House of Five Leaves, Vol. 7

House of Five Leaves #7

by Natsume Ono

Once known as “Sei the Drifter,” Yaichi has maintained a coldhearted outlook on life, a despair rooted in the trauma of a kidnapping that occurred years ago. With his past now coming to light, an air of restlessness pervades the Five Leaves. At the same time, Masa must make a difficult decision when confronted with his brother Bunnosuke’s complicated circumstances.

Genres: Manga, Historical Fiction, Historical, Fiction, Comics, Seinen, Mystery

239 pages, Paperback

First published February 25, 2010

About the author

Natsume Ono (Japanese name: オノ・ナツメ) made her professional debut in 2003 with the webcomic La Quinta Camera. Her subsequent works not simple, Ristorante Paradiso, and Gente (a continuation of Ristorante Paradiso) met with both critical and popular acclaim. In 2009 Ristorante Paradiso was adapted into a TV anime series. Her current series House of Five Leaves (Saraiya Goyou), also adapted into a TV anime series in 2010, is running in IKKI magazine.

(http://www.sigikki.com/creators/natsu...)

She also writes BL under the pen name of basso.

Reviews

[Lissibith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh, wow. I knew things were coming to a head, but this was better than I expected, so despite the continuing problem of sometimes being unable to tell characters apart, I had to give this one a five. I would give it five stars for one specific scene alone, where Masa tries to save Yaichi and, when he realizes they can't get away, turns and kills one of the men following them. His brief, cold contemplation of the murder, of what Yaichi is doing/has done and what Masa intends to do starkly show the growth he's slowly but surely come to over the course of the series so far, while his meeting with his brother shows that the core of who he is remains largely intact.

I've loved this series from the first volume, but I think this may be the best of the lot thus far and I'm incredibly excited for the final volume.

[kat · Rating 5 out of 5]

These are easily some of my favorite printings of any manga, the covers and backs of every volume are bold and stunning!

The art is brilliant, very fitting to the material and time period, it’s like brush strokes (maybe it is?). With the accompanying material, it has a comforting yet sinister quality I really dig. The style, the use of color tone, the storytelling communicated through the panels… is cinematic, its natural and intuitive. We get the full story without being overwhelmed. I kept stopping mid-scene to rave at my partner about how glorious the art is.

The characters are so expressive, the gradual changes in their appearances as they experience internal change is masterful. It’s easy to fall for the members of the gang, each have their own tightly held backstory, skillfully revealed as you move through the series. This isn’t high action, or a bunch of crazy heists, it’s more about the solitude and connections the gang forge in their ragtag found family.

[Noninuna · Rating 4 out of 5]

As the members of the Five Leaves have been expecting, the last job comes around at last. However, the task comes as a shocker to who the young heir they going to kidnap & why. It also provides the long-awaited arc of who Yaichi really was & how he gathered the members and created Five Leaves in the first place.

This is much better than the previous instalment. Things progress and one revelation that I totally didn't see coming. Excitedly jumping to the last volume.

[Alexis Hubsky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Character 4| Setting 3| Plot 4| Art 5| Enjoyability 5

Overall Rating: 4.2

This is getting juicy. I love the fact that these characters are growing and are so protective of each other.

I feel like things are getting super intense and I hope the conclusion is everything I hope for.

Masa has changed so much and seeing more emotion on Yaichi/Sei's face is great.

[Zach Leete · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is some of the best writing and storytelling I’ve ever experienced in manga.

Masanosuke…the humble king…I have so much respect for this character. His life has been torn apart by fear and anxiety but when it’s time to show up he is always there.

[Loz · Rating 5 out of 5]

This volume goes hard. Same expressive sketchy art, same dire characters. Good stuff!

[IneloquentAF · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5

[ghadah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my favorite volume out of them all, such a sad story 😢♥️

[Utku Atasoy · Rating 5 out of 5]

yaiçi’nin -aslında sei- geçmişini öğrendiğimiz ve ne tür bir karanlıkta olduğunu gördüğümüz bir bölümdü, masa’yı da suça alet etmişken hikaye nasıl sonlanacak merak ettiriyor

[Chris · Rating 5 out of 5]

I do not understand how people were able to follow this when it was annual/bi-annual publication. I had to re-read the serious in its entirety after reading this book because I completely forgot what happened, and the plot isn't simple enough to follow after a year of not reading it.
I have trouble telling which characters are which (because everybody is drawn the same way in this manga, even more so than usual), but nonetheless the story-telling is amazing and completely makes up for that fact. I would definitely recommend this serious, but you have to read it all at once, otherwise after a year; you won't remember what on earth happened.

[Mikael Kuoppala · Rating 4 out of 5]

The penultimate volume of "House of Five Leaves" demonstrates the best storytelling the series has seen so far. Storylines converge, characters face great challenges. The volume reaches a perfect mix of political intrigue, thrilling odds and character development. It would appear that this stylish but rather lukewarm series might reach a potent closure after all.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

The tragedy of Yaichi's past told, and, as it has been through this series, the additional complexity adds to quiet power of the story. After six volumes, the drawing style that seemed so strange in the beginning now strikes me indispensable to bringing Masa and his friends to life.