: A
Packaging Grade: B
Text/Translation Grade: A +
Age Rating: 17+
Released By: Viz Media
Release Date: August 13th, 2013
MSRP: $9.99
1 thought on “Excel Saga Vol. #26 Manga Review”