David Lim
The oni fights are all pretty intense but that the action scenes themselves are not depicted very well. It's hard to tell what's actually happening. People just die, things get destroyed, and basically it's that massacre with Izumi all over again, except this time it's an alien doing it. Same feeling as back then - it's just crazily over-the-top. And again, seemingly zero reaction from the Japanese authorities beyond a couple of cops. So just as before, suspension of disbelief required to enjoy the action. And a twist happens at the end - witnesses!
We finally take a breather from all the action for some emotional scenes. Multiple team members got to 100 points and they're... giving them to Kurono. It was great to see some of the reunions, but it's also a bit unbelievable that all of them would actually give up being free - especially when Kurono himself chose to do so! That just felt... jarring to me.. The whole thing would have been a lot more satisfying as a mid-series reconciliation but for one single decision from Kurono on who to revive - He chose Nishi over the first girl he molested (and cried for) and the girl he lost his virginity to (and also cried for). That's both stupid and ridiculous. He had zero goodwill for Nishi. And Nishi's supposed "potential knowledge" of what's really going on is an extremely weak excuse for the decision. I can only assume that author intended to use this decision for some sort of future confrontation, but not even suspension of disbelief can excuse this.
This whole volume was meant to evoke tragic sadness and frustrated anger I guess. It... didn't work for me. I was kind of proven right with regards to Tae - she serves as nothing more than a weak point for the awesomeness that is Kurono. I get that a hero needs a weakness, but the way the keep crying out for each other comes across as somewhat annoying. I might have felt more for her if Tae actually had a personality. The better parts of this volume are actually the side stories. I like how Sakurai gets fleshed out with more backstory and that poor kid. It'll be interesting to see what happens to that child in future missions (I hope the kid's not just a setup for another tragic scene). And Izumi... I get his rationale, but I find the lack of responses towards Izumi after the whole thing is over to be quite baffling and irritating - just like that massacre. It's like the moment the mission ends, all is forgiven, which doesn't make sense.
Ok, things are picking up again after a poor run. The new oni aliens are pretty intimidating and the whole mission thing is escalating beyond just a small area. There's a huge number of aliens this time and bystanders and pedestrians are getting caught up in the confrontation. Reika gets her chance to shine, but off-screen for some reason. So Earth is looking at some sort of alien infiltration, which I can get behind, but there's obviously a disconnect to the aliens in the earlier missions. I suspect this infiltration idea wasn't really fleshed out very well yet earlier on, so that's understandable.
I like this volume, but one thing I really dislike though: why are the vampires friendly with the aliens? If they know that the “black suits” also attack aliens, why do the vampires still think of them as “vampire hunters”? The vampire group is such a vague and aimless group that you can just paint them as a different alien species and there would zero impact on the story whatsoever.
Ok, somehow, the author felt like this kind of series needs a love triangle and all the drama that comes with it. It sort of works, I guess, as it's your typical misunderstanding kind of thing. I guess something's supposed to come out of this later. Not a particularly interesting volume. There's a big twist comes towards the end though. Gantz is apparently not some sort of artificial intelligence but there's an actual intelligence behind it, one that's rather sadistic.
As usual, you just can't guess what literary element the author brings in next. After dinosaurs... it's vampires. Well, he has his own take on them and the little story we get on them makes them a little interesting, but things popping out of like, especially the bit about Kurono's brother is just... well, kind of cliché, as it seems like just an obvious setup for a later confrontation. Also, I don't “get” Kurono's love relationship to Tae. Doesn't feel like a good romance. Way too much of the parasitic kind. I feel like she exists only to be Kurono's weak point.
Well, it's great that the series now has dinosaurs and I gotta admit that the action is actually pretty fast-paced and exciting. It felt like kind of a waste not to do more with these aliens - just big dumb (and deadly) animals. There was a scene where it seemed like that was in-fighting among them, but that turned out to be pointless. Kurono at this point develops into your shounen manga hero - basically... he can do anything, as long as he gives himself a pep talk first. It makes for great scenes though, and is likely needed to establish Kurono as the de facto “greatest” among the newly assembled team, so read it with some suspension of disbelief.
Ok... so I guess Gantz is interesting because it just blows away expectations. From a transfer student to a psychopath, from worrying about girlfriend to worrying about girlfriend getting slaughtered (I feel like the whole incident dragged on for too long though - could have been shorter). I guess this is the recurring theme with this manga - things just come out of nowhere and yet they're entertaining nonetheless. And I was right, those new characters that were showcased, yea, pretty much meant for Gantz - the author is setting up a team.
The author actually managed to one-up the gore and slaughter from the temple fight, as the plot intensifies and things start hitting Kurono very close to home, so to speak. Kurono's state of mind is obviously still impacted by what has happened and he's actually slowing becoming a more stand-up guy.
And.... Kurono has a team (well, not yet, but it's definitely coming), a new vehicle of some sort, plus a new girl (you know what that means). Gantz finally sends them on another mission - and... it's dinosaurs this time. There's a panda too, who seems to function in the same capacity to Izumi as the dog did to Kishimoto (I don't recall what happened to the dog...). On Izumi, it's kind of dissatisfying that he's seems like he's going to get away with what he did.
As a side note, from the previous two volumes, I think the story holds up well enough, from without needing the T&A pandering, but well, probably something the author just wanted to include.
Finally, things slow down and it almost falls into a slice-of-life pace. It's kind of ok to finally get to see Kurono as an actual student. The girlfriend part is again pretty sudden and out of nowhere, with no build-up at all, just like how Kurono lost his virginity. And things suddenly jump to another student with budding psychic powers. It almost felt like a different manga, but I think it's pretty obvious this is a setup of just what's going to happen to this new student. It's pretty formulaic with the way the author keeps just adding new themes/elements with no build-up but oddly enough, it's still fairly enticing to just keep reading rather than going all eyeball-rolling.
Well, I certainly didn't expect the way the temple fight ended. The final boss alien is finally something that resembles a more “traditional-looking” alien. And it's so much better than the changes that the anime made to the temple fight - the changes didn't even make for a satisfactory conclusion. Watch the first season, then just switch to the manga.
Poor Kurono (side note: the point system feels completely arbitrary). Before he really gets over what has happened, he gets dumped into the next mission, with a huge disadvantage. That Gantz ball is basically screwing with him.
I think I figured out why I keep reading - there's just no end to the absurdities the author throws at his readers! It's so out there that I just can't help but be entertained by the ridiculousness of it. We finally get a second female, who's basically a pony-tailed copy of the first female, except that she's actually way, way more, err... accepting of Kurono. I think it's just meant to serve as some sort of emotional setup for Kurono? But anyway, the third mission is pretty irreverent, considering the aliens are basically the statues that you'd find in Buddhist temples.
The usual assortment of strangers show up, but there are greater numbers this time. The funny thing is that there's one guy (a newcomer no less) who is actually effective (as opposed to sheer luck and ambush shots) with the advanced weaponry that they've been given. I guess the kids are just not that smart? I mean, why wouldn't they take the equipment home and actually practice with them... but of course, that would spoil their sudden bouts of realisations of “I can do this!” - which... is actually quite fun to see (as is the sheer amount of gore).
Ok, things are going downhill. While it's still a page turner (I really don't understand why), the action is going out the window. Turns out there are a lot more aliens and Kei is obviously worried about his safety, considering how he forgot his suit. Yet... he survives this mission despite being in the thick of it. The aliens are... stupid. Despite having an ability to fly and a devastating sound attack, they couldn't kill anyone except people who can't move. Is this on purpose? With their designs and mannerisms, I actually can't decide whether the author was purposefully making it so or that it was simply poorly-done scenes. Well, the plot moves forward I guess, with us getting shown that Kei being a pretty smart, fast-thinking kid. Katou was... a bit pathetic here. Even the pretty boy was more effective.
Well, the second mission kicks off with a new set of recently-deceased. The Tanaka alien is even weirder than the onion alien. There appears to be some Japanese cultural references here that are obviously lost on me. We actually get more backstory/focus on the two main boys here - again, showcasing their contrasting personalities. I'm rather interested to see them “grow” as they take their drive and rationalisations in different directions. The deaths this time around are a bit more tragic (and one that was somewhat pathetic and a bit deserving).
Wow, do things kick up a notch. The action actually grew more intense. And I was right about the “emotional setup” of the second female for Kei in the previous volume - it's... understandable, but it's impossible to be effective in any way except just for the T&A, considering she was just a brand new character and has zero development. The thing that trumps the action was the deaths - two in particular were surprisingly shocking and impactful with the way it was presented, and one I totally did not expect.
The start of probably one of the weirdest mangas/animes I've ever read/watched. The premise is that a couple of recently-dead people got sent to a room with a large black ball, which then proceeded to give them a mission that they must complete. The protagonists appear to be two highschool boys with contrasting personalities. They are both annoying annoying at times and flawed, but quite realistic - unlikely heroes in a way. Not particularly taken by the characters, but they are interesting enough. Gratuitous T&A and associated crude jokes/humour abound, so not recommended for people who don't like them. It's the premise that draws me in, though it's so outlandishly weird, it feels like it was purposefully so.
So we finally get to the aftermath of how the “survivors” deal with the aftermath. There's actually a potentially deep topic here as the love interest of the protagonists gets a revelation about just what had happened after she killed herself - too bad the plot doesn't actually delve much into it (maybe it will later on?). She basically took advantage of Kurono Kei here (not that he didn't return the “taking advantage” with the pretty predictable T&A moments), she's not a particularly likeable character either. Well, same as with the boys, they're all not particularly likeable, but they're quite believeable your average/typical young adult I guess. They just got dealt pretty bad hands.
My review for the first volume has a warning in case you don't like blatant T&A illustrations. Volume 2 needs a warning about gore - series is not for people who dislike them.
I'm not particularly enamoured by this series yet this is quite the page turner. The action and gore kicks up a notch as things happen. The mental conflict of the boys is definitely something you'd expect to happen. There's a bit more of what's happening, but not why.
The penultimate volume of this epic series really does feel like it. Brandon Sanderson is tying up plot lines and getting the remaining ones closer. The first half is somewhat slow, and latter half picks up the pace quite suddenly. It just feels like feet dragging earlier on, and then as the page count increases, things suddenly get resolved, sometimes too quickly.
The bulk of this volume is focused on Perrin, Mat, and Elayne. Their plot lines get wrapped up and their time lines finally get to catch to Rand's and Egwene's. All three get a lot of character development and I find myself finally “understanding” Perrin better as he struggles against machinations in both the real world and dream world. He still keeps mentioning Faile in just about every monologue that he gets.
Mat's chapters are fun to read as always, but the payoff, i.e. the Tower of Ghenjei, for the build-up the entire novel was pretty weak - it was over a bit too quickly compared to the build-up, and the nobody else knows what he has done yet, so it wasn't very satisfying.
Elayne's chapters were not fun at all. She came across as both a snobby queen and a spoiled brat - which she is I guess, but it just felt a bit overdone compared to when she was actually working alongside Egwene and Nynaeve. But then again, I didn't quite like Elayne's character anyway.
Some other things worth mentioning...
Aviendha's few chapters were really interesting. I really liked the way it was presented
Didn't quite like how Egwene just flat out opposes Rand. I guess that's just what the plot line needed, but still... a bit more POV from her would've helped rationalise it.
The Forsaken were absolutely pathetic in this book though. Gone was that feeling of dread and terror when it came to them. Egwene's much-hyped encounter with Mesaana was over too suddenly, and Graendal's scheming was just... amateurish.
The few Black Tower chapters (I liked them) that came towards the end made me think something is finally happening there, but they ultimately ended up nowhere. Just more set up for the next book.
Well, all in all, I'm glad that things are finally moving towards the end. I guess this book is the “wrap up” book, where Brandon Sanderson just brings all the individual subplots together to get ready for the final book. Too bad that's really all this book is. There isn't much in the way of a “big finale” here. I was kinda expecting a “first strike by the Shadow” battle to conclude this book darkly or an epic confrontation between all the forces of the Light to unite them all, or something. But guess that's all in the last book. And for a book titled the Towers of Midnight, it doesn't really haven't anything to do with said towers.
Not fond of the way it ended, as I feel that it just cheapens the things that had happened.
It basically used yet another plot twist to say that all of what transpired was planned all along, and that all Acacia had said and done, was him, but wasn't really him. And all the atrocities that Neo had done, was him, but apparently he's not to be blamed either. And because all of this was planned, together with knocking, the defeat of Acacia/Neo was basically one big world "reset" button.
The series recap chapter during the wedding (which I still don't like how it got set up) was obviously designed to evoke nostalgia, and that was well enough, but the rushed and unsatisfying nature of the fights to get here just dampened what it could have been.
Like, just who or what is that white appetite within Toriko? The way Neo was defeated was so unsatisfactory. It basically meant Acacia/Neo was so powerful a being that the author simply made this third appetite exist for the sole purpose of defeating Acacia/Neo. Come on, not even a single sentence to try and explain. It's just yet another of those "just because" moments that made me seriously dislike the series towards the end. And after all that playing up of "God" as this be-all-end-all ingredient, all Toriko and Komatsu did was to serve it up to his wedding guests. At least Acacia used this "once-in-a-blue-moon" ingredient to bring about world peace...
Side note: the BB Corn and Rainbow Fruit that Toriko added to his full course early felt so out of place. I mean, these are 2-digit capture-level ingredients, compared to the rest of 4-digit and 5-digit capture-level ingredients.
And lastly, there's an epilogue of “the adventure continues”. Let's just say that if there was indeed a continuation, I wouldn't be reading it, as it's basically just scaling things up for more of the same. I've had my fill. Thanks for the meal, despite the sour note that it ended up with for me.
Magic of Incarnum offers up an alternative magic system, in the vein of how psionics is also an alternate magic system to the standard arcane/divine spellcasting system. It's not a full-on campaign setting, but it does provide some ideas on how to integrate this new system into a campaign. It makes use of monk/ninja/eastern concepts of chakra and soul energy to power their effects.
Chapter 1 presents 4 new races, three of which are just human-variants. I find them somewhat unimaginative (in terms of flavour/lore) so wasn't interested in any of them at all.
Chapter 2 presents 3 new incarnum-based classes: incarnate, soulborn, totemist. This roughly corresponds to “wizard”, “paladin”, “druid”. They wield incarnum via “meldshaping” and chakra “binding”. It's basically like attaching your choices of effects to areas of your body where you'd normally equip magic items. Not that I've actually tried gaming with this, but it would seem great at the lower levels, where you wouldn't have access to a lot of magic items. But once you do, then it becomes less flexible, since you can't quite change your melds on the fly. Overall, I didn't feel that these classes were more powerful than any of the core classes.
The character options in Chapter 3 are interesting, as they provide more flavour to the core races on how to tie them to incarnum. The feats are of a good variety in making use of the new system.
Chapter 4 goes into the meat of things - basically explains the terminology and how things work, and the “soulmelds” themselves (i.e. the “spells”). Visually, I find that these souldmelds will look odd - it's essentially like a bluish hologram that gets overlaid across different parts of your body. If that's your thing, you might like it, but I just think it makes your character look really weird (especially when you start combining very different-looking soulmelds). The soulmelds themselves have a good variety, enough to cover most some bases of what an incarnum-based character would want to do, both in combat, and outside of it. While the descriptions are nice to read, some of them are misses when it comes to tying the effect to flavour. Also, when going through this, I just thought that this will add quite a bit of tedium to tracking all of these mechanics on paper.
Chapter 5 offers up traditional spells, albeit with an incarnum twist, allowing a subtype of spells to get “powered up”. I feel like there's nothing special here, basically a bunch of spells that allow spellcasters to interact with incarnum effects (a lot of them are recognisably just variant spells).
Chapter 6 is prestige classes. They're not bad; it's just that I found them to be somewhat generic and uninteresting- nothing “prestigious”. Not much to say here, except that some of these classes are mostly just hybrids that you can predict - mixing incarnum into a “traditional” role.
The monsters in chapter 7 seems to fall into the same problem. There's not much surprise here. There's a incarnum dragon, an incarnum giant, an incarnum construct, an incarnum familiar, an incarnum summoned creature, an incarnum undead. I guess it's unfair to bemoan this, because some of this is somewhat needed to give it a D&D feel I suppose.
Chapter 8 has some good stuff. I liked the incarnum terrain-based encounters/locations as well as the worldbuilding bits. It also contains a moderately-elaborate incarnum-related organisation.
Overall, I think I can see that certain aspects of incarnum system might appeal to some people, but not for me.
So I guess all the timeskips was for Acacia and Neo - basically following the same formula as all other fights that came before. First, to showcase how powerful his opponents are, the Eight Kings (yes, they all show up). Then we get presented with how Acacia/Neo powers up and... you get the idea. Toriko is pretty much in the background all the time. Oh, and err.. Zonge makes an appearance too. I was hoping we'd seen the last of that guy. His shtick is no longer funny.
Things are just getting stupid. So many things don't make sense at all, even when you're willing to take it in the context of ridiculousness that's been built up. I get over-the-top exaggeration, but I dislike inconsistency and “just because”. I'm in full-on rant mode. Toriko has more than 2 food appetites inside him, just because. No one else does and no one else seems to care, not even Toriko himself. Pulling out your womb and putting it into a back channel space and having it continue to function for 500 years is apparently possible. Setsuno said she couldn't handle another "Earth-destroying" attack, but after dozens of such attacks... no mention of what happened to the Human World. Strange that Earth hasn't been knocked out of orbit by now. It's so easy to shatter other planetary orbs with ranged attacks, but smashing Earth at point-blank range just dents it. "Knocking" can apparently halt death - just let people die please. Buranchi says he could t go on anymore after ferrying Aimaru, but he had no trouble making it back in time to "save" Komatsu. Yes, Komatsu and Ootake had another timeskip, because the author likely had no idea how to explain the God ingredient's preparation. The good guys get revived just for the sake of allowing the author to draw them almost-die again. And so many more stupid things like that. What a way to bring an otherwise pretty-good series to a finale. The anime was definitely correct to stop at the Cooking Festival, right before things went completely out of whack. Just a few more chapters to go. I don't even care about what's going to happen anymore.
It's getting... boring. I guess the highlights of this volume are the fights of the “superpowers” (Jirou, Midora, Don Slime), and the revelation of the “God” ingredient. There's also a moment of “plot twist” with Starjun, but it's so out of left field, with completely zero foreshadowing, that it just feels like a retcon setup for something to be introduced further down the line. Side note: Teppei, who was in the middle of a rescue operation, appears to have been completely forgotten and left hanging.
The fights are kinda awesome on the surface but actually kinda lame. It's silly to emphasize how these combatants are all world-destroyers, yet they completely fail at destroying this one world, despite unleashing “100%”. And all three fights follow the exact same formula: the one side unleashes incredible attacks, the other side takes them or absorbs them. In a "twist", the "bad" side wins. The author better seriously explain how you "eat" explosions and how that "golden can" works because as it is, they are plainly just deus ex machina.
Then there's the “God” reveal, which was rather utterly underwhelming. Turns out "God" is just another big ol' monster, a ... giant frog, that was formed by dozens of tadpole-looking things which ... burst out of the ground... I guess I'd be less annoyed if it was hatched from a gigantic egg or womb being incubated within the earth. Things are purely within the realm of “arbitrary” now, without any attempt at rhyme or reason (however silly). It used to be used for comedic effect, but now, it's “just because”.