Levius

Edit

What would you like to edit?

SynopsisBackgroundAlternative TitlesPictureChapters/VolumesPublishing DatesRelationsTypeExternal Links  

I don't usually do review because the mangas I love already got great score (Berserk, Akira, Gunnm, Vagabond, Death Note etc...) but Levius is underrated here.

I was introduced to the Levius manga thanks to the anime that I loved. But I was blown away by the manga : it's way different. Still a steampunk universe but way more violent, beautiful and shocking (Volume 3 specially). The art is fantastic, the more you look at it, the more you are impressed. The story is way more than a steampunk boxing manga. I won't say more because I don't want to spoil anything.

Levius has gone straight to ... my top 10 of mangas. I can't wait to read the sequel (Levius/est).



Excuse my english, it's not my first language.

This will be my second written review on this website. I usually don't feel compelled to write them but I do so when it's for underrated mangas that are misunderstood or need more attention.

This is one of them. I found out about this manga as I was reading some random Twitter thread where people weresupposed to list down obscure manga, and as always, people were listing well-known things like Jigokuraku Hell's Paradise or Jujutsu Kaisen. One person however, mentioned this manga and it seemed very interesting so I felt compelled to check it out.

The first few chapters didn't grab me initially, because though I ... liked how unique the artstyle was, it was a bit hard to read through. Eventually, it started to grow on me as my enjoyment of the series grew as well, around chapter 5. By the end of it, I loved the artstyle and its uniqueness as a whole. It's pretty amazing on a technical level and has a very fluidly sketchy feel to it that's great for conveying action.

And the art is only one part of it; by the time the story picks up at around chapter 5, the rest becomes an interesting thrill ride that does very well in getting you invested from only a limited amount of chapters. I've read four or five times the length of this manga in chapters of other series and those other series still failed to really interest me.

The characters become surprisingly engaging and belie more than they seem to be on the surface. The worldbuilding was also great in this manga given with how short it was. It did well to set up the basic foundation of different existing organizational bodies and the history of how the current setting came to be. These all augmented the enjoyment of the story and of the characters. Though the plot is relatively simple, you can tell the author put a lot of attention to detail into fleshing out this riveting steampunk world.


And though it's short, it clearly conveys the potential this world has in store and makes you excited for the sequel, which I have yet to read but I'm sure will be great. Perhaps my only issue with this manga was the main villain, who seemed to be a bit over-the-top to the point of being a kind of a caricature. If they were toned down and had more depth they'd be more enjoyable.

So anyway, if you like unique artstyles and cool settings with raw characters, read it!

The story line, the characters, the art are all truly amazing. I would recommend this for sure, and could see myself coming back to re-read. There are just a few things, minor really, that keeps me from truly loving it. The art is stunning, no question, but when it came to some fight scenes it was hard to make out what was happing. This was disappointing since it was usually at the high of suspense. I know it was trying to show the actions in motion, but it was a little too obscure at times. Another thing that bugged me was the repeated panels of ... eye close ups. To show fear, shock, almost every emotion. It was a constant inclusion throughout and it eventually just felt very repetitive. Once I noticed this I just couldn't not notice. Again, just minor stuff that keeps me from rating this higher but overall very interesting and beautiful manga.