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空ろの箱と零のマリア [Utsuro no Hako to Zero no Maria] #5
The Empty Box and Zeroth Maria, Vol. 5
(Volume 1)
Kazuki Hoshino leads the easy-going life of a typical high school student--until the appearance of a new girl in his class turns his world upside down! Introducing herself with a promise to "break" Kazuki is abnormal enough to make an impression, sure, but why does she seem so familiar...?
Kazuki Hoshino leads the easy-going life of a typical high school student--until the appearance of a new girl in his class turns his world upside down! Introducing herself with a promise to "break" Kazuki is abnormal enough to make an impression, sure, but why does she seem so familiar...?
165 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 10, 2012
27 people are currently reading
302 people want to read
About the author
Eiji Mikage
13 books138 followersDropped out of college to become a writer; he still works a part time job to make ends meet.
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
November 17, 2017
In Volume 5, Daiya takes the starring role. In the author's note at the close of the story, Mikage states that Daiya is his favorite character, and he initially wanted to do the story from his point of view. It makes sense, as Daiya is very interesting compared to Kazuki, although Kazuki is starting to man up a bit. However, I do not feel sympathetic to Daiya at all, and think the overall series is better served from Kazuki's point of view, if there was a choice between the two.
Daiya is in control of a box (of course). He makes his wish in a careful manner. He wants to get rid of people in the world who are shallow and thoughtless, and commit criminal acts, and attempts to do this by wishing he can control other people. Daiya passes through a person's shadow and absorbs their sins. Then he can control them.
Much of the narrative is through Daiya's point of view. I can't decide whether I like him or hate him, I am on the fence.
Kazuki and Maria are opposed to him. Kazuki creates a cinema, through the use of a box, to show Daiya memories that would affect him and change his mind about subjugating other people. Kazuki brings up the point that although it is easy to get rid of the people who everyone would agree are criminals, it becomes harder when it isn't so clear cut.
Compared to the first volume, Kazuki has grown as a character. I am surprised he did because he was initially such a helpless character. He is more independent and doesn't rely on Maria. I wonder what their relationship will end up being, as it seems kind of doomed at this point, considering Maria is not a human.
The story isn't resolved in this volume. I wasn't too disappointed about that because it is still an engaging story. I think this volume gets a little darker in its exploration of ethics that go beyond the themes of killing in previous volumes.
Daiya is in control of a box (of course). He makes his wish in a careful manner. He wants to get rid of people in the world who are shallow and thoughtless, and commit criminal acts, and attempts to do this by wishing he can control other people. Daiya passes through a person's shadow and absorbs their sins. Then he can control them.
Much of the narrative is through Daiya's point of view. I can't decide whether I like him or hate him, I am on the fence.
Kazuki and Maria are opposed to him. Kazuki creates a cinema, through the use of a box, to show Daiya memories that would affect him and change his mind about subjugating other people. Kazuki brings up the point that although it is easy to get rid of the people who everyone would agree are criminals, it becomes harder when it isn't so clear cut.
Compared to the first volume, Kazuki has grown as a character. I am surprised he did because he was initially such a helpless character. He is more independent and doesn't rely on Maria. I wonder what their relationship will end up being, as it seems kind of doomed at this point, considering Maria is not a human.
The story isn't resolved in this volume. I wasn't too disappointed about that because it is still an engaging story. I think this volume gets a little darker in its exploration of ethics that go beyond the themes of killing in previous volumes.
February 10, 2017
Review for the prequel: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Huhh...this series is getting better! This time 'Empty Box and the Zeroth Maria' volume five takes us to a battle between two friends. And for the first time we have a Box's owner who wants to use the powerful Box not for his/her own gain or solving his/her own problems, but to use it to change the world. But our narrator is there to stop this Box's owner, for his own reasons.
The 'game of wit' aspect of the story is still as good as always, and I enjoy how the relationships among the main characters and those characters' motives are explained, and how parts of Maria's true nature and her relationship with the mysterious figure named 'Zero' is revealed. I like how this new Box's owner is trying to change the world and the steps he/she has taken to achieve this goal. Plus isn't it just great that now the narrator has ? I also enjoy how the narrator and Maria's relationship reaches a point of no return at the end of the story, so 4 stars!
Huhh...this series is getting better! This time 'Empty Box and the Zeroth Maria' volume five takes us to a battle between two friends. And for the first time we have a Box's owner who wants to use the powerful Box not for his/her own gain or solving his/her own problems, but to use it to change the world. But our narrator is there to stop this Box's owner, for his own reasons.
The 'game of wit' aspect of the story is still as good as always, and I enjoy how the relationships among the main characters and those characters' motives are explained, and how parts of Maria's true nature and her relationship with the mysterious figure named 'Zero' is revealed. I like how this new Box's owner is trying to change the world and the steps he/she has taken to achieve this goal. Plus isn't it just great that now the narrator has ? I also enjoy how the narrator and Maria's relationship reaches a point of no return at the end of the story, so 4 stars!
July 20, 2020
É fascinante como em todos os volumes existe um padrão de qualidade. O começo sempre começa interessante e te deixa curioso pra continuar, em seguida vem a parte que se arrasta e parece que foi escrita por outra pessoa, com uns diálogos que dão vergonha alheia e a historia bagunçada. E então vem o final que é sempre bem feito e com plot twists no minimo curiosos que te faz ler o próximo volume. Com a historia chegando a uma conclusão o titulo e ideia dessa saga finalmente começou a fazer sentido e caso seja bem executada, pode vir a ter um ótima conclusão apesar dos problemas durante o caminho.
January 5, 2017
Boy, did the author up the edge or what? Right away, there is a guy who dominates a whore into licking his shoes. Said whore has AIDS and hates the world so she sleeps with men just so she can spread the disease. Holy shit, so much depth and maturity.
You would think only the bad guy would be doing that because he is bad, but no, even the good guys are being mean and swear all the time. Am I still reading the same story? This is not how they were behaving all this time, they were only doing done to death soft porn jokes while chuckling about it. You cannot even excuse it as the result of all the nasty things that happened to them so far, because they always get amnesia and everything resets like it never happened. This is clear character rewrite.
And then I find the author’s notes at the end where he openly admits that he got tired of writing these stupid books. He went for torture porn because he got fed up with his own characters and is now treating them like shit. The book itself is way shorter than the rest, with several pages using only 30% of their space for text. He just didn’t want to write this book and was wasting space as often as he could so he would have enough pages to publish this bullshit as effortless as possible.
Even the story is so damn simpler that before. There is another box owner who wants to control the world, which means the only thing he is doing is controlling the students in the same old school as before, since that is as far as the world building goes in this stupid series. There is absolutely nothing else besides one school.
Every time he controls someone he has a horrible sensation. Thanks to the author being fed up with his crap, the description comes off edgy as fuck. And no, I am not using the word out of context because it really is superficial. This sensation has no effect in the story, it’s just there for the sake of being there.
Another case of the author not giving a shit is how he neglected to even mention the protagonist for the first third of the book. We just see the bad guy doing his shit for dozens of pages before Hoshino appears out of nowhere and instantly traps him into another box that he found out of screen. And he even does it with that ridiculous way we see in clickbaits where someone whispers nasty things while standing behind a scared second character. Something that the protagonist was never doing so far; he became an edgelord just because.
And holy crap, is the author not even trying to write proper edgelord nonsense. He just makes everybody scream and swear, as if that it all it takes to make the wrist cutting readers to give a shit.
Anyways, the bad guy is taken inside a cinema, where he is forced to watch a bunch of movies that represent his life. One of which is about time resets and perfectly describes how little the author cared once again, as he is literally reusing scenes from the first book. He is filling pages with the same text, like a flashback that uses stock footage. This is bullshit.
The rest of the book is essentially non-stop deprecation. Everyone feels miserable, blames each other, and then blame themselves. Basically, it was what the author and his publishers were feeling during the making of this horseshit. There is no plot to speak of, nothing is really explored or has a sense of continuity. They just jump from one thing to another, making me feel as bored as the guy who wrote this.
You think any of this matter? After two hundred pages of constant bickering the protagonist simply takes the box away and the conflict is over. The only justification for why he can do it is “just because”. He could have done it since page 1 and none of that shit would have happened, including the needless cinema scenes. This entire book was pointless and had no reason to exist, yet it’s still the highest rated light novel of all times.
You would think only the bad guy would be doing that because he is bad, but no, even the good guys are being mean and swear all the time. Am I still reading the same story? This is not how they were behaving all this time, they were only doing done to death soft porn jokes while chuckling about it. You cannot even excuse it as the result of all the nasty things that happened to them so far, because they always get amnesia and everything resets like it never happened. This is clear character rewrite.
And then I find the author’s notes at the end where he openly admits that he got tired of writing these stupid books. He went for torture porn because he got fed up with his own characters and is now treating them like shit. The book itself is way shorter than the rest, with several pages using only 30% of their space for text. He just didn’t want to write this book and was wasting space as often as he could so he would have enough pages to publish this bullshit as effortless as possible.
Even the story is so damn simpler that before. There is another box owner who wants to control the world, which means the only thing he is doing is controlling the students in the same old school as before, since that is as far as the world building goes in this stupid series. There is absolutely nothing else besides one school.
Every time he controls someone he has a horrible sensation. Thanks to the author being fed up with his crap, the description comes off edgy as fuck. And no, I am not using the word out of context because it really is superficial. This sensation has no effect in the story, it’s just there for the sake of being there.
Another case of the author not giving a shit is how he neglected to even mention the protagonist for the first third of the book. We just see the bad guy doing his shit for dozens of pages before Hoshino appears out of nowhere and instantly traps him into another box that he found out of screen. And he even does it with that ridiculous way we see in clickbaits where someone whispers nasty things while standing behind a scared second character. Something that the protagonist was never doing so far; he became an edgelord just because.
And holy crap, is the author not even trying to write proper edgelord nonsense. He just makes everybody scream and swear, as if that it all it takes to make the wrist cutting readers to give a shit.
Anyways, the bad guy is taken inside a cinema, where he is forced to watch a bunch of movies that represent his life. One of which is about time resets and perfectly describes how little the author cared once again, as he is literally reusing scenes from the first book. He is filling pages with the same text, like a flashback that uses stock footage. This is bullshit.
The rest of the book is essentially non-stop deprecation. Everyone feels miserable, blames each other, and then blame themselves. Basically, it was what the author and his publishers were feeling during the making of this horseshit. There is no plot to speak of, nothing is really explored or has a sense of continuity. They just jump from one thing to another, making me feel as bored as the guy who wrote this.
You think any of this matter? After two hundred pages of constant bickering the protagonist simply takes the box away and the conflict is over. The only justification for why he can do it is “just because”. He could have done it since page 1 and none of that shit would have happened, including the needless cinema scenes. This entire book was pointless and had no reason to exist, yet it’s still the highest rated light novel of all times.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 16, 2022
Pain is the most empathetic feeling there is and that allows the most learning routes... It's like a small pin that will burst the bubble of pride and allowing you to take the next step and that is being mature. Unfortunately, it seems that this whole philosophy becomes comical like in a stand up show....... Yes, it's extremely ironic how such a strong feeling is still tiny and how the hardest thing for a human being is to feel the pain of the next
In this way, perhaps ignorance is not a blessing, but a curse..... It must be very convenient to treat it as a blessing, after all, it is not you who will suffer from the consequence, because while it is a singular blessing it is a curse to those around you.
Perhaps, with the power of reading minds, we would be raised to salvation? Perhaps we would sink into perdition? Or would we simply lean on a tightrope? Seeing the pain of others also means seeing their sins, their darkness that values the salvation of a masochistic daily life, but above all, it allows us to see a human being who wants to be understood and connect, no matter how immoral.
This is a tale of evolution... It's a tale of seeing the hopeful black and not being consumed by white despair. Yet judging this as "two sides of a coin" seems to show a certain bliss in ignorance, so it would be like convex mirrors that just with a slight tilt factor the image changes...... The essence of the person remains the same, but what is reflected changes, and so are human perception
Understand? It is simply a matter of ignorance, but this will never deny change... No one is so bad that they cannot change or so good that they cannot improve.
So we arrived at Hakomaria, which synthesizes a good part of it in a philosophical narrative with some interesting symbolisms that match very well with its configuration.
The writing fits very well with all the philosophical configuration created and the narrative knows how to keep the reader entertained, whether by details of the past that are summarized in the present, which cause a kind of narrow and short pressure, but that manages to convey the feeling of tension, almost like simply going through a dark alley to get home, with the suffocating fear of the alleys and the dangers that the pitch black hides without the twilight light
Yes, to follow this beautiful narrative that touches in essence the past time, but in narrative terms, which oscillates between the future and the present, we have the addition of something that resembles several "prologues", these mostly descriptive that when they arrive in its connection in the narrative of the present, causes this agonizing and summative feeling. Yes, it's just like a movie theater.
Ultimately, this is like a contortion show.
This is a distortion of the brain muscles, a twist of values and relationships, but above all this is the true distortion of an empty box.
The time has come... The time to go back to zero maria
In this way, perhaps ignorance is not a blessing, but a curse..... It must be very convenient to treat it as a blessing, after all, it is not you who will suffer from the consequence, because while it is a singular blessing it is a curse to those around you.
Perhaps, with the power of reading minds, we would be raised to salvation? Perhaps we would sink into perdition? Or would we simply lean on a tightrope? Seeing the pain of others also means seeing their sins, their darkness that values the salvation of a masochistic daily life, but above all, it allows us to see a human being who wants to be understood and connect, no matter how immoral.
This is a tale of evolution... It's a tale of seeing the hopeful black and not being consumed by white despair. Yet judging this as "two sides of a coin" seems to show a certain bliss in ignorance, so it would be like convex mirrors that just with a slight tilt factor the image changes...... The essence of the person remains the same, but what is reflected changes, and so are human perception
Understand? It is simply a matter of ignorance, but this will never deny change... No one is so bad that they cannot change or so good that they cannot improve.
So we arrived at Hakomaria, which synthesizes a good part of it in a philosophical narrative with some interesting symbolisms that match very well with its configuration.
The writing fits very well with all the philosophical configuration created and the narrative knows how to keep the reader entertained, whether by details of the past that are summarized in the present, which cause a kind of narrow and short pressure, but that manages to convey the feeling of tension, almost like simply going through a dark alley to get home, with the suffocating fear of the alleys and the dangers that the pitch black hides without the twilight light
Yes, to follow this beautiful narrative that touches in essence the past time, but in narrative terms, which oscillates between the future and the present, we have the addition of something that resembles several "prologues", these mostly descriptive that when they arrive in its connection in the narrative of the present, causes this agonizing and summative feeling. Yes, it's just like a movie theater.
Ultimately, this is like a contortion show.
This is a distortion of the brain muscles, a twist of values and relationships, but above all this is the true distortion of an empty box.
The time has come... The time to go back to zero maria
October 27, 2023
So, volume 5. I kind of hated it, and also kind of loved it. That's been an ongoing trend with the midsection of this series.
On the one hand, the writing is fantastic. Better than volumes 3 & 4, maybe even better than 2, and that's a high bar in my eyes. I'm shocked how well all the plot threads are coming together, and I am so ready to finally reach this story's conclusion.
The problem I have though, is that volumes 3-5 have all been buildup. None of them have a real conclusion, not even 4, which brought us to the end of the Game of Indolence. As a result, I still can't fully jugde what's happening in the story.
I can say this: I hate what Kazuki has become. It's a fascinating direction for his character, but as he is the protagonist it's getting harder and harder for me to envision a satisfying ending to this series unless he becomes the villain somehow. I don't want that. I want to believe that he will come around somehow, and his relationship with Maria will be repaired in some way, even if it can't ever be fully. I'm just having a hard time seeing that happen.
Daiya's character is amazing in this volume. I can't wait to see more from his perspective in #6. Maybe if Kazu has to become the bad guy, he can turn around and fight against him? I don't really know at this point. The point is, Mikage Eiji has written this story really well, but it's the kind of story that requires a killer ending to work, and I'm scared that we may not get that. But I'll find that out soon enough.
On the one hand, the writing is fantastic. Better than volumes 3 & 4, maybe even better than 2, and that's a high bar in my eyes. I'm shocked how well all the plot threads are coming together, and I am so ready to finally reach this story's conclusion.
The problem I have though, is that volumes 3-5 have all been buildup. None of them have a real conclusion, not even 4, which brought us to the end of the Game of Indolence. As a result, I still can't fully jugde what's happening in the story.
I can say this: I hate what Kazuki has become. It's a fascinating direction for his character, but as he is the protagonist it's getting harder and harder for me to envision a satisfying ending to this series unless he becomes the villain somehow. I don't want that. I want to believe that he will come around somehow, and his relationship with Maria will be repaired in some way, even if it can't ever be fully. I'm just having a hard time seeing that happen.
Daiya's character is amazing in this volume. I can't wait to see more from his perspective in #6. Maybe if Kazu has to become the bad guy, he can turn around and fight against him? I don't really know at this point. The point is, Mikage Eiji has written this story really well, but it's the kind of story that requires a killer ending to work, and I'm scared that we may not get that. But I'll find that out soon enough.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 2, 2019
I really don't like when the story takes the "world destruction path", things gets too out of touch and bothersome to control the story development, when it comes to proportions that big. It reminds me of the over the top ending of Naruto, things start to make less and less sense, the opposite of memorable.
I just want some Maria and Kazuki interactions and relatable stuff, I guess. Kazuki's sudden obsessive behaviour towards Maria is probably an interesting development, but I really wasn't looking forward to a battle between him and the genius Daiya.
Plot gets too full of fantasy, rules that need explanation to be consistent. It's a pain to test if every phenomena are consistent for every situation, check if it makes sense to the context. A lot of fantasy stuff needs justification, because it's so confusing and unconvincing. Not sure about the "sins" thing, too.
I'm still not sure how to rate this series, so I've been giving the safe 3 stars. Quality and personal impressions seems so intertwined, not to mention enjoyment. Thigs were kinda meh, up until the execution of Maria's betrayal and O's revelation. It was so well-executed. A nice moral reflection, followed by an emotional climax and finally the big twist. Good stuff, seriously.
I just want some Maria and Kazuki interactions and relatable stuff, I guess. Kazuki's sudden obsessive behaviour towards Maria is probably an interesting development, but I really wasn't looking forward to a battle between him and the genius Daiya.
Plot gets too full of fantasy, rules that need explanation to be consistent. It's a pain to test if every phenomena are consistent for every situation, check if it makes sense to the context. A lot of fantasy stuff needs justification, because it's so confusing and unconvincing. Not sure about the "sins" thing, too.
I'm still not sure how to rate this series, so I've been giving the safe 3 stars. Quality and personal impressions seems so intertwined, not to mention enjoyment. Thigs were kinda meh, up until the execution of Maria's betrayal and O's revelation. It was so well-executed. A nice moral reflection, followed by an emotional climax and finally the big twist. Good stuff, seriously.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 16, 2018
The best book so far in Hakomari series. This arc is, well, a resemblance of Death Note. The Anti-Heroes in both stories share similar approach to justice (kill bad people => greater good). Both Anti-Heroes are shrewd, cool, and cold-hearted (though Yagami Light is a bit better in conquering his emotions). Both stories involve great psychological, thrilling, and intelligencewise battles. If you, like me, are a Death Note fan, you couldn't help but enjoy this volume so much and give it a 5-star rating.
For Death Note fans, if you are looking for a superficial, emotion-centered, pseudo-ethical counteraction for Light's justice, you can take references from Kazuki's words in this book.
What I feel after such a long speech of him? I sensed nothing but helplessness. I pitied that shallow-minded guy so much. He is just too ordinary. Doesn't have an Ideal. A man that blindly hopes to maintain the everyday life is just too small to do something great. Such a man will get crushed soon. He will wriggle in pain and despairfully wait for Death to descend, I guarantee!
For Death Note fans, if you are looking for a superficial, emotion-centered, pseudo-ethical counteraction for Light's justice, you can take references from Kazuki's words in this book.
What I feel after such a long speech of him? I sensed nothing but helplessness. I pitied that shallow-minded guy so much. He is just too ordinary. Doesn't have an Ideal. A man that blindly hopes to maintain the everyday life is just too small to do something great. Such a man will get crushed soon. He will wriggle in pain and despairfully wait for Death to descend, I guarantee!
April 25, 2025
I wish I didn't know how many volumes there are in this whole series. It doesn't seem like there is enough 'time' left to resolve everything.
After this volume, every single main / tertiary character is terrible in one way or another. Daiya is now my favorite character, deranged as he is. Using his perspective for a majority of this volume was a good changeup... especially now that I'm starting to like Kazuki less and less. Daiya's wish is so vast yet everything still feels so personal due to the secondary box trapping him in. AND WHO'S BOX IS HE IN ANYWAYS?
I love this series so far - the initial hook pulled me in easily. However as the magic gets revealed over time it's like I'm climbing up to the edge of a cliff about to tumble off and there can be no smooth landing. Hopefully I'm wrong in feeling this way - as of now I can only forsee a messy and bittersweet ending.
The twist to reveal who 'O' is wasn't much of a surprise to me either, but I also always read it's name as "Oh" instead of "Zero" for whatever reason.
After this volume, every single main / tertiary character is terrible in one way or another. Daiya is now my favorite character, deranged as he is. Using his perspective for a majority of this volume was a good changeup... especially now that I'm starting to like Kazuki less and less. Daiya's wish is so vast yet everything still feels so personal due to the secondary box trapping him in. AND WHO'S BOX IS HE IN ANYWAYS?
I love this series so far - the initial hook pulled me in easily. However as the magic gets revealed over time it's like I'm climbing up to the edge of a cliff about to tumble off and there can be no smooth landing. Hopefully I'm wrong in feeling this way - as of now I can only forsee a messy and bittersweet ending.
The twist to reveal who 'O' is wasn't much of a surprise to me either, but I also always read it's name as "Oh" instead of "Zero" for whatever reason.
June 30, 2020
While not a lot physically happened in this book, the stage is not set for the ones to follow o_O
Heck, it didn't even reach a definite conclusion on its own, it's probably going to be more like a two or even a three parter to get to the end.
That being said, I like where it's headed. This time, it split the views between Daiya, who we got a lot of backstory on of his past in middle school and his darker secrets, and Hoshino, who we now have a clear direction of how it'll be ending the series. The focal point of the series went from "get thrown into a situation involving a Box, then somehow fix it" time after time to And personally, I'm not even sure if the Hoshino we know right now is the good guy protagonist that we've been following since the first book.
Heck, it didn't even reach a definite conclusion on its own, it's probably going to be more like a two or even a three parter to get to the end.
That being said, I like where it's headed. This time, it split the views between Daiya, who we got a lot of backstory on of his past in middle school and his darker secrets, and Hoshino, who we now have a clear direction of how it'll be ending the series. The focal point of the series went from "get thrown into a situation involving a Box, then somehow fix it" time after time to And personally, I'm not even sure if the Hoshino we know right now is the good guy protagonist that we've been following since the first book.
July 12, 2021
A new story arc and a new box are now in play! A new game of wit and cunning has started but this time the boxes owner isn't in it for selfish reasons, but rather to make the world a better place. But as with all matters like this the way they are going about it is questionably and only become more so as the book goes on.
Added to that is Kazuki, now changed as a result of what he's been through in Kingdom Royale and with the other boxes. He's a much stronger character and presence then before but is that necessarily a good thing?
It's interesting that now Kazuki's actions are the ones I'm having the most trouble foreseeing rather then that of the antagonist or the box owner. Its an interesting dynamic shift as both parties logic start to twist around in different ways and for different reasons.
The box owner wasn't a surprise but the direction the story is going in certainly is. There's only 2 more volumes left and I'm interested to see how it ends.
Added to that is Kazuki, now changed as a result of what he's been through in Kingdom Royale and with the other boxes. He's a much stronger character and presence then before but is that necessarily a good thing?
It's interesting that now Kazuki's actions are the ones I'm having the most trouble foreseeing rather then that of the antagonist or the box owner. Its an interesting dynamic shift as both parties logic start to twist around in different ways and for different reasons.
The box owner wasn't a surprise but the direction the story is going in certainly is. There's only 2 more volumes left and I'm interested to see how it ends.
August 18, 2023
I'm so mixed on this one. On one side I definitely enjoyed reading this volume more than the previous one. But on the other side, this volume is notably shorter than others in the series and it feels almost as if the author himself is bored of this story. From the moving away from our main character (he isn't in like 2/3 of this volume) to all the shock out scenes that weren't as prevalent in previous volumes. It almost feels as if the author himself was sort of bored of this series but had to pump another one out. Very honestly thinking of tapping out of the series here. But might ride it out to see what becomes of it.
September 25, 2018
The plot has clearly become boring and i don't feel the excitement anymore.
There was a lot of exposing in this novel, however, it couldn't draw my attention anymore. It felt like it was not required and i found myself skipping pages.
Full of long dialogues and surreal speeches that i lost interest halfway. Still, I wanted to give it a shot so stayed till the end only to find that, this silly story will again drag on to the next volume which i have decided to not read.
Characters were developing but the pacing was not good enough.
There was a lot of exposing in this novel, however, it couldn't draw my attention anymore. It felt like it was not required and i found myself skipping pages.
Full of long dialogues and surreal speeches that i lost interest halfway. Still, I wanted to give it a shot so stayed till the end only to find that, this silly story will again drag on to the next volume which i have decided to not read.
Characters were developing but the pacing was not good enough.
February 5, 2025
Ahhh es el volumen que menos me gusta hasta ahora, y es por los suceso que pasan en la historia, como Daiya e Iroha san cayendo en la locura y alejandose de lo que me agradaba de ellos y también como kazuki también algo enloquesido de poder después de echarselo en cara a Iroha, y como el obvio favoritismo que tiene O por Kazuki a pesar de ser enemigos y decir que no lo ayudará, cuando claramente hizo lo contrario... Pienso que en em fondo es por el deseo de Maria.
Bueno a continuar con el siguiente volumen, realmente espero que los personajes salgan bien liberados aunque esta difícil.
Bueno a continuar con el siguiente volumen, realmente espero que los personajes salgan bien liberados aunque esta difícil.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 6, 2019
The parts about O/Maria/Kazuki were really good and it shows the author planned the series ahead.
The pars about Daya are a bit of a mess... he is doing some pretty stupid stuff for someone that is constantly praised for being a genius... it didn't add up and it cost the book 2 stars
The pars about Daya are a bit of a mess... he is doing some pretty stupid stuff for someone that is constantly praised for being a genius... it didn't add up and it cost the book 2 stars
June 25, 2025
I don't know these people anymore.
Almost all of the characters take a 180 turn, but the most surprising is the Kazuki transformation. The events from the first book seem so far away now. I'm actually curious as to how the events will end.
Almost all of the characters take a 180 turn, but the most surprising is the Kazuki transformation. The events from the first book seem so far away now. I'm actually curious as to how the events will end.
April 7, 2019
This series is amazing.
July 3, 2019
Demasiado edgy para mi gusto y el plan del antagonista no tiene sentido
June 22, 2022
Okay i lied, this is the best one.
September 2, 2024
8.82/10
June 21, 2025
i hope that, someday please god! just give me Hakomari anime or at least Hakomari manga
April 30, 2025
I couldn't stand this one. So overly violent. Also, boring.
May 27, 2015
After a two year wait (plus an extra month for the Baka Tsuki translation), we finally have HakoMari 5. The previous volume ended on an ominous note -- not a cliffhanger per se, but the hero, having betrayed his ideals to save the girl he loves, lies to her about what he did.
And now it's time for the consequences.
Daiya finally makes a move with his box, The Shadow of Sin -- you know, the one he's had since volume 2 -- and he uses it to destroy sin. And turn sinners into his zombie slaves. Except for the ones who are too sinful. He just turns them into dogs. Naturally Kazuki and Maria try to stop him, but things don't work out exactly as planned due to the fact that Daiya, unlike every previous box owner, has actually thought out how he's going to use it.
The nice thing about this volume is that virtually all the major cast members from previous volumes come back and play major roles (except the two lame-o villains from volume 2 whose names I can't even remember) -- Kokone, Haruaki, Iroha, Yuuri Yanagi. Even Kamiuchi overcomes being dead to make an appearance. The major mysteries introduced in the last two books -- Rino and Nana Yanagi -- also play a significant role this time around, though they aren't resolved, and a new mystery is added regarding Kokone's past.
There are only two bad things about this book:
1) It ends on a major cliffhanger, and
2) The next installment (which I hope doesn't take two years) looks to be the last.
And now it's time for the consequences.
Daiya finally makes a move with his box, The Shadow of Sin -- you know, the one he's had since volume 2 -- and he uses it to destroy sin. And turn sinners into his zombie slaves. Except for the ones who are too sinful. He just turns them into dogs. Naturally Kazuki and Maria try to stop him, but things don't work out exactly as planned due to the fact that Daiya, unlike every previous box owner, has actually thought out how he's going to use it.
The nice thing about this volume is that virtually all the major cast members from previous volumes come back and play major roles (except the two lame-o villains from volume 2 whose names I can't even remember) -- Kokone, Haruaki, Iroha, Yuuri Yanagi. Even Kamiuchi overcomes being dead to make an appearance. The major mysteries introduced in the last two books -- Rino and Nana Yanagi -- also play a significant role this time around, though they aren't resolved, and a new mystery is added regarding Kokone's past.
There are only two bad things about this book:
1) It ends on a major cliffhanger, and
2) The next installment (which I hope doesn't take two years) looks to be the last.
February 8, 2016
What?
...
VILLAIN is evolving!
...
Congratulations! Your VILLAIN evolved into ANTI-HERO!
This is how you keep a series interesting five books in. Hats off, five stars. Brilliant character development and the plot is very much alive. Daiya is getting more interesting book by book, and the cinema box was a great one.
...
VILLAIN is evolving!
...
Congratulations! Your VILLAIN evolved into ANTI-HERO!
This is how you keep a series interesting five books in. Hats off, five stars. Brilliant character development and the plot is very much alive. Daiya is getting more interesting book by book, and the cinema box was a great one.
February 9, 2015
Even more character development for our main character, this novel explains a lot of the backstory behind our two main leads, and their actions against each other. Certain huge moments happen for our main character, leaving the story on a cliff-hanger, and us in a killing suspense.
November 12, 2016
Nidy nie napisałem nic o Maridełku, ale muszę przyznać, że autor po tej dwuletniej przerwie rozwinął skrzydła i to co zrobił tej serii jest po prostu piękne. Zrobienie Daiyi głównym bohaterem tego tomu i te plot twisty. Och z niecierpliwością czekam na kolejny tom.
October 6, 2012
thrilling!
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