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Jun 23, 2023
Sensou Kyoushitsu is a series that has sold itself not with shock value or hype moments but with compelling storytelling and world-building. It is one of the best fantasy adventure series in years and deserves all the praise it is bound to get in the future. But what makes it such a great read?
In a medieval European setting, the story follows Lucas (earlier translated as Ryuka), who was abandoned by his parents and taken in by the leader of a mercenary group. He grows up to be the group's bugle player but wants to leave the group to become a musician. Lucas is also ridiculed
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by others in the mercenary group not only for his dream but his other two notable features as well – his claims of "seeing" the music he plays and the horn-like branch extending from his head. One day, the group is enlisted in a battle, but the opposing army is not quite what they usually fight. It is led by a guy with a very long helmet who sends a single fighter against an entire army. This fighter also has a branch like Lucas, can throw around horses, and takes on a whole army by herself.
The story establishes itself from this point onwards as a fantasy setting where warriors with superpowers exist. At first, I wasn't on board with it because I expected a grounded war manga (something like Berserk Golden Age arc) and thought it might devolve into mindless fighting series without taking advantage of its setting and such. But this manga didn't take long to dissipate these worries and establish its unique identity.
It immediately sets up the world's mysteries, the superpowers of these people called Rami, an end goal for characters to achieve and their unique motivations, political intrigue & faction politics, an overwhelming threat they need to combat, and an excellent cast of characters. Only a few have gotten the focus on them so far, but everyone has been compelling in the short time they have gotten. Lucas is a good protagonist because his circumstances force him to change and adapt to different situations in wars without removing his initial character as a kind boy who wants to be a musician. But as much as I like him, the standout character here is the Pope. He is at the forefront of all conflicts in the series, but everything about him is shrouded in mystery (even when something is revealed about him, it just raises more questions). I have always loved such characters who always have more going on than they let on (Makima, Askeladd, Johan, Koro Sensei), and his character is similar in that way.
I have to talk about this series' biggest appeal and pull: its fantastic power system. I love when the powers in a series are simple and straightforward. This reduces the room for cop-outs by revealing/adding something new to the existing vague powers and corners the writer to be more creative with the limited tools. Here, some powers are as simple as being able to levitate very light items, seeing at a distance without moving, and making others see lines in the sky – none very useful in a war, but the writer uses them in such creative ways that are mind-boggling but at the same time very much in the scope of reader's imagination. And some obviously strong powers like super strength and super-fast speed have serious drawbacks preventing their abuse. The writer has done a brilliant job of balancing out all these crazy powers, which is a big reason why all the battles in this manga are so interesting.
Sensou Kyoushitsu is not a very popular manga, but I can see it being popular in the future because it is a series rife with potential in-depth discussions about its characters and battles, as well as theorizing for its numerous mysteries. This is undoubtedly a series that demands readers' attention simply by being awesome. Hopefully, it gets out of its current "cult" status and finds more mainstream success soon because I haven't seen a series that deserves it more in a long time.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Jul 29, 2022
About the Movement of the Earth is a historical manga, a rather underappreciated genre in the medium. But branding it merely as such takes away its allure – despite it being set in 15th Century Poland and exploring a historical finding that is commonplace knowledge now, the appeal of its central theme is both universal and timeless.
The story does not take time in establishing that theme – an authority who is controlling the circulation of information, and heroes who are risking it all to bring the truth to light. The truth here being that Earth is, in fact, moving around the sun and is not
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a stationary object at the centre of universe. The whole series maintains an anti-establishment tone about this discovery and the cost at which it came.
Story: 10/10
It begins with Rafal, a prodigal student, encountering a former heretic who has been placed under the care of his foster father. From him, Rafal inherits the About the Movement of the Earth theory, something he first dismisses as heretical talk, but is soon fascinated with. But Rafal is not the definite protagonist of the manga. A single person didn’t bring the world to change, and it shows a lot of people contributing to the theory in their own capacities to complete it. One can say the Theory is in itself the protagonist here.
The story is rebellious at heart, with its protagonists being both endearing and vulnerable, making us root for their success. It also helps that the story opens with the consequences of being caught by the Orthodox Catholic Church – the antagonist – while investigating this theory: labelled a heretic, brutally tortured, forced to reform, and burned alive if found guilty a second time (to cast off the devil who possesses a body and guide the man to propose such ideas). This is established from the get-go how bloody the history of such a revolutionary idea was.
So, the stakes are really high from the start. But as a character in the story points out, why should anyone risk their entire life to secretly work on a “revolutionary” theory whose validity doesn’t affect anyone? True. Proving that earth moves would negate what Church had been teaching, but a farmer wouldn’t care about it. So why?
The story follows different characters pursuing this theory, with each having a different answer to this – money, curiosity, rebellion, fame, contentment – but one similarity – the thirst for truth to come to light. The manga emphasises over and over that no matter the obstacles in the path, humanity will always seek out the truth. This makes for reckless heroes, but heroes nonetheless.
Characters: 9/10
The characters in the series are fantastically written. All have well developed convictions born from their struggles and surroundings. The author is never in a rush while doing a character background or backstories, and it shows how well-developed all of them are. Even the ones who do not appear for more than 4 chapters leave a lasting impression on the readers.
But with a lack of singular protagonist, the character who stands out the most is the mercenary-turned-inquisitor Novak, the embodiment of the Church and the antagonist of the story. He is a man with a determination of a rock against those who indulge in heretical research. He is not a sadist, but is capable of gruesomely torturing people without giving them a chance to explain themselves. As a result, he is always looming over as a constant threat to the protagonists. But the reason he is such a good antagonist is the parallel development he gets throughout the story. We get to know who he is and why he has so strong convictions. And the reasons behind his convictions change over time, but it is done in a way that looks organic to his character. He also works as reader's viewpoint for all the faction politics going inside the Church, a subplot that was personally very intriguing to me.
The series is unashamedly dialogue heavy. These usually involve the church’s teachings, maths, observational records, or philosophical debates. But the author uses a clever technique to not alienate the readers. For long conversations and debates, he makes one party an intellectual and the other naïve. A little boy who is a diligent student, an uneducated swordsman who fight rich folks’ duels for them, or a gypsy girl who don’t see any point in her identity as a Christian – all provide an easy self-insert for readers so that they don’t get estranged from the long dialogues.
Art: 5/10
One thing holding back this manga severely is the art. To put is easily, it is bland. It is not expressive and sometimes look like amateur doodles. I do not ask for art to be amazing in a series which is 80 per cent talking, but it is not even on par with those expectations.
But credit where it is due, the panelling is very well done which helps a text heavy series like this immensely. It does not get tiresome to read, and panelling makes the emotional moments hit hard despite the mediocre art.
Overall: 9/10
In conclusion, go read this manga if you like historical fictions or people defying a medieval authority who censors the truth.
Or if you just want to experience a good story. Especially if you want to experience a good story.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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May 2, 2021
Setoutsumi is, in true meaning of the word, a hidden gem. It is a completely translated manga available on Amazon. And yet it doesn't have even 1000 MAL members at the time of this review. So, I will try my best to push for it. This is not a critically accurate review, but I will try my best.
Story: 10/10
It is a slice of life manga at its core, and the story is almost non-existent. Each chapter basically follows the same template - two high-school boys hanging out after school near a river bank and having mundane conversations, sometimes involving supporting characters. Not dissimilar set-ups have
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been used many times before, so what makes it different? The answer is how the author has used this set-up to his creativity. There are sometimes chapter where the same situation on riverbank plays from different vantage points to surprise the readers; sometimes an expected character shows up instead of our two protagonists; sometimes many characters involved in seemingly different activities on the riverbank end up getting caught in each other's way; and so on.
But the reason I gave the story a 10/10 is because of the writing. I am not sure if I am supposed to include that here, but I am going ahead with that for now. The dialogues and conversations between the two boys, Seto and Utsumi, and by far the strongest aspect of this manga. They are clever, funny, inventive, and written in a very simple style to cap it off. Many different manga equates clever writing style with complex writing style (you know, where they strive for complex word plays and unnatural dialogues), but Setoutsumi keeps it simple, easy to read, and (something I don't really like to use for a manga or anime) relatable.
Also, if you (understandably) still confused why this warrants a 10/10 story, you have to read the last 4 chapters to understand it. I won't be giving any spoilers here, but the ending of this manga is what made me give the story a 10. For a slice of life, you can never expect the writing to be so tight and uniform in quality.
Art: 7/10
Nothing of note here; the art is pretty much serviceable for a manga like this. Character designs are simple and relatively realistic. Characters don't look as beautiful as Katsuzo Hirata's, but neither as ugly as Taiyou Matsumoto's. They are average looking people which serves well for the whole theme of two average Japanese high school boys well. It also doesn't have any exaggerated facial expressions or physical reactions of straight man routine for art to shine (as in something like Grand Blue).
Character: 9/10
Though eighty-percent of the manga is just about two characters, it never gets boring. Both the characters have a very generic character traits - Seto is the outgoing, loud, idiot character while Utsumi is the apathetic, intelligent one. However, the realistic execution of these generic traits somehow makes them feel unique. Like, Seto is a loud character. but he doesn't go about yelling all the time. Similarly, Utsumi is apathetic, but it doesn't mean he couldn't be funny or couldn't be aware of his surroundings. And both of them are written with an impeccable consistency throughout.
Supporting cast is a bit meh. Even though both protagonists may also appear one-dimensional, we spend enough time with them to understand them and appreciate the nuances of their traits and discover more aspects of their personalities. Rest of the cast is pretty much one note with a particular role to serve, be it a love interest or running gag.
Enjoyment: 10/10
Here, I am only putting my thoughts without trying to be objective. The comedy is great and perhaps one of the best I have read in some time in a manga. Not declaring them bad or anything, but I had grown tired of comedy manga's attempts at comedy being limited to familiar situations, an irritatingly loud straight-man routine, exaggerated facial expressions, chibi forms, or a combination of all these. Compared to them, Setoutsumi feels so much refreshing and even more hilarious.
Something else that I really enjoyed is how well it did its Slice of Life parts. Most in the genre have a problem which i have grown to hate - a series of simple, chill moments is suddenly interrupted by a dramatic chapter which is, more often than not, heavy-handed and jarring. Setoutsumi has many similar pitfalls. However, it avoids all of them and when it comes to handling drama and transition, it did it rather smoothly.
For the sheer ingenuity of what appears to be a generic Comedy/Slice of Life to manage the tropes and execution this well, this manga deserves more love.
Overall: 10/10
A little biased? Maybe. I won't go ahead and say that everyone will enjoy this as much as I did. But if you like either of Comedy or Slice of Life, I would be surprised if you don't find this interesting.
TL;DR: Really funny manga with dialogue based comedy, strong writing, and totally deserving of your time. Not really long either (I completed the whole thing in 5 hours). Also, read the whole thing; it has a (rare) amazing ending.
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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