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Monogatari #10
Tsukimonogatari: Possession Tale
Launching the third or “Final Season” of the international cult-hit series, Possession Tale returns the narrator’s headset back to high school senior and amateur savior Koyomi Araragi, who used to eschew friendship once upon a time because it’d lower his “intensity as a human”—a loner’s misgiving that was perhaps on the mark in a different way than he intended.
At issue now is not the precarious fate of one of his cherished confrères, or rather consœurs, whom he’d aid, sight unseen, with a monster’s resilience, but his own aberrant state and its prolonged abuse. If everything comes with a bill, and if no man is an island, then is the price of self-sacrificing amity—and the bloodshed it ironically occasions—becoming inhuman for good?
That being said! Our hero, whose first name means “calendar” but who has none in his room, sees no need to rush, so, on our way to the profound mysteries of the superhuman aspect, expect a super-shallow deconstruction of the alarm clock. On hand this volume to (hardly ever) humor his humor: his little sisters, a living doll of a corpse, and its violent mistress.
307 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 27, 2012
21 people are currently reading
621 people want to read
About the author
NisiOisiN
245 books984 followersNisio Isin (西尾維新 Nishio Ishin), frequently written as NisiOisiN to emphasize that his pen name is a palindrome, is a Japanese novelist and manga writer. He attended and left Ritsumeikan University without graduating. In 2002, he debuted with the novel Kubikiri Cycle, which earned him the 23rd Mephisto Award at twenty years of age.
He currently works with Kodansha on Pandora, the Kodansha Box magazine, and Faust, a literary magazine containing the works of other young authors who similarly take influence from light novels and otaku culture. He was also publishing a twelve volume series over twelve months for the Kodansha Box line; Ryusui Seiryoin was matching this output, and the Kodansha Box website stated that this is the first time in the world two authors have done twelve volume monthly novel series simultaneously from the same publisher.
In February, 2008, his novel Death Note Another Note: The Los Angeles BB Murder Cases was released in English by Viz Media. Del Rey Manga has already released the first volume in his Zaregoto series. His Bakemonogatari, Nisemonogatari and Katanagatari novels have been adapted into anime series. Nekomonogatari (Kuro) has been adapted into an anime TV movie, and Kizumonogatari will be release in theaters this year. Monogatari Series: Second Season, adapted from 6 books in Monogatari Series will air in July 2013. Another of his works, Medaka Box (manga), has been adapted into a two-season anime series.
He currently works with Kodansha on Pandora, the Kodansha Box magazine, and Faust, a literary magazine containing the works of other young authors who similarly take influence from light novels and otaku culture. He was also publishing a twelve volume series over twelve months for the Kodansha Box line; Ryusui Seiryoin was matching this output, and the Kodansha Box website stated that this is the first time in the world two authors have done twelve volume monthly novel series simultaneously from the same publisher.
In February, 2008, his novel Death Note Another Note: The Los Angeles BB Murder Cases was released in English by Viz Media. Del Rey Manga has already released the first volume in his Zaregoto series. His Bakemonogatari, Nisemonogatari and Katanagatari novels have been adapted into anime series. Nekomonogatari (Kuro) has been adapted into an anime TV movie, and Kizumonogatari will be release in theaters this year. Monogatari Series: Second Season, adapted from 6 books in Monogatari Series will air in July 2013. Another of his works, Medaka Box (manga), has been adapted into a two-season anime series.
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
June 30, 2016
Don't hate it, don't love it, don't dislike it, don't like it neither. I'd thought a story with the mention of various demons/monsters/vampires would be fun, but see how wrong I had been!
As with many of my past experience with Nisi Oisin's Light Novels, this one feels like a big 'Meh' to me, I am not impressed by the writing and the story, still the book isn't awful to the point of being unreadable. I spent a few hours reading this book but it gives me nothing: Nape, zero, emptiness, a blank spot. Therefore if you are not a fan of Nisi Oisin, you might not like this story.
As with many of my past experience with Nisi Oisin's Light Novels, this one feels like a big 'Meh' to me, I am not impressed by the writing and the story, still the book isn't awful to the point of being unreadable. I spent a few hours reading this book but it gives me nothing: Nape, zero, emptiness, a blank spot. Therefore if you are not a fan of Nisi Oisin, you might not like this story.
January 12, 2021
I was torn between rating this first instalment of the final season of Monogatari with three and four stars. Ultimately, I settled for four stars, because there is just so much that this novel does right. It ticks almost all the boxes that make up a good Monogatari book. The beginning is pleasantly uneventful and takes a setting that would normally be misused for fanservice as a setup for well-written banter and even some meaningful and deep conversations. Once the story gets going and major players like Ononoki and Kagenui enter the stage, we learn bits and pieces about the characters and the world that they live in and what transpired during the two or so months that lie between "Koimonogatari" and this novel.
However, I don't know what to make of the ending exactly: At this point, it feels like Isin is dangling the conclusion to his own mystery right in front of our noses without him wanting to explicitly state it in the story. Although at this point in time it should be really obvious that this piece of information is definitely not a red herring, it is almost treated like one in the context of the story. This could be a sort of joke from Isin or simply bad writing, and for the very first time when it comes to Nisio Isin, I am not sure which of these two options seems more likely.
However, I don't know what to make of the ending exactly: At this point, it feels like Isin is dangling the conclusion to his own mystery right in front of our noses without him wanting to explicitly state it in the story. Although at this point in time it should be really obvious that this piece of information is definitely not a red herring, it is almost treated like one in the context of the story. This could be a sort of joke from Isin or simply bad writing, and for the very first time when it comes to Nisio Isin, I am not sure which of these two options seems more likely.
May 21, 2019
One of my favorites of the series (how has it been 14 books already?). The writing and his ability to pull banter (between characters, between narrator and reader) back into the character action and situations of the novel are high points. How can you know what you don't know? Are coincidences malicious by nature? Where is the line between the fruits of your actions and an unknown enemy working against you? What is the line between human and monster for someone torn by his self-sacrifice between both?
The "jokey" fanservice stuff still momentarily pulls me out of it, though one or two of the bad jokes lands. It's hard to compartmentalize.
The "jokey" fanservice stuff still momentarily pulls me out of it, though one or two of the bad jokes lands. It's hard to compartmentalize.
October 27, 2019
Took me too long to read this, though I'm not sure why. Or, I do know why, which was simply that I got lazy and read manga or played video games instead, but maybe I was also slightly burned out on the franchise, despite having taken forever between Koi- and Tsuki-.
Anyway, this volume sees the beginning of the so-called "Final Season" (though there would be "Off" and "Monster" seasons to follow). Like with the Second Season novels, there's a greater focus on continuity than the series's beginnings. The case this time is that Araragi's reflection seems to have vanished, a spontaneous display of his vampirism spiking back up, determined by Ononoki, Kagenui, and Gaen to be the result of Araragi becoming far too used to feeding Shinobu in order to power himself up and brute-force his way through his past couple problems, in particular the month he spent going after the then-divine Sengoku. Ononoki had previously made herself into a firmer ally for Araragi, and this volume adds Kagenui as a more benevolent force than her previous appearance.
We also get a bit more into the experts' college years with Gaen-sempai, being now introduced to Tadatsuru Teori, a puppeteer and origami enthusiast who played an important role in the "creation" of the tsukumogami Yotsugi Ononoki, and whose slight conflict with Kagenui caused a "curse" for neither person to be able to walk on the ground. As with previous novels, Tsukimonogatari operates along the "formula" of backloading the book with the more "significant" elements of plot, so Teori is only mention shortly before he is formally introduced, and his introduction is within the last 20% of the novel, to be resolved as always before the epilogue ("or punchline") of the story, severely limiting his presence and thus the "weight" of the character's existence, or "the existence of the character himself," as the big thing seems to be to set up Ononoki to kill Teori to kinda-sorta-inadvertently prove her being a "monster" to Araragi so as to cause a bit of a schism between Araragi and Ononoki, as directed from the shadows by an unseen interloper, assumed to be the "Darkness" from past volumes, and teased by Ononoki earlier in this text to be Ogi.
Basically, this novel does a good job of linking the contents of the Second Season to what will be resolved throughout the ensuing Final Season. In true Monogatari fashion, NISIOISIN jerks us around a fair bit with banter and play before getting too deep into the "story" proper, but in a bit of a twist much of the dialogue in this novel is actually focused on the "actual" issues at the heart of the story (ie, Araragi's growing vampirism) instead of just messing around. It's hard to tell if this is better or worse than the "common" Monogatari practice of spending 60% or so of a novel's page-count just dicking around before rushing through the resolution in the end, as any reader of Monogatari should very much enjoy the series's idiosyncratic banter (in fact, I think an earlier page in this novel has someone mention metafictionally how the purpose of the series is banter over anything else). The comparative lack of banter here is hard to complain about when we get some pretty okay world-building as well as a hint into the consequences of Araragi's actions (and the implication of just how absolutely different Araragi is from his pseudo-mentor in Oshino).
Anyway, this volume sees the beginning of the so-called "Final Season" (though there would be "Off" and "Monster" seasons to follow). Like with the Second Season novels, there's a greater focus on continuity than the series's beginnings. The case this time is that Araragi's reflection seems to have vanished, a spontaneous display of his vampirism spiking back up, determined by Ononoki, Kagenui, and Gaen to be the result of Araragi becoming far too used to feeding Shinobu in order to power himself up and brute-force his way through his past couple problems, in particular the month he spent going after the then-divine Sengoku. Ononoki had previously made herself into a firmer ally for Araragi, and this volume adds Kagenui as a more benevolent force than her previous appearance.
We also get a bit more into the experts' college years with Gaen-sempai, being now introduced to Tadatsuru Teori, a puppeteer and origami enthusiast who played an important role in the "creation" of the tsukumogami Yotsugi Ononoki, and whose slight conflict with Kagenui caused a "curse" for neither person to be able to walk on the ground. As with previous novels, Tsukimonogatari operates along the "formula" of backloading the book with the more "significant" elements of plot, so Teori is only mention shortly before he is formally introduced, and his introduction is within the last 20% of the novel, to be resolved as always before the epilogue ("or punchline") of the story, severely limiting his presence and thus the "weight" of the character's existence, or "the existence of the character himself," as the big thing seems to be to set up Ononoki to kill Teori to kinda-sorta-inadvertently prove her being a "monster" to Araragi so as to cause a bit of a schism between Araragi and Ononoki, as directed from the shadows by an unseen interloper, assumed to be the "Darkness" from past volumes, and teased by Ononoki earlier in this text to be Ogi.
Basically, this novel does a good job of linking the contents of the Second Season to what will be resolved throughout the ensuing Final Season. In true Monogatari fashion, NISIOISIN jerks us around a fair bit with banter and play before getting too deep into the "story" proper, but in a bit of a twist much of the dialogue in this novel is actually focused on the "actual" issues at the heart of the story (ie, Araragi's growing vampirism) instead of just messing around. It's hard to tell if this is better or worse than the "common" Monogatari practice of spending 60% or so of a novel's page-count just dicking around before rushing through the resolution in the end, as any reader of Monogatari should very much enjoy the series's idiosyncratic banter (in fact, I think an earlier page in this novel has someone mention metafictionally how the purpose of the series is banter over anything else). The comparative lack of banter here is hard to complain about when we get some pretty okay world-building as well as a hint into the consequences of Araragi's actions (and the implication of just how absolutely different Araragi is from his pseudo-mentor in Oshino).
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 25, 2022
Tsuki is a great beginning to Monogatari's final season. The perfect start to the end dealt with how Araragi has been taking on way too much as a vampire and needs to keep his humanity intact. After all the events of the first two seasons, he has relied on his vampiredom at the cost of others, and as if it was divine punishment, it has caught up with him. Which makes it perfect that in this tale, he is forced to rely on an actual "monster", and not his quasi-vampire ability, as he is forced to solve his problems as a human being. Great start to the final season, and leads very well to the later parts of this final season.
May 22, 2023
It feels to me that this book is a set-up to future books. The resolution didn't feel like a resolution. Well, I don't read Monogatari for action and thrills anyway. I read it for the characters' antics. This volume had quite a few memorable scenes. I like seeing protagonists interacting with their family members instead of them being sidelined to the background or merely a mention in passing as if the protagonist has no family.
May 8, 2019
So we're back to Araragi as the narrator in this volume as he takes 74 pages to complain about alarm clocks and to talk "idol banter" while naked with his sister in the bathroom because heaven forbid we don't have another incestuous fanservice scene with his other sister. The rest of the story is him realizing the debt he now has to pay for all the times he's used his vampire powers up to this point. Otherwise, a new character was introduced only to see him quickly exit the stage; it was a rather an anti-climatic ending.
January 15, 2023
One of the slower works in the series in my opinion, and perhaps one of the more forgettable. This one seemed to be more contributing to the overarching story as a whole, setting itself in a way that prepares for future issues, while also summarizing and bringing together some of the issues faced in past stories. That isn’t to say that this book wasn’t enjoyable in its own right though; the writing was excellent as always, and it continued to bring amusing dialogue and character interaction into the mix.
March 2, 2025
It’s like every time Nisio Isin writes an amazing book it uses up a lot of his energy and he needs time to recharge. But still has to pay rent in the meantime so he just releases one or two half-baked novels that are admittedly interesting conceptually but bogged down by frustrating execution before he writes another great book.
This book isn’t terrible but it’s not good either. The couple decent points of characterization are hard to appreciate in a book that’s largely just uninteresting to read.
This book isn’t terrible but it’s not good either. The couple decent points of characterization are hard to appreciate in a book that’s largely just uninteresting to read.
August 20, 2023
This monster tale marks the start of the final season in the series. Right from the start of the book I was instantly drawn into the story. I have to say I missed Araragi narrating the story and also some of the characters who make their return. I do have some unanswered questions which I'm hoping to find answers to in the next three volumes. In this tale we learn that Araragi has to pay a toll for how much he's used his power and that of Shinobu. If you have a chance to check out this volume I highly recommend it this is a 5 out of 5 for me.
January 1, 2026
Ebben a kötetben ismét visszatértünk a lassabb felvezetéshez. Ráadásul a fürdőszobai jelenet túlzottan el van húzva, megint el kell jutni a kötet harmadáig, hogy érdemi esemény legyen. Hangulatilag aztán valahogy mégis elkapott a sztori, ráadásul érződik, hogy ismét indul egy építkezés, amit még nem látni, pontosan hova fog kifutni.
Aztán remélem, hogy a szerző kezd is vele valamit…
Aztán remélem, hogy a szerző kezd is vele valamit…
May 7, 2019
I can't get enough of this series and it saddens me it will end at some point. The conversations as always were so on point. Then there were the twists that ended this volume with me begging for the next book.
Will continue to push this series as a must read!
Will continue to push this series as a must read!
April 18, 2023
This by far has the issue of feeling like it starts very late into the run, however it is a joy to read the interactions at the start, the conflict at the end and the ramifications this story will have on the series going forward. I enjoyed this novel, not one of the best but far from weak.
January 16, 2020
Nah... lots of ramblings, very very very little plot, an ending that is this close to being good and then throws it all away... I did not like this one :S
January 20, 2020
Tadatsuru Teori may be my favorite character in all of the world.
May 28, 2022
Good as per usual
October 17, 2022
The incessant waffling dialogue at the start of some of these light novels makes me appreciate the anime counterparts a lot more at times. Does a good job setting the tone for final season at least.
August 1, 2024
Nisio Isin's ability to bog down an interesting story with shoehorned degeneracy needs to be studied.
Read
October 31, 20245:09
May 1, 2025
6/10
April 2, 2022
Can't quite decide on whether or not to give it a 3 or a 4, but I settled on a 4 (guess this makes it a spiritual 3.5).
Some of the most entertaining banter the series has seen so far and I really enjoy Ononoki as a character - getting some new insight into Kagenui's character was nice as well, and the story introduces a lot of elements, that I'm sure are going to play a huge part going forward.
I might just be dumb, but I'm not quite sure what this volume was going for in the end. With many of the arcs in the show, especially in the Second Season, I felt like every arc had a very clear thing to portray, and with Tsuki, I'm just not quite sure what it is.
There are plenty of interesting themes in this one: how our perception of people change our opinions of them, if there is a border between fate and coincidence and where that border lies, and where do our definition of human begin and end?
But I felt like the overall bigger picture came together more cleanly in other volumes in this series.
Some of the most entertaining banter the series has seen so far and I really enjoy Ononoki as a character - getting some new insight into Kagenui's character was nice as well, and the story introduces a lot of elements, that I'm sure are going to play a huge part going forward.
I might just be dumb, but I'm not quite sure what this volume was going for in the end. With many of the arcs in the show, especially in the Second Season, I felt like every arc had a very clear thing to portray, and with Tsuki, I'm just not quite sure what it is.
There are plenty of interesting themes in this one: how our perception of people change our opinions of them, if there is a border between fate and coincidence and where that border lies, and where do our definition of human begin and end?
But I felt like the overall bigger picture came together more cleanly in other volumes in this series.
October 22, 2025
stop spamming that fuckass finger attack!!
August 28, 2023
more of a buildup to a story than an actual story. but it still has that same monogatari charm that I so love. still funny, still witty and still just a lot of fun reading. Ononoki is interesting, and getting some more insight into her as a character was nice. overall its a good book
Want to read
August 12, 2014jjjijioygt6ftrftrftrwswsrfyuhiujuhgrtex
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews