Currently Running Manga Discussion

[LumRanmaYasha]

Whoa, a modern day Bleach chapter that's better than a Naruto chapter?

There's been plenty of weeks where I found the Bleach chapter was better than the Naruto one, but that's relative and as you can see by the scores both still are terrible. That said, I don't always hate the new B and N's; sometimes, though rarely, they can produce a chapter I can legitimately like. That doesn't change the fact that, overall, they are awfully written, but I'm judging these on a week by week basis so there are ups and downs (though B and N are almost always down).

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Speaking of manga that we've grown tired of....good god has One Piece become boring. Oda has introduced too many new characters, and the last several chapters have been nothing but him rapid-switching between all of their plot-lines. I'm also getting sick of the lame jokes. So, Peka has a high-pitched voice while being really massive. It's funny....because it contradicts expectations? Maybe, but that's pretty juvenile humor at best. God Usopp isn't funny either because Oda already used that concept with Buggy, and even then it wasn't really that funny.

I don't know. I feel like this manga has completely lost sight of what made it special in the first place.

[LumRanmaYasha]

Eh, I'm not sure I can be quite as pessimistic about recent OP chapters as you are. My enjoyment of the series is more just inconsistent, with some parts I get a kick out of and then others that bore me. But I am annoyed by Oda's stale jokes and the overabundance of characters and plotlines that fail to work in a cohesive way. It's still got an appreciable energy to it most of the time so I can't say I'm bored with it, but certainly, it's nowhere near as exciting to me as it was back in it's prime. I do think Oda has lost touch with how to write most of the characters, though, which is a feeling I've had ever since Fishman Island. As it stands, I still think new OP chapters are entertaining, but it's no longer something I'm excited to read every week, unlike some of the other manga I keep up with.

[LumRanmaYasha]

Since I caught up on Kuroko, I'll start talking about new chapters of it too, especially since the match with Rakuzan has to be drawing to a close. Anyway, this week was a fair bit better than the last...

Attack on Titan chapter 57 - So, Reiss' plan is to have Eren get eaten by another titan, to make someone easier to control with the titan-transformation ability and the cry power. At first I was confused by this, but reading the chapter again and after learning about Ymir's backstory as hinted in an OVA, this is a sound plan and explanation. Though, we still need to know how Berthold's group has the ability to become Titan's in the first place, and how other human beings (like Connie's mom) can be transformed into titans. The beginning of this chapter was good in how it furthered/explained the plot as it stands. I also enjoyed the scenes where Erwin promises to get to the bottom of Reebs' murder and Hange and Flegel talking about what they need to do, as well as the group questioning whether they should continue following Levi despite his violent methods. The concept behind Kenny the Ripper, a killer hired by the government secretly, is not particularly interesting but Levi's connection to him his and hopefully the clash between the two will help develop his character a bit more (though, as it stands, he's probably one of the better ones in this series). Good chapter this time. The series just might be getting a bit better.

Bleach chapter 580 - This chapter was mostly the quartet of female quincies massacring squad 11 with their abilities and beating up an already worn out Kenpachi. I suppose it was sorta of amusing, in the mindless carnage sort of way. I wonder who's arriving from Hueco Mundo to bail Kenny's ass out now? Hopefully Grimmjow, because it's been forever since that cliffhanger and we know he's coming sometime, so why not?

Detective Conan chapters 896-897 - SHUICHI AKAI IS BACK BITCHES! And we finally learn Bourbon's real name! And it looks like he might be a double agent of sorts, trying to take down the Black Organization himself. At least, I don't think Conan would have confronted him unless he knew he wouldn't reveal his identity to higher ups in the organization, which if he was truly a loyal member, he would. Awesome chapters, and I'm excited to learn the secret behind "Zero" next week.

Kuroko no Basket chapter 261 - Sigh, Akashi continues to be an over the top and cliche superiority-complex antagonist, as well as stupidly over powered. I mean, making Hyuuga and Izuki "kneel" and some of his dialogue here was just cringe-worthy to me. I did like the scene where Kagami asks everyone to leave Akashi to him and they do so because they trust him as their ace. HOWEVER, I do not care for the revelation there is a zone that surpasses the zone. I mean, the zone was one thing. People IRL say they are in the zone when they concentrate hard and are efficient at something and the manga just took that idea and played it as a kind of "power-up" that made sense and wasn't too unrealistic. However, saying there is a zone beyond the zone means that basically the zone really is a shonen power-up along the lines of super-saiyan now. The way this is set up, there is no doubt that Kagami is going to enter this second level of the zone. And if he beats Akashi that way, well, it's bullshit because Rakuzan really has no business losing at this point and as much as I hate Akashi doing that would be a out of nowhere powerup that serves just to beat the antagonist, an action no better than in the likes of many a shitty battle shonen. So, I really hate the beginning and ending of this chapter. It really is too bad that this series' biggest match to date continues to be it's worst.

Magi chapter 224 - Sheba standing up for Solomon was a great scene and his recognition of her as a truly powerful magician felt well-deserved. And with that done, this flashback arc can hopefully move on to it's last act and we can see how things fall apart. And boy am I interested in seeing that.

Naruto chapter 676 - This was just kind of boring, but at least the Infinite Tsukiyomi or whatever has finally been activated. I mean, it'll probably be undone in a chapter or two if not quicker, but it means this battle with Madara is getting ever closer to ending so yay for that.

One Piece chapter 747 - I loved the scene with Dolfamingo and his crew, where we learned that he really sees them as a family and there's a strong bond between them. Considering Doflamingo is one of the most cruel, twisted characters in the series I liked this extra bit of depth to him and hope it's expanded upon in the future. The comedy in this chapter really brings it down though, especially the Pica's voice joke which simply doesn't work in a manga as it would in the anime (and even then, it's a really overdone gimmick and not that funny in the first place). And again, too much of seeing the rest of the straw hats run around. But, with Luffy and co. confronted not only by Fujitora but by Pica as well, I'm hoping for an entertaining battle next week.

Peephole chapter 24 - Lol, for a whole month Fujiora was slowly food poisoning Kurosu, confused him about getting her pregnant as he was falling unconscious, and then got them acknowledged as legally married. And once that was done, she dropped her cute moe disguise and revealed her real, curvy, botox-faced identity. Pretty funny stuff.

Toriko chapter 277 - So, the frog's name is Mappy, and he's from the Bewitching Food World, Buranchi's village (which means we'll be seeing Buranchi again soon, yay!), which is one of the 7 ancient civilizations of the gourmet world. Oh man, there was just so much good stuff in this chapter, from the jokes about Mappy's frog-speak, to the frog-car, to the group's reaction to the footprint left behind by the Horse King Heracles, to the golden sea and a giant foot about to descend from the clouds. So much happened here and it was all gloriously informative without ever feeling to exposition-y and hilarious to boot. I love it.

Rankings:

1. Detective Conan - 10/10
2. Magi - 10/10
3. Toriko - 10/10
4. Attack on Titan - 8/10
5. Peephole - 7.5/10
6. One Piece - 7/10
7. Bleach - 4/10
8. Kuroko no Basket - 4/10
9. Naruto - 4/10

So, actually, a lot of really good chapters this week. That's always great to see. I really hope the fan-translators resume All You Need Is Kill by next week, though. There should only be four chapters left, and I'd like to finish reading it before Edge of Tomorrow comes out (assuming that movie will be worth going to see).

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

I disagree. This week's One Piece chapter was shit, much like it has been for a while. It was sporadic and unfocused, the humor was lame, and I still have yet to give a shit about any of the characters, even the freaking straw-hats. I'd give that a 4/10, myself.

[LumRanmaYasha]

Most of your complaints don't really disagree with my thoughts on how the series has been recently, except that you found no entertainment at all in this chapter whereas I at least liked the scene with Dolfamingo and his crew as well as Fujitora's scenes. Because I enjoyed those parts, I just can't say I thought it was a "shitty" chapter, myself, and I'm perfectly capable of hating a OP chapter as much as a chapter from anything else.

[gunswordfist]

Typical EK bluntness.

[LumRanmaYasha]

The first volumes of Assassination Classroom and World Trigger are now available to pre-order on Rightstuf.

I will try to keep up with the AC releases, since the series is providing me with consistent entertainment week after week, and I would like to give it my support. As for World Trigger, I really need to get around to reading it, since I've heard many good things about it. Same with Shokugeki no Soma, which Viz is releasing starting this August.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

I tried reading AC a few months back. It's not bad by any means, but it's also a very specific brand of humor that I need to be in the right mood for, hence why I didn't keep up with it.

I'll be giving One-Punch Man a shot soon enough, though.

[Spark Of Spirit]

I tried reading AC a few months back. It's not bad by any means, but it's also a very specific brand of humor that I need to be in the right mood for, hence why I didn't keep up with it.

I'll be giving One-Punch Man a shot soon enough, though.

How about Vinland Saga? I'd like to see your comments on that one.

[LumRanmaYasha]

I tried reading AC a few months back. It's not bad by any means, but it's also a very specific brand of humor that I need to be in the right mood for, hence why I didn't keep up with it.

Understandable. Personally, the series started to pick up for me around the 40 chapter mark, and I was really impressed with it's first (and to date, only) "serious" arc. I can see why it wouldn't be some people's cup of tea, but it's something I find myself looking forward to and enjoying each week.

I'll be giving One-Punch Man a shot soon enough, though.

Please do. 

How about Vinland Saga? I'd like to see your comments on that one.

Speaking of, I caught up on Vinland Saga last saturday morning. I'll post some elaborate thoughts on it once I finish a couple other things I've been reading, but I will say, it's become one of my favorites.

[Spark Of Spirit]

I'd also like to see those! 

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

I'll be starting Vinland Saga as well.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

So, this week's chapter of OP, while still sporadic, brought up one interesting concept to me: are a lot of these big names going to become allies of the Straw Hats (or at least Usopp, making them Luffy's allies by extension), or is this just a one-time thing. I thought of this because Whitebeard had a ton of allies to call to his side at Marineford for the war (they weren't all directly his own crew), and it's implied that the other pirate emperors have a bunch of allies as well to support their forces. I'm wondering if Oda is trying to build these sorts of connections for the Straw Hats so that they can really contend with the major powers of the sea later on. It'd certainly be a nice change of pace to go that route, but since the idea sounds so awesome, I kind of doubt that's what the current Oda has in mind, since he hasn't done much to change the status-quo of the world of OP since the time-skip following Marineford.

[LumRanmaYasha]

I do think these characters will appear again as allies for the Straw Hats down the line. The Straw Hats have been gaining allies and support from all sorts of people throughout their adventures, and I've always thought that in whatever the climactic conflict in this series will be, that support network would help them out in some way. I could very well see what happened in this chapter to turn into a new sort of Pirate Alliance centered around the Straw Hats, much like Whitebeard's alliance in the Marineford arc. It all depends on how the rest of this arc goes, I suppose.

Honestly, this chapter was easily the most focused in a long time. It was only about the various pirates meeting up with Luffy and forcing him to let them help him take down Doflamingo, and joining the ongoing fight with Pica. I honestly thought it was easily the funniest chapter in a long time too, mostly for Cavendish's parts which was had me laughing pretty hard.