Eyes of providence!
Creative Staff
Story/Art: Naoe
Translation: Leighann Harvey
What They Say
The high-stakes King Battle heats up as Tachibana faces off against Sameshima using his secret strategy… Toy Gangan! However, he’ll have to contend not only with Sameshima’s former mercenaries but his ultimate ability as well!
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
As the volume kicks off, we rejoin the king match already in progress. This is where the bulk of the volume goes, and fortunately, for the most part, it’s really good. The book does a great job of mixing background in for these characters along with the action, and as a result, I definitely came out of the battle caring about them all a whole lot more than I did coming in, which I’d certainly call as a sign that it did something right. The only real qualm I have is that… well, to put it bluntly, the book sort of jams a pseudo-superpower in here. It’s one of those things where it turns out that Matsuoka can use super observation skills to an insane degree, but at the cost of overtaxing his brain if he uses it too much. It’s not a terrible thing, mind you, but it definitely requires a touch of suspension of disbelief and feels just a touch much for the series.
Then, for the last part of the volume, we rejoin Haruki in his predicament. And while I still really feel like the father should be treated much, much harsher for what he’s done, this section at least works better than it did last time, as we’re treated to less of the protagonists seriously failing their friend. Honestly, for the most part, this section works wonderfully, really capturing how messed up the whole situation is while doing a great deal to flesh out the relationship between the brothers. In fact, the only qualm I have here is that the dad seems to be getting set up for a redemption arc, which he really doesn’t deserve… but that doesn’t happen here and I can’t quite say for certain how exactly how it will play out, so I can’t really judge the scene for that.
Anyway, just what will happen with the rest of the tournament? Will the tension caused by the shadow of Midori cause a real rift to form in Toy Gun Gun? And just what will happen when Nine Tails ends up in a match with Star White?!
In Summary
After some rough spots last time, we fortunately see a serious turnaround with this volume. The main match that takes up most of the page count is great, giving a lot of attention and polish to what were rather minor characters up till now while also providing plenty of action. I have one minor qualm with a plot point here, as it requires a bit of suspension of disbelief, but it most certainly doesn’t drag this down from being a really enjoyable ride. And even when the problematic plot points from last time are picked up again, they actually work here rather well. I’m still concerned with where that bit may be leading, but at the very least what we get here is ultimately very good. Now let’s just hope this momentum continues on into next volume!
Content Grade: A
Art Grade: B+
Packaging Grade: B+
Text/Translation Grade: B+
Age Rating: Older Teen
Released By: Yen Press
Release Date: August 21st, 2018
MSRP: $12.99
