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SCP Foundation: Iris Through the Looking Glass Light Novel #1
SCP Foundation: Iris Through the Looking-Glass (Light Novel) Vol. 1
WHAT’S WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE?! An ordinary boy encounters the paranormal when a photo of the same girl starts inexplicably showing up in every book he opens. One day, the girl reaches out and pulls him into the photo to her a cell in a top-secret facility belonging to the SCP Foundation, an organization dedicated to the research and containment of people, objects and phenomena that defy reality! Even they’ve deemed him a threat to be contained, and he’s going to have to work with them if he ever wants to see the outside world again! Content relating to the SCP Foundation, including the SCP Foundation logo, is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-Sharealike 3.0 and all concepts originate from and its authors. SCP Iris Through the Looking Glass, being derived from this content, is also released under Creative Commons Attribution-Sharealike 3.0. To view a copy of the license, please visit or contact Creative Commons, PO Box 1866, Mountain View, CA 94042, USA. See full list of credits at
320 pages, Paperback
First published September 4, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
October 4, 2023
I have mixed feelings about this book. I love the SCP Foundation, but I feel like the setting was horribly underutilized. The events of the book take place before and during the SCP-1048 incident, but it's completely glossed over. I think that could have made for a good overarching plot.
Instead, we got the daily life of what I suppose was a reader insert? The protagonist is described as a normal high school boy, but to be honest, with the name being redacted, I just changed the pronouns and pretended I was reading about a girl instead. The protagonist is basically spirited away to the SCP Foundation, is labeled SCP-105-C, having been discovered to be able to enter and leave photos. They become an important asset in researching past events, attract the attention of Dr. Bright, etc. It all feels very escapism and wish-fulfillment. I can respect that, because I think people are just afraid to be self-indulgent these days.
But, like I said, it has a lot of wasted potential. I picked up this book for the SCPs, but instead the book focuses on a slice-of-life sort of thing between the protagonist and Iris (SCP-105-A). There's no overarching plot, and SCPs are introduced and then quickly dismissed. I feel like a lot of hardcore fans of the series would be a little upset by this, actually? I mean, I know on the main site that every article is intensely scrutinized, and something like this would get torn apart. I really wanted to like this book more than I did and I'm going to keep it, but I'm sorry. I was kind of disappointed.
ADDENDUM (10/4/2023): I've recently learned that Dr. Bright was the self-insert/original character of AdminBright, an individual who was banned from SCP for repeated sexual harassment. This makes everything so much worse.
Instead, we got the daily life of what I suppose was a reader insert? The protagonist is described as a normal high school boy, but to be honest, with the name being redacted, I just changed the pronouns and pretended I was reading about a girl instead. The protagonist is basically spirited away to the SCP Foundation, is labeled SCP-105-C, having been discovered to be able to enter and leave photos. They become an important asset in researching past events, attract the attention of Dr. Bright, etc. It all feels very escapism and wish-fulfillment. I can respect that, because I think people are just afraid to be self-indulgent these days.
But, like I said, it has a lot of wasted potential. I picked up this book for the SCPs, but instead the book focuses on a slice-of-life sort of thing between the protagonist and Iris (SCP-105-A). There's no overarching plot, and SCPs are introduced and then quickly dismissed. I feel like a lot of hardcore fans of the series would be a little upset by this, actually? I mean, I know on the main site that every article is intensely scrutinized, and something like this would get torn apart. I really wanted to like this book more than I did and I'm going to keep it, but I'm sorry. I was kind of disappointed.
ADDENDUM (10/4/2023): I've recently learned that Dr. Bright was the self-insert/original character of AdminBright, an individual who was banned from SCP for repeated sexual harassment. This makes everything so much worse.
August 18, 2020
I’ve taken to reading more and more Asian light novels as I love the slice of life nature they have to their narratives. Following a character as they explore a new world is what I want to do for the rest of my life (since being an explorer isn’t really an option nowadays).
What caught the fancy of this supernatural Fangirl?
Our boy was so supremely average that it almost became a trait, it’s what you most admired about him in this creepy, odd supernatural world that the SCP Foundation occupies. And since we get everything about the world through his eyes it was a good thing I took a shine to him. In the end it’s this extreme contrast that gives the story its edge, an edge that keeps you reading even though this isn’t the most intense or action packed of plot lines.
Creepy objects caught at odd angles.
The SCP Foundation is about collecting supernatural objects that could or couldn’t be dangerous to the public and keeping them out of harms way. This boy is considered one of these objects. Intriguing, right?
An odd photographer makes for a creepy coed roommate.
This girl who plagues him in his world is the instigator of his incarceration. They form a bond that is a big motivation in the story. I really liked her and found their differences intriguing.
Is SCP Foundation: Iris Through the Looking Glass vol 1 a retelling of Alice in Wonderland?
Yes, sort of. Asian writers love to appropriate culture and refer to works from other lands. And, of course, like many authors Alice in Wonderland is a favorite in Asia too. Our boy coming through the photograph is much like Alice through the mirror. And many of the odd characters and creepy situations refer to things from the book too. It isn’t so obvious that you feel you know what’s going to happen but it’s fun when you see a parallel.
SCP Foundation: Iris Through the Looking Glass vol 1 was a intriguing setup of the SCP Foundation world. We get a power couple who makes us want to follow them on adventures through this creepy and odd wonderland. A great start to a new light novel series.
What caught the fancy of this supernatural Fangirl?
Our boy was so supremely average that it almost became a trait, it’s what you most admired about him in this creepy, odd supernatural world that the SCP Foundation occupies. And since we get everything about the world through his eyes it was a good thing I took a shine to him. In the end it’s this extreme contrast that gives the story its edge, an edge that keeps you reading even though this isn’t the most intense or action packed of plot lines.
Creepy objects caught at odd angles.
The SCP Foundation is about collecting supernatural objects that could or couldn’t be dangerous to the public and keeping them out of harms way. This boy is considered one of these objects. Intriguing, right?
An odd photographer makes for a creepy coed roommate.
This girl who plagues him in his world is the instigator of his incarceration. They form a bond that is a big motivation in the story. I really liked her and found their differences intriguing.
Is SCP Foundation: Iris Through the Looking Glass vol 1 a retelling of Alice in Wonderland?
Yes, sort of. Asian writers love to appropriate culture and refer to works from other lands. And, of course, like many authors Alice in Wonderland is a favorite in Asia too. Our boy coming through the photograph is much like Alice through the mirror. And many of the odd characters and creepy situations refer to things from the book too. It isn’t so obvious that you feel you know what’s going to happen but it’s fun when you see a parallel.
SCP Foundation: Iris Through the Looking Glass vol 1 was a intriguing setup of the SCP Foundation world. We get a power couple who makes us want to follow them on adventures through this creepy and odd wonderland. A great start to a new light novel series.
July 7, 2020
This feels like a kid's book packed into an adult-themed universe honestly. the main character is very boring, bland and stereotypical the stereotype that I noticed is The Submissive Asian Girl/Boy Stereotype. The main character also seems like a self-insert.
The story is also a very slice of life. This wasn't at all what I was expecting when I picked this up. I expected more stakes, action and conflict. I was also expecting the more iconic SCPs, like 173 and 049, to show up. There is no overarching plot whatsoever as well.
The only character that is given proper attention is dr.bright. this reminds me of the shipping reader inserts on Wattpad.
This is a good example of a bad fanfic/book. avoid this book if you enjoy SCP and don't want to be disappointed.
The story is also a very slice of life. This wasn't at all what I was expecting when I picked this up. I expected more stakes, action and conflict. I was also expecting the more iconic SCPs, like 173 and 049, to show up. There is no overarching plot whatsoever as well.
The only character that is given proper attention is dr.bright. this reminds me of the shipping reader inserts on Wattpad.
This is a good example of a bad fanfic/book. avoid this book if you enjoy SCP and don't want to be disappointed.
May 19, 2022
To have a story set in SCP canon, where all of these horrors exist and to then focus on the main character blushing about being in close proximity to a *girl*....
It fits within the tropes for a light novel but was overall disappointing. Every dramatic moment was glossed over in favor of the MC explaining the obvious, and the translation gag got dull quite fast.
A torturous read and a complete waste of the IP.
Edit: the sheer amount of times the narrator goes “Oh we don’t have time to talk about that” and then spend multiple pages talking about inane details drives me up the wall.
It fits within the tropes for a light novel but was overall disappointing. Every dramatic moment was glossed over in favor of the MC explaining the obvious, and the translation gag got dull quite fast.
A torturous read and a complete waste of the IP.
Edit: the sheer amount of times the narrator goes “Oh we don’t have time to talk about that” and then spend multiple pages talking about inane details drives me up the wall.
May 9, 2021
This book is honestly horrible. Not only is the writing very bad, and the dialogue stilted, but it has so many plotholes both alone as a story and related to the SCP foundation. The author clearly knows nothing about the SCP foundation. If you're an SCP fan, don't read this. If you just want to read a nice book with a good story, don't read this.
February 25, 2020
Okay, let me preface this takedown with a reminder that I am in no way an authority on SCP lore. Therefore, I cannot attest to the amount of liberties taken with any SCP objects present in the narrative.
This novel is told in the first person perspective of the nameless (actually, name redacted) protagonist (designation SCP-105-C), who, as the summary tells us, is pulled through a photo into an SCP Foundation location. Prior to this, he'd seen an identical picture in every book he opened: that of a beautiful young blonde girl cradling a vintage Polaroid camera. This turns out to be Iris Thompson (SCP-105) and her camera (SCP-105-B). The boy has no idea what his connection to this mysterious girl is; and his life is turned upside-down as he attempts to unravel this mystery; all while contending with running across other SCP objects at the facility, and being subjected to 'research' conducted on him by the enigmatic Dr. Bright (don't know what the existing lore on him/her/they was, but I wonder if it involved him being a hard-core otaku with a fidget spinner).
With a basic premise like that, there is hypothetically a lot of wiggle room to make a fun story. You can try and balance drama, horror, and levity, which would likely be the best recipe for the subject matter.
It's way too bad that the final result is more of a patchwork mess.
What went wrong?
I'm not sure how this novel was conceived, but I'm fairly certain I am correct in guessing that it was written in installments on a message board. While some very successful light novel series have started in this fashion (especially in the isekai genre), such is not the case here. SCP Foundation comes off as lightly warmed-over fan-fiction. I have no issue with the fact that the structure is essentially an anthology of interconnected vignettes; however, each section has multiple breaks, giving off a feel of serialized installments. There is no fluidity.
Next, let's talk about writing style. Sadly, there isn't much of one. There is no attempt made to cultivate or evoke mood or emotion. Every situation in the book is composed of one small percentage statement and exposition, and the rest is padding and repetition. For, say, every SCP object the protagonist meets, the same formula is used:
1. State what is going on ("The thing before me was half a cat")
2. Repeat the fact in disbelief ("I could not believe that a being that was half a cat was in front of me. But it was there, so it had to be real.")
3. Attribute it to current life status ("I guess such things as half-cats are a way of life in this bizarre facility, where these amazing objects and their myriad powers exist.")
Rinse. Repeat. Recycle.
Next, we move on to characters. Sadly, the characters here are fairly bland cardboard cutouts. Our protagonist is another nondescript, unassuming Japanese high school boy. His kind are legion. He has budding emotions for Iris, which of course aren't developed upon. Iris is a fun, flirty gaijin girl; and of course it is impossible to get a bead on her romantic interest. Dr. Bright is the epitome of the obnoxious comedy relief. There aren't many other cast members. Dr. Selkie and Dr. Goldman appear briefly to redefine cringe. The dramatis personae of SCP objects present get treatment akin to lip
service. Everybody deserved better.
All these things aside; perhaps the biggest complaint with the book is its lack of a core theme. One could safely assume that one of two storylines would be the focus here: either exploring the interconnected relationship between the SCP-105 entities, or using the protagonist's odd circumstance to experience other SCP objects first hand (kind of a play on Alice Through the Looking Glass, which is referenced in the title). Heck, I would even have accepted an honest attempt to do both. However, we get neither; simply more repetition and padding.
Whatever the reasons for their connection, whatever possible utilization of implementation of their joint skill might have occurred, it isn't explored or revealed. The majority of the book chronicles their lives as roommates, without ever really delving into any of the circumstances that brought them together. Was this trip really necessary?
Towards the end, you can also tell that the author (or perhaps authors, who can tell) had no idea how to wrap this tale up. There is an instance; when the protagonist is wondering as to whether he is missed or not back home, which is answered in such a nonsensical way that it is insulting. Then, as if to backpedal over it, the book culminates with an uber-convenient ending; again, straining credibility and plausibility to levels they shouldn't be stretched to.
Was there anything good about this book?
Hmmmm....honestly, not too much. It is still readable; and the translation isn't the worst I've read. There are some noticeable typos, which are always an eyesore (proofread, people). I mean, you keep turning pages, hoping it'll gain traction, hoping that the characters will be given something, some angle, to endear themselves to you. It doesn't really pan out, though. Recommended only if the novelty of having an SCP-themed light novel on your shelf is your cup of tea.
You can read my full review here:
https://hachisnaxreads.blogspot.com/2...
This novel is told in the first person perspective of the nameless (actually, name redacted) protagonist (designation SCP-105-C), who, as the summary tells us, is pulled through a photo into an SCP Foundation location. Prior to this, he'd seen an identical picture in every book he opened: that of a beautiful young blonde girl cradling a vintage Polaroid camera. This turns out to be Iris Thompson (SCP-105) and her camera (SCP-105-B). The boy has no idea what his connection to this mysterious girl is; and his life is turned upside-down as he attempts to unravel this mystery; all while contending with running across other SCP objects at the facility, and being subjected to 'research' conducted on him by the enigmatic Dr. Bright (don't know what the existing lore on him/her/they was, but I wonder if it involved him being a hard-core otaku with a fidget spinner).
With a basic premise like that, there is hypothetically a lot of wiggle room to make a fun story. You can try and balance drama, horror, and levity, which would likely be the best recipe for the subject matter.
It's way too bad that the final result is more of a patchwork mess.
What went wrong?
I'm not sure how this novel was conceived, but I'm fairly certain I am correct in guessing that it was written in installments on a message board. While some very successful light novel series have started in this fashion (especially in the isekai genre), such is not the case here. SCP Foundation comes off as lightly warmed-over fan-fiction. I have no issue with the fact that the structure is essentially an anthology of interconnected vignettes; however, each section has multiple breaks, giving off a feel of serialized installments. There is no fluidity.
Next, let's talk about writing style. Sadly, there isn't much of one. There is no attempt made to cultivate or evoke mood or emotion. Every situation in the book is composed of one small percentage statement and exposition, and the rest is padding and repetition. For, say, every SCP object the protagonist meets, the same formula is used:
1. State what is going on ("The thing before me was half a cat")
2. Repeat the fact in disbelief ("I could not believe that a being that was half a cat was in front of me. But it was there, so it had to be real.")
3. Attribute it to current life status ("I guess such things as half-cats are a way of life in this bizarre facility, where these amazing objects and their myriad powers exist.")
Rinse. Repeat. Recycle.
Next, we move on to characters. Sadly, the characters here are fairly bland cardboard cutouts. Our protagonist is another nondescript, unassuming Japanese high school boy. His kind are legion. He has budding emotions for Iris, which of course aren't developed upon. Iris is a fun, flirty gaijin girl; and of course it is impossible to get a bead on her romantic interest. Dr. Bright is the epitome of the obnoxious comedy relief. There aren't many other cast members. Dr. Selkie and Dr. Goldman appear briefly to redefine cringe. The dramatis personae of SCP objects present get treatment akin to lip
service. Everybody deserved better.
All these things aside; perhaps the biggest complaint with the book is its lack of a core theme. One could safely assume that one of two storylines would be the focus here: either exploring the interconnected relationship between the SCP-105 entities, or using the protagonist's odd circumstance to experience other SCP objects first hand (kind of a play on Alice Through the Looking Glass, which is referenced in the title). Heck, I would even have accepted an honest attempt to do both. However, we get neither; simply more repetition and padding.
Whatever the reasons for their connection, whatever possible utilization of implementation of their joint skill might have occurred, it isn't explored or revealed. The majority of the book chronicles their lives as roommates, without ever really delving into any of the circumstances that brought them together. Was this trip really necessary?
Towards the end, you can also tell that the author (or perhaps authors, who can tell) had no idea how to wrap this tale up. There is an instance; when the protagonist is wondering as to whether he is missed or not back home, which is answered in such a nonsensical way that it is insulting. Then, as if to backpedal over it, the book culminates with an uber-convenient ending; again, straining credibility and plausibility to levels they shouldn't be stretched to.
Was there anything good about this book?
Hmmmm....honestly, not too much. It is still readable; and the translation isn't the worst I've read. There are some noticeable typos, which are always an eyesore (proofread, people). I mean, you keep turning pages, hoping it'll gain traction, hoping that the characters will be given something, some angle, to endear themselves to you. It doesn't really pan out, though. Recommended only if the novelty of having an SCP-themed light novel on your shelf is your cup of tea.
You can read my full review here:
https://hachisnaxreads.blogspot.com/2...
April 9, 2020
Okay isekai light novel, bad SCP novel. I see what the author was attempting to do, but for me the combination fell flat.
December 8, 2022
I bought this book because I loved the stories of SCPs and what their existence could do to impact humanity. But this novel or book was pretty terrible. For one I did not like how they portrayed the characters (especially Iris/ SCP-105) they in a way kinda sexualized her or made her very naive or just made the character stupid. And the SCPs that were chosen to be written for this novel were boring, except one. The story also makes no sense.
(Spoiler parts)
The main female characters involved in this novel was Iris Thompson (SCP-105), Dr. Selkie, and even Dr. Bright if you want to count them! The main character of this story saw some of these characters to be “cute” or just sexualized them. It was annoying especially when he talked of Iris. He would get nervous around her when they shared the same room for a while because he felt like she or him were going to do something to each other? Iris was never going to do something like that! (More likely the main character would) As she treated the main character kindly and even thought of him as family. Every time she did something nice or considerate for him, he would call her “cute” or just “too sweet”. It was annoying. There was a part in the Josie the half-cat chapter where Josie the CAT got on top of Iris and licked her face, the main character began to think of it like she was kissing the cat when it was literally just licking her face! I know the main character’s a teenager too, but so is Iris! She like eighteen or seventeen! I wouldn’t call her an adult either because for one she was stuck in the SCP Foundation for the rest of her life and two she probably wasn’t able to finish High School at the time and she acts like a child mostly in this novel.
-
Next character was Dr. Selkie, who wore odd clothing and was also portrayed to be childish (I mean I’m pretty sure the book states it.) She was really dumb almost having herself be killed in “the name of love” or whatever she was trying to do. She sucked as a character who wasn’t very memorable and could be thrown away and replaced with another character and nothing would probably change. Did I also mention she had this dumb little romance with this other researcher, that little story went really nowhere.
-
Dr. Bright is put on here too because he can choose and posses whatever body he wants. He chose to go with a Japanese woman because the main character was Japanese and I think he tried flirting with this kid. Every time they mentioned Dr Bright and their movement as a woman they would always mention breasts, legs, or the “pretty face” that they had. It was unnecessary. Even for as insane Dr. Bright is those parts didn’t have to be added especially when something serious or important is going on and when it cuts to Bright this is what I will be reading from the main character. And I don’t really like how Dr. Bright even tried to flirt with the main character or Iris they’re literally teenagers who would still be in high school. The amount of times I read Dr Bright trying to kiss or touch Iris or the main character was disturbing.
Next problem the main character. He was dry, had really no personality, and just sucked as a person. I hated this boy with a passion. He was so boring he couldn’t even choose his own home over the SCP Foundation I mean that’s just selfishness right there. And his relationship with Iris made me want to get pulled into SCP-106’s little pocket dimensions as every time he was around her he thought she was “cute” and always saw her as this innocent little creature who is so scary when she shows even the slightest hint of anger. Even when she straight up told him she thought of him as family he continues to think of her in this romantic way. I just hate him.
The story was confusing. For one, in the beginning of The Carnival Of Horrors (SCP-823) chapter we meet these three soldiers and when the main character mentions the name Dr Bright they start to treat the main character with kindness or sympathy. Because he was tangled up in Bright’s mess. Later on the female soldier in the group reveals that she has a family and a younger brother. Which was revealed later on by Bright that he was her brother. Which makes no sense! Either Bright was joking or something but that made no sense! If they were siblings and the soldier knew the name of Bright before this she wouldn’t be fighting there to begin with because her brother would be a researcher and scientist! (She only worked there to give her family a better life) But Bright would be a lot younger and the soldier said that he was probably around the same age as the main character! And Bright is like a lot older than that when he was working in the foundation, yet they still recognized the name Bright even though Dr Bright as a young teenager, wouldn’t be working at the foundation in that time!
There were many missed opportunities for other SCPs. 7 of the 8 SCPs were SAFE class! The only one story of an SCP I liked was the SCP-823 which showed a lot of horror and action. This novel mentioned SCPs that weren’t safe classes but would have made a more interesting story! The novel mentioned SCPs like SCP-053 The Young Girl, SCP-173, SCP-106, and the SCP that goes by the name of “Able”. Would have made a more interesting and fun, horror, action, suspense story than whatever we got. And by the near end of the book it mentions the “Builder Bear” SCP and how the main characters had to capture or exterminate it. But they never showed it, which is a shame because I would’ve liked to see Iris and the MC try and chase after this Bear that no longer goes by SAFE class and was a force to be reckoned with.
This book never fully went in depth with Iris’s character even though the book is named after her and we never got the explanation for the bloody photo in her room, besides the fact that the person in that photo meant a lot to her. I would also like to know if Iris had something against Dr. Bright because she seems to hate him with a passion. I know he bothers her a lot but I want to know if he had anything to do with her capture or placement in the foundation.
The good thing with this novel is that it made SCPs more known since I got this in my local comic shop in the mall and the art illustrated in this novel was beautiful I loved Iris and Dr. Bright shown in this anime art style! I hope if a new volume is to ever be published that they fix the problem with the characters and write stories on more fun SCPs rather than just all SAFE classes.
(This was my first review so I’m just dumping every problem that bothered me in this novel so yeah thx for reading)
(Spoiler parts)
The main female characters involved in this novel was Iris Thompson (SCP-105), Dr. Selkie, and even Dr. Bright if you want to count them! The main character of this story saw some of these characters to be “cute” or just sexualized them. It was annoying especially when he talked of Iris. He would get nervous around her when they shared the same room for a while because he felt like she or him were going to do something to each other? Iris was never going to do something like that! (More likely the main character would) As she treated the main character kindly and even thought of him as family. Every time she did something nice or considerate for him, he would call her “cute” or just “too sweet”. It was annoying. There was a part in the Josie the half-cat chapter where Josie the CAT got on top of Iris and licked her face, the main character began to think of it like she was kissing the cat when it was literally just licking her face! I know the main character’s a teenager too, but so is Iris! She like eighteen or seventeen! I wouldn’t call her an adult either because for one she was stuck in the SCP Foundation for the rest of her life and two she probably wasn’t able to finish High School at the time and she acts like a child mostly in this novel.
-
Next character was Dr. Selkie, who wore odd clothing and was also portrayed to be childish (I mean I’m pretty sure the book states it.) She was really dumb almost having herself be killed in “the name of love” or whatever she was trying to do. She sucked as a character who wasn’t very memorable and could be thrown away and replaced with another character and nothing would probably change. Did I also mention she had this dumb little romance with this other researcher, that little story went really nowhere.
-
Dr. Bright is put on here too because he can choose and posses whatever body he wants. He chose to go with a Japanese woman because the main character was Japanese and I think he tried flirting with this kid. Every time they mentioned Dr Bright and their movement as a woman they would always mention breasts, legs, or the “pretty face” that they had. It was unnecessary. Even for as insane Dr. Bright is those parts didn’t have to be added especially when something serious or important is going on and when it cuts to Bright this is what I will be reading from the main character. And I don’t really like how Dr. Bright even tried to flirt with the main character or Iris they’re literally teenagers who would still be in high school. The amount of times I read Dr Bright trying to kiss or touch Iris or the main character was disturbing.
Next problem the main character. He was dry, had really no personality, and just sucked as a person. I hated this boy with a passion. He was so boring he couldn’t even choose his own home over the SCP Foundation I mean that’s just selfishness right there. And his relationship with Iris made me want to get pulled into SCP-106’s little pocket dimensions as every time he was around her he thought she was “cute” and always saw her as this innocent little creature who is so scary when she shows even the slightest hint of anger. Even when she straight up told him she thought of him as family he continues to think of her in this romantic way. I just hate him.
The story was confusing. For one, in the beginning of The Carnival Of Horrors (SCP-823) chapter we meet these three soldiers and when the main character mentions the name Dr Bright they start to treat the main character with kindness or sympathy. Because he was tangled up in Bright’s mess. Later on the female soldier in the group reveals that she has a family and a younger brother. Which was revealed later on by Bright that he was her brother. Which makes no sense! Either Bright was joking or something but that made no sense! If they were siblings and the soldier knew the name of Bright before this she wouldn’t be fighting there to begin with because her brother would be a researcher and scientist! (She only worked there to give her family a better life) But Bright would be a lot younger and the soldier said that he was probably around the same age as the main character! And Bright is like a lot older than that when he was working in the foundation, yet they still recognized the name Bright even though Dr Bright as a young teenager, wouldn’t be working at the foundation in that time!
There were many missed opportunities for other SCPs. 7 of the 8 SCPs were SAFE class! The only one story of an SCP I liked was the SCP-823 which showed a lot of horror and action. This novel mentioned SCPs that weren’t safe classes but would have made a more interesting story! The novel mentioned SCPs like SCP-053 The Young Girl, SCP-173, SCP-106, and the SCP that goes by the name of “Able”. Would have made a more interesting and fun, horror, action, suspense story than whatever we got. And by the near end of the book it mentions the “Builder Bear” SCP and how the main characters had to capture or exterminate it. But they never showed it, which is a shame because I would’ve liked to see Iris and the MC try and chase after this Bear that no longer goes by SAFE class and was a force to be reckoned with.
This book never fully went in depth with Iris’s character even though the book is named after her and we never got the explanation for the bloody photo in her room, besides the fact that the person in that photo meant a lot to her. I would also like to know if Iris had something against Dr. Bright because she seems to hate him with a passion. I know he bothers her a lot but I want to know if he had anything to do with her capture or placement in the foundation.
The good thing with this novel is that it made SCPs more known since I got this in my local comic shop in the mall and the art illustrated in this novel was beautiful I loved Iris and Dr. Bright shown in this anime art style! I hope if a new volume is to ever be published that they fix the problem with the characters and write stories on more fun SCPs rather than just all SAFE classes.
(This was my first review so I’m just dumping every problem that bothered me in this novel so yeah thx for reading)
February 14, 2022
!!!This is a very in depth review!!!
Let me get a few things straight. I like the SCP foundation, I also like (some) light novels. So when I saw this book in Barnes & Noble, you could say I was pretty hyped. Unfortunately, this book, while pretty light and cute, was a total let down.
Writing style/inner voice 3/5 : The writing style was pretty funny, in both a good and bad way. The main character’s name is redacted and basically some no-face high school guy. (The one thing I found funny in this way the fact my brain read his name as redacted senpai). He’s your typically sarcastic Everyman you see in Light novels with nothing about him that’s unique. (Hell he even has that bangs covering eyes look you see in anime). However even with all of this, I didn’t exactly hate him. The thing I found most interesting about him was he acted as a Japanese perspective to the foundation. It’s pretty subtle but [redacted]-senpai’s internal monologue mentioning Dr. Bright wearing shoes indoors, him commenting of the difference in the leading lady Iris's more casual fashion and other internal monologues that were pretty interesting. Aside from that he is a shameless self insert. Unfortunately that’s pretty much all the compliments I can give the inner voice. I’ve heard lots of criticism on Amazon and here about how this book is inaccurate, dumbs down characters, but nobody seems to mention how absolutely boring this book is. They had my attention at the beginning, somewhat through the SCP 823 - Carnival of horrors chapter but after that it dwindled and it felt like a chore to complete it.
Hook 2/5: I’m gonna make this simple, not only was the “hook” bad (if you can even call it that), it was very misleading when you read the back of the book because it makes you think this is a mystery/urban fantasy novel but nope, This is SCP Isekai. The hook is that this girl (Scp - 105 Iris) keeps showing up in different books he picks up. I’ll be honest it starts off ok, and then he gets pulled into the world of the SCP: foundation and apparently has an anomalous connection with her. Sound interesting? It falls off quick by chapter four and gets shamelessly dropped and unexplained by the end of the story
Character 3/5: The characters in this book are straight up forgettable and it’s a really shame too because the ones mentioned in the story are actually well written and interesting, however the book does a poor job portraying any of these characters. I’d first start by mentioning the protagonist, but this guy barely counts as a character and I’ve said when I need to say about him. So let’s talk about Iris (SCP -105). I like Iris as a character and her involvement in MTF Omega-7 and other stories about her, so I was disappointed when they made her entire character “Euro-American waifu girl”. They reduce all her characterization into a vessel for exposition and of course, waifubait. (Which is really creepy because she is 17 in this). Also, for a book that seems to be trying to be a beginners introduction to the SCP: foundation, they do a piss poor job at actually explaining her anomalous abilities and you’d think they would since she’s the secondary main character of this book. I really can’t think of any important think she does in this book besides exposition and interacting with anomalies. However I did actually like her personality
As for Dr. Bright, they made some interesting choices with them. For one, [redacted]-senpai, or should I say authors, refers to Dr. bright with gender neutral pronouns heavily implying that Dr. bright was non-binary or genderfluid, which was an interesting take I didn’t expect this book to go in that direction (if they were going in any direction at all). And Dr. Bright, isn’t terrible non-binary rep perhaps even good if your definition of “good” includes not being riddled with stereotypes. As for the actual character, they are such a chaotic force to see, (although they don’t hold a candle to the actual Dr. Bright who has a list of things he is not allowed to do in the foundation so long it takes up an hour long YouTube video to just read this first couple hundred or so). They are pretty funny to see, but their whole pervert otaku thing gets old quick. They also want Iris to call them daddy for some reason? Either way they were the most enjoyable character to see, ONLY because they weren’t as stale as a block of wood. (And seriously, why did they give them a fedora and fidget spinner?!)
As for Dr. Goldman and Dr. Selkie, they were cute but mostly forgettable and while their relationship was sweet for the first few pages, it got tiring fast.
There was this one unnamed black woman during the Carnival of Horrors chapter who had a sympathetic backstory and motivations for this little screen time she got and her brothers body was apparently being used by Dr. Bright at the beginning of the story which was interesting and a change of pace, I wish we got to learn more about her.
Plot 2/5: Yeah the plot isn’t good. The “plot” is basically Iris, Bright and [redacted]-senpai screwing around with safe SCP’s and nothing interesting happens. Like they meet Bright, and the plot just stops until the end of the story when they realize they have to wrap it up sooner or later. It had a pretty good start and my personal favorite chapter was the Carnival of Horrors one because it actually had stakes, tension and mystery (I know, the bare minimum). After that chapter, it becomes a chore to read, the only other kind of interesting part after that was when Iris and [redacted]-senpai were challenging eachother to drink gross stuff in competition to see who gets to sleep in the single bed they have in the containment cell they live in. In short It has a start, they forgot all about it and then at they they said “oh crap we need to wrap this up” and immediately resolved this issue with no stakes attached. Some stories do well without a plot, but characters aren’t strong or interesting enough to make up for the lackluster plot. It would be nice if it was like a monster of the week sort of thing because I’d you know anything about the SCP: foundation, you know it has potential to be a gold mine for monster of the week type stories with all the crazy, scary and ridiculous SCP’s out there. Unfortunately Carnival of horrors in the only time they ever attempt scary, after that it’s just [redacted]-senpai and Iris screwing around. Worst of all, they never explain or give a conclusion to the one hook they had about Iris’s and [redacted]-senpai’s anomalous connection
Setting 3/5: This book obviously takes place at the SCP foundation, the portrayal here wasn’t terrible, I could sort of see how he got contained but never killed and how he left and wasn’t killed. (With SCP books that take place in the foundation from the perspective of an outsider, you need to suspend your disbelief for some aspects and I could belief the foundations motives in this). However, I don’t get why there’s were so many SCP’s, while designated safe, free and unsupervised. For the most part, the Foundation here is authentic to the foundation on the creative writing website. But I’m not sure if I can credit them for that since all that stuff was pre-written by far more talented writers.
Art 5/5: The illustrations of the book were done by Sidu, and my god did they do a great job. The cover is so mysterious and well planned and every image (especially the colored in ones) are gorgeous, darker tones and even slightly gothic. You can really tell the artist put a lot of thought into making the characters, aesthetics and scenery unique using the perfect combination of SCP creativity and anime art style. Iris looks phenomenal here. Usually she is portrayed like a typically YA protagonist, but here she actually looks anomalous. Like sure, she’s still conveniently attractive, but here she also looks uncanny, Almost, eerie. This of course is because of how unnaturally blue her eyes are making her stick out in a good way next to the protag and the grim setting. Also, her clothing choices are just so great here. From the spray painted cell walls with the foundations logo on it to the bleak mysterious walls of the foundation to the artists talent in drawing the carnival of horrors (if you own the book, you know what I mean). Even in some of the boring chapters, the art still portrayed the scene accurate and creatively. Not to mention Doctor Bright looks FANTASTIC here. (The artist drew him while they were in the body of a black person and god do they look amazing. Kudos to Sidu for actually knowing how to draw black people). Doctor Bright does wear a fedora, but DAMN do they pull it off. (And of course this Doctor Bright wears a fedora). It’s not just the illustrations either, the summary on the back is formatted perfectly, the start of each chapter features the SCP symbol on the back, and when a new chapter starts, there are small fun facts on the side of the pages, they way it is formatted looks like you are actually reading a document, I am pretty impressed.
In conclusion the book is pretty cute but not great, not even good as a hate read. It’s just…disappointing. Some stuff was good, some not, overall this book is a pretty big skip, however if you are looking for SCP content, try checking out the actual creative writing wiki or other better written books written by SCP fans
SCP wiki: https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/
Let me get a few things straight. I like the SCP foundation, I also like (some) light novels. So when I saw this book in Barnes & Noble, you could say I was pretty hyped. Unfortunately, this book, while pretty light and cute, was a total let down.
Writing style/inner voice 3/5 : The writing style was pretty funny, in both a good and bad way. The main character’s name is redacted and basically some no-face high school guy. (The one thing I found funny in this way the fact my brain read his name as redacted senpai). He’s your typically sarcastic Everyman you see in Light novels with nothing about him that’s unique. (Hell he even has that bangs covering eyes look you see in anime). However even with all of this, I didn’t exactly hate him. The thing I found most interesting about him was he acted as a Japanese perspective to the foundation. It’s pretty subtle but [redacted]-senpai’s internal monologue mentioning Dr. Bright wearing shoes indoors, him commenting of the difference in the leading lady Iris's more casual fashion and other internal monologues that were pretty interesting. Aside from that he is a shameless self insert. Unfortunately that’s pretty much all the compliments I can give the inner voice. I’ve heard lots of criticism on Amazon and here about how this book is inaccurate, dumbs down characters, but nobody seems to mention how absolutely boring this book is. They had my attention at the beginning, somewhat through the SCP 823 - Carnival of horrors chapter but after that it dwindled and it felt like a chore to complete it.
Hook 2/5: I’m gonna make this simple, not only was the “hook” bad (if you can even call it that), it was very misleading when you read the back of the book because it makes you think this is a mystery/urban fantasy novel but nope, This is SCP Isekai. The hook is that this girl (Scp - 105 Iris) keeps showing up in different books he picks up. I’ll be honest it starts off ok, and then he gets pulled into the world of the SCP: foundation and apparently has an anomalous connection with her. Sound interesting? It falls off quick by chapter four and gets shamelessly dropped and unexplained by the end of the story
Character 3/5: The characters in this book are straight up forgettable and it’s a really shame too because the ones mentioned in the story are actually well written and interesting, however the book does a poor job portraying any of these characters. I’d first start by mentioning the protagonist, but this guy barely counts as a character and I’ve said when I need to say about him. So let’s talk about Iris (SCP -105). I like Iris as a character and her involvement in MTF Omega-7 and other stories about her, so I was disappointed when they made her entire character “Euro-American waifu girl”. They reduce all her characterization into a vessel for exposition and of course, waifubait. (Which is really creepy because she is 17 in this). Also, for a book that seems to be trying to be a beginners introduction to the SCP: foundation, they do a piss poor job at actually explaining her anomalous abilities and you’d think they would since she’s the secondary main character of this book. I really can’t think of any important think she does in this book besides exposition and interacting with anomalies. However I did actually like her personality
As for Dr. Bright, they made some interesting choices with them. For one, [redacted]-senpai, or should I say authors, refers to Dr. bright with gender neutral pronouns heavily implying that Dr. bright was non-binary or genderfluid, which was an interesting take I didn’t expect this book to go in that direction (if they were going in any direction at all). And Dr. Bright, isn’t terrible non-binary rep perhaps even good if your definition of “good” includes not being riddled with stereotypes. As for the actual character, they are such a chaotic force to see, (although they don’t hold a candle to the actual Dr. Bright who has a list of things he is not allowed to do in the foundation so long it takes up an hour long YouTube video to just read this first couple hundred or so). They are pretty funny to see, but their whole pervert otaku thing gets old quick. They also want Iris to call them daddy for some reason? Either way they were the most enjoyable character to see, ONLY because they weren’t as stale as a block of wood. (And seriously, why did they give them a fedora and fidget spinner?!)
As for Dr. Goldman and Dr. Selkie, they were cute but mostly forgettable and while their relationship was sweet for the first few pages, it got tiring fast.
There was this one unnamed black woman during the Carnival of Horrors chapter who had a sympathetic backstory and motivations for this little screen time she got and her brothers body was apparently being used by Dr. Bright at the beginning of the story which was interesting and a change of pace, I wish we got to learn more about her.
Plot 2/5: Yeah the plot isn’t good. The “plot” is basically Iris, Bright and [redacted]-senpai screwing around with safe SCP’s and nothing interesting happens. Like they meet Bright, and the plot just stops until the end of the story when they realize they have to wrap it up sooner or later. It had a pretty good start and my personal favorite chapter was the Carnival of Horrors one because it actually had stakes, tension and mystery (I know, the bare minimum). After that chapter, it becomes a chore to read, the only other kind of interesting part after that was when Iris and [redacted]-senpai were challenging eachother to drink gross stuff in competition to see who gets to sleep in the single bed they have in the containment cell they live in. In short It has a start, they forgot all about it and then at they they said “oh crap we need to wrap this up” and immediately resolved this issue with no stakes attached. Some stories do well without a plot, but characters aren’t strong or interesting enough to make up for the lackluster plot. It would be nice if it was like a monster of the week sort of thing because I’d you know anything about the SCP: foundation, you know it has potential to be a gold mine for monster of the week type stories with all the crazy, scary and ridiculous SCP’s out there. Unfortunately Carnival of horrors in the only time they ever attempt scary, after that it’s just [redacted]-senpai and Iris screwing around. Worst of all, they never explain or give a conclusion to the one hook they had about Iris’s and [redacted]-senpai’s anomalous connection
Setting 3/5: This book obviously takes place at the SCP foundation, the portrayal here wasn’t terrible, I could sort of see how he got contained but never killed and how he left and wasn’t killed. (With SCP books that take place in the foundation from the perspective of an outsider, you need to suspend your disbelief for some aspects and I could belief the foundations motives in this). However, I don’t get why there’s were so many SCP’s, while designated safe, free and unsupervised. For the most part, the Foundation here is authentic to the foundation on the creative writing website. But I’m not sure if I can credit them for that since all that stuff was pre-written by far more talented writers.
Art 5/5: The illustrations of the book were done by Sidu, and my god did they do a great job. The cover is so mysterious and well planned and every image (especially the colored in ones) are gorgeous, darker tones and even slightly gothic. You can really tell the artist put a lot of thought into making the characters, aesthetics and scenery unique using the perfect combination of SCP creativity and anime art style. Iris looks phenomenal here. Usually she is portrayed like a typically YA protagonist, but here she actually looks anomalous. Like sure, she’s still conveniently attractive, but here she also looks uncanny, Almost, eerie. This of course is because of how unnaturally blue her eyes are making her stick out in a good way next to the protag and the grim setting. Also, her clothing choices are just so great here. From the spray painted cell walls with the foundations logo on it to the bleak mysterious walls of the foundation to the artists talent in drawing the carnival of horrors (if you own the book, you know what I mean). Even in some of the boring chapters, the art still portrayed the scene accurate and creatively. Not to mention Doctor Bright looks FANTASTIC here. (The artist drew him while they were in the body of a black person and god do they look amazing. Kudos to Sidu for actually knowing how to draw black people). Doctor Bright does wear a fedora, but DAMN do they pull it off. (And of course this Doctor Bright wears a fedora). It’s not just the illustrations either, the summary on the back is formatted perfectly, the start of each chapter features the SCP symbol on the back, and when a new chapter starts, there are small fun facts on the side of the pages, they way it is formatted looks like you are actually reading a document, I am pretty impressed.
In conclusion the book is pretty cute but not great, not even good as a hate read. It’s just…disappointing. Some stuff was good, some not, overall this book is a pretty big skip, however if you are looking for SCP content, try checking out the actual creative writing wiki or other better written books written by SCP fans
SCP wiki: https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 10, 2019
I wanted to like this. I really did.
The premise of the book intrigued me so I went into it with high hopes and did enjoy the beginning. I found the redacted names a bit distracting but understand the feel the author is going for and why it was done.
What broke it for me:
Dialogue - I don't know if it was the translation or the author's writing but people just do not talk the way they do in the book. It is so awkward and unnatural. Especially Iris. It broke any sense of immersion I had.
Character relationships and actions - The main character develops an attachment almost immediately. I don't know if this is supposed to indicate some sort of connection he has but it felt forced. He also doesn't give any thought or concern to his family until late in the story. For any normal person that would be their first thought if they have a normal life (as the main character does). He immediately assimilates into his new life and gives us no reason to sympathize or even care that he has been torn away from his family. A number of times he even says the people he meets at the SCP are his family.
Dr. Goldman's introduction to the story. Seriously. Any person that would do that should be executed. I know the author tried to explain his actions away but it makes no sense given his supposed feelings. I hate the character for what he did. But then to have no mention of it later and to be completely forgotten by the person it affected the most. It left me sitting there completely baffled.
Another character jumping up and walking away as if nothing happened after suffering serious injuries and being on the verge of death. Seriously, what the heck? I understand there were strong emotions at the time but that is impossible and ridiculous.
The main character and Iris having expository dialogue as if nothing has happened while an injured person lay next to them that they believed was dying.
Errors - I'm going to chalk this up to poor proofing. I found a number of writing errors that took me out of the story.
I really did want to like this but I can't. About the only good thing I can say is that it made me aware of the SCP Foundation. I've enjoyed reading the files and watching some short films.
I don't know if this will receive translated release of the 2nd volume (since this is labeled as volume 1 and it was left open for a sequel) but I would need to give some serious thought to if I want to take the time to read it.
The premise of the book intrigued me so I went into it with high hopes and did enjoy the beginning. I found the redacted names a bit distracting but understand the feel the author is going for and why it was done.
What broke it for me:
Dialogue - I don't know if it was the translation or the author's writing but people just do not talk the way they do in the book. It is so awkward and unnatural. Especially Iris. It broke any sense of immersion I had.
Character relationships and actions - The main character develops an attachment almost immediately. I don't know if this is supposed to indicate some sort of connection he has but it felt forced. He also doesn't give any thought or concern to his family until late in the story. For any normal person that would be their first thought if they have a normal life (as the main character does). He immediately assimilates into his new life and gives us no reason to sympathize or even care that he has been torn away from his family. A number of times he even says the people he meets at the SCP are his family.
Dr. Goldman's introduction to the story. Seriously. Any person that would do that should be executed. I know the author tried to explain his actions away but it makes no sense given his supposed feelings. I hate the character for what he did. But then to have no mention of it later and to be completely forgotten by the person it affected the most. It left me sitting there completely baffled.
Another character jumping up and walking away as if nothing happened after suffering serious injuries and being on the verge of death. Seriously, what the heck? I understand there were strong emotions at the time but that is impossible and ridiculous.
The main character and Iris having expository dialogue as if nothing has happened while an injured person lay next to them that they believed was dying.
Errors - I'm going to chalk this up to poor proofing. I found a number of writing errors that took me out of the story.
I really did want to like this but I can't. About the only good thing I can say is that it made me aware of the SCP Foundation. I've enjoyed reading the files and watching some short films.
I don't know if this will receive translated release of the 2nd volume (since this is labeled as volume 1 and it was left open for a sequel) but I would need to give some serious thought to if I want to take the time to read it.
February 19, 2022
One long, mostly dull, fanfic full of stiff dialog and references to SCP entries.
I want my $5 back.
I want my $5 back.
April 4, 2022
as an avid scp fanatic, this book so incredibly disappointing.
the writing is mediocre at best most times, but theres practically no character development! well, it’s not like any could be made in the first place because the main character doesn’t have any /character/ to him.
the protagonist is one of those blank slate vessels for the reader to project onto. he’s super uncompelling as a character and very difficult for me to sympathize with. theres no motivations for him or a semblance of a personality outside of being a generic, non-descript high school boy. like come on, i know the author is trying to make him average, but like average people have personalities. they have wants and desires. they’re not boring grey boxes, they’re funky colorful shapes!
the thing is, it is very easy for me to cry whenever a story includes loss of family, /especially/ parents. when the character gets a message from his family saying that they’re proud of him, eating a nostalgic soup his parents would always cook for him, he starts crying because he remembers and misses his family so so much.
i felt absolutely nothing when that scene came up. not even a “aw poor guy <:/“ he’s just so bland that i can’t get attached to him at all! and like it’s not that hard to get people attached to things. we get attached to /roombas/, little machine disc things that roll around on the ground and clean up the floor!
another big thing that really breaks what little interest and immersion i have is not following the “show don’t tell” rule. of course, there’s writing out there that doesn’t follow this that are incredible, but it’s still a rule for a reason.
there’s so much unnecessary and random info-dumping that really takes me out of the story. it really just makes me think ‘is the main character just spacing out and standing there??’ or theres just pages of explanation of two people talking back and forth! ex: starting on p189, for like five whole pages iris and the mc just repeat information THEY already know and what WE already know! it’s so unnatural and boring! i don’t even know it’s even there. we as the audience should already know how the protag’s powers work because theres already like two chapters spent on exploring them!
the book’s writing is pretty awful. there were no arcs, no personality on the main character, and so much unnecessary details and explanations… but at the same time as much as i hate this book, i really wished it could’ve been better.
when i heard the book was coming out, i was so excited! the scp foundation is one of my most major hyperfixations and i love it to death. and when i saw it at my bookstore i was absolutely over the moon and so happy to be able to finally read it.
but after finishing it, im just so sad and disappointed for what this book could’ve been. it could’ve been interesting! it could’ve been a super fun read. it could’ve been one of my most prized possessions in my bookshelf
theres chapters where i like yk? if it was just The Coffee Machine or Josie The Half-Cat where iris and the mc just do cute slice of life stuff at the foundation, it could’ve been nice! i might’ve even liked it a little. yes, it still would be disappointing since the scp wiki is more about horror and the paranormal with darker themes, but it would have just been a kinda alright read other than a waste of time.
i’m just disappointed. this could’ve turned out so much better, but it’s just bad.
tldr: too much unnecessary exposition, boring and bland characters, and wasted potential
the writing is mediocre at best most times, but theres practically no character development! well, it’s not like any could be made in the first place because the main character doesn’t have any /character/ to him.
the protagonist is one of those blank slate vessels for the reader to project onto. he’s super uncompelling as a character and very difficult for me to sympathize with. theres no motivations for him or a semblance of a personality outside of being a generic, non-descript high school boy. like come on, i know the author is trying to make him average, but like average people have personalities. they have wants and desires. they’re not boring grey boxes, they’re funky colorful shapes!
the thing is, it is very easy for me to cry whenever a story includes loss of family, /especially/ parents. when the character gets a message from his family saying that they’re proud of him, eating a nostalgic soup his parents would always cook for him, he starts crying because he remembers and misses his family so so much.
i felt absolutely nothing when that scene came up. not even a “aw poor guy <:/“ he’s just so bland that i can’t get attached to him at all! and like it’s not that hard to get people attached to things. we get attached to /roombas/, little machine disc things that roll around on the ground and clean up the floor!
another big thing that really breaks what little interest and immersion i have is not following the “show don’t tell” rule. of course, there’s writing out there that doesn’t follow this that are incredible, but it’s still a rule for a reason.
there’s so much unnecessary and random info-dumping that really takes me out of the story. it really just makes me think ‘is the main character just spacing out and standing there??’ or theres just pages of explanation of two people talking back and forth! ex: starting on p189, for like five whole pages iris and the mc just repeat information THEY already know and what WE already know! it’s so unnatural and boring! i don’t even know it’s even there. we as the audience should already know how the protag’s powers work because theres already like two chapters spent on exploring them!
the book’s writing is pretty awful. there were no arcs, no personality on the main character, and so much unnecessary details and explanations… but at the same time as much as i hate this book, i really wished it could’ve been better.
when i heard the book was coming out, i was so excited! the scp foundation is one of my most major hyperfixations and i love it to death. and when i saw it at my bookstore i was absolutely over the moon and so happy to be able to finally read it.
but after finishing it, im just so sad and disappointed for what this book could’ve been. it could’ve been interesting! it could’ve been a super fun read. it could’ve been one of my most prized possessions in my bookshelf
theres chapters where i like yk? if it was just The Coffee Machine or Josie The Half-Cat where iris and the mc just do cute slice of life stuff at the foundation, it could’ve been nice! i might’ve even liked it a little. yes, it still would be disappointing since the scp wiki is more about horror and the paranormal with darker themes, but it would have just been a kinda alright read other than a waste of time.
i’m just disappointed. this could’ve turned out so much better, but it’s just bad.
tldr: too much unnecessary exposition, boring and bland characters, and wasted potential
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 24, 2024
[TL;DR: The plot isn't good, the characters and their interpersonal dynamics aren't entertaining enough to compensate for the lacklustre plot, the writing style and dialogue is awkward at best, and it relies far too much on referencing or simply rehashing SCP object descriptions already created by better writers, rather than using its own, original ideas.]
Seeing new attempts to adapt the SCP wiki and bring it into the public eye always gets me irrationally giddy, so trust me when I say I went into this novel genuinely wanting to like it. I didn't feel alarmed when it was first announced as an Isekai with a generic-looking protagonist, because I firmly believe that no genre is bad in the hands of a competent writer. Unfortunately, that's not the writer we got.
The plot of this novel goes pretty much nowhere. There are no stakes, no tension, no reason to do anything. Our main character (who is so unimportant and generic that he isn't even given a name) bumbles around, dragged along by Iris, constantly on the receiving end of exposition which does little beyond describe each chapter's titular SCP object. By the end, the only real plot thread - our protagonist's quest to get back to his original world - conveniently resolves itself without any conflict. Not that it particularly matters, since the issue of returning doesn't become relevant until the end of the novel, in the same chapter where it's immediately resolved.
"But that's fine", you might think. "There are plenty of stories with no grand, overarching narrative that manage to stay engaging through well written dialogue and fun character dynamics"! After all, "slice of life" tends more towards an episodic format, and this novel certainly has more in common with that genre than sci-fi horror. Yet, even as a fun, light-hearted romp, it fails.
The main character mentioned earlier has such an undefined personality, that you'd need to squint really hard to see him having chemistry with anyone else in the cast. Very rarely, he is humorous, homesick, sometimes cynical... most times, he's bewildered by everything, typically commenting on his great shock when SCPs do exactly what Iris said they would. The MC has an anomaly explained to them, they see it in action, express surprise, then describe what it did. That's twice that the audience has to read an SCP being described, with nothing of substance added the second time around. Yup, the writing isn't great here.
So what about legacy characters from the SCP wiki? Iris? Dr. Bright? Well, they're not great either.
Iris was never a particularly fascinating SCP object on her own. What made her interesting was that she was the symbol representing two big questions: whether the Foundation should escalate its use of SCPs, allowing MTF recruitment of sentient, human-like anomalies, and to what extent should the Foundation give those anomalies freedoms and privileges in order to lessen the cruelty of permanently imprisoning what are otherwise normal people. Iris showed both sides of that; she showed what an anomaly working for the Foundation could achieve in the field, as well as the psychological ramifications of being "contained".
In the novel, all of this is just... gone. Iris has already been made a "researcher", putting her on the same level as an average Foundationer, and her past involvement in MTF Omega-7 is completely omitted, save for a single vague reference to Able. With these two pillars of her character erased, what's left?
Well... exposition! Iris is now a researcher and somewhat in the know, so she often serves as the story's mouthpiece for SCP related lore dumps. Outside of that, she's... a cute girl. That's it. She explains SCPs and is an anime waifu. Considering her previously large symbolic importance to Foundation lore (especially in the Resurrection canon, where she becomes the figurehead for a new anomalous task-force, MTF Alpha-9), this substitute for her characterization boarders on nothing.
Dr. Bright also doesn't fare too well. While I'm a big fan of the comedic absurdity with which SCP writers like djkaktus portray him (SCP-4498 is absolute gold), here, it boils down to him being an otaku pervert. Most of the jokes are him fucking around, playing video-games, not taking his duties seriously and trying to get Iris to call him "daddy". Yikes. Nothing here comes close to matching the craziness of the wiki's tales, but is just enough to make Bright look like a lazy, useless weirdo (rather than a gifted, but eccentric researcher with loads of emotional baggage). [EDIT: Due to recent developments, I no longer care that Dr. Bright's character was butchered.]
I guess there are two other, original characters: Dr. Goldman and Dr. Selkie. They feature prominently in only one chapter and have personalities so basic they're hardly worth mentioning. It's a "they annoy each other, but deep down they're in love and care immensely" sorta thing. After this chapter, they have zero real prominence, so what was even the point of establishing their relationship?
Before I conclude, minor nitpick time! For some accursed reason, Iris refers to SCP objects by their database nicknames. You know, "The Flesh that Hates", "The Clockworks", "The Old Man", etc.. As far as I know, these have never been acknowledged in-universe and simply serve as a more intuitive way to refer to articles. A little title to grab the reader's attention, and be memorable in case they forget the SCP number. Hearing Iris add it after the skip number nearly EVERYTIME one is mentioned (as if it's some kind of official designation) is agonizingly awkward.
Lately, there have been a lot of SCP adaptations acting as "introductions" to the universe, explaining the basics in an attempt to get new people interested. In my opinion these efforts, while well-meaning, are counterproductive. In simplifying the lore to make it newcomer-friendly, they purge it of its unique character and boil down everything to the Foundation and their SCPs. These works also have a tendency to fixate on the anomalous objects themselves, rather than the surrounding characters, themes and storytelling, which makes for really boring reading.
I've nicknamed them "SCP catalogues", because they choose to do away with the originality and creativity which make the SCP wiki so fun to read, in favour of rehashing popular articles already written by other authors.
One day, a truly good SCP adaptation will come around: one that bases itself on the wiki's lore and writing ethos, but invents an original plot-line with new characters. It will reference already existing skips when it's relevant and serves the story, and not because it's going though a checklist of "cool things" it wants to show you. Hell, it'll even invent its own, original anomalies to expand the worldbuilding, and create real tension and conflict.
But today is not that day, and this novel certainly isn't that adaptation.
EDIT: I recently found out that AdminBright, a prominent SCPwiki admin for whom Dr. Bright is a fictional "author avatar", was banned for sexual harassment. Obviously, the author of this novel had no way of knowing this, but it makes all of Bright's pervy scenes extra uncomfortable in retrospect.
Seeing new attempts to adapt the SCP wiki and bring it into the public eye always gets me irrationally giddy, so trust me when I say I went into this novel genuinely wanting to like it. I didn't feel alarmed when it was first announced as an Isekai with a generic-looking protagonist, because I firmly believe that no genre is bad in the hands of a competent writer. Unfortunately, that's not the writer we got.
The plot of this novel goes pretty much nowhere. There are no stakes, no tension, no reason to do anything. Our main character (who is so unimportant and generic that he isn't even given a name) bumbles around, dragged along by Iris, constantly on the receiving end of exposition which does little beyond describe each chapter's titular SCP object. By the end, the only real plot thread - our protagonist's quest to get back to his original world - conveniently resolves itself without any conflict. Not that it particularly matters, since the issue of returning doesn't become relevant until the end of the novel, in the same chapter where it's immediately resolved.
"But that's fine", you might think. "There are plenty of stories with no grand, overarching narrative that manage to stay engaging through well written dialogue and fun character dynamics"! After all, "slice of life" tends more towards an episodic format, and this novel certainly has more in common with that genre than sci-fi horror. Yet, even as a fun, light-hearted romp, it fails.
The main character mentioned earlier has such an undefined personality, that you'd need to squint really hard to see him having chemistry with anyone else in the cast. Very rarely, he is humorous, homesick, sometimes cynical... most times, he's bewildered by everything, typically commenting on his great shock when SCPs do exactly what Iris said they would. The MC has an anomaly explained to them, they see it in action, express surprise, then describe what it did. That's twice that the audience has to read an SCP being described, with nothing of substance added the second time around. Yup, the writing isn't great here.
So what about legacy characters from the SCP wiki? Iris? Dr. Bright? Well, they're not great either.
Iris was never a particularly fascinating SCP object on her own. What made her interesting was that she was the symbol representing two big questions: whether the Foundation should escalate its use of SCPs, allowing MTF recruitment of sentient, human-like anomalies, and to what extent should the Foundation give those anomalies freedoms and privileges in order to lessen the cruelty of permanently imprisoning what are otherwise normal people. Iris showed both sides of that; she showed what an anomaly working for the Foundation could achieve in the field, as well as the psychological ramifications of being "contained".
In the novel, all of this is just... gone. Iris has already been made a "researcher", putting her on the same level as an average Foundationer, and her past involvement in MTF Omega-7 is completely omitted, save for a single vague reference to Able. With these two pillars of her character erased, what's left?
Well... exposition! Iris is now a researcher and somewhat in the know, so she often serves as the story's mouthpiece for SCP related lore dumps. Outside of that, she's... a cute girl. That's it. She explains SCPs and is an anime waifu. Considering her previously large symbolic importance to Foundation lore (especially in the Resurrection canon, where she becomes the figurehead for a new anomalous task-force, MTF Alpha-9), this substitute for her characterization boarders on nothing.
Dr. Bright also doesn't fare too well. While I'm a big fan of the comedic absurdity with which SCP writers like djkaktus portray him (SCP-4498 is absolute gold), here, it boils down to him being an otaku pervert. Most of the jokes are him fucking around, playing video-games, not taking his duties seriously and trying to get Iris to call him "daddy". Yikes. Nothing here comes close to matching the craziness of the wiki's tales, but is just enough to make Bright look like a lazy, useless weirdo (rather than a gifted, but eccentric researcher with loads of emotional baggage). [EDIT: Due to recent developments, I no longer care that Dr. Bright's character was butchered.]
I guess there are two other, original characters: Dr. Goldman and Dr. Selkie. They feature prominently in only one chapter and have personalities so basic they're hardly worth mentioning. It's a "they annoy each other, but deep down they're in love and care immensely" sorta thing. After this chapter, they have zero real prominence, so what was even the point of establishing their relationship?
Before I conclude, minor nitpick time! For some accursed reason, Iris refers to SCP objects by their database nicknames. You know, "The Flesh that Hates", "The Clockworks", "The Old Man", etc.. As far as I know, these have never been acknowledged in-universe and simply serve as a more intuitive way to refer to articles. A little title to grab the reader's attention, and be memorable in case they forget the SCP number. Hearing Iris add it after the skip number nearly EVERYTIME one is mentioned (as if it's some kind of official designation) is agonizingly awkward.
Lately, there have been a lot of SCP adaptations acting as "introductions" to the universe, explaining the basics in an attempt to get new people interested. In my opinion these efforts, while well-meaning, are counterproductive. In simplifying the lore to make it newcomer-friendly, they purge it of its unique character and boil down everything to the Foundation and their SCPs. These works also have a tendency to fixate on the anomalous objects themselves, rather than the surrounding characters, themes and storytelling, which makes for really boring reading.
I've nicknamed them "SCP catalogues", because they choose to do away with the originality and creativity which make the SCP wiki so fun to read, in favour of rehashing popular articles already written by other authors.
One day, a truly good SCP adaptation will come around: one that bases itself on the wiki's lore and writing ethos, but invents an original plot-line with new characters. It will reference already existing skips when it's relevant and serves the story, and not because it's going though a checklist of "cool things" it wants to show you. Hell, it'll even invent its own, original anomalies to expand the worldbuilding, and create real tension and conflict.
But today is not that day, and this novel certainly isn't that adaptation.
EDIT: I recently found out that AdminBright, a prominent SCPwiki admin for whom Dr. Bright is a fictional "author avatar", was banned for sexual harassment. Obviously, the author of this novel had no way of knowing this, but it makes all of Bright's pervy scenes extra uncomfortable in retrospect.
August 7, 2024
this book was honestly pretty disappointing, even for a hardcore scp fan ( ﾟдﾟ) oh, and this is a novel, not manga for those wondering.
1. the translation from japanese to english made it pretty dry. i get that this wasn’t the author’s fault, but it just made it super yucky.
2. more for romance fans than scp. you literally do not need to know a single thing about scp to read this.
3. that being said, it’s not a introduction to scp. it glosses over the topics and doesn’t really dig into them. neither does it talk about any popular scps (173, 096, 166, etc).
4. realistically, the unnamed mc would’ve died within 40 pages lol. main character armor?
5. i liked the art scattered within the book, very cute (´▽｀)
6. DOCTOR BRIGHT MENTIONED!!
overall, maybe not the best for scp fans, but maybe for teen “romance”?
1. the translation from japanese to english made it pretty dry. i get that this wasn’t the author’s fault, but it just made it super yucky.
2. more for romance fans than scp. you literally do not need to know a single thing about scp to read this.
3. that being said, it’s not a introduction to scp. it glosses over the topics and doesn’t really dig into them. neither does it talk about any popular scps (173, 096, 166, etc).
4. realistically, the unnamed mc would’ve died within 40 pages lol. main character armor?
5. i liked the art scattered within the book, very cute (´▽｀)
6. DOCTOR BRIGHT MENTIONED!!
overall, maybe not the best for scp fans, but maybe for teen “romance”?
November 7, 2025
I thought this was very entertaining. I listened to the audiobook and while I enjoyed the experience and thought the narrator did a good job, I wish I had a physical copy to combo read with it. Some details are redacted within the story and the way it's handled in the audio irritated me just a little over time. They do advise you at the beginning of the audiobook that this would happen so it wasn't unexpected, but I suppose it bothered me more to hear that sound than it would've to see how it would've been handled in the physical book.
I enjoyed the experiences with the different objects and one of the earlier investigations just happened to connect to a subject I was reading about in another book at the same time. Interesting how those things go, but overall I thought this was an enjoyable read and I'm looking forward to reading the next installment.
I enjoyed the experiences with the different objects and one of the earlier investigations just happened to connect to a subject I was reading about in another book at the same time. Interesting how those things go, but overall I thought this was an enjoyable read and I'm looking forward to reading the next installment.
June 16, 2022
This was a bit rough.
If you are looking for a paint-by-numbers isekai uncomfortably set in the SCP universe, down to the lead face-planting in the girl's boobs in the first few pages, this may be your speed.
The prose is... crude, and frustrating in its focus on the mundane when the setting necessarily includes unusual goings-on. As another reviewer mentioned, the MC will often say, "we don't have time to explain this [interesting situation]!" and then spend a half-dozen pages describing how being in proximity to a female makes his heart "pitter-patter".
The author really struggles with meshing the light-hearted story and the sometimes-horrifying SCPs the characters come into contact with (SCP-823: Carnival of Horrors, SCP-914: Clockworks used on a live human, etc.). He drops a passing comment about nightmares after interacting with the hyper-violent Able (SCP-076) and then just moves on!
Other thoughts:
-The poor main character has both his name (literally) and his personality (figuratively) redacted- he takes tabula rasa to the extreme.
-Dr. Bright is included as a sexy older woman (oft remarked on), seemingly for the sole purpose of increasing the attractive female count.
-I found the ending to be surprisingly abrupt and not very satisfying. YMMV.
The illustrations are cute, and the author does seem to genuinely enjoy the setting, finding a few fun ways to integrate the various SCPs, but this was a slog to get through, even with how light a read it was.
If you are looking for a paint-by-numbers isekai uncomfortably set in the SCP universe, down to the lead face-planting in the girl's boobs in the first few pages, this may be your speed.
The prose is... crude, and frustrating in its focus on the mundane when the setting necessarily includes unusual goings-on. As another reviewer mentioned, the MC will often say, "we don't have time to explain this [interesting situation]!" and then spend a half-dozen pages describing how being in proximity to a female makes his heart "pitter-patter".
The author really struggles with meshing the light-hearted story and the sometimes-horrifying SCPs the characters come into contact with (SCP-823: Carnival of Horrors, SCP-914: Clockworks used on a live human, etc.). He drops a passing comment about nightmares after interacting with the hyper-violent Able (SCP-076) and then just moves on!
Other thoughts:
-The poor main character has both his name (literally) and his personality (figuratively) redacted- he takes tabula rasa to the extreme.
-Dr. Bright is included as a sexy older woman (oft remarked on), seemingly for the sole purpose of increasing the attractive female count.
-I found the ending to be surprisingly abrupt and not very satisfying. YMMV.
The illustrations are cute, and the author does seem to genuinely enjoy the setting, finding a few fun ways to integrate the various SCPs, but this was a slog to get through, even with how light a read it was.
August 17, 2024
I can’t tell if it’s due to poor translation or if the original Japanese novel was actually this bad but…it’s really bad.
If you’re looking for a fun SCP story, turn elsewhere. It’s just a high schooler who gets isekai’d into the SCP foundation, spending the next 300 pages quickly introducing SCPs before moving onto the next. The prose is very childish despite the contents being mature and sometimes violent. The style ranges from cringe-worthy to bordering offensive, and I’m shocked that there’s more to this series.
I did enjoy the illustrations sprinkled throughout, but that’s genuinely the only positive thing I can say about this book.
If you’re looking for a fun SCP story, turn elsewhere. It’s just a high schooler who gets isekai’d into the SCP foundation, spending the next 300 pages quickly introducing SCPs before moving onto the next. The prose is very childish despite the contents being mature and sometimes violent. The style ranges from cringe-worthy to bordering offensive, and I’m shocked that there’s more to this series.
I did enjoy the illustrations sprinkled throughout, but that’s genuinely the only positive thing I can say about this book.
January 27, 2020
Thanks to Edelweiss for the e-arc!
An interesting introduction to the weird and wonderful world of SCP objects through the adventures of a Japanese high school boy pulled through a picture. Each chapter is a short story of how our unnamed protagonist encounters these strange and diverse objects. All the SCP objects referenced in the stories are listed at the end of the book.
If you like the Lovecraftian mythos or Creepypasta then check out this book and the wider SCP Foundation archives online!
An interesting introduction to the weird and wonderful world of SCP objects through the adventures of a Japanese high school boy pulled through a picture. Each chapter is a short story of how our unnamed protagonist encounters these strange and diverse objects. All the SCP objects referenced in the stories are listed at the end of the book.
If you like the Lovecraftian mythos or Creepypasta then check out this book and the wider SCP Foundation archives online!
October 9, 2025
I wanted to like this bc I'm a big fan of SCP, but the writing was not good. Very show don't tell, and felt like a subpar story shoved in around interesting SCP objects. One part in the middle had some action and got me hooked, but that lasted for about 15 minutes, and went back to characters who felt completely cardboard and an attempt at human connection that felt like a computer wrote it.
It gets an extra star because the narration was pretty good.
It gets an extra star because the narration was pretty good.
January 31, 2022
Omfz me being a huge SCP fan (clearly if you know me irl-) I think this is an amazing starter book for new SCP fans! Although I do wish they included more hasher SCP since the foundation isn't just all sh!ts and giggles- But other than that, this is my favorite book ^^
Slight spoiler:
I do Love that they put SCP-105! And the art- oh the art- so good!!
Slight spoiler:
I do Love that they put SCP-105! And the art- oh the art- so good!!
September 24, 2022
Overall a decent read, but not exactly what I expected from an SCP novel. Works more as an introduction to the world and is light on the horror elements. Though my biggest problem is I realized the twist within the first 50 pages at least, if not sooner.
January 21, 2021
Feel like an isekai-slice of life rather than a SCP story. Shallow, annoying characters and uninteresting plot progression!
April 29, 2022
The story was so easy to follow. I have a hard time reading books in general but this one was very light and entertaining. I finished it in a few weeks 🙌
Will def continue reading the series ❤
Will def continue reading the series ❤
May 18, 2023
An interesting read. Got boring at some points in the middle, but it was enjoyable. I enjoyed the ending bits as well. Nothing too crazy, but nice to learn more about the SCP Foundation.
October 25, 2025
I love the story portraying Iris, and the main character. Although there could have been appearances of Cain and Iris being together, I still love this book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 24, 2021
An interesting SCP story. I was expecting more horror elements in this, but I wasn't disappointed with it. It has an overall decent story, not too crazy, nor uneventful.
February 10, 2025
As a ten years long Enstars player I just want to say Akira’s writing style is so obvious even through a translation
That being said, some of the arcs here is pretty good. It’s very much a mix between typical light novel and SCP writing, so I don’t think it’s either here or there on that front.
That being said, some of the arcs here is pretty good. It’s very much a mix between typical light novel and SCP writing, so I don’t think it’s either here or there on that front.
August 18, 2021
Iris Through the Looking-Glass is admittedly my first manga/anime and SCP fan-based book. In my opinion, the story was really cute and I admired Iris and the narrator's relationship but the author should tried more for a number of reasons.
1. The chapters are too short. Are all manga books like this? Correct me if I'm wrong.
2. The author didn't go into much detail on how, why, when "The Girl in The Photos" started randomly appearing. There surely must be a reason, right? It's safe to assume that he has some kind of telepathic/psychic link to SCP-105 (Iris)
REVIEW SOON TO COME :D
1. The chapters are too short. Are all manga books like this? Correct me if I'm wrong.
2. The author didn't go into much detail on how, why, when "The Girl in The Photos" started randomly appearing. There surely must be a reason, right? It's safe to assume that he has some kind of telepathic/psychic link to SCP-105 (Iris)
REVIEW SOON TO COME :D
April 19, 2021
I'd recommend this if you already have an interest in the SCP wiki.
The story on its own isn't amazing, but it's fun seeing some tidbits about SCPs you've already read about and getting to know about others.
The story on its own isn't amazing, but it's fun seeing some tidbits about SCPs you've already read about and getting to know about others.
December 7, 2020
This was pretty entertaining to read.
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