The road to hell is paved with good intentions.
Creative Staff
Story/Art: Jun Mochizuki
Translation/Adaptation: Tomo Kimura
What They Say
Oz. Leo. Inescapable tragedy assaults and binds the two. He is no more. That simple truth tears their hearts apart like castles of sand caving in . . . But will history repeat itself when, in the midst of their sorrow, the two are pitted against each other in a struggle that could end in catastrophe?
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
After every battle there must be downtime for the heroes to regroup and find their footing again. Wounds must be mended, courage must be summoned forth. Oz and his friends head out for a day of fun at the market following the bloody events of the last arc of Pandora Hearts.
Oz knows how important it is to try to enjoy every moment. We get a bit of Alice’s perspective on Gil and Oz’s relationship, which is always welcome. There’s some nice bonding in the group, reaffirmation of promises to stick together with a touch of that silliness that used to pervade early chapters of the story.
While Oz, Gil, and Alice head out for their day trip, Sharon tries to rouse Break from his recovery bed pity party. It’s a very sweet scene, and it’s a bit silly watching Sharon try to convince herself that her feelings for Break are platonic. That connection between them turned into something else ages ago.
The good times don’t last very long.
Everything moves at a pace so brisk in this volume that one shocking moment barely has time to impact before another sneaks up from behind. Pandora Hearts has often felt that it’s in a rush to tell it’s story, the same fate that befalls many monthly series. It gives the action a breathless feeling, as if these characters never get a break before the pummeling begins anew.
Leo, Vincent and Echo confront Oz’s group at the market. Loosing Elliot has left Leo even more unstable, but he takes the time to explain his past to Oz before setting the terrifying jabberwock chain on him. What follows is a battle which spans multiple locations and has many fronts. Compounding matters, other forces take that momentary distraction to launch attacks of their own, some of which are shocking betrayals from unlikely sources. One thing about this series, it keeps you on your toes.
I can honestly say I didn’t see the big twist coming. It’s reveal was a complete surprise, and clearly one planned out long ago. It redraws the sides of the conflict and motivations of each party far more than any plot twist which has come before, and that’s quite a feat. There aren’t many more massive dramatic turns the story could possibly take from here. The next volume preview promises it will be the long awaited explanation about what really happened during the Tragedy of Sablier. Then Oz and company will have some difficult decisions to make about… well, everything.
There are the usual translation notes and thank you messages at the end of the volume. The author extra in this volume doesn’t follow the parody route previous have, but instead pokes fun at an art error she made. A bit of lighthearted nonsense to end the volume on.
In Summary
Everything you thought you knew about Pandora Hearts was wrong. Every motivation, every alliance, every truth chased through dark alleys and snatches of memory we’ve encountered didn’t begin to scratch the truth about what has really been happening. And the revelation we’ve all been lied to is glorious. The next volume promises to finally tell the story of Jack and Glen, and the girl who we know as Alice will probably be there as well. It might be awhile before we find out how Oz and his friends will reconcile the past with the present, but in this series of surprises I don’t expect a clear cut solution.
Content Grade: A
Art Grade: A
Packaging Grade: B +
Text/Translation Grade: B +
Age Rating: 16+
Released By: Yen Press
Release Date: June 25th, 2013
MSRP: $11.99
