Demon Diary, Volume 03

Demon Diary #3

by Kara, Lee Yun-Hee

Eclipse recalls the first time he met Raenef and realizes that the life of a demon lord is fraught with peril. Demons are feared and hated by most of humanity due to their arrogance and willingness to use their powers for personal gain. Although Raenef is not your typical Demon Lord, his heritage and his good-natured demeanor make him an easy target for an assassin.

Genres: Manga, Fantasy, Manhwa, Graphic Novels, Comics, Shounen Ai, Comics Manga

192 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2003

About the author

"Kara" consists of two illustrators: Yoon-Gyeong Kim and Eun-Sook Jeong.

Not to be confused with French author Philip Kara who uses the same pseudonyme.

Reviews

[Dev · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not sure how many different ways I can say 'this series is ridiculous I am reading it for nostalgia' so let me just leave you with this panel:



Like if you were to ask someone to explain early 2000s anime culture to you, they would probably just show you this picture. And then be super embarrassed about their life choices lmao [you can't blame us, we were teenagers]

[L. · Rating 5 out of 5]

:D

[Carrie-Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

I read volume 2 quite a while ago and therefore had know memory of what was going on when I jumped into this one.

With that being said, this is just a super fun, super silly series. It's about a Demon lord who is pretty terrible at being all evil and scary, and his mentor who is completely over having to try and train such a loving and happy person to be the big bad.

We meet a new character in here, get some back story on our other characters and it's just all round a fun time.

[Leo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked that we got backstory and this volume has more depth but I will probably not continue reading the books

[Bibliothecat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review for complete series



Raenef is an orphan and part of a thieving guild that steal to get by. He himself doesn't have much of a talent for theft, nor in anything much else. The renowned demon Eclipse is surprised to find that this naive street boy is destined to become his new master and Demon Lord. Although Raenef does seem to hold the powers of a Demon Lord, he is proving as inept at being one as he is at everything else. Soon, his new domain starts to attract visitors who sense a weak demon has taken up residence.

Firstly, I have always found it baffling and incredibly misleading that people mark this as LGBT/BL. While one could interpret Reanef and Eclipse's relationship as romantic, there is nothing specific enough to suggest things one way or another. Their relationship could just as well be platonic or even fatherly. And while I would be perfectly happy to see these two as a romantic couple, the fact remains that there is not enough to suggest so, especially considering that this is a comedy that is almost completely free of romance.

Demon Diary is from my favourite Korean manga (or manhwa) artist duo. I'm not overly fond of manhwa as the art often doesn't appeal to me, however, Kara's art has always reminded me more of the Japanese manga style. Demon Diary isn't their strongest work in terms of art - don't get me wrong, I like Kara's art, but it isn't quite as pretty and refined yet as in their later works.

However, it is, one of the funniest I have ever read. Do you know that kind of comedy that is so over the top that it's not actually funny anymore? Demon Diary pushes to the next boundary and is just so ridiculous that it's funny again. Raenef is adorable but hopelessly dense and naive. His complete inability to read situations or people has him walking from one witless act to the next, and that's really not the image anyone expects of a great Demon Lord.

Eclipse is a perfectly dignified demon who has a reputation to think of. Rather than a servant, he becomes more of a babysitter and protector of Raenef and is usually the one who feels the embarrassment the most. As Eclipse tries to push Raenef onto the right track of being a good - by that, I mean evil - Demon Lord, various other characters venture through their castle and the one thing they all have in common is their belief that Raenef is completely unsuitable for this role.

Among these characters are Erutis and Kiris - both of who didn't initially stay in the castle voluntarily but ended up being a fixed part of the residents. Erutis is a female swordmaster who doesn't quite know how to act ladylike yet throws a fit if anyone mistakes her for a man. Kiris is a cleric in training and thus a sworn enemy of demons. Somehow, these four end up co-living and even building friendships in which they are willing to take life-threatening risks for each other.

So yes, there is also a slightly darker plotline running in the background, and there are some meaningful relationships between the characters. But when it comes down to it, this is and remains a comedy - and an absolutely hilarious one at that. It was among my first manga (manhwa) and it's one that I have been pleasantly surprised to find that even non-manga-loving friends of mine have had laughing fits when flipping the pages of Demon Diary.

[Yoyomaus Die Büchereule · Rating 3 out of 5]

Demon Diary Band 03 von Chihyung Lee
Zum Inhalt:
Götter und Dämonen befinden sich in einem unendlichen Krieg; das Reich der Toten ist ihr Schlachtfeld. Die Gründe für diesen Krieg sind bereits längst vergessen, und es regiert nur noch der Hass. Die Orakel sagen voraus, dass eines Tages jemand kommen wird, der den Frieden wieder herstellt: Der junge Lord Raenef! Doch dieser ist so unangemessen herzensgut und nett, dass die Dämonen ihre berechtigten Zweifel an seinen diplomatischen Fähigkeiten haben…

Nachdem Raenef den Klerikern einen unfreiwilligen Besuch abgestattet hat, hat er nun nicht nur die Ritterin Erutis an seiner Seite, sondern auch den Magier-Lehrling Kiris, der seinen neuen Meister lieber tot als lebendig sehen würde. Als in einem Ort eine Jungfrau als Opfer für den neuen Dämonenlord dargebracht werden soll, schleicht sich die junge und verwöhnte Leeche nach einem Streit mir ihren Vater durch das Portal, um in die Welt der Dämonen zu gelangen. Mit dem Ziel den Dämonenlord Raenef zu töten, da Dämonen ihre Mutter einst töteten, will sie es mit ebenjenem aufnehmen. Doch was sie auf der anderen Seite des Portals erwartet lässt sie erstaunen. Für sie steht fest, Raenef ist der süßeste Dämonenlord, den die Welt je gesehen hat und sie wird ihn eines Tages heiraten!

Der dritte Teil von "Demon Diary"kommt recht langweilig daher. Da haben wir die verwöhnte Leeche, die das Ganze aufmischen soll, aber irgendwie geht das nach hinten los. Nicht zuletzt, weil sie sich mit ihrem kindlichen Alter in Raenef verliebt und ihn heiraten will und der auch noch ganz unschuldig zustimmt. Was für ein lachhafter Dämonenlord. Ich dachte jetzt kommt die Story mal langsam in Schwung, aber nö, warum auch.... Warum Spannung in einen Manga mit Dämonen bringen, wenn man das Ganze auch durchaus lächerlich darstellen kann. Fast schon zum heulen schade. Das Einzige was die Geschichte wieder ein bisschen aufpeppt ist die Geschichte von Kiris, dessen Hintergrund und Beweggründe die Geschichte ungemein aufpeppen. Dass Eclipse alles so geschehen lässt, dass es lächerlich wirkt wundert mich sogar. Als großer Dämon, der einst so gefürchtet war erwartet man mehr Grausamkeit, anstatt ein Lächeln über die Machenschaften seines Meisters. Die Zeichnungen sind gewohnt halbherzig, es fehlen die Details und die Spannung, die man sich allein von dem Titel erhofft hat bleibt weiterhin aus. Das ist wirklich schade und für mich ist zu überlegen, ob ich diesen Manga weiter lesen sollte.

Da mir dieser Teil nicht gefallen hat möchte ich ihn auch niemanden empfehlen und meine Bewertung neutral halten. Deshalb 3 von 5 Sternen für den dritten Teil der Demon Diary - Reihe. Schade.


Taschenbuch: 196 Seiten
Verlag: TOKYOPOP; Auflage: 1., Aufl. (28. Februar 2005)
Sprache: Deutsch
ISBN-10: 3865800734
ISBN-13: 978-3865800732
Vom Hersteller empfohlenes Alter: 13 - 16 Jahre
Größe und/oder Gewicht: 12,6 x 1,7 x 18,7 cm

[~Cyanide Latte~ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Again I feel like I've been dragging my feet, and again, I'm glad I finally got to this volume. I think in spite of myself, I'm really beginning to enjoy Demon Diary more than I was ever expecting to. Hopefully it won't be too long before I can finish collecting the remaining volumes and complete my first read-through of the entire series.

It was nice to see the conclusion of the flashback chapters regarding how Eclipse came to find Raenef and it was proven Raenef was the demon lord he was searching for. I'm not sure if more backstory will show up in the later volumes, and if so, I'm not opposed to learning more about his life prior to Eclipse finding him. But I'll also be happy if it's just left as is. After that is wrapped up, we get introduced to Leeche, the daughter of a nobleman who sneaks her way into arriving at Raenef's castle with the intent of killing the demon lord...only for shenanigans to ensue. Because you know they will when a bratty, headstrong child is thrown into an already chaotic mix. While I don't think this is entirely necessary to the story (and I'm really not even sure why it happened, it's not as though we have any indication behind Leeche's motivation for trying to kill the demon lord in the first place,) it was at least a nice way of breaking up the heavy tone at the start of the volume and the equally heavy tone that shows up again toward the end. We get Chris's backstory, and as Lexie said in their review, it really does feel like a first major glance at the fact there are things in this world that are truly fucked-up. I'm definitely curious to know if more of Chris's fate comes into play in the later volumes.

After that, this volume ends with the cliffhanger arrival of another demon lord, who looks like they could honestly be a fanart interpretation of Lestat from Anne Rice's books. While I'm not exactly on tenterhooks here, I'm still curious to know what's going to happen next, so maybe that'll be enough motivation for me to get off my ass and snatch up the remaining volumes.

[K.S. Trenten · Rating 4 out of 5]

The third volume of Raenef’s journey and rite of passage as a demon lord is followed by the misadventures in his unlikely household containing Chris (would-be cleric), Erutis (knight turned demonic henchman), and the long-suffering Eclipse, who’s forced to maintain what’s feeling more and more like a human zoo to the dignified demon retainer. Matters become even more complicated when a desperate lord decides to send Raenef a bride to win his favour. Enter Leech, an angry, spoiled young lady with a grudge against demons, only Raenef isn’t anything like what she expected a demon lord to be. After Leech’s chaotic visit, readers learn a little of tragic backstory lurking behind Chris’s vainglorious manner. The characters continue to deepen amidst the humour and the artwork continues to mature while remaining striking in this lighthearted fantasy series. For all of these things, I give this four stars.

[Lexie · Rating 4 out of 5]

WELCOME to the third volume and the first real inkling that holy stars this shit is messed up. So Chris is, more or less, settling in when BAM we meet Leeche.

Daughter of a lord and complete brat she takes it upon herself to go hunt down Raenef and defeat him. Except... she's a kid. And she likes how Raenef looks.

Plus let's face it what exactly makes him so BAD? He can't even reign terror down on those vowing to kill him never mind innocent folk.

So Eclipse ends up with YET ANOTHER mouth to feed. I guess Raenef is pretty rich...

We also get the first part of how Eclipse and Raenef met! Let's just say Raenef the Fourth was a dummy.

[Cecillie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Like volume two, this volume is easier to read in that there's a plot to follow. However, KARA still made some very confusing choices when they put the series together. I think it's a bit difficult from time to time to actually follow what's going on. It's like they reached their page limit and had to cut certain panels out. Other than that I'm also noticing that the tone of the series is way more all over the place than what I remember from reading this series as a teenager. There's a lot of goofiness, but it cuts to something series to do with the actual plot. I don't mind jokes even in the more serious stuff I read, but with Demon Diary it becomes impossible to take the plot seriously.

[Kirsten Simkiss · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is mostly backstory. First, you get more of how Raenef and Eclipse first met. There's a short story in which Raenef gets engaged to what is presumably an eight year old? Either way, I don't think Raenef fixed their weather. Not sure what's to be done about that. And then you get Chris's tragic backstory.

[Sundee Perkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Volume three begins to have a coherent storyline. There are scenes are characters who never really appear again, but at least there is forward progress. We do learn more about Chris' past, which is interesting.

[Luru · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story is getting steadily better and deeper, adding more backstory to the characters. The comedy is also well-balanced.

[Forthright . · Rating 4 out of 5]

The plot has taken an appealing twist!

[Kate Dostálová · Rating 4 out of 5]

Další díl, kde démon musí najít svého pána, který se rozhodl utéct z domu. A jak už to tak býval, nebylo to zrovna nejlepší rozhodnutí.

[Lilly · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the art in this and the story makes me laugh. This is one of my favorite mangas and I keep enjoying each volume!

[Elizabeth Diop · Rating 5 out of 5]

great series!!!! must read

[Cara Palermo · Rating 4 out of 5]

This still gives huge, wholesome, whimsy Black Butler vibes (although I believe it actually came first), but it is starting to show potential to get darker.

Still no baby dragon..

[Sue Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

pretty good
love the story
looking forward to reading more

[Rain Misoa · Rating 5 out of 5]

And the third volume is finished! Man, this manga series just keeps getting better and better! I keep stopping every so often to make an update on my status because it's just that good! I am so excited just to be reading this again and reviewing it that I keep using exclaimation points! I just can't help it! This series is just what any manga fan (mostly those into shounen-ai or fantasy lovers) will enjoy and can just read this, falling in love with the world surrounding them. Seriously, if you haven't picked this up yet, stop reading this review and go read it! Don't even read the rest of this. Just go read it now!

Anyway, for those of you still curious, I shall now talk about the author and the plot a bit more. Hee did fantastic yet again! In addition to introducing a new character (well, two but he appears only in the last page), she took two existing characters and went further into their lives and history. You get to learn more about Chris and Hejem, how they met, what's the story behind Chris' powers, and how truly wonderful these two are together. I love their history. It was very tragic but at the same time, loving. Kara is one of my favorite mangakas. I keep falling in love with everything she creates. Her artwork is so detailed it drives me into envy! XD Oh, and she has a great sense of style, as in fashion. I love the clothing she creates for her characters. Also, did I mention that I think her characters are gorgeous? Because they totally are! I would so molest them, that's how pretty they are!

Speaking of characters, I WANT RAENEF AND ECLIPSE TO HAVE BABIES ALREADY!!! *Flails then slaps self* Okay... I feel better now. *Ahem* Uh... yeah... I would say these two got even closer in this volume because of an incident that occured at their mansion. Rae is still as clueless as ever but I'm sure he has at least some idea of what's going on. Eclipse in this one... damn... he had no problem showing off his jealousy for Raenef. In almost every single situation, he used to set someone on fire or just get all pissy. (I'm exaggerating but you get the idea.) I thought it was the cutest thing ever. He started off being such a cold person and now he shows his feelings openly for Raenef... well, semi-openly. I love seeing them both slowly grow and their bond slowly develop into something more! I guess you can argue it's because he's just looking out for him... BUT THIS YAOI FANGIRL REFUSES TO BELIEVE IT! *HISS*

Erutis is so cool. She has her moments when she goes crazy but most of the time, she's laidback about a lot of the situations. I mean, she can freak out but somehow, it is much more tamed than the other characters' "freak outs." I thought that was a nice thing to add, considering this entire manga is more on the comedy side than anything. The characters that developed a lot in this volume were Chris and Hejem. Oh my God... their story is so heart-breaking. When you find out what Chris went through, you're going to feel like someone just took a knife and jabbed it right into your heart... it's so painful. However, you will come to appreciate Hejem, Chris' master, a whole lot more. He was so gentle and caring that you start to realize he is more of a father to Chris than his master/teacher. I really fell in love with these two. There's another character that was shown but not really introduced. He makes more of an impact in the next volume. I will talk more about him in the next review!

As always, this is an awesome series. I've been saying it since the first volume and I am going to continue to say it as I continue to read the other volumes. I seriously don't understand why you are still reading this and not reading the manga. It is worth your time! Trust me! Don't you feel like laughing? Crying? Going "Awwwwwww!" when you see Eclipse burn someone alive because they want to take his uke away from him? Of course you do! Go on then! Get your hands on this manga and entertain yourself with crack! <3

[Theodora · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kender du det, når man har læst en serie, da man var yngre, og er bange for, at den ikke holder? 🫣 ⁠
"Demon Diary" var den første mangaserie, jeg læste som barn, og da jeg genlånte de første tre bøger i serien, var jeg meget nervøs - heldigvis er serien ligeså god, som jeg huskede! 🤩⁠
⁠
Mangaerne handler om den unge dreng Raenef, der grundet sit navn er blevet udpeget til at være den næste dæmonhersker. Den forhenværende dæmonhersker er død, og derfor er det Raenefs opgave at herske. Der er kun ét lille problem: Raenef er ikke særlig ond af natur. ⁠
Derfor er det noget af en udfordring for hans læremester, dæmonen Eclipse, at få oplært Raenef. Især når de står midt i en krig mellem guder og dæmoner, og Raenef har travlt med at være nuttet og skåne dem, han burde dræbe. ⁠
⁠
De første tre bind i mangaserien er både spændende og sjove - og så er de flot illustreret! Dynamikken mellem den nuttede Raenef og den frygtindgydende Eclipse er perfekt indfanget, og serien kan varmt anbefales. ⁠
⁠
Det er da meget rart, når sådanne serier holder 👀

[Leila Anani · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this third volume we get Chris' tragic back story and meet the annoying brat Leeche who substitues herself for the sacrificial virgin set to be bride to the demon lord in order to kill him.

Its ok and you can see all the characters moving towards some pivotal climax. There's less of the relationship between Raenef and Eclipse in this one in favour of comedy scenes with the supporting cast. Still the artwork's still beautiful and the story interesting enough to keep my attention.

Have volume 4 on hand as this one ends on a cliff hanger as Demon Lord Krayon arrives at Raenef's castle for an impromptu visit...

[Robert Beveridge · Rating 3 out of 5]

Yun-hee Lee, Demon Diary vol. 3 (Tokyopop, 2000)

The completion of the let's-find-Raenef backstory, and a new character is thrown into the mix when Leeche, a Lord's daughter, sabotages an offering to appease Raenef and appears in her stead. Which normally wouldn't be a problem, except that Leeche and Raenef take quite a liking to one another. Could this be the beginning of the coming forth of the prophecy that the demon world is about to change forever? Only a seemingly lovestruck Raenef knows, and he isn't telling... for now. ***

[Cember · Rating 5 out of 5]

I couldn't wait to read this manga again. Once more we have another character enter in the mist in attempt to take the Demon Lord's life but will she succeed or maybe there is something else going on? Ah, how I enjoy this series. The art work is amazing as usually and this time we get to know a little bit more about Eclipse's relationship with the constant cluts that is the Demon Lord. Again this is something for the comedy area of interest or paranormal but I honestly think everyone should step outside their comfort zone and give this series a try.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just finished with my re-read of this one and I have to say I forgot most of what happened in this, but it still holds up as the funny story I remember. I'm super excited to see how the next volume goes!

[Julia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Aunque inicie por el tercer volumen es entendible la historia, pero un personaje dicen que es hombre cuando lo veo como una mujer rubia.
Admito que en una parte pensé que era yuri porque la niñita casi lo besa, pero bueno, cada quien hace sus dibujos y los cataloga como quiera.

[Kristina Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

We learn a lot more of the character's backgrounds here. How Raenef came into his demonic inheritance, and consequently how Eclipse first became his servant, not to mention more about Chris' destiny. The tangled threads are all beginning to weave together.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had totally forgotten the annoying little girl. Huh.... I also don't think Chris' traumatic past ever comes up again, but I'll see.

[Steph · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love the art and the storyline.

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Third book of Demon Diaries. This third book continues Eclipse's memory track, but also introduces some new interesting characters.