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Spoilers for the prologue for Vinland Saga

“The best revenge is to be unlike him who performed the injury.” -Marcus Aurelius

From a revenge story to a story about compassion and fixing your wrongs. The story takes place in the 11th century, the prologue takes place primarily during the invasion of England by the Norse. Vinland saga follows the story of Thorfinn who is so led by revenge and hatred for another that it controls every action and every fiber in his being. The rich storytelling to the complex character development and how their issues are conquered, and finally the art style which is one of the ... most beautiful parts of media I have ever read or seen. Makoto Yukimura made a masterpiece with a concept that another manga can only strive to replicate.

Story and Characters

The story of Vinland Saga is set in the prime of viking, the story follows the protagonist named Thorfinn. He strived to be a warrior until the day he was his father get murdered in front of his eyes at a young age, from that point on he wasn’t driven by a dream but rather the hatred for Askeladd who was the man who killed his father. Thorfinn joins Askeladds crew so that he can get more chances to honorably avenge his father, Thorfinn will spend his whole childhood consumed by this anger.

The story is more than some anger driven boy out to avenge his father, it is a complex tale of humanity and finding your true self. The story focuses on not just Thorfinn but the other characters that play a major part in the story. Askeladd is one of the best characters in any manga that I have read, he may be in the story for only 54 chapters out of the 189 he makes one of the greatest impacts on the story and especially on Thorfinn. Askeladd plays the part of the father figure for Thorfinn, Askeladd is cruel and unforgiving and throughout the story seems like he frankly doesn’t care about Thorfinn. Thorfinn hates Askeladd with everything he has but in that process Askeladd becomes a mentor and something to always work towards and become the best warrior possible. Thors is Thorfinns father who Thorfinn only knew for six short years as a child until his untimely death but Thors always preached that a true warrior does not require a weapon and that nonviolence is the right choice for a warrior. Thorfinn later learns to embrace and understand what his father says in his adulthood and becomes the best man not warrior.

Art

The art is one of the strongest parts of the story and watching with each chapter the art get better and better. Makoto put his art and soul into the manga and it is beautifully shown in each chapter, the art depicts the sickening reality of war torn countries and the beauty that can be found within the horrors of war. The characters are able to be told apart with ease but stay accurate to the time period, each character has a uniqueness to them that makes them special. The best part about the artwork is the landscape views that are provided in the manga, it could be a snowy tundra or a bustling forest. No matter where the story takes you there is always something beautiful that makes you appreciate all the hardwork and effort.

Overall Enjoyment and Conclusion
Vinland Saga is a pleasure to read and feels like a rollercoaster ride with nothing but thrills and enjoyment from chapter 1 to 189. From the thrilling battlefields to the peaceful meadows of Vinland, it is one of the best experiences from any media and definitely one of the best manga I have ever read. If you want to read an amazing historical manga or just a beautiful story that tells the tale of revenge and forgiveness then I would recommend Vinland Saga.

Thank you for reading.

"I don't mind of I only had one person. Even if the whole world hated me, I could keep living if that person needed me." - Sakuta Azusagawa

The story of Seishun Buta Yarou wa Bunny Girl Senpai no Yume wo Minai also known as Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai is a show about a loner and how he helps those who suffer from puberty syndrome. If you thought this show had anything to do with bunny girls then you may be disappointed, when I first heard about this show I was watching alot of ecchi shows like Highschool Dxd and Monster Musume ... but this anime bounced me out of ecchi and into romance. Romance isn't how I would describe this series though.

Story and Characters (10)
The story revolves around the mysterious puberty syndrome that takes your deepest insecurities that plague the mind of teenagers and turn it into reality, it could be wanting to be someone you aren't or verbal abuse turned into actual cuts. This story is sadly very relatable to many and not in the sense supernatural stuff happens to us but the fact that our insecurities and changes our very move, it could be how we dress or how we walk but it effects lots of us in a bad way. This story focuses on the growing of bonds of those effected and overcoming those difficulties with the help of Sakuta. Which brings me into the characters, Sakuta is the main character and he is the one that helps the other characters overcome their puberty syndrome if it is through reason or the hard truth he lets it be none and does what he can to protect those he cares about. He is very straight forward and tells people what he is thinking, this leads to funny and wholesome moments throughout the show. The other main character/ love interest is Mai who is a former child model who has to make hard decisions that make her all alone and helpless. She isn't a tsundere or any dere but she is funny, caring, friendly. She comes off has rough but once she is better known you see the true her. The other characters consist of Tomoe Koga, Rio Futaba, Nodoka Toyohama, Kaede Azusagawa, and Shoko Makinohara. All these characters are wonderful and a perfectly shown in such little time.

Sound (10)
A huge part of this anime is the music and sound design in general. The opening is a upbeat and great song by The Peggies is a contrast from the ending "Fukashigi no Carte". The ending is one of the best parts about the show because the fact it changes every arc of the show to focus on the different characters, the different characters sing the song and they all sound wonderful. The voice acting is great with lots of emotion in important scenes. This show is quite literally music to my ears.

Art (10)
Not much to say about the animation of the show besides that it is really smooth and fluid, Cloverworks only has a handful of animes they animated but all of them haven't lacked in the animation department. The emotions felt somewhat real or as real as a anime girl can get, if it was the scowls or smiles I liked it all.

Overall/Conclusion (10)
The show is a overall 10 for me, I would recommend this show to anyone who wants to get into romance anime. It has been 2 years since I watched this show for the first time and it has stuck with me. If you want to cry and smile, I am glad I watched this show because it has inspired me to become a better person in someway like helping people who need it. I am hopeful for a season 2 in a few years because I miss Sakuta and Mai. To end with a quote “There is no exercise better for the heart than reaching down and lifting people up.”― John Holmes

I have never read a manga that kept me reading chapter to chapter like this one, it isn't a intense story about serious topics but it is instead a light hearted romantic comedy.
Most stories especially romcoms decline in quality as it goes on because of the same thing over and over again. Love Is War isn't one of these stories, there isn't a single anime or manga I have read/watched that matched the same quality and humor of Love is War.
I watched both seasons of the anime but the anime didn't feel the same to me, the manga had parts and humor that doesn't ... translate to anime as well. I don't know what about it but there are parts were the manga excels where the anime lags behind.

Art: The art is a bit rough in the early chapters but the quality massively improves in the recent chapters, Aka is extremely talented when it comes to art and watching his talent improve is impressive.

Characters: The characters are where the manga is at its best and what will keep you hooked, I found myself actively rooting for some characters, there isn't a main character in this manga that isn't well written. Lots of characters go changes and emotions, some come off with a harsh exterior but has a nice interior that acts like anyone else. The characters come together like puzzle pieces when they are all together in the student council, the way they interact and talk with each other feels like I could walk into a classroom and hear similar conversations. The characters fall into stereotypes but still manage to be different and stand out from the rest of characters. My favorite character that went through the most growth in recent chapters is Ishigami, while I won't go into specify plot points I will mention on how he shut off his emotions after a incident but in recent chapters he is starting to open up to people and showing his true self. His character went through slow but steady development that hasn't finished yet.

This is manga has changed my outlook on myself and how will I improve myself. It might just be a manga but the story and characters will have a impact on you and will make you change in someway. It has subtle heavy messages such as the effects of depression and overworking ones self. This manga might just be a fun romcom but it is so much more to me.