A shocking yet very welcome turnabout in terms of quality
Creative Staff
Story: Takahiro
Art: Kei Toru
Translation: Christine Dashiell
What They Say
The tombs are littered with the captives and corpses of friend and foe alike. The rescue mission has become a bloody massacre as wave after wave of unrelenting Gravekeepers strikes at the elite team. Will the backup’s backup succeed where two other teams have failed!?
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
As the volume opens, we see Akame facing off against a lesser version of the big boss (aka another Anubis person, but this one is a pure berserker), and Guy actually does get back up from his supposed demise. He does at least let the girls go as a result, but honestly he doesn’t get to do much but get his heart literally ripped out for a more thorough and definitive death. Oh, and Akame’s fight kind of ends immediately, which makes it seem kind of pointless. But the big boss pops up right away, making for a two on two, with Green and Jamo also hopping into the fray.
This battle end up being the big one for the volume, and honestly… it’s actually surprisingly well done. The art really has been polishing up bit by bit for a while now, and it’s here that it finally actually hits the necessary level. Rather than the mess we saw in the first volume, the action’s now readable and actually looks pretty good, which is a huge boon for the series. Furthermore, there’s both some nice use of powers and good emotional beats, which is again a big change for the better. It’s not perfect or a particularly amazing fight, but it really is a good one, which is great to see.
Finally, we top this off with a little cameo from Esdeath, followed by a hectic escape from the collapsing tomb. And once more, this is done better than what the series has managed before, proving appropriately hectic, and even providing a great emotional moment before the arc comes to a close. Plus we top things off with a bundle of new plot points that actually seem to be moving things forward, ending things on a hopeful note.
In Summary
It’s not perfect and still has things left to tune up, but I need to give credit where credit is due, as the series really has dragged itself out of a deep, dark ditch with this volume. The big draw here is the final fight in the current arc, and it honestly pulls things together well, with the art, emotional beats, and use of powers really coming together properly. It’s a huge improvement that makes for a solid and enjoyable battle, which is great to see. And on top of that, the aftermath is paced just right, bringing the arc to a proper close that’s far better than the way it started. And hell, there are even some nice little details that make what’s coming up look interesting. I’d still like to see things improve further, but for now, I’d actually say the series is finally worth something, which is great to see. And if this level of quality can be maintained, then maybe it’ll even be worth the slog of the first three volumes to get here.
Content Grade: B+
Art Grade: B
Packaging Grade: B+
Text/Translation Grade: B+
Age Rating: 16+
Released By: Yen Press
Release Date: December 13th, 2016
MSRP: $13.00