Not so isolated after all.
What They Say:
Having successfully helped destroy two of the evil Ruby Eyes, Minoru, the Isolator, is recruited by the Syndicate, a secret organization dedicated to their eradication. He teams up with Suu Komura, the Refractor, a young girl said to be the Syndicate’s most powerful member, to attack a secret stronghold of the Ruby Eyes. Their target is the most fearsome opponent they’ve ever faced: the Liquidizer, but their enemy is not what they expected…
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
From the start, it seems like The Isolator Volume 3: The Trancer will be cut and paste just like the previous two novels in the series, and you’d be completely wrong. But before continuing, this being our first review of the newest novel series from the Reki Kawahara, creator of Sword Art Online and Accel World, let’s get up to speed on what it’s all about. The Isolator is less action-y and story-driven than Sword Art Online for instance, instead, taking things very slowly and focusing deeply on the characters, especially main character Minoru. Minoru lives in an alternate universe of our own where just recently these alien-like gems have fallen from the sky and inhabited several different people in Japan.
These so-called “third eyes” grant the user superpowers unique to them, in addition to universal enhanced strength and restoration. Of the third eyes, there are two variants: Jet and Ruby Eyes. These two groups are destined to kill each other, as they are alerted when the other uses their powers. Also, the Ruby Eyes are pumped up with feelings of hatred, anger, etc from their new possibly parasitic friend that typically results in murder and various crimes with no guilt or remorse. Minoru is one such Jet Eye-user codenamed “The Isolator”, who has teamed up with various other Jets to defeat the Ruby Eyes before they harm more people.
With all of that out of the way, let’s jump into Volume 3: The Trancer. At the start, we are treated to a nice prologue story that was not in the original web version of The Isolator series, detailing Isolator and his partner Yumiko or Accelerator on a mission into the radioactive remains of a nuclear reactor, resembling the real-world disaster in Fukushima in 2011. This short story is nice, introducing us to some a organization and intriguing side character that I won’t spoil for you guys. While the story ultimately doesn’t go anywhere, we will have to wait and see what the new characters bring to the table in later volumes.
Past the short story, we have the main event; one you do not want to miss. Volume 3 is by far the best in the series, and honestly, where the story finally gets going. Hot off the heels of defeating two Ruby Eyes, Minoru seems to be reaching the peak of his powers before getting a rude awakening that there is more to this world than meets the eye. Though the story does its signature style of switching perspectives occasionally to the new villain Trancer. Because of this, the story suffers for about two thirds due to seemingly being exactly the same as the first two books. It follows the same beat-for-beat formula you’ve already read before. This is a major flaw and hurdle, but if you are able to get past it, you are in for some major changes and an exciting new direction for the series. Until you get there, it is good that it does help there is one new main character introduced that helps move everything forward. Codenamed Refractor, her power and personality is certainly more interesting than anyone else thus far in the cast. Her bond with Minoru is far more real and less cliché than with Refractor, so it helps that the book gives her a huge amount of time.
On the other hand, Trancer is a sadly underused villain in comparison to the Biter and Igniter in previous entries. This doesn’t mean he’s not a well-written character, as I’d argued he’s the best in that regard but for story reasons, he is vastly overshadowed. Despite this, the final fight with him in the last third of the book is absolutely exhilarating. From beginning to end, it is nonstop, anxiety-inducing action that only gets better and better before ending on a high note and cliffhanger. There are so many standout moments that had me on the edge of my seat reading during the final act. Minoru finally goes from a mostly bland, uninteresting character into someone (as a fan of Kirito) that has a chance of becoming Reki Kawahara’s best protagonist yet. Saying any more would be total spoilers, but if you liked the first two books even a little, it would be a disservice to miss this best entry in the series thus far.
In Summary:
Coming off two okay volumes, Volume 3 of The Isolator brings everything it’s got to the table. Awesome new characters (villains and heroes alike), more depth for old characters, and a nonstop montage of emotional and exhilarating action in the final act make this easily the best in the series yet. While it is unfortunate it took this long to finally get going, the story is now set to move in the right direction, one that I didn’t expect at all. Time will tell if this was just a one-off, but for now, Volume 3 is a must-read as soon as possible for Reki Kawahara fans everywhere.
Content Grade: A+
Art Grade: A-
Packaging Grade: A
Text/Translation Grade: B-
Age Rating: 13+
Released By: Yen On
Release Date: November 22nd, 2016
MSRP: $20.00
