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Blackguard #4
ブラックガルド
新種のショウジョウの襲来によりさらに緊迫するプリケットポリス。宮地クリスがエフスドで眠る中、孤独な戦いを続ける南。大切な人の存在が、南に新しい感情を呼び起こす。生きること、死ぬこと。何が正しいのかわからない過酷な状況の中、戦士たちが、現実に、そして自分自身に向き合う待望の最新刊!
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First published July 20, 2021
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
September 11, 2023
The plot was truly plotting!!! Can't wait for the next volume to see my Minami
September 17, 2024
4.5 stars
Review to come after volume 5 (end of series).
Review to come after volume 5 (end of series).
November 3, 2024
4,5
Ois ollu viis mut 15v ja 35v???? Nej
Ois ollu viis mut 15v ja 35v???? Nej
September 16, 2022
I’m conflicted. Many events in this addition to the series bothered me, but at the same time one majorly awesome thing happened that I can’t stop freaking out over. I’m not sure that one great thing overshadows all the other stupid stuff that happened though.
Let me elaborate. First of all, this volume felt incredibly rushed. The mangaka tried to cram so much into this one book that it felt like nothing got the time it deserved. For example, we learn more about the group that brought the new breed of shojo to Pricketpolis. While I found myself intrigued by these characters and invested in the plotline of one of them looking to get gender affirmation surgery done, they ended up feeling very shoehorned in due to everything else that was going on with the plot. This rushed feeling also resulted in making events that happened in the last volume feel irrelevant. I believe this series ends with the next volume so it makes sense why the mangaka shoved so much into this one, but this series really should’ve been at least six or seven volumes long to give all the plotlines the length they deserve.
I’m still invested in the general plot. I think what they’re doing with the shojos is cool. The more we learn about them and how the disease might be secretly affecting people, the more eager I am to see the direction this story is going to take. One of my favorite parts of the last two volumes has just been seeing how shojo traits have been manifesting themselves in certain people.
I was mostly disappointed by some of the decisions made regarding the main characters, specifically Ogino and Zen. Zen tries to sexually assault Ogino when his shojo senses take over but is able to stop himself. Ogino becomes confused about her feelings for Zen and decides that to make sense of them she is going to sexually assault Minami. WTF? How is assaulting someone going to help you understand your feelings?!?! It’s not! That part was just so messed up and made me so uncomfortable. Zen and Ogino’s whole relationship made me feel uncomfortable because up to that point I saw Zen as a father figure to Ogino seeing that the last time they saw each other she was five and he was twenty-five. Just ew. I have no idea why the mangaka thought going the romance route with their relationship was the right choice, but it made no sense and left me feeling disgusted.
As for the other side characters I haven’t mentioned yet they weren’t in this volume that much. There is a character who dies and I find their death to be pointless. Such wasted potential. I wish there had been more Kawakami. I know I used to loathe him but his character seems to have a lot more depth now. A character I was hoping would be good is actually hinted at being a villain. I’m intrigued about their connection to Minami but with how everything went in this volume I’m worried that their evil master plan might end up feeling rushed too.
The one saving grace for this entire volume was Minami and Chris. I love how attached Minami is to Chris even when he’s been frozen, yet he’s still able to function. His life doesn’t end just because he can’t interact with the person he cares about every day. There’s a moment between them near the end that was perfect. It was worth wading through all the dumb stuff that happened in this volume just to get to that one scene. They’re so freaking cute together. Their relationship feels so natural and inevitable. They obviously care about each other without having to be super obnoxious about it. This is one of my favorite fictional relationships I’ve read about in years so they better get a happy ending or I’ll probably cry.
Also, I’m really digging Minami’s new look. I wish he had this style from the beginning because yum~
This volume, for the most part, was a mess. It felt incredibly rushed and two characters I liked I now despise. If everything involving Ogino in this volume had been left out I would’ve given it four stars since I was overjoyed by everything Minami/Chris related, but as it is I’ll have to settle for 3 stars.
Let me elaborate. First of all, this volume felt incredibly rushed. The mangaka tried to cram so much into this one book that it felt like nothing got the time it deserved. For example, we learn more about the group that brought the new breed of shojo to Pricketpolis. While I found myself intrigued by these characters and invested in the plotline of one of them looking to get gender affirmation surgery done, they ended up feeling very shoehorned in due to everything else that was going on with the plot. This rushed feeling also resulted in making events that happened in the last volume feel irrelevant. I believe this series ends with the next volume so it makes sense why the mangaka shoved so much into this one, but this series really should’ve been at least six or seven volumes long to give all the plotlines the length they deserve.
I’m still invested in the general plot. I think what they’re doing with the shojos is cool. The more we learn about them and how the disease might be secretly affecting people, the more eager I am to see the direction this story is going to take. One of my favorite parts of the last two volumes has just been seeing how shojo traits have been manifesting themselves in certain people.
I was mostly disappointed by some of the decisions made regarding the main characters, specifically Ogino and Zen. Zen tries to sexually assault Ogino when his shojo senses take over but is able to stop himself. Ogino becomes confused about her feelings for Zen and decides that to make sense of them she is going to sexually assault Minami. WTF? How is assaulting someone going to help you understand your feelings?!?! It’s not! That part was just so messed up and made me so uncomfortable. Zen and Ogino’s whole relationship made me feel uncomfortable because up to that point I saw Zen as a father figure to Ogino seeing that the last time they saw each other she was five and he was twenty-five. Just ew. I have no idea why the mangaka thought going the romance route with their relationship was the right choice, but it made no sense and left me feeling disgusted.
As for the other side characters I haven’t mentioned yet they weren’t in this volume that much. There is a character who dies and I find their death to be pointless. Such wasted potential. I wish there had been more Kawakami. I know I used to loathe him but his character seems to have a lot more depth now. A character I was hoping would be good is actually hinted at being a villain. I’m intrigued about their connection to Minami but with how everything went in this volume I’m worried that their evil master plan might end up feeling rushed too.
The one saving grace for this entire volume was Minami and Chris. I love how attached Minami is to Chris even when he’s been frozen, yet he’s still able to function. His life doesn’t end just because he can’t interact with the person he cares about every day. There’s a moment between them near the end that was perfect. It was worth wading through all the dumb stuff that happened in this volume just to get to that one scene. They’re so freaking cute together. Their relationship feels so natural and inevitable. They obviously care about each other without having to be super obnoxious about it. This is one of my favorite fictional relationships I’ve read about in years so they better get a happy ending or I’ll probably cry.
Also, I’m really digging Minami’s new look. I wish he had this style from the beginning because yum~
This volume, for the most part, was a mess. It felt incredibly rushed and two characters I liked I now despise. If everything involving Ogino in this volume had been left out I would’ve given it four stars since I was overjoyed by everything Minami/Chris related, but as it is I’ll have to settle for 3 stars.
May 30, 2023
2.5/5 down to 2 for its pacing. Reading this volume was a bumpy experience. The first third is explosive as we learn about It's incredibly hectic and feels like the rising action to a giant climax. Following the past volume Pricketpolis is invaded and people fight back with bloodshed abound. Groups reconvene and try to help people and protect people while still trying to go against the government. Then it gets super weird as Chihaya sings fucking Nickelback's "Hero".
But the crazy first third immediately slows down in the second third as side character subplots are handled and a bunch of fanservice moments occur. We get a lot of time on Alice and Kawakami. I honestly wish she would drop Kawakami instead of trying to forge what was obviously meant to be a villain into some weird anti-hero/hero. The fanservice stuff is alright but ruins the pacing. I would imagine if I cared for the characters I would've cared but I still don't really care for anyone that much. It just feels like stuff for the fans and padding to avoid the looming finale considering there's only a volume left. I also don't get the Alice subplot.
Then the final 1/3 has chunky pacing as we get
But the crazy first third immediately slows down in the second third as side character subplots are handled and a bunch of fanservice moments occur. We get a lot of time on Alice and Kawakami. I honestly wish she would drop Kawakami instead of trying to forge what was obviously meant to be a villain into some weird anti-hero/hero. The fanservice stuff is alright but ruins the pacing. I would imagine if I cared for the characters I would've cared but I still don't really care for anyone that much. It just feels like stuff for the fans and padding to avoid the looming finale considering there's only a volume left. I also don't get the Alice subplot.
Then the final 1/3 has chunky pacing as we get
February 20, 2023
3.5 | I really do like Minami and Chris, I just feel like this was a hodgepodge of good ideas executed poorly. Like, the side characters who have chemistry can easily be a little more drawn out and it would work so well, but it just kinda happens??? with no deeper look into them at all? and while I MEGA love the trans representation, I would have liked to know more about Alice? It didn't feel like a heartfelt desire to have trans representation, it felt like a random toss in without any care. And every time I thought there was representation of non conventional relationships it was bullshit the whole time? (more on that in the vol 5 review)
This series could have been longer and needed a lot of TLC on the plot.
This series could have been longer and needed a lot of TLC on the plot.
May 16, 2023
3 stars and is a lot. Like wtf? You have me in the past taking my breath in every way. Irrelevant events, irrelevant characters, etc. I was hoping more. The story was taking shape, a really nice shape and then take this and just eat and fast.
June 22, 2023
That bomb at the end 😡
September 7, 2022
3.5 stars
October 10, 2022
Feeeellllllssss
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews