How will Tsukune react when his harem gets a little more masculine?
Creative Staff
Story/Art: Akihisa Ikeda
Translation: Kaori Inoue
English Adaptation: Gerard Jones
What They Say:
When a supernatural clan of gangsters makes you an offer you can’t refuse…
A. Refuse.
B. Gang up on them.
C. Take the Rosario (off).
Content:
Having returned from the beach trip, Tsukune finds himself thinking about his future, and more specifically who he will spend it with. However, he doesn’t get to think such thoughts for long before being rudely interrupted by a giant panda. The panda’s owner, a rather effeminate young man, appears before Tsukune and abruptly asks Tsukune to become “part of his family.” Fearing his manliness has finally started attracting the wrong gender, our hero quickly flees. Fortunately (or perhaps unfortunately) for Tsukune, it turns out that this freshman is the heir to a Chinese mafia clan named Fangfang Huang who wants Tsukune as his underling. After (somewhat) failing to sell the group on the concept of polygamy, Fangfang results to force and challenges Tsukune to a duel. With his powers as a yasha, allowing him to summon various creatures, Fangfang seems to be capable of putting up quite a fight. Unfortunately for everyone involved, however, Fangfang soon summons a powerful phoenix and loses control of it. With their combined powers, Tsukune and Moka are able to put the almighty beast down, putting a temporary stop to Fangfang’s ambitions.
In the next chapter, Fangfang continues his assault during the school festival. His sister Lingling, an undead Jiang Shi, appears to lend a hand, causing things to truly spiral out of control. With her army of Jaing Shi and a ref who happens to look the other way on exciting things, Lingling is able to quickly take control, putting our heroes in quite a pinch. Just when things look their worst, the girls’ mothers appear to offer support from the crowd, evening the playing field. When things come down to the final battle, Inner Moka finally comes out, putting a stop to Fangfang and Lingling’s plan.
Afterwards, we’re treated to a rather goofy chapter in which Fangfang and Yukari switch places in a freak accident. Antics ensue, and along the way Yukari learns to overcome the fears and doubts she has been having. In the final chapter, Inner Moka decides to switch places with Outer Moka for an entire day. At first, Inner Moka appears to be every bit as perfect at everything else as she is in battle, but her Achilles’ heel soon rears its ugly head; she has no idea how to cook. Fortunately, Tsukune’s kindly helps her cheer up. As the volume closes, we learn from Fangfang that the seal on the Rosario is beginning to break down.
In Summary:
While it may not live up to the fantastic previous volume, there’s still plenty to love in this book. The new characters introduced here are fun little pair that stand out well from the rest of the cast, and prove that the author still has plenty of interesting monsters left to draw inspiration from. Add in a little character development for Yukari and, shockingly enough, Inner Moka, and you have a solid volume. While it may be mostly silly fluff on display here, the ending of the book hints at a rather significant change in store for our heroes. For now, this book provides a nice little rest from the more serious tone of recent volumes.
Content Grade: B+
Art Grade: A-
Package Rating: A-
Text/Translation Rating: B
Readers Rating: [ratings]
Age Rating: 13+
Released by: Viz Media
Release Date: October 4th, 2011
MSRP: $9.99
