Ludwig Revolution, Vol. 1

ルードヴィッヒ革命 [Ludwig Kakumei] #1

by Kaori Yuki

Il était une fois un prince se prénommant Ludwig. Par sa beauté et son esprit tout le monde s’accordait à le considérer comme le meilleur parti qui soit. Tout charmant qu’il fût, Ludwig se cherchait donc une fiancée à la hauteur de son parti. Ainsi, sur les conseils de son père, il partit en voyage à la recherche d’une princesse tout aussi charmante que lui. Dans sa quête pour trouver l’Amour, la première prétendante qu’il rencontra fut Blanche, une jeune fille à la peau pâle comme la neige, aux lèvres rouges comme le sang et au coeur noir comme l’ébène...

Genres: Manga, Fantasy, Horror, Romance, Comics, Comics Manga, Graphic Novels

192 pages, Paperback

First published June 18, 2004

About the author

Kaori Yuki (由貴香織里) is a Japanese manga artist.

She debuted in 1987 with Natsufuku no Erii (Jap: 夏服のエリー) on the manga anthology Bessatsu Hana to Yume published by Hakusensha.
She is best known for her gothic manga works, such as the Earl Cain series (Jap: 伯爵カイン, Hakushaku Cain) and Angel Sanctuary (Jap: 天使禁猟区, Tenshi Kinryōku)

Her work is typically serialized in one of Hakusensha's two shōjo manga anthologies, Bessatsu Hana to Yume and Hana to Yume. In 2010, Kaori Yuki was one of many manga artists whose work would appear in the new shōjo manga anthology Aria by the publisher Kodansha on July 28, 2010.
Her doujinshi-ka name is MoonClock.

Reviews

[Konna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read full review at: http://thereadingarmchair.blogspot.gr...

One thing that really recommends a book to me is some relation to fairy tales. Ludwig Revolution is a manga which has many such retellings, such as Snow White, Cinderella, The Sleeping Beauty, Hansel & Gretel and Red Riding Hood. In the past, I had read another manga, called Grimms Manga, attempting the same thing but I was rather disappointed. Luckily, this wasn't the case here, although I have to admit that I didn't expect what I got to read.

Prince Ludwig along with his loyal servant Wilhelm go on a journey, in order to find a suitable wife for the prince. Naturally, most of those maids happen to be the well-known characters from the fairy tales. Each princess/character has at least a chapter that develops her story. But like the originals the stories take dark and twisted turns. Nothing is like it seems and no-one is as virtuous as was expected. Indeed, Ludwig himself has a tendency towards necrophilia, Snow White sleeps with her father, Red Riding Hood killed her parents and Hansel and Gretel are assassins.

[Nisha · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is so insane and morbid, yet very good. Definitely worth a read. Its just a retelling of every fairytale in the most disturbing way.

[Mai · Rating 4 out of 5]

love the (dark) humour and the dark re-tellings/re-imaginations of these Grimm fairytales

especially snow-white had me shocked 😳

[Rain · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Nur der Prinz lebte glücklich und zufrieden bis an sein Lebensende." xD
Ich fand es ziemlich cool, aber für meinen Geschmack ist es zu dick aufgetragen.

[Tinka · Rating 5 out of 5]

A old favorites, am I right?

I was first introduced to Kaori Yuki when my older brother collected her Angel Sanctuary series. I have since then read several of her Mangas. They always end up being either hit or miss for me story-wise, though I always just adore her beautiful artwork.

"Ludwig Revolution" has always been my favorite of hers. I read it when it first came out and yeah, I was probably to young to understand it all at the time.

I wanted to re-read the whole series for ages, but you know how it goes, other things come up, like happens and yada yada.

Now, I‘m finally doing the re-read and I admit it made me nervous. I loved it so much that now, seeing it with the eyes of an adult, it doesn’t hold up anymore. Well, so far those fears were for nothing because I still laughed about the sheer insanity of it as I did years before.

The story is about beautiful and arrogant Prince Ludwig, who is send on a journey by his father to find himself a bride. Along with his loyal servant and only friend Will (funny story, I didn’t make the Grimm connection until Volume 2 or so back then) and he two encounter lots of classic fairytale characters in a weird and twisted way.

I have always been a sucker for fairytale adaptations and the weirder, the better.

This comes completely with a gothic design, a perverted Prince, blood and gore, lots of sex jokes and innuendos and a darkness that would probably make the Grimms shudder. In other words, totally my thing.

The humor is very morbid, to say the least, and I can see why this series is not for everyone. It’s completely bonkers and some of the jokes are, eh well, not something everybody can laugh about. Having kinda morbid and dark humor myself, I however can.

And believe me, you haven’t seen classic fairytales interpreted like this.

Snow White is a cold-hearted beast, Red Riding Hood quite murder-happy, Sleeping Beauty suffered a breakdown and Blue Beard is schizophrenic. You know, the usual.

What really makes this is also the bromance. It’s secretly all about the bromance, be real.

But whatever.

The only criticism I have is that the pacing can be way too fast, but that comes from this being originally a one shot and not whole series. So, it’s kinda fine.

This first volume definitely still holds up.

[Sofía · Rating 3 out of 5]

Yo leo cualquier historia que tenga trama, contexto o apariencia gótica y esta definitivamente lo tiene. No esperaba el giro de trama en lo absoluto. Fue una versión de Blancanieves muy oscura, lúgubre y entretenida en un sentido mórbido.

[Sleepymei · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have mixed feelings about this book.
Well, let's start w/ the stuff i like: classic fairy tales, pretty people, fancy clothes, creative spin, unexpected twists in the storyline, humor, ooh pretty guys w/ long hair (thats always a plus) visual kei ;]
The bad: macabre
the thing is that i had no idea what i had gotten myself into... I just grabbed this manga from the public library because it look pretty and it was short (4 vols) and i wanted a break from the never ending long stories. *SPOILER ALERT:STOP HERE* I was shocked beyond belief when there was incest 4 pages into the story! a very disturbing intro... after that, i started getting a grip of the style...

ch 1 very disturbing due to extremely evil princess... can someone tell me why did she die? there was no shooting/stabbing and she just started bleeding and dying...
ch 2 Im not sure who's more evil... but at least i know whos the good one in the story
ch 3 not disturbing at all :D
ch 4 silly funny

One thing i learned from this is that fairy tales are not meant for children (not even the classic ones)

[Liriope · Rating 5 out of 5]

First of all, the art for this series is some of the most gorgeous I've had the fortune to experience in manga. It's often incredibly detailed and a real feast for the eyes.

Since the story is a retelling of fairy tales many readers will be familiar with what's going to happen-but then they'll often see it turned completely on it's head. It has the usual gamut of princesses and classic characters (Hansel & Gretal, Rapunzel, Cinderella) but they've been made unique and fleshed out (and not pure good, that's not what I'm implying.) they've just been given a depth they never had in the originals or in any other interpretation or adaptation I've came across.

Hilarious, sad, touching, creepy, and just engrossing. My interest was never lost or waned while reading. A must-read for any fan of manga and fairy tales, although I think anyone could enjoy it!

[Holly Interlandi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finally found good translations to aid in my understanding... and, holy shit, does it get any better? The princely protagonist is into big boobs, necrophilia, and leopard print. Snow White seduces her father. Sleeping Beauty is an antisocial child of rape. And don't even get me started on Little Red Riding Hood...

[Jenna Loesch · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finally got around to reading the translation of this manga. Y U NO PUBLISH IN ENGLISH?!?

[Kiatoulu · Rating 2 out of 5]

Certaines thématiques m'ont vraiment dérangée. A plusieurs reprises j'ai eu des moments d'incompréhension. J'ai bien aimé l'histoire avec la belle au bois dormant.

[Sasha Strader · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just...weird.

[Elli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kaori Yuki gehört mit ihren düsteren Geschichten und dem unverwechselbaren Zeichenstil definitiv zu meinen Lieblingsmangakas. Die Zeichnungen sind durch die Verwendung vieler Rasterfolien opulent und sehr detailverliebt gezeichnet... Ein Genuss für meine Augen... Auch wenn das für einige wohl auch überladen wirken kann.
Man steigt sofort ein in die Geschichte, ich hatte hier deswegen anfangs ein wenig Schwierigkeiten mitzukommen und alles für mich zu verarbeiten. Die Geschichte finde ich toll, Märchen werden in dem Manga anders nacherzählt, dabei sind die Prinzessinnen tatsächlich mal aktiv handelnde Persönlichkeiten [auch wenn sie nicht immer überlegt handeln... 🙄]
Was ich an Kaori Yukis Mangas aber am Liebsten mag, ist der schwarze und sarkastische Humor... Auch an Stellen, wo es eigentlich zunächst unpassend erscheint. Aber genau das macht es für mich so lesenswert... Toller Manga von einer tollen Zeichnerin😉

[dzươn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very interesting, a bit morbid, way of retelling fairytales (more specifically the Grimm brothers although the original Grimm brothers' tales were already pretty dark themselves). The second time I read this and actually got through the end. Very nice twist and how to bring all the tales together into one big story. I don't like the ending, but I guess it's good enough to not ruin any distinct personality of any characters (especially the prince).

[Susï Schmölz · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I started this manga I didn't expect this at all and I love it, everything from the art to the story it's just marvelous. I love how it mixes the Grimm brothers' stories with gore and a little comedy. I can't wait to keep on reading this and see what other adventures waits in the path of Ludwig and Wilhem.

[moira.cuja · Rating 4 out of 5]

unsure what i read just now??? but in a very weird way its entertaining. i mean he's completely just interested in womens breast and is overall a misogynistic asshole but its so over the top that its actually funny??? kinda hate myself for that, but whatever. got the other 3 parts too, might read the second one tomorrow.

[Mara LARRAONA · Rating 3 out of 5]

C'est un souvenir de mes plus jeunes années. J'aime l'humour, j'aime l'esthétique, les personnages... Je suis dérangée par les thématiques : mais c'est le but.

On a l'habitude de lire des choses très lisses désormais, ce n'est pas le cas de cette série, et c'est vrai que cela peut être étonnant.

Pourtant, les tabous sont biens amènes et questionnés avec humour et intelligence.

[Catharina · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sometimes you just sit there and ask yourself when did your taste change so much. I believe a couple years earlier I would have enjoyed it a lot more than now. 2 stars for the art which is still gorgeous.

[Nazareth UwU Ávila · Rating 3 out of 5]

Me gustan mucho los giros que toman los relatos, pero que cada relato sea de un capítulo, no siempre queda muy claro, sería más agradable si fueran más extensos los capítulos y si tuvieran más trasfondo.

[Katharina Kanzan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Die Grimmschen Märchen sind teils sehr grausam, Kaori Yuki übertrifft das mit morbidem Charme. Teilweise ist die Handlung aber sehr sprunghaft und Entscheidungen nicht nachvollziehbar. Die Zeichnungen machen es aber wett.

[Meg]

Fractured fairy tales, mature audiences.

[Kurtis Burkhardt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really loved this manga, the top Disney fairy tails but a bit disturbing and not so G rated like the original storys👌😁👻💃

[Klaudia Płoszejowska]

Why did I think it's a good idea? dnf 25%

[Gabby · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is a darker more modern twist on the fairy tales with some masochistic leanings. To be fair I found the main character in this book difficult to read and frustratingly self centred at times. I struggled a little but at the same time the darker leanings did make for fun reading in regards to the stories themselves. It was definitely a lean back to the brothers Grimm times.

[二六 侯 · Rating 4 out of 5]

由貴筆下的母親形象向來極糟——該隱的媽是那副德性，剎那的生母恨死自己兒子，《少年殘像》艾瑞恩的母親虐子，戒音更從小被母親性虐待，結果《天使禁獵區》之外這三部都演變成兒子弒母的結局……近作《路德維希革命》中由貴終於畫了白雪公主的故事，我想沒有漫畫家比她更適合這個題材了。（寫於2007年）
全文：https://hou26.org/zeta/itsuki-yuki.htm

[Séverine]

Ludwig Revolution est le manga par lequel il faut commencer si on veut s'initier à l'univers déjanté de sa mangaka, Kaori Yuki. Rappelons-le, son univers glauque, pervers, gore, et qui tourne sur des thèmes comme l'inceste et la nécrophilie, n'est pas commun, et pourrait en rebuter plus d'un. Cependant avec ce premier tome, nous commençons doucement, pour aller petit à petit, vers la noirceur de son univers...

Nous suivons le Prince Louis, alias Ludwig, et son valet, Whilelm, alias Will, dans sa quête de la femme de sa vie. Son père n'en pouvant plus de le voir ramener des filles de joies ou de basse naissance au palais, l'envoie dans cette quête initiatique. C'est à partir de là que l'on va remonter les contes de notre enfance : Blanche Neige, Barbe Bleu, la Belle aux bois dormants, et le Petit Chaperon Rouge. Enfin, à la manière de Kaori Yuki, bien entendu ! Et avec un Prince aux tendances nécrophiles, collectionnant les corps de ses conquêtes, et aimant que les filles à forte poitrine, sa tache ne va pas être aisée... Surtout que les femmes qu'il rencontrera sont toutes dérangées : entre la sorcière SM, la princesse qui cherche uniquement la vengeance en se servant de son corps, ou celle qui à abattu toute sa famille à la hache étant enfant, il aura du soucis à se faire, notre Prince !

Il n'y à rien à reprocher à ce manga : des dessins parfaits, une histoire qui tient la route, et un univers particulièrement intéressant, vu que Kaori Yuki se base sur les contes originels des frères Grimm, déjà particulièrement trash. Un manga que je conseille à tous, mais à ne pas laisser à des plus jeunes lecteurs

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh my god, I feel like this was made for me! I love fairy tales and I love the dark style that Kaori Yuki seems to use for all her mangas. Every chapter focused on Ludwig searching for a bride that was a princess or heroine from a well-known fable. It was a strange because the tone was a weird mixture of comedy and macabre. There were lots of comical parts that made me laugh, but then there were taboo things like incest and necrophilia thrown in like it was no big deal. The main character Ludwig was crazy as hell. For example, I was definitely not expecting his bedroom to be lined with glass boxes of dead girls he collects. The way the entire thing was drawn was so creepy.

In general, I really liked how it followed standard Grimm versions of the stories, but then, at the very end, you were hit with this huge twist. My favorite chapter had to be the very first one about Snow White. It seemed much longer than the others and the overall story arc was very well thought out. My emotions were kind of back and forth—there was scene with her mother that really tugged at my heartstrings, but ultimately it all turned out to be a lie and she was a monster of a person. A close second was the one about Bluebeard, purely based on how ridiculous it was. After the morbid tone of the other chapters, this one seemed much lighter. I honestly couldn’t stop laughing when Bluebeard mistook Ludwig as the bride when it couldn’t have been more obvious that he was a dude. It was one of those things that could have easily come off as stupid, but it was hilarious.

[Maya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ich liebe den Manga. Ich habe die ganze Reihe schon so oft gelesen, dass ich es nicht mehr zähle, und bin jedes Mal erneut positiv überrascht, obwohl ich weiß, wie sehr ich die Reihe liebe. Beim ersten Kapitel bin ich jedes Mal aufs neue geschockt, obwohl ich ganz genau weiß, was auf mich zukommt, und dennoch erwische ich mich immer wieder dabei, zu denken, dass ich mich vielleicht falsch erinnere, vielleicht liebe ich die Märchen doch nicht ganz so sehr, wie ich dachte, aber dann ist das zweite Kapitel genau die richtige Art von viel zu dunkel, das dritte Kapitel einfach nur schön und emotional, und das vierte wirklich lustig, und ich lieb's.
Sehr düstere Märchen, ein unglaublich oberflächlicher Prinz, sehr makaber an sehr vielen Stellen, aber gleichzeitig auch unglaublich lustig, Wilhelm ist einfach nur toll, und tatsächlich ist der Prinz trotz all seiner Schwächen irgendwie unglaublich sympathisch und scheint sich auf eine sehr merkwürdige Art und Weise doch zu kümmern (generell wirkt gerade Lui auch in Band eins schon sehr vielschichtig, wie ich finde, besonders dafür, wie eindimensional er dargestellt ist), und die Mischung ist einfach jedes Mal wieder toll.
Absolut übertrieben, keine Frage, aber trotzdem machen die Märchen mir immer wieder Spaß, und ich finde Lui und Wilhelm in Kombination toll, und gerade in Band eins finde ich das Ende (Nur der Prinz lebte glücklich und zufrieden bis an sein Lebensende.) jedes Mal aufs Neue echt stark und es macht mich einfach richtig zufrieden. Der Abschluss ist super!
(Oh, und den Zeichenstil finde ich auch immer wieder sehr ansprechend und lebhaft!)

[Tranlinh · Rating 3 out of 5]

truyện đọc bị ngu vcl có lẽ để thỏa mãn sở thích siêu giai nhân hoàng tộc đanh đá kiêu căng hẹp hòi ích kỷ rất hoa và rất lệ một bông hoa hồng gai có độc lộng lẫy xinh đẹp kinh hồn đẫm nặng một mùi Master các ấy hiểu. chuyên khoe đùi buộc tóc cao đi bốt cao chơi đồ da báo lúc mặc váy còn hếch chân lên ấy sở thích là dẫm vào kẻ khác Master éo chịu được 10 người nhìn thì 9 người ba phần tư muốn quỳ lạy dưới gót giày người em sassy arrogant kinh tởm mét 86 trông éo có vẻ gì mươi chín tuổi ấy móng tay dài như 1 con phù thủy bắn súng chíu chíu gãy mẹ móng máu rơi rơi cảnh đẹp ý hay tình thú vô cùng ờ nối tiếp phía trên thỏa mãn sở thích yy khốn nạn của tác giả là chính còn tất cả những cái khác là phụ thôi, phụ thôi.

chấm nốt ruồi kia đáng sợ lắm đi *liền sợ trên nền bộ mặt điển trai băng sơn nghìn năm tiện thể nhớ đến một người em chuyên trò chấm nốt ruồi khóe mắt*

buồn cười 1 ông hoàng tử ở tập 3 đời này chỉ yêu tắc kè đến độ mở yến hội kén vợ thực ra truy tìm con dở đã dẫm lên tắc kè của nó còn trả thù, xong thân hoàng tử tự mình quết quết bẫy bọ trên cầu thang (để con kia đi qua bị trượt chân) động thái đó được nhận xét éo gì mà 1 con người có trái tim trong sáng mà thôi

tóm lại chỉ vì ngắm mỹ nhân truyện trò nội dung gì ~_~


người ta gọi, không chọn thiên hạ mà yêu mỹ nhân.

[Mona · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was reading Cameron Jace's Fairy Tale Retellings and was constantly complaining from time to time because it was failing miserably in the dark and twisted genre. While reading, I found myself complaining from time to time and as a result my sister suggested that I read Ludwig Kakumei, she thinks that even though it's a manga; it might still be better than the crap I was reading.

Verdict:
The art is gorgeous, the dialogues can be silly but weren't as annoying as Cameron Jace's works, the humor can be ridiculous too but is sometimes quite funny and not too forced.

My only complain was that the whole series also seemed to become milder in the succeeding Chapters. Snow White seemed to be the only evil princess, the rest of the princesses seemed to be your normal Disney princess. I expected all the princesses to be as evil and twisted as Snow White. I also am not very fond of a long curly haired Prince who likes to wear animal prints with matching long nails look, it kind of gives you the homo vibe.

As a huge fan of Fairy Tale Retellings with a dark and twisted theme, I was quite disappointed that Ludwig Kakumei wasn't consistent in it's theme of being dark and twisted, I felt that it had too much humor instilled in the whole manga but nevertheless I find it to be 10x better than Cameron Jace's works.