Big battles, little substance
Creative Staff
Story/Art: Etorouji Shiono
Translation: Caleb D. Cook
What They Say
Now that the emperor has fallen, how will the tide of battle turn? Find out in the latest volume of this action-packed series!
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
For the first half of the volume, we’re unfortunately largely stuck with filler and setup. Like, sure Spazz may get to be on the cover here and she’s the first bit of focus, but then she’s struck down pretty damn simply like less than 20 pages in before we just move on. And that’s honestly how the whole first part of the book goes, as there’s certainly plenty of action and things happening… but it’s all so minor, brief, and inconsequential that it’s hard to care. Well, I suppose I shouldn’t call it ALL inconsequential, as stuff like Koinzell and company gathering up the supplies to make new fairytite weapons for everyone kind of matters… but it’s just not all that exciting, to be honest.
Fortunately, though, the back half gets things a bit more on track. I mean, I’m still not exactly sold on all the mass of action in the midst of the war, as it just feels sloppier and less interesting and focused than the fights we got in previous volumes. But aside from that, the plot actually does seem to really be moving again, with Glenn making his big move as a variety of characters get to have some small moments here and there. Most importantly of all, though… we actually get back to the core plot of Koinzell’s revenge, as he ends up clashing with Ischudien! It’s not quite up to such encounters from the past, but it’s still clear that the series really is at its best when it’s tackling this topic, as this is easily the best stuff we’ve gotten in a good while now.
Will Koinzell be able to take down yet another of his old friends, and one he used to respect at that? And even if he does, can he possibly put a stop to Glenn’s massive war effort?
In Summary
So, for the most part, this volume is stuck with some real drag once again, as a lot of pages here just frankly don’t feel like they matter. The action may be vaster in scale, but that lack of focus honestly tends to just make it feel a lot less interesting and unique overall, so instead, we’re just left with plenty of shallow pages of combat. Add to that a whole lot of setup of fairly minor things, and for the first half especially this book just really drags. But with that said, things pick up a bit in the end, and get pretty solid once again once the plot actually truly and properly resumes. Now let’s just hope that momentum can carry onwards into the next volume…
Content Grade: B
Art Grade: A-
Packaging Grade: A-
Text/Translation Grade: B+
Age Rating: Mature
Released By: Yen Press
Release Date: September 18th, 2018
MSRP: $19.99
