4 Yrs✓#
GreenStarfish
4 Yrs✓#
I finished Shadow & Bone yesterday. Read it as a break in between Ascendance of a Bookworm volumes.
Rating: 6/10
Here's my review:
Pros:
Shadow & Bone has a good amount of mystery behind the story. I especially liked the second chapter where you're just as clueless as to what is going on as the protagonist. The book's pace also feels fast despite its page count as there is always something interesting happening. The ending sets up the sequel very nicely making me want to read that one to see where the story will progress.
Cons:
The book's main plot twist is that the Darkling wants to expand the Fold instead of destroying it, which comes a bit too suddenly. Some clues were given beforehand, but I feel it wasn't foreshadowed enough.
Rating: 6/10
Here's my review:
Pros:
Shadow & Bone has a good amount of mystery behind the story. I especially liked the second chapter where you're just as clueless as to what is going on as the protagonist. The book's pace also feels fast despite its page count as there is always something interesting happening. The ending sets up the sequel very nicely making me want to read that one to see where the story will progress.
Cons:
The book's main plot twist is that the Darkling wants to expand the Fold instead of destroying it, which comes a bit too suddenly. Some clues were given beforehand, but I feel it wasn't foreshadowed enough.
7 Yrs♥$✓#
ThomasE
7 Yrs♥$✓#
I finished reading
Blood on the Tracks Vol 2 (didn't think it would go down *that* path, oh boy)
The Lords of Silence (was good but I was confused about the order in which some events happened and it soured my experience with the book a bit)
Goodnight Punpun Vol 2 (didn't expect to focus on the uncle instead of Punpun)
I'm still listening to the audio book The Way of Kings regularly. I've listened for almost 10 hours so far but because it's a 45h book that's just the first 20 %.
Next up is the third book in the horus heresy, Galaxy in Flames by Ben Counter, and I'm continuing both manga.
I found another website that helps you decide in which order to travel down the horus heresy: Horus Heresy Omnibus Project
A very charmingly done website.
My plan so far is to read the first four books and then go for The First Heretic because I like the story which would put me on the, as the website calls it, "II. shadow crusade I: only the faithful" path.
Blood on the Tracks Vol 2 (didn't think it would go down *that* path, oh boy)
The Lords of Silence (was good but I was confused about the order in which some events happened and it soured my experience with the book a bit)
Goodnight Punpun Vol 2 (didn't expect to focus on the uncle instead of Punpun)
I'm still listening to the audio book The Way of Kings regularly. I've listened for almost 10 hours so far but because it's a 45h book that's just the first 20 %.
Next up is the third book in the horus heresy, Galaxy in Flames by Ben Counter, and I'm continuing both manga.
I found another website that helps you decide in which order to travel down the horus heresy: Horus Heresy Omnibus Project
A very charmingly done website.
My plan so far is to read the first four books and then go for The First Heretic because I like the story which would put me on the, as the website calls it, "II. shadow crusade I: only the faithful" path.
7 Yrs♥$✓#
ThomasE7 Yrs♥$✓#
Just a random update, because I'm bored (or rather trying to postpone frustrating tasks for just a few more minutes):
I've been driving a lot recently and listened to The Way Of Kings for many many hours at a time - and still I've only finished two thirds of the book! Such a huge audio book. My usual commute is 1h (door to door) and that's just one forty-fifth (!) of the book. As mentioned before this also makes it a great deal on Audible (1 credit for 45h audio book vs. 1 credit for some 1 hour short story).
I'm almost (86%) done with the third title in the Horus Heresy, Galaxy in Flames, and I've read another 2 volumes of Blood on the Tracks. I've order several more already and also the next 2 volumes of Goodnight Punpun.
Oh, and I've bought yet another Black Library (W40k) ebook bundle. This one is still ongoing for another 10 days, in case someone's interested: https://www.humblebundle.com/books/tales-space-marine-chapters-2024-black-library-books. These are, I would claim, "B-tier" books. Hardly any has a rating above 4 (out of 5) on Goodreads (actually many have 3.7 at most) but I'm now really invested in W40k and am sure I will also read B-tier entries eventually. And sometimes there's a gem among these "lower rated" novels, like Fifteen Hours, a great W40k audio book.
Well, that's it. I might have to go and do the frustrating tasks now. Oh the horrors.
I've been driving a lot recently and listened to The Way Of Kings for many many hours at a time - and still I've only finished two thirds of the book! Such a huge audio book. My usual commute is 1h (door to door) and that's just one forty-fifth (!) of the book. As mentioned before this also makes it a great deal on Audible (1 credit for 45h audio book vs. 1 credit for some 1 hour short story).
I'm almost (86%) done with the third title in the Horus Heresy, Galaxy in Flames, and I've read another 2 volumes of Blood on the Tracks. I've order several more already and also the next 2 volumes of Goodnight Punpun.
Oh, and I've bought yet another Black Library (W40k) ebook bundle. This one is still ongoing for another 10 days, in case someone's interested: https://www.humblebundle.com/books/tales-space-marine-chapters-2024-black-library-books. These are, I would claim, "B-tier" books. Hardly any has a rating above 4 (out of 5) on Goodreads (actually many have 3.7 at most) but I'm now really invested in W40k and am sure I will also read B-tier entries eventually. And sometimes there's a gem among these "lower rated" novels, like Fifteen Hours, a great W40k audio book.
Well, that's it. I might have to go and do the frustrating tasks now. Oh the horrors.
5 Yrs♥✓#
Illusera
5 Yrs♥✓#
Been a bit busy lately but I've been reading bits of The Thief Lord in between. I've never read it before but I have read some of the author's other books. Also picked up 4 others on my last library trip... I was supposed to be picking up 1 movie.
7 Yrs♥$✓#
ThomasE7 Yrs♥$✓#
I forgot to mention a few things:
I recently discovered the ebook management software, calibre. https://calibre-ebook.com/
It's such a great software to keep track of my ebooks and send them to my kindle (including automatically converting etc.). It has all features I'd want but is still very easy to handle. It's free of charge and open source.
Just a recommendation in case someone else is looking for a software like this. I discovered it by looking for a way to send pdf-format books to my kindle (which is very old, like one of the first models I'm sure, and does not accept pdf).
Sorry to post a few links recently (I still ain't a bot).
Also I want to quickly rant about my headphones (I guess the type is called in-ear headphones). I had headphones before that would sometimes have trouble to connect via bluetooth, these are the opposite. They randomly connect, even when inside their box. I have two pairs of headphones and when my phone is connected with the second type (over-head headphones?) it happens very often - like multiple times a day and at absolutely random times - that the in-ear headphones connect ALSO, without any interaction of mine. And then all audio goes to the in-ear headphones. Super fun when I'm in an important call with a client and suddenly stop hearing them, calling "are you still there" until I realise what happened and start running through my house to find the fricking in-ear headphones (or disconnect them through phone settings). Makes me look very professional to the client, I'm sure.
Also they somehow, I'm not even sure how but there must be a (non-labeled, not easily visible) button on them, to start the Audible app on my phone. Start Audible! Not wake it up or something but literally start an app on my phone that's not currently running and get it to start playing the current audio book. I have so often had to rewind my audio books because I realised that my headphones had randomly and unnoticed by me started the playback god-knows-when and played for god-knows-how-long. What a crap load of a feature. Who comes up with that? I have to clip/bookmark my books now every single time I stop listening.
Also, in less ranty news, I've finished Galaxy in Flames yesterday and am starting Spear of the Emperor by Dembski-Bowden.
I recently discovered the ebook management software, calibre. https://calibre-ebook.com/
It's such a great software to keep track of my ebooks and send them to my kindle (including automatically converting etc.). It has all features I'd want but is still very easy to handle. It's free of charge and open source.
Just a recommendation in case someone else is looking for a software like this. I discovered it by looking for a way to send pdf-format books to my kindle (which is very old, like one of the first models I'm sure, and does not accept pdf).
Sorry to post a few links recently (I still ain't a bot).
Also I want to quickly rant about my headphones (I guess the type is called in-ear headphones). I had headphones before that would sometimes have trouble to connect via bluetooth, these are the opposite. They randomly connect, even when inside their box. I have two pairs of headphones and when my phone is connected with the second type (over-head headphones?) it happens very often - like multiple times a day and at absolutely random times - that the in-ear headphones connect ALSO, without any interaction of mine. And then all audio goes to the in-ear headphones. Super fun when I'm in an important call with a client and suddenly stop hearing them, calling "are you still there" until I realise what happened and start running through my house to find the fricking in-ear headphones (or disconnect them through phone settings). Makes me look very professional to the client, I'm sure.
Also they somehow, I'm not even sure how but there must be a (non-labeled, not easily visible) button on them, to start the Audible app on my phone. Start Audible! Not wake it up or something but literally start an app on my phone that's not currently running and get it to start playing the current audio book. I have so often had to rewind my audio books because I realised that my headphones had randomly and unnoticed by me started the playback god-knows-when and played for god-knows-how-long. What a crap load of a feature. Who comes up with that? I have to clip/bookmark my books now every single time I stop listening.
Also, in less ranty news, I've finished Galaxy in Flames yesterday and am starting Spear of the Emperor by Dembski-Bowden.
5 Yrs♥✓#
Illusera5 Yrs♥✓#
Can vouch for Calibre! I use its ebook conversion and editing tools. Very useful.
I pretty much leave my Bluetooth completely off unless I need it for something or else something ends up getting connected that I didn’t mean for. I had a pair of touch earbuds that I used to use just for listening to stuff but the controls didn’t work for me; I kept skipping past sections (among other things) so I’m mainly using wired these days. While a tad inconvenient at times, it won’t let you down.
7 Yrs♥$✓#
ThomasE7 Yrs♥$✓#
Going back to wired would feel too inconvenient for me. I want to be able to walk around the house while the phone is charging and still continue my call or video, and other stuff like that.
I have almost no issues if I exclusively use the in-ear headphones. So that's the workaround for me. Although that feels a bit like giving in to the bully kid that aggressively forced their turn lol
Cool that you're using Calibre too! Really handy tool.
4 Yrs✓#
GreenStarfish4 Yrs✓#
I finished the Higurashi manga arc Onisarashi a couple of weeks back but forgot to post it here before.
September 22nd - Higurashi When They Cry: Onisarashi - 4/10
Pros:
Onisarashi is the original manga which would get a VN adaption, called Someutsushi and both versions offer a different storyline, each with its pros and cons.
Starting with the pros, Onisarashi develops Akira much more than Someutsushi and is essentially the second protagonist of the manga. He's shown as more caring and helpful towards Natsumi by helping her more. The grandma of Natsumi is portrayed as more insane than in Someutsushi. She kills puppies to satiate Oyashiro, this is the one detail that would've been nice to carry over to the VN.
The manga also has a much happier ending, with Akira's and Natsumi's relationship working out in the end.
Cons:
The pacing in Onisarashi is much faster than its VN counterpart due to the format, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but I think it fumbles the ending and especially Natsumi's motivations. In the VN, it's shown very clearly why Natsumi abandons her Hinamizawan self and goes insane. In the manga, you are quite quickly shown the mother murdering the grandmother and father, which could lead to Natsumi's insanity. But then it is revealed that it was Natsumi's insanity that caused her to misremember and she was the one behind the murders. There is some explanation given, that she wants to protect her everyday life, but I feel it didn't get enough build-up. I didn't feel like that was something she would kill over.
The scene where Natsumi is about to kill Akira is also a bit odd, as she just gives up for seemingly no reason.
September 22nd - Higurashi When They Cry: Onisarashi - 4/10
Pros:
Onisarashi is the original manga which would get a VN adaption, called Someutsushi and both versions offer a different storyline, each with its pros and cons.
Starting with the pros, Onisarashi develops Akira much more than Someutsushi and is essentially the second protagonist of the manga. He's shown as more caring and helpful towards Natsumi by helping her more. The grandma of Natsumi is portrayed as more insane than in Someutsushi. She kills puppies to satiate Oyashiro, this is the one detail that would've been nice to carry over to the VN.
The manga also has a much happier ending, with Akira's and Natsumi's relationship working out in the end.
Cons:
The pacing in Onisarashi is much faster than its VN counterpart due to the format, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but I think it fumbles the ending and especially Natsumi's motivations. In the VN, it's shown very clearly why Natsumi abandons her Hinamizawan self and goes insane. In the manga, you are quite quickly shown the mother murdering the grandmother and father, which could lead to Natsumi's insanity. But then it is revealed that it was Natsumi's insanity that caused her to misremember and she was the one behind the murders. There is some explanation given, that she wants to protect her everyday life, but I feel it didn't get enough build-up. I didn't feel like that was something she would kill over.
The scene where Natsumi is about to kill Akira is also a bit odd, as she just gives up for seemingly no reason.
9 Yrs✓#
erictbar
9 Yrs✓#
My AirPods have been acting the exact opposite. I will connect them to my iPhone or my Apple TV, have them in my ear, and then I will literally barely touch somewhere on my laptop, (running Windows, with its lid often closed) and it will disconnect and then 5 seconds later reconnect from and to my iPhone/Apple TV. Since I want to have my AirPods be usable on my laptop, as well as a bunch of other devices that aren't helping this issue, I am hesitant to unpair them from all the non-Apple devices, but I might have to.
Calibre is great. Was a bit intimadating at first but I can use it for ediing metadata for my books and sending to my server.
I have been reading a lot more than gaming lately and my TSG stats prove that.
Mainly reading light novels. Making the next book in the Monogatari series (original publication order) my every 2nd to 3rd book. Currently on Hanamongatari and I am so excited to have my favorite character, Suruga Kanbaru, be the narrator.
7 Yrs♥$✓#
ThomasE7 Yrs♥$✓#
Yeah, I've definitely also been reading more than gaming.
I've beaten 4 games in 2024 versus 31 books read so far this year (including several manga, short audio books and short stories).
After a busy day it's so much easier for me to just continue a book. I often don't have the energy left to, I don't know, continue a game when the first action would be managing my in-game inventory for 5 minutes, for example.
Very nice reading calendar! I've heard good things about The Storygraph, especially that it shows interesting statistics. I started with Goodreads, which I also just found out about in 2023 and I don't feel like transfering to The Storygraph but do you enjoy it? Is it better than Goodreads in your opinion? I enjoy statistics and keeping tracks of these things and Goodreads does unfortunately not excel in this area.
7 Yrs♥$✓#
ThomasE7 Yrs♥$✓#
I've finished Spear of the Emperor, a W40k novel. For the first half, I would say it is Apocalypse Now in terms of atmosphere, then it becomes more of a thriller. It shows more character development and range of emotions regarding Space Marines than other W40k books.
The major plot twist came out of nowhere for me. I didn't expect the ...censored... to set up such a ploy.
This was one of the highest rated books on Goodreads out of the ~50 ebooks I purchased with the latest 2 W40k humble bundles and it did not disappoint. It's a great read and I definitely recommend it. Just not for people new to the W40k universe, as it takes place post rift and too many things are not explained.
The major plot twist came out of nowhere for me. I didn't expect the ...censored... to set up such a ploy.
This was one of the highest rated books on Goodreads out of the ~50 ebooks I purchased with the latest 2 W40k humble bundles and it did not disappoint. It's a great read and I definitely recommend it. Just not for people new to the W40k universe, as it takes place post rift and too many things are not explained.
4 Yrs✓#
GreenStarfish4 Yrs✓#
Finished Ascendance of a Bookworm Part 2 Volume 4, which is the final volume of part 2 and has a great climax.
October 22nd - Ascendance of a Bookworm Part 2 Volume 4 - 9/10
Here's my review:
For this review, I will first review part 2 as a whole and then review volume 4 on its own.
Pros:
Part 2 sees Myne slowly but surely march toward her goal of producing books and improving the production process. While this is happening, the scale of the story is also increasing, with Myne going on trips outside the city, meeting the knight's order and the true power of her mana being revealed. A highlight of this progression is the scene at the end of volume 2, where Ferdinand looks into Myne's memories. This gives a greater glimpse into Myne's life when she was Urano than the opening of the first volume of the first part. It ends up being quite emotional because Myne didn't know what she had before it was too late and now she can never get that back.
Ascendance of a Bookworm Part 2 Volume 4 continues the build-up from part 2 and brings it to a climax that far surpasses any previous ones. It starts with a count being let into the city without permission. Myne is then nearly kidnapped by this count's goons but is saved by Gunther. You would think that this would be enough of a tense moment for now, but the book doesn't let up in the slightest.
Once Myne returns to the temple, she is immediately accosted by the count who snuck in, Bindewald and the person who he was in cahoots with, the High Bishop. This leads to a drawn-out fight which Ferdinand and Sylvester join to turn the tides. The battle ends up being much darker than I thought it would be, compared to the light-hearted nature of the rest of the book. Several of the High Bishop's attendants get erased from existence due to the power of a magic blast.
The biggest plot twist in the book however is that Sylvester, the comedic noble is the archduke of all people. You expect the archduke to be some serious figure you wouldn't meet until much later but here he is. Sylvester even visits the commoner's forest of his own volition, which further prevents the reader from seeing this plot twist coming.
The end of the book is also quite surprising and emotional. Myne has to abandon her former family and be declared dead so that she can become the adopted daughter of the archduke. This is a huge jump from being an apprentice shrine maiden and makes me curious about where parts 3 and 4 will bring Myne.
October 22nd - Ascendance of a Bookworm Part 2 Volume 4 - 9/10
Here's my review:
For this review, I will first review part 2 as a whole and then review volume 4 on its own.
Pros:
Part 2 sees Myne slowly but surely march toward her goal of producing books and improving the production process. While this is happening, the scale of the story is also increasing, with Myne going on trips outside the city, meeting the knight's order and the true power of her mana being revealed. A highlight of this progression is the scene at the end of volume 2, where Ferdinand looks into Myne's memories. This gives a greater glimpse into Myne's life when she was Urano than the opening of the first volume of the first part. It ends up being quite emotional because Myne didn't know what she had before it was too late and now she can never get that back.
Ascendance of a Bookworm Part 2 Volume 4 continues the build-up from part 2 and brings it to a climax that far surpasses any previous ones. It starts with a count being let into the city without permission. Myne is then nearly kidnapped by this count's goons but is saved by Gunther. You would think that this would be enough of a tense moment for now, but the book doesn't let up in the slightest.
Once Myne returns to the temple, she is immediately accosted by the count who snuck in, Bindewald and the person who he was in cahoots with, the High Bishop. This leads to a drawn-out fight which Ferdinand and Sylvester join to turn the tides. The battle ends up being much darker than I thought it would be, compared to the light-hearted nature of the rest of the book. Several of the High Bishop's attendants get erased from existence due to the power of a magic blast.
The biggest plot twist in the book however is that Sylvester, the comedic noble is the archduke of all people. You expect the archduke to be some serious figure you wouldn't meet until much later but here he is. Sylvester even visits the commoner's forest of his own volition, which further prevents the reader from seeing this plot twist coming.
The end of the book is also quite surprising and emotional. Myne has to abandon her former family and be declared dead so that she can become the adopted daughter of the archduke. This is a huge jump from being an apprentice shrine maiden and makes me curious about where parts 3 and 4 will bring Myne.
✓
I just finished 'You;re Not Supposed to Die Tonight' by Kalynn Bayron and really enjoyed it. It's like reading a horror movie. Real good fun, I highly recommend it.
It's also a quick read since it's YA.
And now I am back in the Rivers of London realm and halfway through 'Broken Homes', it slowly but surely get interesting.
It's the fourth book and I've read from Ben Aaronovitch and just because I am a bit of a completionist, I will finish all books and graphic novels but I have to say, they are a bit on the 'meh' side. Still entertaining, still something fairly new but they are no page turners.
Having that said, I wanted to buy all of them after the first 100 pages of the first book :D so I definitely see its appeal.
Next book is already lined up: 'Anansi boys' from Neil Gaiman
It's also a quick read since it's YA.
And now I am back in the Rivers of London realm and halfway through 'Broken Homes', it slowly but surely get interesting.
It's the fourth book and I've read from Ben Aaronovitch and just because I am a bit of a completionist, I will finish all books and graphic novels but I have to say, they are a bit on the 'meh' side. Still entertaining, still something fairly new but they are no page turners.
Having that said, I wanted to buy all of them after the first 100 pages of the first book :D so I definitely see its appeal.
Next book is already lined up: 'Anansi boys' from Neil Gaiman
7 Yrs♥$✓#
ThomasE7 Yrs♥$✓#
I've just finished The Way of Kings (audio book).
I started it on 2024-08-05, have exclusively listened to this one single audio book (which is 45h and 29m long) since then and it took me 45 sessions (mostly commute to or from work) to complete it (so on average ~60 minutes per session). Huge book.
This is the highest rated book (4.66 out of 5) out of all 169 books I have in some form listed on Goodreads (including books I want to read, that I've already read, that I own but haven't started yet, ...), with a rating way higher than, e.g., Berserk Vol 1 (4.48), Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (4.47) or Crime and Punishment (4.27). And that although it has been rated by over 500.000 people! That's impressive! By the way, the second book in the series is rated even higher (4.76).
I think The Way of Kings is the best book I have ever read. I loved many things about it - unfortunately I am really bad with expressing my thoughts in written form and that's why I don't write proper reviews. But maybe just this: There were times when I grew a bit tired of listening to the same story or missed the W40k universe but then I would start the audio book and 10 minutes into it I was unfailingly absolutely hooked again.
Although I liked it a lot I will take (at least) a few weeks, but more likely months, before continuing The Stormlight Archive. I miss my W40k audio books and I'm not ready for another > 1000 pages/> 45h monster. The other main entries in this series are EVEN LONGER than The Way of Kings.
I want to mention that the narrators did an amazing job. They have to voice so many characters and yet every single one is distinguishable and believable.
Next audio book for me is Helsreach by Demski-Bowden, a ridiculously short book with a length of only 12h and 14m (/s).
I have also finished Blood on the Tracks Volume 5 (manga). It's another good volume but I have no further notes on it.
I started it on 2024-08-05, have exclusively listened to this one single audio book (which is 45h and 29m long) since then and it took me 45 sessions (mostly commute to or from work) to complete it (so on average ~60 minutes per session). Huge book.
This is the highest rated book (4.66 out of 5) out of all 169 books I have in some form listed on Goodreads (including books I want to read, that I've already read, that I own but haven't started yet, ...), with a rating way higher than, e.g., Berserk Vol 1 (4.48), Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (4.47) or Crime and Punishment (4.27). And that although it has been rated by over 500.000 people! That's impressive! By the way, the second book in the series is rated even higher (4.76).
I think The Way of Kings is the best book I have ever read. I loved many things about it - unfortunately I am really bad with expressing my thoughts in written form and that's why I don't write proper reviews. But maybe just this: There were times when I grew a bit tired of listening to the same story or missed the W40k universe but then I would start the audio book and 10 minutes into it I was unfailingly absolutely hooked again.
Although I liked it a lot I will take (at least) a few weeks, but more likely months, before continuing The Stormlight Archive. I miss my W40k audio books and I'm not ready for another > 1000 pages/> 45h monster. The other main entries in this series are EVEN LONGER than The Way of Kings.
I want to mention that the narrators did an amazing job. They have to voice so many characters and yet every single one is distinguishable and believable.
Next audio book for me is Helsreach by Demski-Bowden, a ridiculously short book with a length of only 12h and 14m (/s).
I have also finished Blood on the Tracks Volume 5 (manga). It's another good volume but I have no further notes on it.
7 Yrs♥$✓#
ThomasE7 Yrs♥$✓#
I have finished 2 books since my last post.
Goodnight Punpun Vol 3
Best volume so far in my opinion. I didn't expect neither the sex scene nor Punpun's mother's death.
Titanicus
A book about titans, W40k's version of mechs, fighting an engine war. I had an inkling that I wouldn't enjoy it a lot. Funny thing about Warhammer 40k books is there's usually actually quite little fighting scenes and I guessed (correctly) that this novel would be full of them and the just bore me.
Interesting things about Titanicus:
Titan lore is quite cool. The main crew, the princeps, is virtually encased within the titan and loses their individuality over time.
The schism within Mechanicus whether the Emperor is the Omnissiah is explored in greater detail than in any other book I've read so far.
For manga I will continue with Blood on the Tracks and Goodnight Punpun and my next book is Red Tithe by Robbie MacNiven.
Goodnight Punpun Vol 3
Best volume so far in my opinion. I didn't expect neither the sex scene nor Punpun's mother's death.
Titanicus
A book about titans, W40k's version of mechs, fighting an engine war. I had an inkling that I wouldn't enjoy it a lot. Funny thing about Warhammer 40k books is there's usually actually quite little fighting scenes and I guessed (correctly) that this novel would be full of them and the just bore me.
Interesting things about Titanicus:
Titan lore is quite cool. The main crew, the princeps, is virtually encased within the titan and loses their individuality over time.
The schism within Mechanicus whether the Emperor is the Omnissiah is explored in greater detail than in any other book I've read so far.
For manga I will continue with Blood on the Tracks and Goodnight Punpun and my next book is Red Tithe by Robbie MacNiven.
4 Yrs✓#
GreenStarfish4 Yrs✓#
Decided to review the Ranma manga volumes individually from now on instead of only at the very end. Although I've started quite late since this is volume 32.
November 25th - Ranma 1/2 Volume 32 - 7/10
Pros:
Volume 32 has three different arcs: the Rouge, White Lily, and Battle Dogi arcs. I'll discuss them in the order they appeared, starting with the Rouge arc.
This arc sees Pantyhose Taro return once more and face off against the titular character of the arc, Rouge. What I especially enjoyed about this arc was that we saw two characters who are both stronger in their cursed forms battle it out with each other. I also liked seeing Taro's and Ranma's friendship get some development as that was an avenue that was mostly unexplored up to that point.
The White Lily arc is the least interesting of the three arcs since it has a focus on Kodachi and a new character, Asuka. I liked that despite Kodachi acting like Ranma was her boyfriend and making him go on a double date with her, there is no doubt that he's with Akane. At this point in the story, Akane is so understanding about the shenanigans that happen that she lets him go on a date with Kodachi. This is so that Ranma can be proven as the best boyfriend.
The Battle Dogi arc has a similar premise to the Super Soda arc, where through some way Akane becomes stronger than Ranma. However, due to this one taking place much later in the series, it has more of a love focus, which I enjoy. The scene where Ranma gets caught up in his feelings during his trick to be especially nice to Akane, which leaves both of them speechless is so sweet. The reference to the first movie with the "Seven Lucky Gods" wallet was completely unexpected but one I appreciate.
Neutral:
I think the scene where Ranma calls Akane cute for the first time was supposed to have a greater impact than it did, mostly because I swore that he would've called her cute at least once before. Although those were likely only internal, which is why this moment's effect felt a bit diluted. But the reaction to that moment saves the scene. I was expecting an emotional response from Akane, but she didn't believe him. That's because Ranma broke her trust with the aforementioned trick, which makes total sense.
Bonus:
As a bonus, I'll list my favourite joke from every arc, since Ranma 1/2 is a very funny manga and there are a lot of great jokes which get a good chuckle out of me. For the Rouge arc, it's when everyone punches Taro for supposedly peeping on Rouge and then doing it again right after she cries, even though he tries to clear his name. For the White Lily arc, it's when Akane is rooting for Ranma during Kodachi's and Asuka's standoff and then both of them butting in that their competition has nothing to do with her. Lastly, for the Battle Dogi arc, my favourite joke was Ranma's female form not fitting into the dogi, Ranma complaining about it and then getting beat up by Akane who overheard the remark.
November 25th - Ranma 1/2 Volume 32 - 7/10
Pros:
Volume 32 has three different arcs: the Rouge, White Lily, and Battle Dogi arcs. I'll discuss them in the order they appeared, starting with the Rouge arc.
This arc sees Pantyhose Taro return once more and face off against the titular character of the arc, Rouge. What I especially enjoyed about this arc was that we saw two characters who are both stronger in their cursed forms battle it out with each other. I also liked seeing Taro's and Ranma's friendship get some development as that was an avenue that was mostly unexplored up to that point.
The White Lily arc is the least interesting of the three arcs since it has a focus on Kodachi and a new character, Asuka. I liked that despite Kodachi acting like Ranma was her boyfriend and making him go on a double date with her, there is no doubt that he's with Akane. At this point in the story, Akane is so understanding about the shenanigans that happen that she lets him go on a date with Kodachi. This is so that Ranma can be proven as the best boyfriend.
The Battle Dogi arc has a similar premise to the Super Soda arc, where through some way Akane becomes stronger than Ranma. However, due to this one taking place much later in the series, it has more of a love focus, which I enjoy. The scene where Ranma gets caught up in his feelings during his trick to be especially nice to Akane, which leaves both of them speechless is so sweet. The reference to the first movie with the "Seven Lucky Gods" wallet was completely unexpected but one I appreciate.
Neutral:
I think the scene where Ranma calls Akane cute for the first time was supposed to have a greater impact than it did, mostly because I swore that he would've called her cute at least once before. Although those were likely only internal, which is why this moment's effect felt a bit diluted. But the reaction to that moment saves the scene. I was expecting an emotional response from Akane, but she didn't believe him. That's because Ranma broke her trust with the aforementioned trick, which makes total sense.
Bonus:
As a bonus, I'll list my favourite joke from every arc, since Ranma 1/2 is a very funny manga and there are a lot of great jokes which get a good chuckle out of me. For the Rouge arc, it's when everyone punches Taro for supposedly peeping on Rouge and then doing it again right after she cries, even though he tries to clear his name. For the White Lily arc, it's when Akane is rooting for Ranma during Kodachi's and Asuka's standoff and then both of them butting in that their competition has nothing to do with her. Lastly, for the Battle Dogi arc, my favourite joke was Ranma's female form not fitting into the dogi, Ranma complaining about it and then getting beat up by Akane who overheard the remark.
4 Yrs✓#
GreenStarfish4 Yrs✓#
Here's another Ranma 1/2 Volume review. This one was a lot worse than the previous one, sadly.
November 27th - Ranma 1/2 Volume 33 - 3/10
Pros:
This volume mostly consisted of one-chapter arcs. There were only two multi-chapter arcs in this volume, which were the Mushrooms of Time and Jizo Statue arcs. One-chapter arcs aren't necessarily bad, as they allow for exploring interesting and unique concepts that might not be worth a longer arc.
Starting with the arcs I liked. The Jizo Statue arc provided a new angle to Shampoo's and Mousse's relationship, where for once Mousse isn't interested in Shampoo. (Or at least the real one that is.) Shampoo naturally isn't interested in Mousse romantically, but she does care about his well-being since they are still friends. This is why she ends up giving the scarf she was making for Ranma to him instead, due to his weakened state.
The other arc I enjoyed was the Angry Kasumi arc which is exactly what the name implies. The arc builds a lot of tension portraying the results of Kasumi's rage and how rare that is, considering that no one has ever seen her angry. Then it's revealed to be a big misunderstanding and that Kasumi isn't mad at all, which is exactly the comedic plot twist I would expect from Ranma.
Neutral:
The cost of having one-chapter arcs is that it limits the depths the arcs can have and how much development can happen within them. The only other arcs that are decent are the Onsen Vacation and Hayato arcs.
The Onsen Vacation arc is another arc which focuses on Ranma's, and Genma's dynamic with Nodoka, where they hide their identities from her. It's not anything that we haven't already seen and feels quite contrived at times (more so than usual) but I have a soft spot for the humor that this character dynamic results in and at least in this one Nodoka did manage to see male Ranma for a bit.
The Hayato arc is very average. The mask angle is interesting until it is revealed that the only reason Hayato won't take off the mask is due to an old bet with Ukyo. Ranma 1/2 is a comedic manga, but I felt like the mask dynamic could've been used for an interesting plot point, instead of a joke. Because of that decision, the result is a bog-standard arc.
Cons:
The two remaining one-chapter arcs are frankly so stupid that they aren't worth going in-depth for. The Mushrooms of Time arc on the other hand is promising. It has an interesting premise which it wastes with its execution. Having Ranma and Ryoga turn into children could result in countless different and unique scenarios depending on which supporting characters are utilized. However the arc doesn't delve into any of those potential scenarios, it's mainly just repetitive squabbling between Ranma and Ryoga about who will get the right-size mushroom. As soon as one might gain the upper hand and something interesting could happen, the scenario resets back to square one and the fight starts once more. The only surprising aspect was how Nabiki got Ranma and Ryoga to stop fighting by lying and saying that there weren't any mushrooms left, thus crushing their fighting spirits.
November 27th - Ranma 1/2 Volume 33 - 3/10
Pros:
This volume mostly consisted of one-chapter arcs. There were only two multi-chapter arcs in this volume, which were the Mushrooms of Time and Jizo Statue arcs. One-chapter arcs aren't necessarily bad, as they allow for exploring interesting and unique concepts that might not be worth a longer arc.
Starting with the arcs I liked. The Jizo Statue arc provided a new angle to Shampoo's and Mousse's relationship, where for once Mousse isn't interested in Shampoo. (Or at least the real one that is.) Shampoo naturally isn't interested in Mousse romantically, but she does care about his well-being since they are still friends. This is why she ends up giving the scarf she was making for Ranma to him instead, due to his weakened state.
The other arc I enjoyed was the Angry Kasumi arc which is exactly what the name implies. The arc builds a lot of tension portraying the results of Kasumi's rage and how rare that is, considering that no one has ever seen her angry. Then it's revealed to be a big misunderstanding and that Kasumi isn't mad at all, which is exactly the comedic plot twist I would expect from Ranma.
Neutral:
The cost of having one-chapter arcs is that it limits the depths the arcs can have and how much development can happen within them. The only other arcs that are decent are the Onsen Vacation and Hayato arcs.
The Onsen Vacation arc is another arc which focuses on Ranma's, and Genma's dynamic with Nodoka, where they hide their identities from her. It's not anything that we haven't already seen and feels quite contrived at times (more so than usual) but I have a soft spot for the humor that this character dynamic results in and at least in this one Nodoka did manage to see male Ranma for a bit.
The Hayato arc is very average. The mask angle is interesting until it is revealed that the only reason Hayato won't take off the mask is due to an old bet with Ukyo. Ranma 1/2 is a comedic manga, but I felt like the mask dynamic could've been used for an interesting plot point, instead of a joke. Because of that decision, the result is a bog-standard arc.
Cons:
The two remaining one-chapter arcs are frankly so stupid that they aren't worth going in-depth for. The Mushrooms of Time arc on the other hand is promising. It has an interesting premise which it wastes with its execution. Having Ranma and Ryoga turn into children could result in countless different and unique scenarios depending on which supporting characters are utilized. However the arc doesn't delve into any of those potential scenarios, it's mainly just repetitive squabbling between Ranma and Ryoga about who will get the right-size mushroom. As soon as one might gain the upper hand and something interesting could happen, the scenario resets back to square one and the fight starts once more. The only surprising aspect was how Nabiki got Ranma and Ryoga to stop fighting by lying and saying that there weren't any mushrooms left, thus crushing their fighting spirits.
A manga called Tonari no Seki-Kun. Really enjoying it !
4 Yrs✓#
GreenStarfish4 Yrs✓#
Read another Ranma 1/2 volume, but this ended up being great, which is nice compared to how bad the previous one was.
December 1st - Ranma 1/2 Volume 34 - 8/10
Pros:
Volume 33 contains the Shotgun Bean Plant, Valentine's Chocolate, Repentance Room, Battle of the Busts, Incense of Spring Sleep and Three-Year Death Smile arcs. Repentance Room and Battle of the Busts are multi-chapter arcs while the rest are single-chapter arcs. I'll start with the good single-chapter arcs before moving on to the multi-chapter ones since I have more to say about those.
The Shotgun Bean Plant arc provides an interesting scenario where the main cast can't get angry or they get shot with beans by the plant. Naturally, hilarity ensues. The funniest part of the chapter has to be the ending where the eternally reserved Kasumi gets rid of the plant by putting it in the trash when no one else could stop it.
The Valentine's Chocolate arc focuses on Ranma and Akane's relationship, which is my favourite type of arc. Akane is tasked by someone else to deliver chocolate to Ranma but is hesitant to do so because it would create a misunderstanding with Ranma. Meanwhile, he doesn't want her homemade chocolate due to her bad cooking skills. When Ranma does get the chocolate he is severely disappointed that it's not Akane's, which leads to a sweet ending where he receives a real one from Akane.
The Three-Year Death Smile arc is a surprisingly effective Mousse & Shampoo arc despite it being only one chapter. Mousse thinks that Shampoo is applying a sacred Amazonian strategy against him, but it ends up being a giant misunderstanding where Shampoo was being nice to him to make up for a mistake she made.
Now onto the multi-chapter arcs, the Repentance Room arc further expands on Hinako's abilities in a believable yet interesting way. At first, the fact that she absorbs so much resentment from the statue that it shifts her personality into a principal-hating delinquent seems very outlandish and far-fetched. But if you think about it, her ability is absorbing people's battle aura, normally it's only one person's worth at once or a couple of people at most, which she can handle fine. But the statue had hundreds if not thousands of student's worth of energy stored within it, which was too much for Hinako to handle. This results in quite a few funny moments, although the funniest joke in the arc for me was that the three seemingly menacing and strong evils which Principal Kuno brings out against Hinako end up merely being Kuno, Happosai and Nabiki wearing coats.
The Battle of the Busts arc is the longest arc in the volume at 5 chapters but also the most important arc in multiple volumes, since it contains a status quo change. The arc follows two plot lines which start off mostly separate but slowly get intertwined throughout the arc. These two plotlines are a conflict between Ranma and Akane about busts and Ranma having to deal with Nodoka's presence. The conflict starts when Akane is self-conscious about the size of her breasts and then Ranma decides to be his usual insensitive self. Then Ranma makes it worse by saying that he doesn't want to see her breasts, which implies that he doesn't value them and this hurts Akane's feelings. In return, Akane can't just say that she does want them to be looked at because that would make her seem like a pervert. What she instead does is leave Ranma to deal with his mother alone in his female form.
This ends up making the situation worse as Nodoka's opinion of Ranma continues to deteriorate. This opinion is put to the test climax when Nodoka finally meets Ranma's male form and the status quo finally changes. There were quite a few close calls in this arc where I wasn't sure if the status quo would be changed. The most egregious one is where Nodoka leaves, but secretly returns because she feels the presence of the pervert she's trying to catch (who is Ranma) within the Tendo household. But I can't fault this moment either, because it was shown earlier in the series that Nodoka was quick to act on spiritual feelings. In one case she went straight to the shrine to pray due to bad omens she had received.
Back to the status quo change, Nodoka discovers Ranma's unmanly crossdressing and is ready to have him commit seppuku, but to prove his manliness, he is staged to peep on Akane. This is where the two plot lines fully come together, as Akane and Ranma are still pissed at each other, but Akane does help out Ranma for his sake. Then when Ranma is about to see Akane naked he is disappointed due to her wearing a bathing suit, which resolves the aforementioned conflict as it shows Akane he does care about her figure. An additional note is that although Nodoka does meet Ranma's male form for the first time, she doesn't immediately learn about his curse. At first, I was a bit disappointed they didn't go all out with the status quo changes in this arc, but ultimately I think this was a good decision as it will still allow for plenty more shenanigans in future volumes.
Neutral:
In my retelling of the Battle of the Busts arc, I have explained Akane's side of the conflict and why she couldn't come clean to Ranma, but I have neglected to give Ranma's side. I did this intentionally because it is easily the weakest part of the arc and hampered the arc more than I would've liked. I acknowledge that Ranma's character is cocky, insensitive maybe even a little stupid at times. But the level of stupidity he displays in this arc goes straight past comedic to plain absurd. Ranma thought that there was absolutely nothing wrong with mocking Akane's breasts, which should be so incredibly obvious. He only realizes what his mistake was once Nabiki and Kasumi let him know after finding out and are just as baffled as the readers are. If this element of the arc was a bit more logical, this would easily be a top-tier arc.
Lastly, there is the Incense of Spring Sleep arc. This one suffers from it being adapted into an OVA which expands on it so much that it makes the original seem too short and disappointing by comparison. Other than that, it is a perfectly serviceable arc.
December 1st - Ranma 1/2 Volume 34 - 8/10
Pros:
Volume 33 contains the Shotgun Bean Plant, Valentine's Chocolate, Repentance Room, Battle of the Busts, Incense of Spring Sleep and Three-Year Death Smile arcs. Repentance Room and Battle of the Busts are multi-chapter arcs while the rest are single-chapter arcs. I'll start with the good single-chapter arcs before moving on to the multi-chapter ones since I have more to say about those.
The Shotgun Bean Plant arc provides an interesting scenario where the main cast can't get angry or they get shot with beans by the plant. Naturally, hilarity ensues. The funniest part of the chapter has to be the ending where the eternally reserved Kasumi gets rid of the plant by putting it in the trash when no one else could stop it.
The Valentine's Chocolate arc focuses on Ranma and Akane's relationship, which is my favourite type of arc. Akane is tasked by someone else to deliver chocolate to Ranma but is hesitant to do so because it would create a misunderstanding with Ranma. Meanwhile, he doesn't want her homemade chocolate due to her bad cooking skills. When Ranma does get the chocolate he is severely disappointed that it's not Akane's, which leads to a sweet ending where he receives a real one from Akane.
The Three-Year Death Smile arc is a surprisingly effective Mousse & Shampoo arc despite it being only one chapter. Mousse thinks that Shampoo is applying a sacred Amazonian strategy against him, but it ends up being a giant misunderstanding where Shampoo was being nice to him to make up for a mistake she made.
Now onto the multi-chapter arcs, the Repentance Room arc further expands on Hinako's abilities in a believable yet interesting way. At first, the fact that she absorbs so much resentment from the statue that it shifts her personality into a principal-hating delinquent seems very outlandish and far-fetched. But if you think about it, her ability is absorbing people's battle aura, normally it's only one person's worth at once or a couple of people at most, which she can handle fine. But the statue had hundreds if not thousands of student's worth of energy stored within it, which was too much for Hinako to handle. This results in quite a few funny moments, although the funniest joke in the arc for me was that the three seemingly menacing and strong evils which Principal Kuno brings out against Hinako end up merely being Kuno, Happosai and Nabiki wearing coats.
The Battle of the Busts arc is the longest arc in the volume at 5 chapters but also the most important arc in multiple volumes, since it contains a status quo change. The arc follows two plot lines which start off mostly separate but slowly get intertwined throughout the arc. These two plotlines are a conflict between Ranma and Akane about busts and Ranma having to deal with Nodoka's presence. The conflict starts when Akane is self-conscious about the size of her breasts and then Ranma decides to be his usual insensitive self. Then Ranma makes it worse by saying that he doesn't want to see her breasts, which implies that he doesn't value them and this hurts Akane's feelings. In return, Akane can't just say that she does want them to be looked at because that would make her seem like a pervert. What she instead does is leave Ranma to deal with his mother alone in his female form.
This ends up making the situation worse as Nodoka's opinion of Ranma continues to deteriorate. This opinion is put to the test climax when Nodoka finally meets Ranma's male form and the status quo finally changes. There were quite a few close calls in this arc where I wasn't sure if the status quo would be changed. The most egregious one is where Nodoka leaves, but secretly returns because she feels the presence of the pervert she's trying to catch (who is Ranma) within the Tendo household. But I can't fault this moment either, because it was shown earlier in the series that Nodoka was quick to act on spiritual feelings. In one case she went straight to the shrine to pray due to bad omens she had received.
Back to the status quo change, Nodoka discovers Ranma's unmanly crossdressing and is ready to have him commit seppuku, but to prove his manliness, he is staged to peep on Akane. This is where the two plot lines fully come together, as Akane and Ranma are still pissed at each other, but Akane does help out Ranma for his sake. Then when Ranma is about to see Akane naked he is disappointed due to her wearing a bathing suit, which resolves the aforementioned conflict as it shows Akane he does care about her figure. An additional note is that although Nodoka does meet Ranma's male form for the first time, she doesn't immediately learn about his curse. At first, I was a bit disappointed they didn't go all out with the status quo changes in this arc, but ultimately I think this was a good decision as it will still allow for plenty more shenanigans in future volumes.
Neutral:
In my retelling of the Battle of the Busts arc, I have explained Akane's side of the conflict and why she couldn't come clean to Ranma, but I have neglected to give Ranma's side. I did this intentionally because it is easily the weakest part of the arc and hampered the arc more than I would've liked. I acknowledge that Ranma's character is cocky, insensitive maybe even a little stupid at times. But the level of stupidity he displays in this arc goes straight past comedic to plain absurd. Ranma thought that there was absolutely nothing wrong with mocking Akane's breasts, which should be so incredibly obvious. He only realizes what his mistake was once Nabiki and Kasumi let him know after finding out and are just as baffled as the readers are. If this element of the arc was a bit more logical, this would easily be a top-tier arc.
Lastly, there is the Incense of Spring Sleep arc. This one suffers from it being adapted into an OVA which expands on it so much that it makes the original seem too short and disappointing by comparison. Other than that, it is a perfectly serviceable arc.
4 Yrs✓#
GreenStarfish4 Yrs✓#
Here's my penultimate Ranma 1/2 manga review, since I'll be reviewing the final two volumes together. This volume has two amazing arcs that are tanked by a couple of glaring mistakes and because of that, I could only give it a 6/10.
December 3rd - Ranma 1/2 Volume 36 - 6/10
Pros:
Volume 36 has 3 single-chapter arcs: the Jellyfish Beach, Meeting Akari and Substitute Chef arcs. Technically the Ranma Moves Out arc is also a single-chapter arc, but that one connects seamlessly with the Pill Box arc, so I'll consider those as one multi-chapter arc. The other multi-chapter arc is the Saotome Family Treasure arc.
The Substitute Chef arc is the funniest single-chapter arc. It's just Konatsu, Ranma, and Akane trying to take over Ukyo's shop while she's sick and failing miserably. The funniest joke was how Ranma weaponized Akane's awful cooking by marketing it as a challenge.
The Jellyfish Beach arc isn't bad either, it focuses on Akane's swimming skills and it's nice to see Akane being able to swim happily for once due to a special swimsuit she's wearing. The reveal that the swimsuit was made of jellyfish and the reason why she was able to swim so well was due to the help of the jellyfish king was also quite funny.
Neutral:
The Meeting Akari arc is a little repetitive as it's just Royga constantly getting lost while trying to meet Akari. But when they do finally meet, it is very sweet and you can see that they do really love each other.
The Ranma Moves Out/Pill Box arcs, do a lot right but are ruined by one small change at the end. For one the Ranma Moves Out arc follows perfectly after the consequences from the previous arc. It makes sense for Ranma to move home after he finally reunites with Nodoka. This big event puts a lot of stress on Ranma's and Akane's relationship. They explode on each other and leave on sour terms. I think this is because they weren't ready to face the reality of their love for each other and admit it. Nodoka tries to help Ranma patch things up by giving Ranma a gift he can give to Akane. The problem is that it's an engagement ring and even though Ranma loves her, he still isn't ready to go that far with Akane yet. When he finally builds up the courage to hand it over accepting the consequences, it's revealed that the supposed engagement ring was just a pill box. However, it has still served its purpose of repairing their relationship.
So far I've mentioned most of the positives these two arcs have to offer, so what change could possibly ruin it in its entirety? Well, one aspect of these arcs I haven't mentioned yet is how not only does Ranma moving work as a plot point, but it gives the arcs a fresh feel. It is one of the biggest if not the biggest status quo change in the manga so far. The new living condition puts a whole new spin on Ranma's and Akane's dynamic as well, they only see each other regularly at school now and would have to actively spend time with each other otherwise. All of this excellent development is thrown in the trash when Ranma and Nodoka move to stay with the Tendos after Nodoka's house is destroyed. This destruction isn't even shown to the reader and was supposedly caused by Ranma's other suitors. The moment feels like a massive rug pull. Not only was it not shown, but even if it was, in the manga, there's plenty of destruction and not once has it been an issue before. You might want to argue that of course, Rumiko wouldn't make such a massive status quo change. However, there are only two more volumes left in the story and Rumiko knew this because the volumes consist of one massive arc, no single-chapter arcs whatsoever. There is no reason for this final arc not to be able to take Ranma's living conditions into account.
Now we arrive at the most important arc in the volume, the Saotome Family Treasure arc where Ranma finally reunites with Nodoka. Now that might confuse you since I said the same thing for the Battle of the Busts arc in my Volume 34 review. And that statement would be correct as well since this arc is brought down a lot by the mere existence of that arc. This arc consists of Ranma avoiding his mother in his male form and when they finally reunite they have a big tearful reunion. This would be a wonderful and well-deserved moment if it weren't for the fact that they already reunited in the Battle of the Busts arc. The only reason I can see why the manga doesn't consider that moment the real deal was that they met under unideal circumstances where Ranma was crossdressing and the fact that Nodoka never saw his face. But this is a mere technicality, under all reasonable metrics, Ranma and Nodoka have already reunited! That's why it felt odd reading this arc, they were acting like the aforementioned arc never happened. Even a simple mention of why the situation had regressed could've smoothed things over.
This isn't even the worst of it however, in this arc Nodoka is shown to be very clever, slowly putting together clues that Ranma and Ranko(The fake name Ranma uses for his female form when around his mother.) are the same person. This would ordinarily be a good way to have her figure out the secret, except it is once again nullified by the Battle of the Busts arc. In that arc at the very end, Ranma gets knocked through the bathroom wall after getting splashed with water to prevent Nodoka from finding out his secret. The problem is that Ranma doesn't go very far and ends up directly on the other side of the wall, which Nodoka immediately sees. But she somehow doesn't realize it! The manga wants to portray Nodoka as clueless and clever at the same time. You can't have your cake and eat it! To the manga's credit, it does try to fix this by having Nodoka mull over that clue and question whether Ranma and Ranko share some type of connection in the prior arc. However, this doesn't work either, since it is far more obvious than any of the clues she's given in the Saotome Family Treasure arc. You're telling me, Nodoka can tell there's something afoot based on the size of Ranma's footprints when exiting a well, but not when there's a completely different person on the wall he just got pushed through?
For all I have ragged on this arc, the moments that aren't brought down are fantastic. Especially the reason why Nodoka doesn't end up making Ranma commit seppuku, which has defined their entire relationship thus far. During one moment in the arc Ranma drops the Ranko act he keeps up around Nodoka to recover the family treasure from Genma. This stuns Nodoka as she can recognize the manliness in the way "Ranko" was acting. This is another clue she uses to connect the dots between Ranma and Ranko but is also the deciding factor as to why Nodoka spares Ranma's life. It makes Nodoka realize that Ranma's manliness isn't dependent on his outward appearance, but it's always with him.
December 3rd - Ranma 1/2 Volume 36 - 6/10
Pros:
Volume 36 has 3 single-chapter arcs: the Jellyfish Beach, Meeting Akari and Substitute Chef arcs. Technically the Ranma Moves Out arc is also a single-chapter arc, but that one connects seamlessly with the Pill Box arc, so I'll consider those as one multi-chapter arc. The other multi-chapter arc is the Saotome Family Treasure arc.
The Substitute Chef arc is the funniest single-chapter arc. It's just Konatsu, Ranma, and Akane trying to take over Ukyo's shop while she's sick and failing miserably. The funniest joke was how Ranma weaponized Akane's awful cooking by marketing it as a challenge.
The Jellyfish Beach arc isn't bad either, it focuses on Akane's swimming skills and it's nice to see Akane being able to swim happily for once due to a special swimsuit she's wearing. The reveal that the swimsuit was made of jellyfish and the reason why she was able to swim so well was due to the help of the jellyfish king was also quite funny.
Neutral:
The Meeting Akari arc is a little repetitive as it's just Royga constantly getting lost while trying to meet Akari. But when they do finally meet, it is very sweet and you can see that they do really love each other.
The Ranma Moves Out/Pill Box arcs, do a lot right but are ruined by one small change at the end. For one the Ranma Moves Out arc follows perfectly after the consequences from the previous arc. It makes sense for Ranma to move home after he finally reunites with Nodoka. This big event puts a lot of stress on Ranma's and Akane's relationship. They explode on each other and leave on sour terms. I think this is because they weren't ready to face the reality of their love for each other and admit it. Nodoka tries to help Ranma patch things up by giving Ranma a gift he can give to Akane. The problem is that it's an engagement ring and even though Ranma loves her, he still isn't ready to go that far with Akane yet. When he finally builds up the courage to hand it over accepting the consequences, it's revealed that the supposed engagement ring was just a pill box. However, it has still served its purpose of repairing their relationship.
So far I've mentioned most of the positives these two arcs have to offer, so what change could possibly ruin it in its entirety? Well, one aspect of these arcs I haven't mentioned yet is how not only does Ranma moving work as a plot point, but it gives the arcs a fresh feel. It is one of the biggest if not the biggest status quo change in the manga so far. The new living condition puts a whole new spin on Ranma's and Akane's dynamic as well, they only see each other regularly at school now and would have to actively spend time with each other otherwise. All of this excellent development is thrown in the trash when Ranma and Nodoka move to stay with the Tendos after Nodoka's house is destroyed. This destruction isn't even shown to the reader and was supposedly caused by Ranma's other suitors. The moment feels like a massive rug pull. Not only was it not shown, but even if it was, in the manga, there's plenty of destruction and not once has it been an issue before. You might want to argue that of course, Rumiko wouldn't make such a massive status quo change. However, there are only two more volumes left in the story and Rumiko knew this because the volumes consist of one massive arc, no single-chapter arcs whatsoever. There is no reason for this final arc not to be able to take Ranma's living conditions into account.
Now we arrive at the most important arc in the volume, the Saotome Family Treasure arc where Ranma finally reunites with Nodoka. Now that might confuse you since I said the same thing for the Battle of the Busts arc in my Volume 34 review. And that statement would be correct as well since this arc is brought down a lot by the mere existence of that arc. This arc consists of Ranma avoiding his mother in his male form and when they finally reunite they have a big tearful reunion. This would be a wonderful and well-deserved moment if it weren't for the fact that they already reunited in the Battle of the Busts arc. The only reason I can see why the manga doesn't consider that moment the real deal was that they met under unideal circumstances where Ranma was crossdressing and the fact that Nodoka never saw his face. But this is a mere technicality, under all reasonable metrics, Ranma and Nodoka have already reunited! That's why it felt odd reading this arc, they were acting like the aforementioned arc never happened. Even a simple mention of why the situation had regressed could've smoothed things over.
This isn't even the worst of it however, in this arc Nodoka is shown to be very clever, slowly putting together clues that Ranma and Ranko(The fake name Ranma uses for his female form when around his mother.) are the same person. This would ordinarily be a good way to have her figure out the secret, except it is once again nullified by the Battle of the Busts arc. In that arc at the very end, Ranma gets knocked through the bathroom wall after getting splashed with water to prevent Nodoka from finding out his secret. The problem is that Ranma doesn't go very far and ends up directly on the other side of the wall, which Nodoka immediately sees. But she somehow doesn't realize it! The manga wants to portray Nodoka as clueless and clever at the same time. You can't have your cake and eat it! To the manga's credit, it does try to fix this by having Nodoka mull over that clue and question whether Ranma and Ranko share some type of connection in the prior arc. However, this doesn't work either, since it is far more obvious than any of the clues she's given in the Saotome Family Treasure arc. You're telling me, Nodoka can tell there's something afoot based on the size of Ranma's footprints when exiting a well, but not when there's a completely different person on the wall he just got pushed through?
For all I have ragged on this arc, the moments that aren't brought down are fantastic. Especially the reason why Nodoka doesn't end up making Ranma commit seppuku, which has defined their entire relationship thus far. During one moment in the arc Ranma drops the Ranko act he keeps up around Nodoka to recover the family treasure from Genma. This stuns Nodoka as she can recognize the manliness in the way "Ranko" was acting. This is another clue she uses to connect the dots between Ranma and Ranko but is also the deciding factor as to why Nodoka spares Ranma's life. It makes Nodoka realize that Ranma's manliness isn't dependent on his outward appearance, but it's always with him.
7 Yrs♥$✓#
ThomasE7 Yrs♥$✓#
Since my last post here, I've finished 3 manga volumes and 1 audio book.
Blood on the tracks Vol 7 and 8:
Good volumes, but I'm seriously considering dropping the series. The volumes are quite expensive for the 1h it takes me to read them and there are still 9 volumes left.
Goodnight Punpun Vol 4:
A good volume with a weak beginning and all in all a bit weaker plot than the others. Things picked up when Punpun got a girlfriend . I still liked it quite a bit.
Helsreach:
I wondered how I would like my first audio book since the fantastic The Way of Kings. I thought this book was a bit too uneventful. It's a straightforward story with no real plot twist or unexpected turns. Just a few days ago I saw a very well put together YouTube video about the creator's top 10 w40k books and Helsreach was high up there. He mentioned liking the melancholic tone of the book and that I have to admit: the melancholic tone gives it its own character.
So, after a disappointing Dan Abnett book I've had a disappointing Demski-Bowden. These two are my favorite W40k authors but I guess you can't always like everything someone else wrote.
I'm now listening to Dune as an audio book after loving the second Dune movie and am continuing with Goodnight Punpun Vol 5. I'm still reading Red Tithe but haven't made much progress.
Blood on the tracks Vol 7 and 8:
Good volumes, but I'm seriously considering dropping the series. The volumes are quite expensive for the 1h it takes me to read them and there are still 9 volumes left.
Goodnight Punpun Vol 4:
A good volume with a weak beginning and all in all a bit weaker plot than the others. Things picked up when Punpun got a girlfriend . I still liked it quite a bit.
Helsreach:
I wondered how I would like my first audio book since the fantastic The Way of Kings. I thought this book was a bit too uneventful. It's a straightforward story with no real plot twist or unexpected turns. Just a few days ago I saw a very well put together YouTube video about the creator's top 10 w40k books and Helsreach was high up there. He mentioned liking the melancholic tone of the book and that I have to admit: the melancholic tone gives it its own character.
So, after a disappointing Dan Abnett book I've had a disappointing Demski-Bowden. These two are my favorite W40k authors but I guess you can't always like everything someone else wrote.
I'm now listening to Dune as an audio book after loving the second Dune movie and am continuing with Goodnight Punpun Vol 5. I'm still reading Red Tithe but haven't made much progress.