Back to Babels's Profile Babels's Profile

Cage of Eden isn't a great manga. If you're looking for a piece of art that will stay with you, this isn't it. That said, it can be an enjoyable manga, depending on your expectations. If you expect fanservice, look elsewhere. The art is thoroughly mediocre all the way through, and none of the fights or characters look believable or realistic. This is especially true of the 'monsters' on the island where the main characters are stranded. Many of them look like modern animals with extra parts taped on. If you're looking for a thrilling story with good drama and exciting pacing, read Monster instead. ... But if you're bored, you don't mind fanservice, and you're looking for a survival story that doesn't get into boring lurches, this is your manga. Unlike some better manga, Cage of Eden stays consistently mediocre all the way through. It's not great- but it's usually entertaining. Like fast food, Cage of Eden is meant to be consumed quickly, so that sloppy art and repetitive story lines don't get in the way of enjoyment.

Stories in shonen action titles often tend to be mere vehicles for fighting. Hitogatana is no exception. What makes it special is that it's so good at 'getting out of the way' of the fighting. While some action titles make half-hearted attempts at world building and emotional depth, Hitogatana is largely honest about it's identity as a android fighting manga. The author's best qualities are clearly art and pacing, and in those areas the manga shines. The first chapter's seventy pages fly by in a flash. Even the lazy 'save the princess' arc works because the author doesn't try too hard to make the reader ... care. Stale cliches blow by so fast that they don't annoy. The fact is that they don't really matter- cool action is the core of the title. And what cool action it is! Androids smash things, chop each other, and occasionally explode. If that interests you, then that's all you need to know.

Strange powers, creepy phenomena, sadistic games- it's all been done before. Still, this particular spin on the concept is fast paced, well drawn, and perfect for Shonen Jump. Lots of other manga of this type can become tedious due to overly complicated, slow story lines. Not Enigma. This story is fast paced and stays that way through all the chapters that have been released. It's not too predictable, and the puzzles the characters must solve are neither painful to read nor cheap. The art is pretty standard, although the main character's design is a nice twist on the standard hero. There's a pretty obvious dark ... theme running through the art, but the whole thing is moving too fast to conjure up a thick atmosphere. Several characters personalities have been archetypes so far, especially the childhood friend. Even so, the characters are likable, and the mangaka is smart enough to jump right into the action without wasting too much time trying to endear them to the reader. When she does focus on making them likable it works well enough, if not exceptionally. All in all, this manga is a good read if you're looking for a shonen series that's a bit outside the norm. So far, it reads more like psyren than Death Note, but for some people that will be great. This seems like a title that would be excellent for marathons, given the frequent cliffhangers and quick pace.

I'm honestly shocked that this series is any good at all. I don't like Iron man much, I've never read the comics, and I don't find that adapting american comics, with their repetitive nature, works very well. And yet, this first episode provided great pacing, a story which, although somewhat typical, doesn't play out in too predictable a manner. The pacing is particularly important to this anime, because it compensates for the cliche parts of the stories by telling them very, very quickly. The art was great. The art style, which is apparently a mix of USA and Japanese animation styles, was off-putting at first, ... but I eventually got used to it. The episode looks great, especially during fights, which are in typical, highly kinetic anime style. The sound is fantastic, and it makes a great partner for the pacing in keeping the episode's faults from becoming obvious. If you're a fan of the comics, you should know that Tony Stark has been heavily japanified. He's no longer such a jerk, and he talks with his hands in a way that might look bizarre coming from an ordinary westerner. For my part, I like Tony Stark a lot better in this anime than I do in other media, so I don't view the changes as negative. The great sound, pacing, and a more likable Tony Stark makes this my favorite form of Iron Man. The only question is: can the energy that made the first episode so enjoyable survive all twelve episodes?

I had never heard of Niji Iro Tougarashi until I saw it on another site and began reading, because it was fantasy, and I'd heard good things about Mitsuru Adachi. I was pleasantly surprised to find an engrossing story which alternates between slice of life and adventure elements. It's 109 chapters, but it reads quickly. I finished it in about 2 days. The characters are likable, although the ending seems a bit forced. It's frequently humorous, and it never really becomes dark like other shonen journeys tend to.