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Pumpkin Scissors #2
Pumpkin Scissors 2
The Pumpkin Scissors are the only hope for the battle-torn Empire. The nation is being threatened by new evils even more terrible than war–this time, a shadowy gang of ruthless drug dealers. These villains are poised to strike at the very heart of the Empire. Can the Pumpkin Scissors unravel their conspiracy in time?
Includes in-depth translation notes and a preview of the next volume!
Includes in-depth translation notes and a preview of the next volume!
240 pages, Paperback
First published July 16, 2004
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 13 reviews
February 12, 2019
Well, thanks to Humble Kodansha Fantasy Manga Bundle, I've read two volumes of this manga and have learned a little more about it than I would have if I just stuck to my brush with it when it was a netflix thing (or still is? I dunno) and I have learned one thing:
This is the most contrived manga in existence.
I mean literally it's dude with a very narrow specialty gets to use his specialty repeatedly. A lot of the details seem extremely arbitrary but.... I dunno as a shonen fight manga with one side is tanks and the other is Jason Voorhees with a very specifically designed AT pistol, it's fun. Probably not smart or what I would even call 'good' but it's sort of endearing in a very manga way. Things are moving toward a plot, it's heart is largely set in the right place, it's fine. Sure it does the faux ww2 thing but what manga and or anime isn't really? There's a lot of characters doing character things that fit standard archetypes, it's great, I have no complaints.
That said, this one may give you warm fuzzies but also extreme violence. Also a lot of character decisions that seem, again, arbitrary and baffling but don't worry, it usually all works out.
My point is this is a very manga... manga. It is manga flavored. If there were a dictionary that had an entry that said 'generic manga' it would use this for the picture. Is that a bad thing? I guess that the formula feels so obvious despite how utterly weird some of the decisions here seem to be. I mean Pumpkin Scissors feels very much like a name someone came up with because it's a weird name to come up with, despite having an explanation in this volume. Again, is that bad? Not at all, Pumpkin Scissors is kind of a weird, eye catching name that draws you in, but the need to explain it feels like it's trying to legitimize itself a little which I feel just isn't necessary: we got a cool main character with a dark past, we have his general line of antagonists in the form of both tanks and other experimental soldiers with psychological issues, we have our driving force in the form of the princess who just absolutely will not give up her ideals even in the face of nonsensical opposition and danger, it's got the formula down, it could be named Dead Man Firefight or Doorknocker or Tank Man Slap Fight for all I care, I'm on board, but this is Pumpkin Scissors' story and I'm gonna let it tell the story it's way I guess.
I have perhaps grown soft for not admonishing this manga for seeming to have less thought put into it than simply following a formula, but really I've seen worse and the result is neat anyway.
This is the most contrived manga in existence.
I mean literally it's dude with a very narrow specialty gets to use his specialty repeatedly. A lot of the details seem extremely arbitrary but.... I dunno as a shonen fight manga with one side is tanks and the other is Jason Voorhees with a very specifically designed AT pistol, it's fun. Probably not smart or what I would even call 'good' but it's sort of endearing in a very manga way. Things are moving toward a plot, it's heart is largely set in the right place, it's fine. Sure it does the faux ww2 thing but what manga and or anime isn't really? There's a lot of characters doing character things that fit standard archetypes, it's great, I have no complaints.
That said, this one may give you warm fuzzies but also extreme violence. Also a lot of character decisions that seem, again, arbitrary and baffling but don't worry, it usually all works out.
My point is this is a very manga... manga. It is manga flavored. If there were a dictionary that had an entry that said 'generic manga' it would use this for the picture. Is that a bad thing? I guess that the formula feels so obvious despite how utterly weird some of the decisions here seem to be. I mean Pumpkin Scissors feels very much like a name someone came up with because it's a weird name to come up with, despite having an explanation in this volume. Again, is that bad? Not at all, Pumpkin Scissors is kind of a weird, eye catching name that draws you in, but the need to explain it feels like it's trying to legitimize itself a little which I feel just isn't necessary: we got a cool main character with a dark past, we have his general line of antagonists in the form of both tanks and other experimental soldiers with psychological issues, we have our driving force in the form of the princess who just absolutely will not give up her ideals even in the face of nonsensical opposition and danger, it's got the formula down, it could be named Dead Man Firefight or Doorknocker or Tank Man Slap Fight for all I care, I'm on board, but this is Pumpkin Scissors' story and I'm gonna let it tell the story it's way I guess.
I have perhaps grown soft for not admonishing this manga for seeming to have less thought put into it than simply following a formula, but really I've seen worse and the result is neat anyway.
May 15, 2019
I'm regretting only getting the first 2 volumes of this series from the library... This volume was even better than the first one! We really start to see hints of the bigger conspiracy here. Who is behind the drugs and the weapons? What's really been happening since the Thin Ice Treaty? The series is very compelling and it's clear that this is only the beginning. Plus, the characters are more fleshed out here. The other members of Pumpkins Scissors are more defined from each other. I loved it!
There was a scene that I found troubling where the officers act a certain way to prove a point/motivate other characters into action. It is an intense scene and the book even has a note at the back to clarify that they were acting if the reader didn't understand that just through reading the text. Even so, it's an ew factor.
For: fans of action, military, or sci-fi narratives; readers looking for a story with a strong female lead and world building; readers wanting a manga with conspiracies and long-running mysteries.
Possible red flags: violence, language, and blood/gore; disease and starvation; depictions of a broken world after war time; discussions of class issues; suggestions of sexual assault; drug addiction/drug dealers.
There was a scene that I found troubling where the officers act a certain way to prove a point/motivate other characters into action. It is an intense scene and the book even has a note at the back to clarify that they were acting if the reader didn't understand that just through reading the text. Even so, it's an ew factor.
For: fans of action, military, or sci-fi narratives; readers looking for a story with a strong female lead and world building; readers wanting a manga with conspiracies and long-running mysteries.
Possible red flags: violence, language, and blood/gore; disease and starvation; depictions of a broken world after war time; discussions of class issues; suggestions of sexual assault; drug addiction/drug dealers.
September 5, 2018
Mulai konflik lebih mendalam. Pasukan 9 yang bukan pasukan...
Btw, senjata terkuat di Pumpkin Scissors adalah tank dari berbagai jenis. Kemudian senjata api anti tank. Sedikit suasana perang ala Fulmetal Alchemist tanpa sihir fundamental.
Btw, senjata terkuat di Pumpkin Scissors adalah tank dari berbagai jenis. Kemudian senjata api anti tank. Sedikit suasana perang ala Fulmetal Alchemist tanpa sihir fundamental.
December 29, 2017
I really liked this volume overall, though a tiny bit confused about some of the stuff near the end. I remember some of the scenes from this in the anime!
February 18, 2019
(3.5 Stars)
November 18, 2015
Pumpkin Scissors: Volume 2 is another excellent manga book about a military unit trying to help clean up after a brutal war. In this book, the stories focused more on Randel this time, rather than Lt. Malvin, which I preferred anyway. Randel is a totally cool character that I really want to know more about. He struggles with who he used to be and fights turning on his blue lantern when trouble arises.
As for this Muze Caplan person, I don't quite know who she is yet, but I'll bet she spells trouble for our heroes. I think that she is up to no good. All of the stories in this volume were terrific, and I especially liked when Mercury was hanging off of Randel's sleeve. That made me laugh. The action in the stories is great to and when the 908 HTT was burning people . . . ouch! That looked like it hurt!
The style of the manga is just the thing for this kind of book. The translation and adaptation from Japanese to English is perfect, which really makes the story flow well.
Overall, I would have to say that Pumpkin Scissors: Volume 2 is another excellent book in this post-war, military manga that I have really come to enjoy. All of the characters are wonderful and fun to learn about, while the bad guys are just that . . . bad. I cannot wait to read the next installment, Pumpkin Scissors: Volume 3, as I bet there is a lot of killing to do to make the world a safer place to live.
I rated this book a 9 out of 10.
As for this Muze Caplan person, I don't quite know who she is yet, but I'll bet she spells trouble for our heroes. I think that she is up to no good. All of the stories in this volume were terrific, and I especially liked when Mercury was hanging off of Randel's sleeve. That made me laugh. The action in the stories is great to and when the 908 HTT was burning people . . . ouch! That looked like it hurt!
The style of the manga is just the thing for this kind of book. The translation and adaptation from Japanese to English is perfect, which really makes the story flow well.
Overall, I would have to say that Pumpkin Scissors: Volume 2 is another excellent book in this post-war, military manga that I have really come to enjoy. All of the characters are wonderful and fun to learn about, while the bad guys are just that . . . bad. I cannot wait to read the next installment, Pumpkin Scissors: Volume 3, as I bet there is a lot of killing to do to make the world a safer place to live.
I rated this book a 9 out of 10.
June 6, 2023
24 Aug 2016: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
I really liked the first chapter in this volume, episode 3, in which Machs starts to question the Corporal's good intentions and digs into the history of 901 to get to know more about him. Interesting stuff.
On the other hand, the next chapter (episode 4) is incredibly boring.
And that bit in chapter 6 where Oreldo pretends to buy/rape a woman in order to make her old man stand up for her was a weird tonal shift that made me uncomfortable.
All in all, this volume is better than the first, but it still doesn't exceed the others' in its genre.
6 June 2023: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Oh man I remember the flamethrower guy! I'm actually looking forward to the next volume now.
Disagree with myself about episode 4 being boring. It shows us more about the corporal's personality and I quite like that. (Does feel a lil filler-y, tho.)
Still hate the fake rape scene, absolutely unnecessary.
I really liked the first chapter in this volume, episode 3, in which Machs starts to question the Corporal's good intentions and digs into the history of 901 to get to know more about him. Interesting stuff.
On the other hand, the next chapter (episode 4) is incredibly boring.
And that bit in chapter 6 where Oreldo pretends to buy/rape a woman in order to make her old man stand up for her was a weird tonal shift that made me uncomfortable.
All in all, this volume is better than the first, but it still doesn't exceed the others' in its genre.
6 June 2023: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Oh man I remember the flamethrower guy! I'm actually looking forward to the next volume now.
Disagree with myself about episode 4 being boring. It shows us more about the corporal's personality and I quite like that. (Does feel a lil filler-y, tho.)
Still hate the fake rape scene, absolutely unnecessary.
January 13, 2009
Book two finally reveals the meaning of the title, which left me wondering if the explanation had been correctly translated. I mean, yes, you would need very good, very tough scissors to cut a pumpkin, but who WOULD use scissors for that, instead of a knife? It was like a story whose title is based on how tough it is to hammer nails with a screwdriver...Still, the story is good.
In a war-torn version of what appears to be future Europe, peace has been declared, but society is still a shambles. Petty warlords, criminals and other bad guys still run things to a great extent, and only Section III of the Imperial Army seems to care enough to try to make things better. Unfortunately, Section III is a tiny department, in theory a non-combat unit. In practice, it's just very selective about who it fights, and how.
In a war-torn version of what appears to be future Europe, peace has been declared, but society is still a shambles. Petty warlords, criminals and other bad guys still run things to a great extent, and only Section III of the Imperial Army seems to care enough to try to make things better. Unfortunately, Section III is a tiny department, in theory a non-combat unit. In practice, it's just very selective about who it fights, and how.
December 19, 2016
This is a 3 1/2 star rating. the series is getting better for sure, and as more details are revealed about the past (and the corporal's past in particular), the more the Pumpkin Scissors are turning out to be the only thing standing in the way of the people and a corrupt government. War relief and reconstruction are beginning to take on a new meaning!
November 23, 2008
I thought Machs was a girl. Whoops. Anyway, I liked this volume a little better. It reminds me of the military aspects of Fullmetal Alchemist although it doesn't have the headache inducing metaphysical component.
February 11, 2011
Don't know if I care enough to continue.
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April 3, 2013F IWA ps v.2
Displaying 1 - 12 of 13 reviews