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Fence #5
Fence, Vol. 5: Rise
En Garde! Excitement is in the air as Nicholas and his friends celebrate their prestigious invitation to the Halverton Training Camp. But they soon find themselves pushed to their limits as they come face-to-face with the best teams in the country. Will a new addition to the opposing team help Nicholas awaken the fighting spirit he needs to prevail? And what will it mean for his friendship with Seiji?
111 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 10, 2022
About the author
C.S. Pacat
79 books17.2k followersC.S. Pacat is the USA-Today best-selling author of Dark Rise, the Captive Prince trilogy, and the GLAAD-nominated graphic novels Fence.
Born in Australia and educated at the University of Melbourne, C.S. Pacat has lived in a number of cities, including Tokyo and Perugia, and currently resides and writes in Melbourne.
Born in Australia and educated at the University of Melbourne, C.S. Pacat has lived in a number of cities, including Tokyo and Perugia, and currently resides and writes in Melbourne.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,112 reviews
Want to Read
March 27, 2022RISE GAY PEOPLE 🙌
September 29, 2025
4.5 stars
It's really hard to rate each volume when it's an ongoing story. And not only that - it has to be the slowest slow burn ever. The only downside is that we have to wait long between volumes, and they read so quickly.
But I really enjoyed this one. I love all the characters and the dynamics between them gets better with each volume. Nicholas is the sweetest, I love his friendship with Seiji, and I'm really glad that Bobby got more on-page time. That was so cute.
The art is wonderful. We get introduced to a lot of new characters, members of other teams, and I like how distinct they are from each other, both in their physical appearance and in their personality.
*****
Re-read 9/2025
It's really hard to rate each volume when it's an ongoing story. And not only that - it has to be the slowest slow burn ever. The only downside is that we have to wait long between volumes, and they read so quickly.
But I really enjoyed this one. I love all the characters and the dynamics between them gets better with each volume. Nicholas is the sweetest, I love his friendship with Seiji, and I'm really glad that Bobby got more on-page time. That was so cute.
The art is wonderful. We get introduced to a lot of new characters, members of other teams, and I like how distinct they are from each other, both in their physical appearance and in their personality.
*****
Re-read 9/2025
December 31, 2022
Este es el slowburn más slowburn de la vida, pero amo cómo cada vez más Seiji va dejando que Nicholas se acerque más a él. Creo que vamos en la etapa rivals to friends, así que espero que pronto nos den más pistas del rivals to lovers.
Lo malo es que a este paso vamos a tener que esperar cuarenta años entre cada tomo, ayuda xD.
Lo malo es que a este paso vamos a tener que esperar cuarenta años entre cada tomo, ayuda xD.
December 21, 2022
Mi pregunta es cuando se acabara esto?
August 10, 2022
I'm torn between two very different emotions with the Fence series. On one hand, I love them. I love the characters. I love the art style. I love the frustrating slow build towards a fencing team that's actually, you know, good at fencing. On the other hand, this series is so maddening. It takes forever between volumes and then when you finally do get them they're barely any story. In Fence: Rise, the boys go to a fencing camp. There are like four plot points: Bobby becomes team manager, Coach makes a case for keeping Aiden on the team despite his poor attendance, Nick vows to become good enough to be a good partner to Seiji (who is too talented to be at all challenged by any of those around him), and we get a hit about Seiji and Jesse's backstory. Don't get me wrong. I very much enjoyed reading this. It's as cute as ever. Bobby in particular is adorable this volume, and since Aiden is my favorite character by a wide margin, I was particularly happy to see some narrative focus on him, even if it was for just a few pages.
If the rest of Fence were readily available, I might've popped this up a star. I really did like it. It's just frustrating to know that there's probably going to be another year or so to wait for volume six, and that when it arrives it is also going to be the equivalent of a single chapter in a standard book. I'm going to keep reading this series, but I feel like I'm going to be retired by the time it is complete. Hopefully I'm wrong and Pacat and Johanna the Mad job out and get this thing done before I'm eighty, but for now—as much as I love this series—the pacing is simply maddening.
Rise also answered my biggest question about Fence: how would the series continue after Sarah Rees Brennan's YA counterparts. The answer seems to be by establishing the novels as an alternate universe. This graphic novel picks up where the last one finished, with the team having just finished their first match, which is also where Striking Distance picks up. The developments from the novels (most obviously Aiden and Harvard getting together) don't seem to have happened, and there's even a specific reference that makes it sound like the graphic novel is intentionally eschewing its YA sibling: Seiji laments the fact that they've gone to a local camp that is below his level rather than going to a fancy/elite one in France. In Fence: Disarmed, they actually do go to a fancy/elite fencing camp in France. I loved the YA novels, but I'm not heartbroken that they're not official canon. I'm just glad to know what we're doing.
If the rest of Fence were readily available, I might've popped this up a star. I really did like it. It's just frustrating to know that there's probably going to be another year or so to wait for volume six, and that when it arrives it is also going to be the equivalent of a single chapter in a standard book. I'm going to keep reading this series, but I feel like I'm going to be retired by the time it is complete. Hopefully I'm wrong and Pacat and Johanna the Mad job out and get this thing done before I'm eighty, but for now—as much as I love this series—the pacing is simply maddening.
Rise also answered my biggest question about Fence: how would the series continue after Sarah Rees Brennan's YA counterparts. The answer seems to be by establishing the novels as an alternate universe. This graphic novel picks up where the last one finished, with the team having just finished their first match, which is also where Striking Distance picks up. The developments from the novels (most obviously Aiden and Harvard getting together) don't seem to have happened, and there's even a specific reference that makes it sound like the graphic novel is intentionally eschewing its YA sibling: Seiji laments the fact that they've gone to a local camp that is below his level rather than going to a fancy/elite one in France. In Fence: Disarmed, they actually do go to a fancy/elite fencing camp in France. I loved the YA novels, but I'm not heartbroken that they're not official canon. I'm just glad to know what we're doing.
Want to Read
February 19, 2022Aksjdjdnxjdkdncjd new volume in the GN series! They knew I needed more Seiji+Nicholas content
Read
September 26, 2022I don't really want to rate this because like ??? Nothing happened???
They go to a fencing camp and they fence. Like that's it. No major plot points. Nothing. . And the ending, the Nicholas and Seiji ending was just amaaaaazing. But still, I need MORE. Especially when you have to wait literal years for new volumes.
The thing is, I knew it would be a slowburn both for Aiden/Harvard (I love them so much) and Nicholas/Seiji (I love them so much) because it's C.S. Pacat. Like, I've read Captive Prince so many times it's embarrassing at this point. She loves a slow burn. But at least I found CP when it was finished and I could binge it.
I'VE LITERALLY BEEN WAITING YEARS FOR THESE CRUMBS.
~~~~~~~~~
OH MY GOD I DIDN'T THINK IT WAS GOING TO HAPPEN. I THOUGHT THIS WAS JUST GOING TO FALL INTO THE VOID OF UNFINISHED SERIES BUT IT'S *NOT* IT'S GETTING ANOTHER VOLUME AND I AM SO. FREAKING. EXCITED.
They go to a fencing camp and they fence. Like that's it. No major plot points. Nothing. . And the ending, the Nicholas and Seiji ending was just amaaaaazing. But still, I need MORE. Especially when you have to wait literal years for new volumes.
The thing is, I knew it would be a slowburn both for Aiden/Harvard (I love them so much) and Nicholas/Seiji (I love them so much) because it's C.S. Pacat. Like, I've read Captive Prince so many times it's embarrassing at this point. She loves a slow burn. But at least I found CP when it was finished and I could binge it.
I'VE LITERALLY BEEN WAITING YEARS FOR THESE CRUMBS.
~~~~~~~~~
OH MY GOD I DIDN'T THINK IT WAS GOING TO HAPPEN. I THOUGHT THIS WAS JUST GOING TO FALL INTO THE VOID OF UNFINISHED SERIES BUT IT'S *NOT* IT'S GETTING ANOTHER VOLUME AND I AM SO. FREAKING. EXCITED.
August 21, 2022
I love these comics why are they taking so long to publish ahhhh
December 16, 2022
I’m in love with this series, I need more
Want to Read
November 14, 2021Not me screaming like I was being stabbed to death when I seen this.
April 23, 2024
Great, now I want to reread the novels again😭
THESE BOYS ARE JUST SO FREAKING PRECIOUS, I CAN’T. YOUR HONOR, I WOULD DIE FOR THEM.
THESE BOYS ARE JUST SO FREAKING PRECIOUS, I CAN’T. YOUR HONOR, I WOULD DIE FOR THEM.
Want to Read
March 5, 2022let’s take a moment to appreciate how beautiful Aiden looks in the cover 🛐 thank u
May 8, 2023
3.5/5
Estuvo divertido. Esta vez están en un campamento, entonces los duelos son rápidos y no implican competencia como tal. Eso si, se centró mucho más en la historia de Seiji y sus dificultades.
Me gusta cómo va creciendo la amistad de Seiji con Nicholas, son muy tiernos, porque sus personalidades son casi opuestas, pero ambos están aprendiendo de una forma u otra del otro. Disfruto mucho del cómo se van sintiendo más cómodos entre ellos y las pequeñas bromas.
Sé que Fence es sobre esgrima, pero me gustó que este no se centrara tanto en esas competencias específicas y que tuviera mucho más que las descripciones. Al ser combates cortos y rápidos pudimos tener mas momentos de los personajes fuera de las pistas y ahí se puso divertidos, el verlos interactuar y las distintas relaciones que se van desarrollando.
Estuvo divertido. Esta vez están en un campamento, entonces los duelos son rápidos y no implican competencia como tal. Eso si, se centró mucho más en la historia de Seiji y sus dificultades.
Me gusta cómo va creciendo la amistad de Seiji con Nicholas, son muy tiernos, porque sus personalidades son casi opuestas, pero ambos están aprendiendo de una forma u otra del otro. Disfruto mucho del cómo se van sintiendo más cómodos entre ellos y las pequeñas bromas.
Sé que Fence es sobre esgrima, pero me gustó que este no se centrara tanto en esas competencias específicas y que tuviera mucho más que las descripciones. Al ser combates cortos y rápidos pudimos tener mas momentos de los personajes fuera de las pistas y ahí se puso divertidos, el verlos interactuar y las distintas relaciones que se van desarrollando.
July 29, 2024
im walking with the lgbt
28/7/24
lo tuve que releer porque no encuentro el volumen 6 y andaba extrañando esta saga
28/7/24
lo tuve que releer porque no encuentro el volumen 6 y andaba extrañando esta saga
February 8, 2026
El volumen 5 es igual de precioso que los anteriores.
Amo muchísimo las ilustraciones: cómo en algunas viñetas los personajes están casi caricaturizados, bien estilo cómic, y en otras aparecen mucho más detallados. Amo, sobre todo, cuando nos muestran a un personaje a través de los ojos de otro, porque ahí entran en juego sus percepciones, sus sentimientos y hace que conectemos todavía más con ellos y con lo que sienten.
Acá, la escuela Kings Row es invitada por primera vez al campamento de entrenamiento organizado por Halverton, donde deben competir y convivir con integrantes de tres escuelas más. El objetivo no es ganar, sino conocer a sus rivales y aprender nuevas técnicas.
En este volumen, la amistad entre Seiji y Nicholas sigue creciendo. Entrenan juntos por la mañana, desayunan juntos, se sientan juntos en el colectivo y, a la noche, se consuelan el uno al otro 😭. Amo que Nicholas se preocupe tanto, y amo que Seiji empiece a abrirse con él: que le confíe sus miedos, su terror a no mejorar, a no alcanzar a Jesse.
Son excesivamente tiernos. Quiero que nunca se termine.
Amo muchísimo las ilustraciones: cómo en algunas viñetas los personajes están casi caricaturizados, bien estilo cómic, y en otras aparecen mucho más detallados. Amo, sobre todo, cuando nos muestran a un personaje a través de los ojos de otro, porque ahí entran en juego sus percepciones, sus sentimientos y hace que conectemos todavía más con ellos y con lo que sienten.
Acá, la escuela Kings Row es invitada por primera vez al campamento de entrenamiento organizado por Halverton, donde deben competir y convivir con integrantes de tres escuelas más. El objetivo no es ganar, sino conocer a sus rivales y aprender nuevas técnicas.
En este volumen, la amistad entre Seiji y Nicholas sigue creciendo. Entrenan juntos por la mañana, desayunan juntos, se sientan juntos en el colectivo y, a la noche, se consuelan el uno al otro 😭. Amo que Nicholas se preocupe tanto, y amo que Seiji empiece a abrirse con él: que le confíe sus miedos, su terror a no mejorar, a no alcanzar a Jesse.
Son excesivamente tiernos. Quiero que nunca se termine.
August 24, 2022
I finished reading it way too soon 💔
An entire year waiting, rereading past volumes, dreaming of what’s to come... to just be done in a single hour?!😭
...COMPLETELY WORTH IT!
The story is growing and getting better, the art too (so expressive and dynamic).
*A lot of new characters! An annoying cousin 🤣 and some other nice-ish kids that will spice the Kings Row’s group I think.
*Bobby’s looks and hair styles are lovely in this volume. He’s so cute! So good he has some space for his own arc to develop.
I loved how much work the story puts behind each character personality, wardrobe and appearance in general. It’s great to enjoy so much a comic that makes it so easy to recognize the whole cast, not only the MCs. Everyone here is unique.
*Seiji and Nicholas are a delight. The slow-burn is perfect. They are just at the “getting to be friends” stage. It’s credible and a pleasure to see Seiji getting comfortable.
An entire year waiting, rereading past volumes, dreaming of what’s to come... to just be done in a single hour?!😭
...COMPLETELY WORTH IT!
The story is growing and getting better, the art too (so expressive and dynamic).
*A lot of new characters! An annoying cousin 🤣 and some other nice-ish kids that will spice the Kings Row’s group I think.
*Bobby’s looks and hair styles are lovely in this volume. He’s so cute! So good he has some space for his own arc to develop.
I loved how much work the story puts behind each character personality, wardrobe and appearance in general. It’s great to enjoy so much a comic that makes it so easy to recognize the whole cast, not only the MCs. Everyone here is unique.
*Seiji and Nicholas are a delight. The slow-burn is perfect. They are just at the “getting to be friends” stage. It’s credible and a pleasure to see Seiji getting comfortable.
October 11, 2022
POLEMIC: Fence Series is way better than Heartstopper Series!!!
September 1, 2022
*4.5 stars
"should i be jealous that he's your new rival?"
excuse me while i pass out
this volume was absolutely perfect!! ahhh the development between Nicholas and Seiji as they finally become friends is so adorable. the plot is progressing at a pace that i would usually favor, however, because of how long it takes an issue to be released, i would definitely prefer of the story began to speed up just a bit. i can only hope for more content as i eagerly await the next volumes, but until then i will continue to silently support these lovely characters from the sidelines <3
"should i be jealous that he's your new rival?"
this volume was absolutely perfect!! ahhh the development between Nicholas and Seiji as they finally become friends is so adorable. the plot is progressing at a pace that i would usually favor, however, because of how long it takes an issue to be released, i would definitely prefer of the story began to speed up just a bit. i can only hope for more content as i eagerly await the next volumes, but until then i will continue to silently support these lovely characters from the sidelines <3
September 26, 2022
Here's to hoping the wait for volume 6 isn't as long.
__
Yesss it’s coming out in 2022 🥰
__
Yesss it’s coming out in 2022 🥰
January 23, 2024
"I’ll get better so that you don’t feel like you’re wasting your time. Then we can fence together and I’ll challenge you to the limit. So you’d better get ready.”
No creo leer nunca una novela gráfica que me haga sentir tanto como Fence. Este volumen se hizo desear años pero estuvo re lindo porque nos dio mucho fence, nicholas x seiji content y por fin están empezando a adentrarnos en el background de la relación entre Seiji y Jesse !!! plus, ¿Nicholas sonrojándose porque Seiji le preguntó “should I be jealous?” STOP my ship is finally sailing !!!!
CS Pacat por favor no me hagas esperar otros 2 años para 100 páginas más de historia te lo pido de rodillas mi reina
3.5 de 5 estrellas.
My review of "Fence, Vol. 1" ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
My review of "Fence, Vol. 2" ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
My review of "Fence, Vol. 3" ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
My review of "Fence, Vol. 4: Rivals" ⭐⭐⭐⭐
My review of "Fence, Vol. 5: Rise" ⭐⭐⭐.5
My review of "Fence, Vol. 6: Redemption" ⭐⭐⭐⭐
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25/02/2022: POR FINNNNN CS PACAT ME HICISTE ESPERAR UNA VIDA Y MEDIA PARA ESTE VOLUMEN PERO NO ME IMPORTA PORQUE POR FIN ME VAS A DAR MÁS SEIJI x NICHOLAS CONTENT !!!!
December 12, 2022
YOUTUBE / INSTAGRAM
¿Pero por qué se acaban tan rápido? ¡¡¡¡¡Necesito máááás!!!!! La verdad es que es el único punto negativo que les veo a estas novelas gráficas, que hay que esperar mucho entre una y la siguiente y luego se las lee una en una hora. Y ahora que encima todavía no ha salido el siguiente volumen ni siquiera en inglés, lloro al pensar en cuánto tendremos que esperar, porque realmente disfruto muchísimo de esta historia.
Y creo que tiene mucho mérito que una historia consiga atraparte así cuando gira esencialmente alrededor de un deporte poco conocido, y más teniendo en cuenta que nunca he sido una gran fan de los deportes (aunque la esgrima siempre me ha llamado un poco la atención por culpa de todos esos libros de fantasía con duelos de espadas). Y es que no creáis que la esgrima es algo secundario, no, es casi un personaje más, porque la historia entra en materia sobre movimientos, postura, ataques, dinámicas de enfrentamientos, etc.
Y, a la vez, engancha con sus personajes, a los que a estas alturas hemos visto evolucionar a lo largo de cinco volúmenes. Algunos más que otros, es posible, pero aun así, es muy difícil no cogerles cariño a todos. En Escuela de esgrima tenemos un grupo de personajes de lo más variopinto, con representación de muchos tipos y en este volumen en concreto, tenemos un grupo nutrido de secundarios que añaden cierta novedad a las dinámicas y nos permiten ver cómo son nuestros chicos cuando compiten con gente de otros equipos y no entre ellos.
Creo que poco más se puede decir de un tomo tan cortito que continúa una historia anterior, y más cuando el slow-burn es el más lento de la historia (pero disfruto de cada migaja).
¿Pero por qué se acaban tan rápido? ¡¡¡¡¡Necesito máááás!!!!! La verdad es que es el único punto negativo que les veo a estas novelas gráficas, que hay que esperar mucho entre una y la siguiente y luego se las lee una en una hora. Y ahora que encima todavía no ha salido el siguiente volumen ni siquiera en inglés, lloro al pensar en cuánto tendremos que esperar, porque realmente disfruto muchísimo de esta historia.
Y creo que tiene mucho mérito que una historia consiga atraparte así cuando gira esencialmente alrededor de un deporte poco conocido, y más teniendo en cuenta que nunca he sido una gran fan de los deportes (aunque la esgrima siempre me ha llamado un poco la atención por culpa de todos esos libros de fantasía con duelos de espadas). Y es que no creáis que la esgrima es algo secundario, no, es casi un personaje más, porque la historia entra en materia sobre movimientos, postura, ataques, dinámicas de enfrentamientos, etc.
Y, a la vez, engancha con sus personajes, a los que a estas alturas hemos visto evolucionar a lo largo de cinco volúmenes. Algunos más que otros, es posible, pero aun así, es muy difícil no cogerles cariño a todos. En Escuela de esgrima tenemos un grupo de personajes de lo más variopinto, con representación de muchos tipos y en este volumen en concreto, tenemos un grupo nutrido de secundarios que añaden cierta novedad a las dinámicas y nos permiten ver cómo son nuestros chicos cuando compiten con gente de otros equipos y no entre ellos.
Creo que poco más se puede decir de un tomo tan cortito que continúa una historia anterior, y más cuando el slow-burn es el más lento de la historia (pero disfruto de cada migaja).
January 9, 2023
4 stars. All I have to say after reading Fence, Vol. 5: Rise is despite not having an athletic bone in my body I am not blind to the appeal of the intense homoeroticism within certain sports—especially fencing.
![Profile Image for laurel [the suspected bibliophile].](https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/users/1645808644i/7494844._UX200_CR0,6,200,200_.jpg)
July 15, 2022
It was good, but I was kinda hoping for a bit...more.
I did get the first novelization from my library, so I hope that gives me the more I want!
I did get the first novelization from my library, so I hope that gives me the more I want!
November 8, 2025
Por qué duran tan poquito y se tardan tanto en publicar el siguiente? 🥹🤣🥺😂😭
August 11, 2022
I love Fence with all of my heart and I am still vibrating from having the new comic out! It was so fun to read--I laughed out loud and had to put the book down a couple of times from awe or second-hand embarrassment lmfao.
Thank god the spin-off novels seem to be a canon of their own--with RISE, I just don't see how they could actually fit into comic canon anymore. The timeline doesn't work out because RISE definitely wasn't set after Disarmed, as major plot developments from the novel were dropped and never referenced in the comic, but Striking Distance is meant to have happened right after RIVALS, not RISE. Anyway, it was a huge relief to be solidly back in comic canon!
Johanna The Mad is such an amazing artist and she continues to do a wonderful job with the art. My personal favorite art was the more realistic style in the first several issues, but the art in RISE felt fun and was a good mix of a more stylized cartoon approach and the realism from the earlier issues. My only real complaint here is the way Nicholas seems to have become a lot more cutesy than in the original comic run without any pictures of him looking particularly masculine...
HOWEVER I think that largely ties into the characterization of him written into the recent volumes of Fence. It seems to me that there is a distinct split in characterization between the original 12 issues (or 3 volumes) of the comic and the graphic novels (volumes 4 and 5 so far). This is a complaint I've had since RIVALS, and RISE has only continued the trend. Seiji doesn't seem as mean, but he's still mean enough that I'm fine (I love the acknowledgment that Seiji's boasting is just him being truthful and just not getting why that sounds arrogant, but I miss him also just straight up being an asshole on purpose because I really think both things can and should be true). Nick and Eugene are the characters I really think had some remixing happening between issue 12 and the renewed graphic novels. Call me delusional, but I'm sure that Eugene being a nervous, bumbling wreck is in direct opposition with everything we learned about him in the first 12 issues. He was shown as confident and competitive, social and well-liked, and great at masking his feelings for the benefit of others. He is...no longer that. No more cool and confident, caring and savvy Eugene. Instead, he's nervous about everything, including asking someone to fence with him which just doesn't make sense to me given how easily social and confident he was always displayed and referenced to be. Also he just wasn't really in RISE lmfao Bobby got more meaningful time than he did, despite that Eugene's on the team and meant to be a main character. And then there's Nicholas Cox. Nick had a serious chip on his shoulder back at the start of the comic. Against Seiji and also against the world in the way that it has handed everything Nick ever wanted to his half-brother and left him with nothing. He was hot-headed and angry AND genuine and sweet. He made for a really interesting dynamic with Seiji because of his passion and the way it displayed in both fierce and soft ways. Now he's just a bubbly happy puppy haha which is cute, but not what I was promised in Nick. The dynamic between Nick and Seiji has dropped all animosity, and with it a lot of the fun tension of rivals to lovers (what can i say, i love a slow and angry burn XD). But Nick's willingness to concede to Seiji simply being so far ahead of him that he was right to say it's a marvel Nick can even see him and dropping all genuine drive to beat Seiji and possessiveness about wanting Seiji to only see him turned their dynamic basically into Nick giving ground to Seiji and Seiji taking it (and he is opening up slowly because of it, but I just don't love that there's no longer a push-and-pull there anymore). Also he's really stupid TT.TT I resent him being used as the layman to explain fencing to the audience because I fenced for 4 semesters in college in beginning courses and I know more about fencing than a boy who supposedly has been obsessed with it for 10 years. And in other matters as well he (and Eugene) just feel really simple. I love their little moments together being excited about dumb shit, but I've had liked them better if we got serious moments with them too where you know they're cool instead of fools.
The characterization is a result either in Pacat's disinterest in Fence (which seems evident across all his social media) or lazy writing to shortcut relationships and simplify characters to move the story along faster. WHICH, may I add, is a whole kerfluffle with Fence to begin with. Having read Pacat's Captive Prince series, I think pacing is his weakest point in writing (though Dark Rise was perfectly paced, so obviously he's improving!), and it shows in Fence. I didn't really get the point of the mock tournament in RIVALS, but I loved the camp in RISE, but with 18 months+ between releases of 88 pages, it's moving at a very slow pace with very little forward progress being made toward what we are to assume is the climax of the story (State or perhaps nationals if we're lucky enough to see that too!). Granted, Nick needs to progress his skill a lot and the team needs to come together, so spending time on little things makes sense...if you're releasing an issue every month. I believe, however, that this is a failing on the publisher's part more than anything. The only upside to the long hiatuses is I'd hate for Johanna The Mad to get burned out from working so constantly on Fence. But it would fix so many pacing issues and I believe also keep Pacat's interest a little better, making it easier to pick back up threads of the story and actually keep characterization consistent instead of, and excuse me for the mean assumption, influenced by outside forces such as a Ms. Reese Brennan, writing the characters more off of memory of what they were than on what they actually were.
Perhaps I am just an overdramatic fan attached to their interpretation of the characters, but I promise you I could write essays comparing the characters we met in the original 12 issues to both my interpretation and the new iterations, and even if my analysis is biased, there are simply moments in the original issues that cannot be argued with and don't really line up with the later volumes.
All this being said, I am a huge fan of Fence. It's a huge part of my life and holds so much of my heart. So I don't mean this review to be negative, as I loved reading RISE so much and genuinely think there was a lot of amazing content in it. But because of my obsessive love of Fence, I do have some pretty strong opinions and an inclination to analyze the canon and the characters. It's just another way I show my love of Fence, I promise!
Thank god the spin-off novels seem to be a canon of their own--with RISE, I just don't see how they could actually fit into comic canon anymore. The timeline doesn't work out because RISE definitely wasn't set after Disarmed, as major plot developments from the novel were dropped and never referenced in the comic, but Striking Distance is meant to have happened right after RIVALS, not RISE. Anyway, it was a huge relief to be solidly back in comic canon!
Johanna The Mad is such an amazing artist and she continues to do a wonderful job with the art. My personal favorite art was the more realistic style in the first several issues, but the art in RISE felt fun and was a good mix of a more stylized cartoon approach and the realism from the earlier issues. My only real complaint here is the way Nicholas seems to have become a lot more cutesy than in the original comic run without any pictures of him looking particularly masculine...
HOWEVER I think that largely ties into the characterization of him written into the recent volumes of Fence. It seems to me that there is a distinct split in characterization between the original 12 issues (or 3 volumes) of the comic and the graphic novels (volumes 4 and 5 so far). This is a complaint I've had since RIVALS, and RISE has only continued the trend. Seiji doesn't seem as mean, but he's still mean enough that I'm fine (I love the acknowledgment that Seiji's boasting is just him being truthful and just not getting why that sounds arrogant, but I miss him also just straight up being an asshole on purpose because I really think both things can and should be true). Nick and Eugene are the characters I really think had some remixing happening between issue 12 and the renewed graphic novels. Call me delusional, but I'm sure that Eugene being a nervous, bumbling wreck is in direct opposition with everything we learned about him in the first 12 issues. He was shown as confident and competitive, social and well-liked, and great at masking his feelings for the benefit of others. He is...no longer that. No more cool and confident, caring and savvy Eugene. Instead, he's nervous about everything, including asking someone to fence with him which just doesn't make sense to me given how easily social and confident he was always displayed and referenced to be. Also he just wasn't really in RISE lmfao Bobby got more meaningful time than he did, despite that Eugene's on the team and meant to be a main character. And then there's Nicholas Cox. Nick had a serious chip on his shoulder back at the start of the comic. Against Seiji and also against the world in the way that it has handed everything Nick ever wanted to his half-brother and left him with nothing. He was hot-headed and angry AND genuine and sweet. He made for a really interesting dynamic with Seiji because of his passion and the way it displayed in both fierce and soft ways. Now he's just a bubbly happy puppy haha which is cute, but not what I was promised in Nick. The dynamic between Nick and Seiji has dropped all animosity, and with it a lot of the fun tension of rivals to lovers (what can i say, i love a slow and angry burn XD). But Nick's willingness to concede to Seiji simply being so far ahead of him that he was right to say it's a marvel Nick can even see him and dropping all genuine drive to beat Seiji and possessiveness about wanting Seiji to only see him turned their dynamic basically into Nick giving ground to Seiji and Seiji taking it (and he is opening up slowly because of it, but I just don't love that there's no longer a push-and-pull there anymore). Also he's really stupid TT.TT I resent him being used as the layman to explain fencing to the audience because I fenced for 4 semesters in college in beginning courses and I know more about fencing than a boy who supposedly has been obsessed with it for 10 years. And in other matters as well he (and Eugene) just feel really simple. I love their little moments together being excited about dumb shit, but I've had liked them better if we got serious moments with them too where you know they're cool instead of fools.
The characterization is a result either in Pacat's disinterest in Fence (which seems evident across all his social media) or lazy writing to shortcut relationships and simplify characters to move the story along faster. WHICH, may I add, is a whole kerfluffle with Fence to begin with. Having read Pacat's Captive Prince series, I think pacing is his weakest point in writing (though Dark Rise was perfectly paced, so obviously he's improving!), and it shows in Fence. I didn't really get the point of the mock tournament in RIVALS, but I loved the camp in RISE, but with 18 months+ between releases of 88 pages, it's moving at a very slow pace with very little forward progress being made toward what we are to assume is the climax of the story (State or perhaps nationals if we're lucky enough to see that too!). Granted, Nick needs to progress his skill a lot and the team needs to come together, so spending time on little things makes sense...if you're releasing an issue every month. I believe, however, that this is a failing on the publisher's part more than anything. The only upside to the long hiatuses is I'd hate for Johanna The Mad to get burned out from working so constantly on Fence. But it would fix so many pacing issues and I believe also keep Pacat's interest a little better, making it easier to pick back up threads of the story and actually keep characterization consistent instead of, and excuse me for the mean assumption, influenced by outside forces such as a Ms. Reese Brennan, writing the characters more off of memory of what they were than on what they actually were.
Perhaps I am just an overdramatic fan attached to their interpretation of the characters, but I promise you I could write essays comparing the characters we met in the original 12 issues to both my interpretation and the new iterations, and even if my analysis is biased, there are simply moments in the original issues that cannot be argued with and don't really line up with the later volumes.
All this being said, I am a huge fan of Fence. It's a huge part of my life and holds so much of my heart. So I don't mean this review to be negative, as I loved reading RISE so much and genuinely think there was a lot of amazing content in it. But because of my obsessive love of Fence, I do have some pretty strong opinions and an inclination to analyze the canon and the characters. It's just another way I show my love of Fence, I promise!
January 31, 2024
I LOVE THEM YOUR HONOR
July 17, 2024
My main problem with Fence is that too little happens in the volumes for them to be this far appart. TWO YEARS? UGH.
January 30, 2024
never had crack but i do think reading fence comes close
August 25, 2022
“Should I be jealous that he's your new rival?” SEIJI EL HOMBRE DEFINITIVO JAJAJA COQUETEÓ CON NICHOLAS ME MUERO
Cuando Seiji expuso a Nicholas diciéndole a todos que habla cuando duerme, yo sé que lo hizo para asegurar que se quedara a su lado en la noche, TE VEO SEIJI KATAYAMA I KNOW WHAT YOU ARE.
“I know you’re gonna sit next to me, just do it.” KAGEHINA BEHAVIOR!?
Y CUANDO TODOS ESTABAN ESCUCHANDO SUS HOMOSEXUALIDADES EN LA NOCHE JSJDJ QUE RISA, LOS AMO, PACAT MI MAMÁ FRASE ATEMPORAL.
Y el final, lloro brillitos que lindo.
Cuando Seiji expuso a Nicholas diciéndole a todos que habla cuando duerme, yo sé que lo hizo para asegurar que se quedara a su lado en la noche, TE VEO SEIJI KATAYAMA I KNOW WHAT YOU ARE.
“I know you’re gonna sit next to me, just do it.” KAGEHINA BEHAVIOR!?
Y CUANDO TODOS ESTABAN ESCUCHANDO SUS HOMOSEXUALIDADES EN LA NOCHE JSJDJ QUE RISA, LOS AMO, PACAT MI MAMÁ FRASE ATEMPORAL.
Y el final, lloro brillitos que lindo.
May 1, 2023
“A lot of people make the mistake of thinking that a match is won on the day. But it’s not. It’s won in the months of preparation leading up to the match.”
This is one of the best graphic novels out there (and I mean the whole series at this point). It has friendship, a wide diverse range of characters you root for and important messages thrown in, without being too serious or too try-hard. Love it, love it, love it ❤️
This is one of the best graphic novels out there (and I mean the whole series at this point). It has friendship, a wide diverse range of characters you root for and important messages thrown in, without being too serious or too try-hard. Love it, love it, love it ❤️
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