魔女與野獸 2

魔女と野獣 [Majo to Yajū] #2

by Kousuke Satake, 佐竹幸典, 蘇奕軒 (Translator)

「魔女」犯下的連環奇異殺人案－－
通稱「魔女惡作劇事件」威脅著海丁市。
重複上演的凶案無法防範於未然，某一天，
如嘲笑一籌莫展的警察們一般，警察局收到一封殺人預告信。
對於趕來解決事件的基德兩人來說，這就等同於收到「魔女」的宣戰布告！
「魔響教團」數一數二的蠻橫之徒與魔術師能夠阻止喪心病狂的失控「魔女」嗎…!?

Genres: Manga, Fantasy, Horror, Seinen, Paranormal, Graphic Novels, Magic

190 pages, Paperback

First published December 20, 2017

Reviews

[Rereader · Rating 5 out of 5]

The only critique I'm giving this volume is that the end to the witch case from the last volume was slightly disappointing, but not enough to dampen my enjoyment. ESPECIALLY because of the fight scene that wrapped it up! I LOVE the fact that Guideau uses fucking knuckle dusters (spiked, of course) when she can't temporarily undo the curse. I don't what I was expecting her special weapon to be, but I love how straightforward it is. Definitely matches her personality!

Phanora's introduction definitely raises some questions and I've already got some theories floating around in my head about her, but I do like her character, design, and magic specialty. The way she took down that necromancer and effectively made his life a living hell, like he did to his victims, was so cruel and brutal, but I loved it.

That's all I want to say about the story, but there are a couple of things about this series as a whole that I want to discuss because they're small touches that make a huge impact (to me, at least). When I'm starting a series to determine whether I'll continue with it or not, I'm not looking for perfection but rather if enough aspects are done right. Contrary to what a lot of my review say, I'm neither impossible to please nor easily swayed; if I like something, it's usually because it's doing enough things right that I enjoy it. If I hate it, then the opposites at play. And one of the things that I love about this series is that it does a lot of things right, even more so than other, more popular series. And two of the biggest things have to do with how Satake handles Guideau's character in personality and appearance.

After finishing the first volume, I was thinking about it nonstop but there was always something nagging at me. Something that was so obvious, but for some reason I couldn't put my finger on it. It was several days later when it finally hit me: Guideau, despite being a main female lead in a series aimed for an Older Teen demographic, IS NEVER SEXUALIZED. I, of course, had to go back and reread the volume and even wait for this one to come out before confirming it, but yeah. She's never sexualized. Never wears revealing outfits, never drawn in sexual positions or makes sexy poses, and even when her clothes are damaged readers never see ass or tits. Hell, in this volume alone there's a scene where she leaps in the air and what could have easily been a panty shot wasn't because she was wearing shorts during the fight, AND there's a scene where she wakes up and you get a full panel of her sitting upright, and she's completely covered. I understand to some this may not seem like a big deal, but anyone who's watched anime/ read manga KNOW this is rare. And the thing is, I don't have anything against fanservice MOST of the time, but it's really refreshing to have at least ONE SERIES where we have a female lead who isn't drawn sexily because the creator can and will.

The other thing I noticed that gives Satake massive props is that Guideau doesn't know a lot about the world, but her ignorance isn't infantilized or used to put her in inappropriate situations. She's not treated like a child, nor is she drawn to be either adorably naive or overly excitable about new things in an attempt to make her waifu bait. Yes, Ashaf can be a bit condescending to her, but I get the impression that's more so their dynamic rather than her circumstances. Speaking of dynamics, I fucking LOVE these two and their interactions. Guideau is so violent and aggressive, but Ashaf isn't intimidated at all and even does things that he knows will upset her, but not out of malice. And Guideau, despite her temper and terrible attitude, is perfectly aware that she can't take Ashaf down as she is, but isn't afraid to cause him trouble. Those two are the best, love them so much.

I'm going to stop myself here because if I don't this review will be 20 pages long. Suffice to say, I love this series and highly recommend it.

[Mizuki · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rating: 5 full stars.

Outline of the story: In a modern Europe-looks-alike fantasy world, there are magic-users and the unearthly powerful beings known as the 'witches'. The witches are seemingly all evil and love to curse people and cause mayhem, so the witches are widely feared and hated by the general public and are hunted by the Church and an unknown organization of magic users.   

Whenever there are 'witch's incidents', a man carrying a coffin and a young girl  with eyes of a beast would show up to 'investigate' and capture the witches? Who are this pair and what is their goal?

Need not to say, the artwork is lovely and outstanding. This time, both short stories in this volume are doing so great! Especially the story about the illegal activities of the living deads and the battle between the two powerful necromancers who control the deads.

The stories are in fact even better than the ones in volume one, I look forward to read the next volume!

[Jessica ❀ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Omg I loved this volume, we had an ending of one case. Then a new case with two new characters and a necromancer and it was everything! I love this series so far.

[Toni · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5

[Carmen · Rating 5 out of 5]

After getting to the bottom of a case involving a seemingly murderous witch, Ashaf and Guideau are sent to investigate a new case involving feral undead folks. When it turns out that there has been a streak of feral undead turning up, they pass the case onto someone who specializes in necromancy, Phanora. Unfortunately for Phanora and her assistant, it appears that there is someone illegally reviving the dead before casting them off.

I was so absorbed by the first volume of this series that I knew I had to read more. Thankfully, it turned out that there’s a few volumes that have already been translated and released in English. While the first volume is an introduction into the world as well as Ashaf and Guideau’s ultimate goal, this volume allows us to learn a little about other members of the Order of Magical Resonance. We meet Phanora and her assistant, Johan, and watch them explore a taboo practice in this world: necromancy.

I was very interested in Phanora as well as the information on how necromancy works in this series. There was quite a bit of lore involved and it was extremely interesting as well as presented in a way that I haven’t seen before. I was also sad for some of the characters involved as we learned more about the drawbacks of becoming undead, but those are spoilers that I won’t share so that I don’t ruin the reveal for anyone reading this who decides to check out this series.

Of course, we didn’t follow Phanora the entire time as Ashaf and Guideau are the protagonists! The volume starts and ends with them in very different ways. We learn a little more about Ashaf and Guideau as people as well as how they operate. It was also neat to get another glimpse at what they get up to when they are not investigating a new case. Plus, I was fascinated by how they solved the case that left off in a cliffhanger in volume one.

I already have the third volume, so expect to see me reviewing that very soon.

[Kastie Pavlik · Rating 5 out of 5]

This volume is full of action and delivers solid story. The art and backgrounds are impeccable, but there are a few that need a closer look to understand what you're seeing. Taking the time to study these is rewarding, though, as Satake conveys much using eyes and character motions. I appreciate the black out panels when text is needed to convey story so it doesn't come off as congested exposition.

We're introduced to a new duo, Phanora & Johan, and their story is perfect for fans of Black Butler & Tokyo Ghoul. I can see elements of Yuko (xxxHolic) in Phanora, although this series is considerably darker. I'm still curious about Ashaf & Guideau, but I hope we see more of these newbies in future volumes because they stole the spotlight here.

[Bookish Miranda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Guideau and Ashaf are at it again in volume 2. The duo solves a mystery from the previous volume and readers are introduced to other members of the Order of Magical Resonance: Phanora and Johan. I love the dynamics between Phanora and Johan just as much as I love the relationship between Guideau and Ashaf. Necromancy is a major theme in this volume and it is so well done in my opinion. I really love the series so far. The story and the art of The Witch and the Beast are absolutely fantastic. I can't wait to read volume 3.

[Juwita · Rating 5 out of 5]

WOW
Super menarik
Tokoh baru dan kekuatan yang tidak biasa

[Zian B. · Rating 3 out of 5]

More of a 3.5 star rating;
I really liked the introduction to 2 other members of the Order of Magical Resonance and their adventure. I have a bit of an issue with the context in terms of the overall storyline. I got more information about the 2 other members, than I’ve been getting about Guideau and Ashaf.
I’ll stick it out with this series since it is pretty interesting.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

At first I wasn't sure about the side quest in the volume but by the end I was like, that was cool. Violent but cool which could sum up the series so far.

[Melanie Rodriguez Sosa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lo único que hace este manga es ponerse mejor. Ha sido super épico y el dibujo sigue igual de precioso, además he disfrutado mucho de los casos que toman los protagonistas y que en este volumen en particular nos enfocamos en uno muy interesante y en otra pareja perteneciente a esta orden de magia.

Phanora y Johan, que de la misma forma que nuestro dúo principal, trabajan para la orden y se enfocan en casos específicos: en los que se relacionan con la resurrección de muertos. Me encantaron estos dos personajes y como se manejo el concepto y lo que involucra la resurrección, como esta afecta de manera negativa a los muertos, también me pareció una historia un poco triste. Hubo muchas revelaciones y plot twists que no me esperaba venir.

En la ultima parte de este tomo, regresamos con la pareja principal y un vistazo a lo que será la próxima misión, la cual siento que será mi favorita de todas la que hemos experimentado.

[Kaleena Riddell · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Witch and the Beast take on a new approach in the second volume that I really enjoyed. We dove into the background of the series and learned more about the society and the magic realms Guideau and Ashaf find themselves in. I loved the spin of introducing new characters and getting to know Phanora. She has easily become one of my favourite characters. I am looking forward to discovering more about this series and the realm these characters belong to.

[Of Butterflies & Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another really fun volume. Once again the art is just insane and I’m really enjoying the banter between the two characters. What really pushed this volume over for me were the new characters that were introduced. I can’t wait to see more of them. I give this volume a 4.5.

[Leslecturesajigoku 78 · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5*

[Maddy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This series really is a slow start but starting to pick up

[Alex Atlee · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm loving the art style as well as the story so far, I'm hoping to see the necromancer more in future volumes as well

[Maria · Rating 5 out of 5]

D'azione. Solo per adulti.

[Keeloween · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh, I might be in love with Phanora.

[Gerry Sacco · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series gets an A for creativity. Top notch world building. Interesting characters.

The story drops a bit midway through, as does the art, but it picks right up again with a strong end.

As other users noted, it really jumps out that there is no fan service. They take the story and the characters seriously, and I love that. Earns a continuation from me.

Read this series, it's different, in the best way possible.

[Zwart Raafje · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5*

[David Corder · Rating 2 out of 5]

In my search for more manga to read, and gothic manga at that, I decided to give this series a chance. And while it has some good horror elements to it, there are more negatives than positives with this series.

I have yet to care about the characters in this series. They are intriguing, but I don't know enough about them to want to continue reading. So far, there is no continuity of a storyline, at least, there is not one that is keeping my attention.

What's more the artist of the series did something I found quite audacious. There is a scene where a necromancer is looking at the naked corpse of a woman, and you see him drag his finger across the body up to the breast, his finger barely covering the tip of the nipple. You don't see other body parts explicitly shown, but the artist in the first volume, as well as the second volume of this series, is not afraid of toeing the line of nudity. Yes, the series is rated OT for Older Teen, ages 16 and up, but it was totally unnecessary for the artist to include nudity in the comic. Why does nudity have to be such an integral part of the storytelling?

I don't think I will be continuing this series.

[Karine Darnessy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Je poursuis mon aventure dans ce seinen sombre et intrigant. On continue et termine cette deuxième enquête surprenante pour la policière de la ville. La sorcière s'en prend toujours aux habitants et maintenant à Guido et Ashaf qui sont bien décidé à lui mettre la main dessus.
Pas de surprise pour moi, j'ai adoré redécouvrir ce chapitre ainsi que l'introduction de Fanola et Johann et de leur propre mission. La différence à noter par rapport à l'adaptation animée, c'est qu'ici, on fait la connaissance de Micha, la jeune femme qui s'occupe de Guido (repas, ménage et vêtements), enfin tant qu'elle n'approche pas trop, car Guido est assez caractériel au lever. Avec ce point supplémentaire, on voit que l'ordre de l'écho noir n'est pas juste une organisation puissante, elle octroi aussi des services à ses membres.
Encore une fois, c'est une réussite du début à la fin. Le tome n'a pas fait long feu et j'ai vraiment hâte de lire le prochain volume. Toujours amoureuse du style graphique de l'auteur, de l'ambiance et de l'univers.
https://la-bibliotheque-du-labyrinthe...

[georgiaotaku]

Honestly, I’m in a weird spot and don’t know how to rate this. I am currently buying many different series so I have to prioritize. As such, I am going through all the manga I am questioning and seeing if it is worth continuing. One that I am dropping is Bakemonogatari while I am wanting to continue High Rise Invasion. The Witch and the Beast is on the fence and may have to sit longer. I throughly enjoyed this volume in the 4 star range. I love the concepts of this series such as the introduction of necromancy and the new witch character. The magic systems and such are beautiful and keep me intrigued. However I do have some negative comments. The art can be absolutely gorgeous on one page and the next is literally a girl with a weird face and crossed eyes. It can distract at times. The other is that the story is a bit everywhere. Currently the plot is minimal and leaves a bit to be desired but yet I am somehow still curious on how it’ll go. I have volumes 1-3. I will def read 3 before I make my decision and hopefully also have a decision by that point.

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vol 2: (Chapters 6-10)

An elite necromancer from the Order is recommend by our OG duo to deal with a case of malfunctioning walking dead folk- or in this case strays. This means the unregistered un-dead who have been risen by a rogue necromancer need to be dealt with before they cause more havoc.

Also I saw this image floating around before and yeah this lady is a badass who I wouldn't mind seeing in later volumes along with her overworked side kick.



Also heavy concept with the fact that to become undead your soul will never be able to reincarnate and that when your undead body dies you are essentially cursed to be left in a void forever- just on the premise that you'll get to live longer in your current body and that your family can just choose to resurrect you...without your say(?) 😟

[Cornerofmadness · Rating 3 out of 5]

With this second volume, I'm still in the zone of I like this but I'm not in love with it. I do like it enough to go looking for more though.

Ashaf and Guideau wrap up their literal witch hunt that was the crux of the first volume and are immediately presented with a rash of the Undead. Necromancers can, legally, bring back the dead or in this case, do so illegally and unwisely letting them run rampant. Ashaf knows this isn't their wheelhouse and calls in a specialist.

So they're gone for the rest of the book and we meet Phanora and her partner Johan. She's a necromancer expert and he's the muscle. This storyline is creepy, especially when the reality of what happens to the Undead is explained, made all the more poignant with what is happening with one of the detective's lives as he helps Phanora.

I liked this story line better than the last one and I liked these characters better than I liked Guideau. The art is remains very nice.

[Kai · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Undead in the Witch and the Beast universe are different from the usual zombies. They are perfect makes, a second life if you will in exchange of the "eternal damnation" of the soul. Thus, the practice of Necromancy is highly controlled and in some cities, illegal. One does not just grave rob corpses, using bodies for necromancy must be granted by the person themselves before death or close of kin. Undead must be registered, monitored and maintained by the practitioner.

And in this volume, we have a Necromancer who has broken the rules of Necromancy. Causing a surge of stray zombies rampaging. We are introduced to another pair from the order, Phanora and Johan. Whom specializes in Necromancy and the Undead. And I got to be honest, I like them more than Ashaf and Guideau.

[Vanessa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ad eccezione del primo capitolo e dell'ultimo di questo volume, Ashaf e Guideau vengono lasciati (volutamente) in disparte. Al posto loro vengono puntati i riflettori su due nuovi personaggi davvero molto interessanti. Grazie a loro scopriamo altri lati estremamente oscuri di questo mondo in cui regna la magia e quanto il concetto stesso di "strega" sia ambiguo e impossibile da etichettare a priori. Già il primo volume mi era piaciuto, ma questo è stato ancora più bello! Sono curiosissima di saperne di più.

Mi vorrei infine soffermare sui disegni di questo manga: sono semplicemente bellissimi. Le ambientazioni e gli sfondi sono curati fin nei minimi dettagli, si respira la "magia" anche sugli oggetti e sugli edifici oltre che sui personaggi.

[Reese · Rating 5 out of 5]

If I wasn't sure about this series before, I definitely am now. I felt the middle of this volume went a little slow but it quickly went from 0-100. I am in love with both the plot, the amazing art, and the character designs in this series. Each of the four characters this volume focuses on, which right now I would say is Guideu, Ashaf, Phanora, and Johan, all have something interesting that drives their character. I could also go on about the incredible artwork for days. I will definitely be continuing this series, it is truly criminal how underrated it is. I heard there are plans for this series to be animated too, so I'm keeping my hopes up!

[Konstantin R. · Rating 3 out of 5]

[rating = B-]

The first volume was much better. I didn't like the inclusion of two new characters. Having just gotten to know the two in Vol 1, I was confused as to why the series would add two more "main" characters (as they take up the majority of the manga). The story itself isn't bad, and I read it without displeasure. However, seeing that Vol. 3 goes back to the first two protagonists, I am excited to start that one now, regardless of Vol 2's excursion. If these two in Vol 2 do come back into play, that would be fine, but if not...you don't have to read Vol 2.

[Misty · Rating 4 out of 5]

The volume begins with the conclusion of “The Cost Of The Pastime” which I felt was lackluster. But, the next story, “Beauty and Death” made up for it.

We’re introduced to Phanora and her assistant Johan as they are dispatched to resolve a case of necromancy gone wrong. The story was intriguing and gory. Really loved the reveal about Phanora and Johan’s true nature.

The volume then ends with the prologue of a new chapter which introduces what seems to be another bada** female character!

Very enjoyable volume that further builds up the intriguing lore in that world.