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The Mythical Hero’s Otherworld Chronicles, Vol. 1

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By Tatematsuri and Ruria Miyuki. Released in Japan as “Shinwa Densetsu no Eiyū Isekai Tan” by Overlap Bunko. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by James Whittaker.

Sometimes you just want to get serious. Isekai titles have been around for a while now, and we’re used to seeing pastiches, parodies, and satires of the genre. Plus, of course, they’re often written like RPG games, so the writer does not have to worry about pesky things like plot or setting. But suppose you *are* a writer who likes those things? Suppose worldbuilding is your jam? And suppose that you really do take the isekai premise seriously? Well, you’d probably end up with something close to this book. The Mythical Hero’s Otherworld Chronicles is not entirely humorless (sadly, the humor is entirely the “grrr, I am jealous of our princess having no boundaries around you” sort of humor), but for the most part it’s hear to earnestly tell a story of what happens when a hero has to return to the land that he saved a thousand years later to save it again.

Three years ago, a young man named Hiro was found in his bed injured, covered in dirt, and with his hair grown long overnight. Doctors were baffled… as was Hiro, who could not remember anything. He has recently been having dreams, though, dreams where he’s a powerful swordsman in another world. No prizes for guessing that’s what happened three years ago. But then it happens again, and he ends up back in that world, now one thousand years in the future. Unfortunately, he doesn’t have any memories of his previous time there, nor does he seem to have any special powers. Fortunately, he does run across a young princess, 6th in line for the throne, who is on her way to political exile and who seems to take an instant liking to him. Is this really the same world that Hiro saved before? And can he regain his memories in time to do it again?

If you enjoyed Altina the Sword Princess but wished that Regis was an incredibly OP warrior who saved the day through battle instead of strategy, you’d have something of an idea of how this book runs. It’s a very testosterone-driven book, and it did not escape my notice that while there are two powerful young women in the book, both of them need saving by the hero. I’m hoping that’s not a habit. (There’s also an implied sex scene, but you can easily ignore that.) Liz, the princess, has absolutely no boundaries around Hiro at all, to a baffling degree – I get that she takes a shine to him immediately, but it verges on the ridiculous. And her rivals, the other princes in the throne war, seem to all come from the Sword Art Online school of “all villains must be as evil as possible, no grey areas whatsoever”, so we get them literally laying on a pile of captured nude women. As I said, testosterone driven book.

Despite this, the prose is well written, the battles are exciting, and the story makes sense. If you’re looking for a power fantasy and you’re a teenage boy, this is perfect for you. I may read another volume.

Hell Mode ~ The Hardcore Gamer Dominates in Another World with Garbage Balancing, Vol. 1

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By Hamuo and Mo. Released in Japan as “Hell Mode – Yarikomi Suki no Gamer wa Hai Settei no Isekai de Musō Suru” by Earth Star Novels. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Taishi.

So, contrary to what everyone thinks, I don’t read everything. There are many light novels I have dropped, and even more I never started. Including this one, which came out over a year ago. The title made me suspect that it was one of those books filled with stats and OP kids who only think in terms of leveling. (Which, to be fair, it absolutely is.) So I gave it a pass. Then I was at Anime NYC recently and the folks at J-Novel Club asked if I could possibly give this one another try. It’s gotten popular enough that they’re releasing a print version of it. That said, its volumes are chunky, tending to run 350-400 pages, and frankly my backlog is already pretty huge. So I decided to read about 15 pages of it per day in among my other reads. So, having finished the first book, how is it? It’s… OK. Decent.

The ‘hardcore gamer’ of the title has gotten tired of games getting easier and easier with tons of free toys to play with to keep folks from bailing. He misses the days when it took almost a year just to gain one level on your game. Then one day he downloads a game that offers easy mode, normal mode, extra mode… and Hell Mode. Naturally, he chooses the last one, and decides to be a summoner. The next thing he knows he’s being born in another world as Allen, a young child of a serf. We don’t even know how he died in Japan, and it’s not important. What *is* important is that he quickly realizes that he’s in the world of the game he chose… and he’s really made it ridiculously hard for him to do anything. And… honestly, he’s pretty OK with this. Actually, he takes everything really well.

So, first of all, if anyone notes the cute girl on the cover with Allen and expects this to be a two-person sort of book, it’s not. Krena is strong, and has mad sword skills, but the mere fact that she and Allen are so young means they can’t hang out together all the time, and she’s mostly a minor supporting character. Honestly, this book is almost just Allen by himself, though his father and Krena’s father also play a large role. Once you get past the endless stat chatter, level chatter, and the many attempts to figure out how the game actually works (he’s living it, so doesn’t have the manual, though his grimoire sometimes helps), this is not that bad. Allen is very likeable, and his goal, raising the status of his family so they’re no longer serfs, is a good one. That said, there’s another major problem with this book, which is that it seems to be a prologue: Allen is essentially moved to a new location at the end of this, and the second book promises to be very different (and also has a different girl on the cover).

So while this was not entirely my genre, I can see why it would have fans. I will try a second volume to see if it gets better… but I’m still only gonna read it 15 pages at a time.

The Magician Who Rose from Failure: Tales of War and Magic, Vol. 5

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By Hitsuji Gamei and Fushimi Saika. Released in Japan as “Shikkaku Kara Hajimeru Nariagari Madō Shidō! ~ Jumon Kaihatsu Tokidoki Senki ~” by GC Novels. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Alexandra Owen-Burns.

After a fourth volume that abandoned nearly the entire main cast in order to tell the “war” part of the subtitle, this new volume of The Magician Who Rose from Failure feels like an apology to the reader of sorts. It’s a chance to relax and take stock of where the various nations are after the giant battle that ended the previous volume, see how far Arcus’ father can continue to have his head up his own ass, and give a bit of attention to his main love interests, who were absent from the previous book. (Lecia, though she appears, gets very little attention, but I’m hoping a future volume will take care of that, as there’s certainly some family drama bubbling up.) Arcus is being forced to come to terms with the fact that he is now a Very Important Person, which means he can’t simply live his life holed up in a lab inventing fluorescent lights and pudding.

There are, as you might imagine, various problems that stem from Arcus’ antics in the last book. As least three other nations have now taken an interest in him, and want him either dead or on their side. His left arm was injured badly, and healing magic is not good enough to fix it right away – it takes most of the book for it to get mostly better. And, of course, he saved the life of the Prince, which is a very good thing but also politically difficult, so a story will have to be cooked up. That said, he does meet the king, who (of course) takes an interest in him. After this, he gets a new house, and throws a housewarming party, which ends up mostly being an excuse for his two love interests to fight over him. That said, Charlotte wins here, getting most of the back of the book to herself, as she crosses swords with Arcus.

The book has used its isekai sparingly, for the most part, with Arcus thinking of his Japanese memories as a separate person from himself. This volume shows off more of why he’s able to keep up with the sword genius Charlotte, though… as well as why she’s still ahead of him in the end. After all, if you can have a kid who has memories o a past life in another world, there’s no reason not to have characters have other inexplicable abilities. I admit, though, I do prefer Sue, who has admitted she’s the daughter of a duke, but that doesn’t quite seem right either. (She’s almost called “princess” here.) She also contrasts with Charlotte in that, due to their status and how they first met, he treats Sue like… well, like an annoying brat, whereas with Charlotte he has to force himself to not be excessively formal with her. Again, this would be a great romantic triangle if we hadn’t already heard this world has polyamory, so it doesn’t have as much impact.

This isn’t as strong a volume as the others, mostly as it’s a “breather” book with minimal major plot developments. But it was also nice to see the character interaction, and fans of the series should be perfectly happy. Unfortunately, we’re caught up with Japan, so it will be a while before the next one.

Reincarnated as an Apple: This Forbidden Fruit Is Forever Unblemished!, Vol. 1

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By Gato and Itsuki Mito. Released in Japan as “Ringo Tensei: Kindan no Kajitsu wa Kyō mo Korokoro to Musō Suru” by HJ Novels. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by piyo.

For the most part, light novels are neither as good or as bad as people say. Most of the books tend to be the kind that entertain you as you’re reading them, but you will forget the very next day. They’re LIGHT novels, shallow entertainment. Occasionally you get a series that rises above the basic level of “keep them interested enough to finish the book” and really takes off. And yes, sometimes a lot of the shallow entertainment books have gotten anime as well. But what happens when you have a book that does not reach the basic quality needed? A book that cannot entertain even while reading it for the first time? A book that desperately makes you wonder why you aren’t moving on to the next in your stack? Well, you get things like Reincarnated as an Apple, which is dire.

A salaryman named (groan) Furutsu is hit by a truck filled with apples and dies. He reads light novels, so knows what happens next. Sure enough, he meets God and gets cool powers. Unlimited growth! Unlimited magic! Cannot be killed! Infinite storage! …oh yes, and he’s an apple. Hanging on a tree. He can’t speak, he’s an apple. He can roll around. After investigating his storage, he finds a young girl inside, who is apparently a staff made from a branch of the World Tree. She… um, can’t leave the storage box. But she and Furutsu can talk to each other! Furutsu ends up in the hands of Fresa, a physically strong, magically weak, and mentally inept wannabe adventurer, who’s just about to take the adventurer’s test, with the help of her guardian. Can she pass with the help of an apple?

Where do I begin? To start with, you’d expect this to be more like Reborn as a Vending Machine, but Furutsu is far more of a normal isekai guy. He can shoot fireballs, kill B-ranked demons, and levels up ridiculously. So basically, he’s a typical modern light novel protagonist… except that three-quarters of the time he and Grida (the staff) are merely watching Fresa’s antics and commenting on them like a Let’s Play video. Because he’s an apple, and she is a staff and also can’t interact with anyone but him. This is very tedious. Especially as even though Furutsu is in italics and Grida is in normal text, it’s still very hard to tell them apart, because all four main characters in this book sound the same, which is like they’re trying to compete in a tsukkomi competition. The series is, for the most part, a broad comedy, but occasionally tries to bring in drama, such as the implications about Fresa’s past, but… she’s such a vapid character that it annoys me more than anything else. And of course it’s a modern light novel, meaning it’s filled with stats and powerups, so you find your eyes glazing over as you hear things like “Spell confirmed. Activating at fifty percent strength”.

If you’re looking for a silly “reincarnated as a random thing” series, read the Vending Machine one. For those who *do* enjoy series about overpowered protagonists with cute girls and lots and lots of gamer chatter… there are *still* so many other better series than this.

Ascendance of a Bookworm: I’ll Do Anything to Become a Librarian!, Part 5: Avatar of a Goddess, Vol. 1

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By Miya Kazuki and You Shiina. Released in Japan as “Honzuki no Gekokujou: Shisho ni Naru Tame ni wa Shudan wo Erandeiraremasen” by TO Books. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by quof.

So much of Bookworm runs on the difference between Rozemyne and everyone else in the cast. Indeed, the books can sometimes be summed up as “Don’t do the thing!” (Rozemyne does the thing) “I had no choice, tell me how could I have avoided doing the thing?” (groans, heads slammed against table) This book is much the same, as every single thing Sylvester tells Rozemyne to avoid happens anyway. And to be fair, a good 80% of it is not her fault this time. It either stems from their burgeoning printing industry, or it’s a function of mistakes she made earlier now being compounded without her consent, or it’s simply her very nature as the most powerful person in the entire country (something a couple of people are finally starting to notice, but not too many). Heck, the main thing everyone was waiting for in this volume, The Purge, happens entirely offscreen and we don’t even see it in the side stories. It doesn’t involve Rozemyne.

It’s the start of Rozemyne’s third year at the Academy, and to celebrate the character notes now say she looks EIGHT years old rather than seven! There’s a lot to do. She needs to find a way to communicate with Ferdinand on an irregular basis, she has to set up joint research projects with several other duchies into various things, and there are, of course, her classes. One of which is now being taught by Eglantine, who has returned after graduation to teach and to observe Rozemyne, not in that order. There’s also a new archnoble librarian, Hortensia, who is also there to observe Rozemyne, and has had a life that makes you sad that she’s married to Mr. Evil Guy. That said, the most dangerous thing that happens to Rozemyne is not resolved in this book: after her huge blessing to Eglantine and Anastasius at their wedding, the other prince wants one for HIS wedding. And it had better be bigger than Anastasius’… or, for that matter, Ferdinand’s. If not, civil war could erupt.

The subtitle for this 5th arc is Avatar of a Goddess, and we’re starting to see some foreshadowing for why that is. (It’s apparently the final arc, but don’t worry, it’s the longest arc yet.) In her classes to get blessings from the gods, most people get one or two. Wilfried amazes people by getting twelve, something very rare. Rozemyne gets forty. Something she decides to keep a secret from everyone else. Once she learns the names of the Gods of Light and Darkness, she powers up so much that mana is now leaking out of her whenever she prays, dances, or anything, really. See the color pages, which show everyone staring in awe as her whirling ends up, as she says, “turning me into a human glowstick”. There are already people who are realizing that it’s actually Rozemyne, not Ferdinand, responsible for Ehrenfest’s fortunes raising. I suspect soon she’s going to be the prize everyone wants. And probably because they will say she is… well, look at the title.

As always, there’s so much I haven’t talked about, such as the various boys who have fallen for Rozemyne (she has no idea), or the way the Veronica faction kids are handled, or the Evil Teacher’s schemes being thwarted by Ferdinand and Rozemyne simply being SUPER EXTRA. These books are each the size of two normal light novels, meaning this is technically Vol. 44 or so. That said, I’m not complaining.

Manga the Week of 12/14/22

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SEAN: Another juggernaut of a week, as publishers try to get everything out before Christmas.

Airship has two print debuts. Qualia the Purple (Murasakiiro no Qualia) is a one-shot light novel that comes from over ten years ago, about a girl who can analyze people as if they were robots, and the one other person who accepts her for it.

ASH: The publisher describes it as a “romantic science fiction thriller with a yuri core,” which does sound like something I would enjoy.

SEAN: Sword of the Demon Hunter: Kijin Gentōshō is a historical drama from 2015, 11+ volumes so far. It’s about a swordsman who must hunt a demon… through TIME!

ASH: As does this one, if I’m being honest.

ANNA: I enjoy demon hunting swordsmen.

SEAN: Also in print: Drugstore in Another World: The Slow Life of a Cheat Pharmacist 6 and Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear 12.

And we get early digital releases for Loner Life in Another World 4 and The Weakest Tamer Began a Journey to Pick Up Trash 2.

Ghost Ship gives us Booty Royale: Never Go Down Without a Fight! 9-10.

J-Novel Club has some print titles. Ascendance of a Bookworm’s 12th manga volume, By the Grace of the Gods 11, How a Realist Hero Rebuilt the Kingdom Manga Omnibus, 4, Marginal Operation 12, Slayers Vol. 7-9 (a hardcover), and Tearmoon Empire 7.

ASH: I really should catch up with some of these.

SEAN: No digital debuts, but we do see the 9th manga volume of Black Summoner, The Conqueror from a Dying Kingdom 2, Culinary Chronicles of the Court Flower 8, Der Werwolf: The Annals of Veight 15 (now caught up with Japan), the third manga volume of Housekeeping Mage from Another World: Making Your Adventures Feel Like Home!, the third manga volume of Oversummoned, Overpowered, and Over It!, Re:RE — Reincarnator Executioner 2 (a final volume?), and Reborn to Master the Blade: From Hero-King to Extraordinary Squire 7.

Kodansha hunting time. Print books: Attack on Titan Omnibus 8, Go! Go! Loser Ranger 2, Lovesick Ellie 7, Orient 12, and Sayonara Football 14.

ANNA: Always happy to see more Lovesick Ellie, I need to get caught up.

SEAN: Digitally, there is A Condition Called Love 11, Giant Killing 34, Girlfriend, Girlfriend 11, My Maid, Miss Kishi 6 (the final volume), Police in a Pod 19, Tokyo Revengers 28, and Yamaguchi-kun Isn’t So Bad 7.

MICHELLE: Hooray for more Giant Killing!

SEAN: One Peace has the debut of Captain Corinth: The Galactic Navy Officer Becomes an Adventurer (Kochuu Gunshikan, Boukensha ni Naru), a fantasy AND SF title from Dengeki Playstation. A spaceship captain lands on a fantasy planet.

ASH: Gotta love a good genre mash-up!

SEAN: Debuting for Seven Seas is a Mature title that is apparently too gay for Ghost Ship, however. Asumi-chan is Interested in Lesbian Brothels! (Asumi-chan wa Les Fuuzoku ni Kyoumi ga Arimasu!) is from Comic Yuri Hime, and is about a girl searching for her childhood friend… in said brothels.

ASH: Well then!

SEAN: There’s also I’m the Evil Lord of an Intergalactic Empire! (OreAku, Ore wa Seikan Kokka no Akutoku Ryoushu!), the manga adaptation of the light novel SS already releases. It runs in Comic Gardo.

On the danmei side we get Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation: Mo Dao Zu Shi 4.

ASH: Yay! This one’s still my favorite from the author.

SEAN: For manga: 7th Time Loop: The Villainess Enjoys a Carefree Life Married to Her Worst Enemy! 2, CANDY AND CIGARETTES 2, Dungeon People 2, Kemono Jihen 3, Killing Stalking: Deluxe Edition 2, The Kingdoms of Ruin 5, Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid: Elma’s Office Lady Diary 6, The Summer You Were There 2, Uzaki-chan Wants to Hang Out! 8, Wonder Cat Kyuu-chan 7, and Yakuza Reincarnation 4.

MICHELLE: I look forward to reading more Kemono Jihen.

SEAN: Square Enix has YoRHa: Pearl Harbor Descent Record – A NieR:Automata Story (YoRHa: Shinjuwan Kouka Sakusen Kiroku), which should speak for itself. It runs in Manga Up!.

SuBLime debuts Midnight Rain, a one-shot BL title from b-Boy P!. Two men struggling with life find each other.

MICHELLE: This sounds like my sort of BL.

ASH: I do enjoy this particular sort, too.

SEAN: And there’s also Coyote 4.

Viz Media gives us Call of the Night 10, Komi Can’t Communicate 22, Orochi: The Perfect Edition 3, Pokémon: Sword & Shield 5, and Sakamoto Days 5.

ASH: Still glad to see Orochi being released, even if I still need to read the volumes I already have.

SEAN: Yen On has two debuts. Even If This Love Disappears Tonight (Kon’ya, Sekai kara Kono Koi ga Kiete mo) is another in the “one-shot depressing teenage romance” books.

ASH: There are a few of those, to be sure.

ANNA: Not sure if I’m in the mood for that right now.

SEAN: The Princess of Convenient Plot Devices (Watashi wa Gotsugou Shugi na Kaiketsu Tantou no Oujo de aru) has a BL lover reincarnated into a world where her brother is in a romance with another man. But this means no heirs, so it’s a political marriage for her. Can she find true love despite this?

ASH: That’s a pretty great title if nothing else.

SEAN: Also from Yen On: Another 2001 (the third in the Another series), The Demon Sword Master of Excalibur Academy 7, The Hero Laughs While Walking the Path of Vengeance a Second Time 4, High School Prodigies Have It Easy Even in Another World! 7, In the Land of Leadale 7, The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady 3, Orc Eroica 3, Rascal Does Not Dream of a Knapsack Kid (the 9th in the series), Reign of the Seven Spellblades 7, Solo Leveling 6, and The Vexations of a Shut-In Vampire Princess 3.

Yen Press has a new omnibus edition of K-On!. This collects the four main books in the series (but not the college book).

ASH: That takes me back!

SEAN: There’s also Konosuba: God’s Blessing on This Wonderful World! Memorial Fan Book, a guide to the series.

And Puella Magi Oriko Magica: The Complete Omnibus Edition, which is what it says.

Shy is a new shonen series from Weekly Shonen Champion. A young girl named Shy is the superhero who’s there to protect Japan. Unfortunately, shy is also her personality.

Yen Press also has Bungo Stray Dogs: Another Story 2, The Fiancee Chosen by the Ring 3, For the Kid I Saw in My Dreams 9, From the Red Fog 3, Fruits Basket Another 4 (the final volume), Heterogenia Linguistico 4, I Cannot Reach You 5, Interspecies Reviewers 7, Kakegurui Twin 12, Konosuba: God’s Blessing on This Wonderful World! 14, Kowloon Generic Romance 2, Let This Grieving Soul Retire! 4, Love and Heart 6, Love at Fourteen 12 (the final volume), Lust Geass 6, The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady 3, Mint Chocolate 6, Our Last Crusade or the Rise of a New World 4, Phantom Tales of the Night 10, Plunderer 10 (the final volume? The omnibuses make it unclear), Run on Your New Legs 3, The Splendid Work of a Monster Maid 4, Tales of the Kingdom 2, Teasing Master Takagi-san 16, A Terrified Teacher at Ghoul School 12, Val x Love 13, and Your Turn to Die: Majority Vote Death Game 3.

MICHELLE: Huh. I thought Fruits Basket Another was already over!

ASH: Wow, that’s a lot from Yen!

SEAN: Any presents among these volumes?

Secrets of the Silent Witch, Vol. 2

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By Matsuri Isora and Nanna Fujimi. Released in Japan as “Silent Witch” by Kadokawa Books. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Alice Prowse.

Technically this book has a real plot. We even see it here! There’s an assassination attempt against the second Prince. It is, in fact, the climax of the book. And Monica stops it, which is why she’s at the school. That said… I highly doubt anyone reading this series is on tenterhooks to find out who’s behind all this. We’re here for the adventures of Monica at school, being bullied and feeling panicked but nevertheless persevering. If I’m going to be honest, the highlight of the story was not that big climactic scene near the end, with math magic and Monica exhausting all her magic. It was in the middle of the book, where a bullying attempt on Monica goes horribly wrong and consequences are slowly but surely dripped out against the perpetrators. I’d argue this was more of a tense atmosphere because Monica has minimal to no regard for herself, and if the book were about someone trying to assassinate HER, this series would be much shorter and probably more depressing.

Despite all her best efforts, Monica is managing to gain friends and slowly adapt socially to the academy. Even if she’s sometimes not good at spotting tsundere friends. We also get a couple of new cast members in Glenn, a loud and somewhat obnoxious mage who was probably added to the cast because it lacked someone of that type; Casey, a tomboyish young lady fro0m the sticks who quickly takes a shine to Monica; and Claudia, who has clearly been watching the Netflix series Wednesday and taking it a bit too much to heart. Someone IS definitely trying to kill the second prince, that’s for sure, but most of this book is about Monica’s school life, as she learns the joys of chess, the horrors of ballroom dancing, and just who she can trust.

Isabelle is on the cover of the second book, and has a major role in the middle, which pleases me, as I thought she was merely going to be a one-shot gag. She *is* a gag, yes, but the gag is that she’s not an actual petty teenage bitch, but a “villainess”, which means that she has the nobility and knowledge of who to protect that regular petty teens do not. When she goes up against the girl who poisoned Monica (even if it wasn’t MEANT to be attempted murder, it still was), it’s quite a sight to see. I also liked seeing her bond with Felix over the Silent Witch. That said, I am a bit worried about Felix, who proves to be a bit of an obsessive fanboy about Monica’s alter ego. I fear that when the secret gets out their relationship is going to change, and not in a way that Monica will like.

This is not that long a series – I believe there are only four volumes, plus an “After” volume, so my worries may be answered in the next book. That said, I love reading Silent Witch because it’s FUN, and Monica is a fantastic lead character. Get this one.

So I’m a Spider, So What?, Vol. 15

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By Okina Baba and Tsukasa Kiryu. Released in Japan as “Kumo Desu ga, Nani ka?” by Kadokawa Books. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Jenny McKeon.

We now know that the series will be ending with the 16th volume. We know this because in Japan, the 15th and 16th volume came out one month apart, because the author and editor thought that the 15th book was all setup and no payoff. Unfortunately for English-speaking readers (but perhaps fortunately for the translator), Yen On decided not to do this. The final volume of Spider is currently scheduled for June 2023. As such, well, we get this book, where there’s one fight, and it’s 4/5 of the way through the book. Instead, what we get is functionally a class meeting to discuss their circumstances. That part was OK, I didn’t mind it. It was boring, but… I like the human part of this book more than most fans. With one exception. That exception is unfortunately back as well, and since Potimas is finally dead, there’s a new character riding to the “most hated” list. Hi, Sue. Please stop trying to screw your brother.

After the events of the previous couple of books, the elf village has seen better days. White and her crew now have a) a demon lord who’s used up most of her life, b) a giant pile of corpses littering the landscape, and c) a bunch of prisoners-of-war, aka the students who got reincarnated here from Japan. Explanations would be good, but unfortunately, White is terrible at speaking, and Sophia is terrible at caring about her fellow classmates, so things go badly. Then suddenly the endgame starts. White must now battle “Black”, aka Guliedistodiaz. The Demon Lord has to rush to the place where the series began, the Labyrinth, to try to save Sariel. The leader of the Church is trying to get humanity to reject Sariel so that they can be saved. And all of this is being watched over and influenced by a very amused D.

The scenes with Sue and Shun are awful, especially since they come after we’re reminded that she a) killed her father, seemingly under mind control but she doesn’t seem to care at all, and b) sided with evil so that she could get into Shun’s pants. She’s AWFUL. Things are not helped by a tug-of-war with her, Yuri (who is no longer evil but still not right in the head) and Katia (who the author, having resolved her plotline in Book 4, seems to no longer care about). This isn’t the only thing wrong with the book, of course. Hugo/Natsume’s “sorry I was evil, better now” shtick made me roll my eyes, as did everyone’s non-reaction to it. And while I like the students, hearing them argue about who had the harder life in their reincarnated world was, frankly, boring. As for White… well, she’s the bad guy. The funny parts of the book are her justifying that in the usual manic narration she has, but she’s essentially the Final Boss – as she says herself.

I wouldn’t have liked this even if Book 16 did come a month later, but as it is I’m left with very little desire to read on. I will read Book 16, as it’s the last, but this spider has worn out her welcome.

Pick of the Week: Rainbows and Boats

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MICHELLE: I usually like manga from Margaret and its spinoffs, so I’ll go with Rainbow Days this week despite knowing absolutely nothing about it.

KATE: I second Michelle’s recommendation, and raise it one artbook: I’ll be adding Studio Ghibli: The Complete Works to my cart this week as well. I’m still under the spell of Shuna’s Journey…

SEAN: This is the final volume of Hello Melancholic, so I’ll make that my pick. Best to read it while listening to J. J. Johnson.

ASH: Sean’s called it with Boat Life—as a fan of alternative manga and manga history, it’s easily my pick this week. In addition to the manga itself, I’m also really looking forward to reading Ryan Holmberg’s accompanying essay.

Re: ZERO ~Starting Life in Another World~, Vol. 20

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By Tappei Nagatsuki and Shinichirou Otsuka. Released in Japan by MF Bunko J. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Dale DeLucia.

We have now reached the end of the 5th arc! That said, as the author notes, this is less of a resolution and more of a change of scenery. In terms of achievements, our heroes do not make out very well this time around. They do succeed in stopping the destruction of the city, and they capture one of the archbishops. But before this arc there were five “camps” for the Who Wants to Rule The Country?” sweepstakes, and two of them are decimated after it finishes. Even the fights here are bittersweet rather than satisfying, with the exception of Garfiel, who gets to unleash his inner shonen protagonist. Reinhard gets to finally tell his wife what he never managed to say, but it’s hard to call that happy or heartwarming. Al doesn’t win but merely survives. Otto is grievously injured. Crusch is still not healed. That said, I think the Anastasia Camp wins the prize for “Bad Things”. Oof.

The bulk of the book is fighting, as we basically get the fights that were happening while Subaru and Emilia were busy with the previous book. Garfiel is fighting (and losing, most of the time) to the eight-armed legend, but his fights run on pure shonen, as I said, so he’s good. We get a double dose of Gluttony, which goes very badly for many soldiers who get their names stolen, though Otto manages to figure out something about how their powers work. Wilhelm is forced to realize – again – that this is a fantasy world, and therefore hard work hardly works. Fortunately, Reinhard is there to finish off his grandmother. Unfortunately, their relationship is not magically healed. Al is fighting Lust, which mostly involves a lot of banter and a truly excessive amount of property damage. And then there’s Julius and Anastasia… let’s save that for the next paragraph.

This is one of those series I do tend to spoil myself on, given we’re still so far behind Japan (and also you never know when a short story volume may be relevant to the main series, cough), so I was aware something was going to happen with Anastasia. It’s not nearly as bad as Subaru or the reader feared, though that reveal is a killer. And at least this was done with Anastasia’s consent. But it’s still depressing, as I liked her, and I fear it will be a while before we see her again. Julius is a pure gutpunch, though, and meant to be the truly devastating consequence of this arc. At least he has Subaru, who (like Rem) can remember who he is. And , unlike Rem, he can at least walk and talk. In any case, we’re all now going to consult with the Great Sage to see how to solve everyone’s problems. I’m sure it will go fine.

Rem is, by the way, still in a coma and no one remembers her. We’ve now had far more books with Rem than without Rem. I fear the fans may have forgotten her. In any case, this is well-written, but intentionally leaves a sour taste in your mouth.