I heard lots of buzz surrounding the manga series called Soul Eater from a library listserve. Some people had claimed it is going to be a hit series, which of course got my attention. Since I'm relatively new to manga, I thought I would check it out from my library. With no knowledge about the manga, I had anticipated the plot to be a psychological/philosophical thriller or mystery. After reading the first volume, I was totally off the mark.
Description (from the back cover of the manga): Maka is a weapon meister, determined to turn her partner, a living scythe named Soul Eater, into a powerful death scythe - the ultimate weapon of Death himself! Charged with the task of collecting and devouring the tainted souls of ninety-nine humans and one witch, Maka and her fellow meisters strive to master their weapons as they face off against the bizarre and dangerous minions of the underworld. But the meisters' own personal quirks may prove a bigger obstacle than any sultry enchantress!
Review: Soul Eater is actually a supernatural, dark comedy. The story focuses on three weapon meisters, who all have a common goal: to turn their living scythe into a full blown weapon of Death by consuming one hundred souls. Each meister has one tragic flaw that deters them from their ultimate goal. I thought this concept of the manga was kinda neat and interesting.
The drawing of the action scenes were eye catching and are done well. The other panels, however, looked too crowded with both Japanese words and English translations squeezed into the panel. If one language was chosen, it would have made things a lot easier to read. There were several phrases that seemed out of place and were meant to be funny. I think the problem had to do with the literal English translation.
Although there is lots of violence, what turned me off in this volume is the gratuitous female nudity throughout the volume. I don't have a problem with nudity as long as it has a purpose and can be viewed as symbolism, but in the first volume of Soul Eater, the females (who have extremely distorted bodies) are nude just for the sake of being nude.
Since the characters and the premise were some what interesting, I'm willing to give Volume 2 a shot. I just hope I will like it better than this one.
Rating: 2 stars
Words of Caution: There is lots of female nudity throughout this volume. There is also strong violence and language throughout the volume. Recommended strictly to teens 17 and up.
If you like this book try: Soul Eater Vol 2 by Atsushi Okubo
Description (from the back cover of the manga): Maka is a weapon meister, determined to turn her partner, a living scythe named Soul Eater, into a powerful death scythe - the ultimate weapon of Death himself! Charged with the task of collecting and devouring the tainted souls of ninety-nine humans and one witch, Maka and her fellow meisters strive to master their weapons as they face off against the bizarre and dangerous minions of the underworld. But the meisters' own personal quirks may prove a bigger obstacle than any sultry enchantress!Review: Soul Eater is actually a supernatural, dark comedy. The story focuses on three weapon meisters, who all have a common goal: to turn their living scythe into a full blown weapon of Death by consuming one hundred souls. Each meister has one tragic flaw that deters them from their ultimate goal. I thought this concept of the manga was kinda neat and interesting.
The drawing of the action scenes were eye catching and are done well. The other panels, however, looked too crowded with both Japanese words and English translations squeezed into the panel. If one language was chosen, it would have made things a lot easier to read. There were several phrases that seemed out of place and were meant to be funny. I think the problem had to do with the literal English translation.
Although there is lots of violence, what turned me off in this volume is the gratuitous female nudity throughout the volume. I don't have a problem with nudity as long as it has a purpose and can be viewed as symbolism, but in the first volume of Soul Eater, the females (who have extremely distorted bodies) are nude just for the sake of being nude.
Since the characters and the premise were some what interesting, I'm willing to give Volume 2 a shot. I just hope I will like it better than this one.
Rating: 2 stars
Words of Caution: There is lots of female nudity throughout this volume. There is also strong violence and language throughout the volume. Recommended strictly to teens 17 and up.
If you like this book try: Soul Eater Vol 2 by Atsushi Okubo
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