Apr 21, 2023
As much as it pains me to give the manga a 7/10. Having seen the anime first, I just wasn't impressed. The anime adaptation is my all time favorite anime, but the manga has some issues.
Let's start with the negatives.
1. The English translation is kind of weird. Luckily I'm a 90s kid, so I understood it, but younger people reading it for the first time today might be off put by the language used. Nothing offensive, just dated.
2. The beginning meanders too much with other ghost's stories. It's 2 whole volumes until he's back in his body of this shounen fighting series! I wonder
...
if Togashi wasn't quite sure what he wanted to do with the series yet.
3. The last few volumes are both rushed and full of fluff. I don't know all the behind-the-scenes details. I just know that it was rushed, and it really suffers from it. The Demon World arc (Don't know if that's the "official" name for that arc) is squeezed into a hand full of chapters. It's not the worst thing I've ever seen, but having an entire arc smashed into 2 volumes just isn't satisfying.
4. It's nice to see all the character's stories get wrapped up at the end, but some of it feels like a waste of time. Yusuke's mom is barely a character (which is fine) and it ends with us finding out his dad was physically abusive and they're still friendly? wtf? There's one last mission right at the end that is entirely pointless. Maybe Togashi had planned for the Demon World arc and that last mission to be entire arcs, but that's not what we got and I can only judge it on that.
Now for the positives.
1. First and foremost... The Dark Tournament arc is fantastic and, as everyone else always says, it's the golden standard for tournament arcs.
2. The main characters are all great and diverse. You got the socially stunted, but great fighter, MC. Typical for shounen, but it works. Botan is fun and lovely. Kuabara, the idiot friend with a heart of gold who just wants to prove himself. Hiei, the outwardly cruel and uncaring demon who actually cares about his friends (though he'll never admit it) and has his own warped code of honor. Kurama, a demon who reincarnated himself into a human baby and turned into a loving and caring person with a dark past and unforgiving disposition to those who threaten his way of life. Genkai, the aging master who is extremely tough, but is a very caring mentor. All of the main cast is excellent.
I'm better at pointing out what I don't like than what I do like. Don't be concerned that I had more negatives then positives on paper because I still enjoyed the read overall. The positives make up for the flaws.
Honestly, I would recommend watching the anime instead. The manga is not as good as the anime, but it's not a bad read. You just have to go in knowing that the beginning and end are rough.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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