Hyakuman-jou Labyrinth

Edit

What would you like to edit?

SynopsisBackgroundAlternative TitlesPictureChapters/VolumesPublishing DatesRelationsTypeExternal Links  

It's the conclusion of a review by a french website "Manga-News"

What is retained from this reading is the originality and the captivating side of a particular character, that of Reika. While Yôko would especially like to find the real world and Akira, her partner, she seems to enjoy more and more in this universe where she can fully express all his faculties of adaptation, analysis of the situation, and his deep desire for freedom . She who felt cramped in the real world, suffered from a lack of possibilities, and had become debuggery to explore what the real world did not allow her to do, ... finds in this strange shoe universe at her feet, totally in this one, understands it. Driven by her gift to invent new possibilities, new issues, she goes to the end, armed with her unwavering enthusiasm, which is a real hallmark of the series. And so with logic, we see emerging gradually the best end, the best possible final choice for her. But the one who was so solitary in the real world has also, from now on, a friend who links her still a little bit to the reality, in the person of Yôko.

I post this here because there is no review on this manga that I find perfect, hoping it will motivate you to read it.

Hyakumanjoy Labyrinth is a great mystery+scifi manga. Reika and Youko are two gamers who were dropped into a strange, empty world that is programmed to be in a "loop". It's also brimming with monstrous creatures and creative fight scenes. I'm not that big of a gamer, but Reika's free spirit and problem-solving skills, as wells as Youko's meticulous planning, are qualities that I respect and admire in gameplay. I enjoyed the preface and plot twist, but the ending felt lacking. It tied up loose ends in a basic way and I know the manga could have been a lot more enjoyable if the final chapter ... was crazier x)

Overall great experience, considering I don't usually enjoy sci-fi.

Hyakumanjou Labyrinth caught my attention on a yet another hidden gem hunt I conduct roughly once a season. I'm a big fan of works like Vincenzo Natali's Cube, Tsutomu Nihei's Blame!, and Kuu Tanaka's The Vertical World; I love weird physics-defying worlds, I love ontological mystery in science fiction, I love the feeling of existential dread coming from the dissonance between the real world and the bizarre laws governing whatever realms you see in works like this.

On a surface level, this manga seemed to have fit the bill. Indeed, the two main characters end up trapped in a weird labyrinthine building that resemble the garbage ... level data (or "secret worlds" as it's often called in the gamer communities) that may be traversable if you manage to glitch out of bounds of a level in a video game: copies of existing objects, broken architecture, empty voids and weird reality-altering triggers are abound. It's not a coincidence that both characters are employed as game testers and use their knowledge of videogame logic and common bugs to navigate and take advantage of the laws of the labyrinth. Hyakumanjou Labyrinth takes this idea and plays with it thoroughly, exploring many concepts familiar to game hackers and speedrunners, as well as adding a sci-fi trope or five for a good measure.

The problem is, well... it's really all that it ever does. It lacks the psychological horror of Cube, the classy art and atmosphere of Blame! or the plot and charismatic characters of The Vertical World. The eponymous labyrinth feels like a playground for the main character, and so is the story—it's more of a sandbox for ideas than an actual complete and self-contained product. Character development is almost an afterthought, there is never a real sense of urgency or danger, visuals feel plain and unimaginative, and conflict can barely be felt.

Don't get me wrong—this is not a *bad* manga by any means; it just doesn't do anything to really distinguish itself despite having a decent premise to build on. In the end, it feels like a proof of concept for something much bigger that could have been done with it but wasn't. I wouldn't consider it a waste of time per se, but the way it is, it's hard to recommend it to anyone who isn't a big fan of this particular style of sci-fi. But if you like it, be sure to check the three works I've mentioned above which, in my opinion, represent it a lot better.