Angelic Layer, Vol. 4

Angelic Layer [エンジェリックレイヤー] #4

by Clamp

Nobody thought Misaki Suzuhara would make it this far in the Angelic Layer tournament. After a rocky start and some less than honorable opponents, she's well on her way to victory. But her latest opponent is her most difficult yet. Ohjiro Mihara is called the Prince of the Layer, and for good reason. With his speed-type angel, Wizard, he's unstoppable. Has Misaki reached the end of the road?

Genres: Manga, Graphic Novels, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Comics, Fiction, Shonen

171 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2001

About the author

Ōkawa Nanase 大川七瀬
[born: 2 May 1967; Ōsaka, bloodtype: A]

Mokona Apapa もこなあぱぱ
[born: 16 Jun 1968, Kyōto; bloodtype: A]

Nekoi Mick 猫井みっく
[born: 21 Jan 1969, Kyōto; bloodtype: O]

Igarashi Satsuki 五十嵐さつき
[born: 8 Feb 1969, Kyōto; bloodtype: A]


CLAMP originally began in 1989 as a twelve-member dōjinshi circle, but by 1990, the circle had diminished from twelve to seven. Of the remaining seven, Tamayo Akiyama, Sei Nanao, and Leeza Sei left the group during the production of the RG Veda manga. Other former members of CLAMP also included Soushi Hishika, O-Kyon, Kazue Nakamori, Yuzuru Inoue and Shinya Ōmi. Currently, there are four members in the group.

In 2004, CLAMP's 15th anniversary as a mangaka group, the members changed their names from Nanase Ohkawa, Mokona Apapa, Mick Nekoi, and Satsuki Igarashi to Ageha Ohkawa, Mokona, Tsubaki Nekoi and Satsuki Igarashi (her name is pronounced the same, but written with different characters) respectively. The August 2004 issue of Newtype USA, a magazine specializing in events of the anime and manga subcultures, reported that the members of CLAMP simply wanted to try out new names. In a later interview with Ohkawa, it was revealed that initially Mokona wanted to drop her surname because it sounded too immature for her liking, while Nekoi disliked people commenting that her name was the same as Mick Jagger's. Ohkawa and Igarashi, wanting to go with the flow of Nekoi's and Mokona's name changes, changed their names as well.

In 2006, they made their first USA public debut at Anime Expo in Anaheim, California. They were well received at the convention, with 6,000 fans in attendance at their panel.

Reviews

[Stewart Tame · Rating 3 out of 5]

As one would expect, the battles get more intense. And we see more of the mysterious woman lurking in the background, who may possibly be Misaki's mother--that's certainly what CLAMP seems to want us to think, at least. And there's a stealth climax to this book. The main story ends on a cliffhanger well before the end of the book, and then we get a couple of side stories to round out the volume. Sneaky!

[Bibliothecat · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review for complete series

Moving to Tokyo doesn't only introduce Misaki to city life, but also the popular electronic game Angelic Layer. She wastes no time in procuring her own Angel doll with which she can compete in battle against other players.

Angelic Layer is qualitywise definitely not the worst of CLAMP's works, however, I found it incredibly boring. To be fair, I've never been interested in these kinds of electronic or virtual games in manga, but this one's overreaching plot is minimal and not well executed.

The entire 5-volume series features Misaki and her Angel competing in two competitions - she's a natural and picks things up easily. The rules and system behind the game aren't developed well enough - new rules, criteria or techniques just crop up as the story progresses - where are the limits of this game? And all characters keep going on about how Misaki is talented and wins because she loves the game. Her reasons for winning often strike me as luck or just the authors writing out the story in a convenient way.

I also didn't like Misaki particularly much. She's the naive type that just doesn't work for me - I mean, manga often feature naive characters, but there are some that are just unrealisticly so. Misaki is not the worst of the lot, but she falls in line with CLAMP's other characters like Hikaru (Magic Knight Rayearth) and Hina (Suki). I also don't really understand why every other character likes her so much.

Other than Misaki wanting to win the competitions, the overreaching plot is bringing her back together with her mother. Misaki has been living with her grandparents for long enough to not remember her mother who is working in Tokyo and too busy to see her. It turns out that her mother isn't busy, she's just too shy to see her own daughter. I mean, I know people can get shyness to the point where it's paralyzing, but seriously, it's her own daughter, that's just ridiculous and lousy parenting.

As much as I love CLAMP's art, this is also not their best. It's pretty, but not as nice as many of their other works. I think it's mainly because the lineart is quite thick, it just doesn't look as smooth. Anyway, I'm rating this above my actual level of enjoyment, mainly because a lot of it comes down to this simply not being my cup of tea. Someone who enjoys gaming stories might appreciate this a lot more.

[Yoyomaus Die Büchereule · Rating 5 out of 5]

Misaki und ihr Angel Hikaru sind in dem großen Turnier rund um Angelic Layer im großen Finale angekommen. Dort stehen sie einer Bekannten gegenüber die scheinbar Hikarus Schwachpunkt entdeckt hat und Misaki und ihrem Angel das Leben gehörig schwer macht. Aber Misaki wäre eben nicht Misaki, wenn sie nicht auch hier mit Einfallsreichtum voran gehen würde. So schafft sie es in die nächste Runde, nur um der nächsten harten Nuss gegenüber zu stehen. Und die überrascht Misaki und ihre Freunde durchaus, denn dies ist niemand Geringerer als Ojiro, der Neffe des Schöpfers von Angelic Layer, mit seinem sagenumwobenen Angel Wizard.

Mit dem vierten Band der Angelic Layer - Reihe legt CLAMP wieder einmal ein kleines Meisterwerk auf den Tisch. Wieder einmal begeistert der Hauptcharakter Misaki durch ihre kindliche, naive, aber entschlossene Art. Ihre Cleverness und ihr Mitgefühl machen das Mädchen wieder zu einem Sympathieträger ganz besonderer Güte. Allgemein sind die Charaktere wieder sehr gut durchdacht und passen ohne viel Aufsehen in den Verlauf der Geschichte. Durch detaillierte Landschaften des Layers, der Plattform, auf der gekämpft wird, wird der Manga ganz und gar nicht langweilig. Aufgefrischt wird das Ganze durch spannende Dialoge sowie einer gehörigen Portion Humor, welche durch Misakis Freunde und dem Schöpfer des Angelic Layer verbreitet werden. Ein spannender Aspekt ist auch, dass Misakis Mutter in diesem Band auftaucht und eine ganz eigene Geschichte zu erzählen hat.

Was mich an Angelic Layer ebenfalls noch immer begeistert ist, dass Charaktere aus anderen Manga-Reihen des Autorenquartetts als Angel benutzt werden. So ist Hikaru eine Adaption aus dem Manga "Magic Knight Rayearth", genau wie der Angel Ranga aus den vorhergehenden Bänden. Die "weiße Prinzessin" hingegen stammt als Charakterdesign aus dem Manga "X1999". Das ist in meinen Augen richtig cool und erfrischend.
Empfehlen möchte ich den Manga weiterhin jungen, aber auch erwachsenen Lesern, die sich gern durch eine willensstarke Protagonistin begeistern lassen wollen. Angelic Layer ist ein Manga zum mitfiebern, aber auch zum träumen. Wirklich gut gemacht und deswegen volle Punktzahl.


Taschenbuch
Verlag: Carlsen (2001)
Sprache: Deutsch
ISBN-10: 3551749647
ISBN-13: 978-3551749642
Vom Hersteller empfohlenes Alter: 8 - 10 Jahre
Größe und/oder Gewicht: 17,7 x 11,4 x 1,9 cm

[Santiago Bueno · Rating 4 out of 5]

La verdad que me hubiese gustado que hubiese un poco de descanso entre los torneos. Como un momento de calma antes de pasar al siguiente oponente de Misaki. Pero por lo menos tuvimos 2 capitulos extras que nos dieron mas contexto a los personajes antes de seguir con la historia. Me hubiese gustado que estuviese mas integrado a la trama principal pero no me parece que haya quedado mal. Queda solo 1 tomo mas y se termina. Pero estoy convencido de que voy a quedar satisfecho con lo que hayan planteado las autoras para el tomo final.

[R · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a fun read! The action is almost like watching it live. I love how Clamp draws the characters when they are walking casually. It's so adorable! I am loving this series and can't wait to see how it ends.

[May · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the cute art style of this series and I am really enjoying reading this series, however, I'm a little torn on the fact that Misaki always wins and hasn't had a loss, and, with one volume to go, I don't think she's about to start losing anytime soon.

[Ikayuro · Rating 3 out of 5]

And unfortunately, we're back to the really fast pacing, with only one book left to go. The last two chapters of this one are side stories to boot, that don't actually lend to the overall plot of the series; slice of life inserts are fine, but not at the cost of story.

[Adrian Santiago · Rating 2 out of 5]

Definitivamente es como ver beyblade y un poquito al yugi haciendo trampas en la primera temporada de Yugioh.

Solo que se me hace medio aburrido; no está mal pero tampoco es muy cool. Y ya aburre lo de "demostraré que ser pequeña no importa", ya lo entendimos hace 4 números...

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

The action is picking up and secrets will be revealed! ;)

[Vicky]

Another re-read c:

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

Misaki is an extremely cute and adorable heroine. I loved her enthusiasm for playing Angelic Layer and her determination to strive to do her best. Reading this story made me want to have a doll of my own. I loved all of the cool technology that went into the plot and characters making the story more enjoyable to read.

I did see the anime and truthfully I liked that better because the characters were so much more present. They had past lives and a lot more feeling than CLAMP was able to bring into the manga.

Note: This review is based on Volumes 1-5.

[Pamela · Rating 5 out of 5]

LIGHT WEIGHT!!!
God how did I not think of it Dx !?

But honestly, I'm sooo intrigued about Sorcier! My theory is something to do with electricity ?? I dont know, maybe, I'm no Misaki (who I think knows at the end) but still xD

Kotaro & Misaki forever !!!! x3 (yes, I know it's not a romance, but I want them to have more and more cute moments of blushing !!)

[Kirsten Simkiss · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty much the same as the last review for Volume 3, I think that the story is cute and adorable but ultimately geared toward children and a little repetitive. I love the character designs for the Angels and Humans alike.

[Steph · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great story, lovely art. Another great series from CLAMP.

[The Third Place A Teen Library]

F CLA
al
vol. 4

[Variaciones Enrojo]

Tomo 4 de 5. Edición con sobrecubiertas.

[dot · Rating 3 out of 5]

lectura rapidísima pero pesada, bastante decepcionante, al menos misaki es tierna

[Child960801 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this.

[Dony Grayman · Rating 2 out of 5]

Edición argentina. Probablemente repite el ISBN de la española.

[Ricardo Marín]

3.5 / 5

[Jillian -always aspiring- · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reread in 2019