Sorry for the delay. It’s actually getting tougher to write these reviews at the moment. So there’s something that I have to do in order to get these out on time. I’m either going to have to drop a few series to make it easy for myself, or instead I’ll have to break up the reviews and do them in two parts, twice a week. I think I’ll try that out for a bit, and feel free to let me know if you prefer it that way or not. All three of you loyal readers. Thanks. =D To make this not come out so late this week, I decided to not review Beelzebub and Bakuman. I’ll possibly include them later in the week. Don’t forget that this week at Toys R Us and on Amazon.com, there’s a Buy 2, Get 1 Free videogame sale. Toys R Us’ sale is for everything in stock, but Amazon is only on select titles. Happy gaming! And what are you guys doing for Halloween? If you’re doing an anime/manga related costume, feel free to post it in the comments for the weeks leading up to Halloween. Take care, folks.
ONE PIECE (chapter 560) – The Prisoners of Impel Down
Hancock gives Luffy the key for Ace’s handcuffs. As a show of thanks, Luffy embraces, and she falls to her knees, thinking it’s similar to marriage. The Marines thought that she was defeated by a sumo attack from Luffy. Smoker gives chase, but Hancock stops him and breaks his jutte. Luffy meets up with Ivankov, who’s trying to reason with Kuma. Doflamingo reveals that Kuma’s final modifications were recently completed. He no longer has a consciousness, and is now the government’s perfect weapon, dubbed Pacifista PX-0. Luffy remembers his words just before he sent him away at Saobody Archipelago. Kuma attacks Ivankov’s Candies, infuriating Ivankov. He decides to go all out, attempting to force Kuma to remember him. As Luffy and the Candies head to the gallows, Buggy signals his followers that it’s time for them to make their move, though Mr. 3 is unsure about the plan. Meanwhile, Crocodile is getting further separated from Whitebeard, as his pirates prevent him from moving forward. The normal pirates are no match for Crocodile and Mr. 1, but Jozu delivers a heavy attack in his diamond form, forcing Crocodile back and making him bleed. Before he can follow up, Doflamingo stops Jozu and asks Crocodile if he’d like to team up to take him out. At the other end, Luffy runs into Mihawk, as he prepares to face Luffy with his black blade.
Hilarious antics from Hancock aside, most of this week’s chapter was mainly setup. Ivankov and Kuma are still facing each other, but at least they’ve traded blows. Hancock is still holding Smoker back. We now get Doflamingo and Crocodile facing Jozu, along with Luffy vs Mihawk. I’m certain that Mihawk won’t be defeated by Luffy, and vice-versa. Something’s going to happen that will interrupt their fight, or Luffy will just avoid fighting him all-together. I’m glad that we know what Crododile’s doing now. He pretty much disappeared after Luffy stopped his attack on Whitebeard. This chapter was good, but compared to previous weeks, not up to par in terms of awesomeness, but close. Oh, and before I forget: ONE PIECE WILL BE TAKING A BREAK NEXT WEEK. Boo-urns. Decent chapter.
NARUTO (chapter 467) – Declaration of War
Sakura, Sai, Kiba, and Rock Lee head towards the Land of Iron to meet with Naruto. At the inn the others were staying at, a distraught Naruto still doesn’t know what to do about Sasuke. At the Kage meeting, Raikage tries to attack Madara but to no avail. Madara uses a space-time technique to transport Sasuke away. He does the same to Karin so she can heal him. He then explains his plans. He sent Sasuke here to awaken Susanoo within him, and to try to weaken the five Kages, but to no avail as well. His ultimate goal for the Moon’s Eye Plan is more than just to make himself complete, it’s to have everything become one with him. He talks about the Rikudo Sage, about a tablet beneath Konoha that can be read with Sharingan, Mangekyo Sharingan, and Rinnegan. The Rikudo Sage was able to defeat a monster, a fusion of all the tailedbeats, the 10-Tailed Beast, Jubi. The Sage develeoped the technique of sealing a beast within a host, and he sealed the 10-Tails within him. On his deathbed, he split the Jubi’s chakra across the land, and cast away his empty body, turning it into the moon. Madara’s goal is to revive the Jubi and become its host. Doing that, he’ll be able to use his most powerful illusion, Mugen Tsukiyomi: to project his eyes on the moon and cast an illusion over the whole world, controlling everyone. He only needs two more beasts, the 8 and 9-tails. Finally learning the truth, Raikage is both relieved that Killer Bee is safe and pissed that he didn’t return. The Kages won’t hand over the tailed beasts so easily, and Madara declares the start of the Fourth Great Ninja War.
I don’t care if you guys agree or disagree, but the Moon’s Eye Plan is STUPID. I should’ve known that it would’ve been a literal “Moon’s Eye” and not some awesome code-name. Eyes ON the moon…really? So what’s Madara going to do once everyone is under his control? Giant puppet show? Okay, rest of the chapter. Saskuke lives to fight on another day. Naruto doesn’t know what to think of his former friend. So same old. First page shows some promise. Rock Lee and Kiba following Sakura and Sai. Hopefully Rock Lee and Kiba get to do something useful. They’ve pretty much been ignored post-timeskip, and I’m sure fans would love to see them in action. Hope you guys get your time to shine. Too bad they’re heading there when the baddies are gone. Disappointing chapter.
BLEACH (chapter 377) – Shout at the Dark
Kensei pushes back Wonderweiss, and manages to take Mashiro somewhere safe. He then pulls out his knife and activates his bankai, still mask-less, forming two hand-blades (think Voldo from Soul Caliber). Aizen now faces the combined forces of the Vizards and Captains. Shinji tries his best to make sure everyone remains calm, but Hiyori struggles to quell the rage within. Aizen speaks to provoke any one of them to charge, reminding the Vizards that their struggle is useless, and that they’ve already died before. Not taking it any longer, Hiyori rushes in to attack, but she’s cut in half by Gin. Literally cut in half. Shinji rushes to Hiyori’s side and calls for Hacchi to come heal her. However, he only has one arm remaining from his fight against Barragan and is struggling to heal that. Shinji calls out to Ichigo, wondering where he is and if Orohime is safe. She’s the only one who can heal Hiroyi now. Last panel is of Ichigo hurrying back quickly.
Kensei’s got a neat bankai, and I was actually surprised he has a knife instead of a sword. Tensions were very high during Aizen’s provocation, and it’s a shame that it’s Hiyori that was cut down. There’s not much else to say, because Hiyori’s almost-death is the main topic. With the lower half of her body severed, she doesn’t have long to live. The last panel only shows Ichigo, not Orohime. This might be the first casualty on the heroes’ side. I will say that I want to find out what happens next very soon, so kudos to Kubo for hooking me with this chapter. Good chapter.
HAJIME NO IPPO (chapter 870) – High Power Frontal Barrage
Ippo keeps up the attack combinations, pressing closer to Woli. Woli still manages to dodge, even if it’s just barely. Ippo goes for another feint, which Woli reads and is able to dodge. But Ippo’s seen it before, and manages to close in again before Woli can catch his breath. Ippo almost gets in a huge body blow, but Woli manages to barely tuck his arm in time to block it. Ippo manages to press Woli into the ropes, his peekaboo style of fighting barely leaving any openings. However, Woli is able to sneak in one blow underneath Ippo’s guard, delivering a blow to his jaw. Ippo and the other Kamogawa members were in shock. Woli just threw a smash, just like Sendo!
Finally, the first real blow, and it actually wasn’t by Ippo. Don’t know if Woli is winning over the crowd, but he’s definitely surprising them. Not studying any formal boxing techniques at all, it’s pretty surprising how he can pull all this off with just his natural ability alone. Things are definitely rough for Ippo and Kamogawa. While it doesn’t seem like there was much this chapter, it’s fairly similar to Bleach in terms of the abundant fight panels. Yet Hajime no Ippo handles the fighting a lot better, with a much simpler flow and better pacing. Good chapter.
FAIRY TAIL (chapter 154) – Your Words
Midnight notes that Gerard forgot how to use magic along with his memory. Erza’s surprised at his easy defeat, but also knows that the self-destruction spell cost him a lot of his magic as well. She attacks Midnight, but her sword swing changes direction. After a second altered attack, Midnight repels her back, and twists the armor she’s wearing, suffocating her and squeezing her body. She cancels her armor and changes to a different one. Midnight’s magic is revealed: Reflector. It has the power to twist and distort anything, repel any attack, and even create illusions by warping the light. Meanwhile, the others don’t know what to do with an injured Jura. Suddenly, Brain’s staff is floating and talking to them, saying it’s the seventh member of Oracion Seis. Impatient, Natsu grabs hold of the staff and starts smacking it into the ground. The staff escapes and starts talking about their plan. Meanwhile, Erza is still struggling against Midnight. Even sending dozens of swords, Midnight is able to reflect them all. He then twists Erza’s armor with a great spell, Spiral Pain. Armorless (and topless!), Erza collapses. Midnight mentions that they’re headed to Cait Shelter, and Gerard questions why. Both Midnight and Brain’s staff explain to their respective foes. Nirvana was created by a group of people called the Nirvit. Cait Shelter is composed mainly of members who are descendants of the Nirvit, and are the only ones capapble of re-sealing Nirvana. Gerard is disgusted by their actions; however, Midnight reminds him that he’s done similar things, and still extends a hand to Gerard to join Oracion Seis. But Erza stands once more, wearing cloth armor and holding a large spear, telling Gerard that she knows of the light within him. She still fights to stop Midnight.
I don’t know why, but it took me much longer to type this review than for the other mangas. Kept getting stopped by other distractions and duties. That’s not saying that this chapter is without merits. It’s always a good read when seeing Erza fight. Getting taken out earlier in the arc didn’t help her S-Mage status, so seeing her get up in the end was cool. Oh, and let’s not forget the brazen (yet censored) topless panels. Not too sure about the abilities of Brain’s staff. Perhaps the source of Brain’s magic attacks were from the staff and not Brain. And now we know the reason why they’re sending Nirvana after Cait Shelter. Will Midnight be defeated next week by Erza, or will he survive to be defeated by someone else? And will Gerard regain his lost memories soon? Good chapter.
KATEKYO HITMAN REBORN! (chapter 261) – Handcuff
Hibari’s handcuff has spikes on it as well. Daisy doesn’t mind at all, since she specializes in close combat as well, but she doesn’t know its abilities. Hibari is able to cuff one hand, but Daisy severs her hand and regenerates it at a quick speed to land a blow on Hibari. Daisy tells him to give up and say where Uni is. Hibari discards his tonfas, and as he spins the handcuff, it multiplies to two, then four. They attack each other again, but this time, Hibari cuffs her in multiple places. Using his ring, he’s able to make more handcuffs with bigger sizes as well. Not knowing the abilities of the Vongola box, Daisy doesn’t know what to do against him. Being to great for her regeneration abilities, Daisy is defeated. Hibari also removes her Funeral Wreath ring, taking away her powers. Dino contacts Tsuna and tells them the news. With them safe, Kawahira decides to leave, much to everyone’s dismay. Out in a forest, the other funeral wreaths are gathered, watching a strange ritual take place. Byakuran is tapping into his knowledge of parallel worlds to find a way to get Uni back. He comes back from his ritual, stating that they’re hiding at a real estate office of Kawahira.
So Hibari fanboyism aside, the fight was pretty good, but not great. Handcuffs aren’t exactly the most stylish fighting weapon, unless you’re Longarm from the cartoon C.O.P.S. That’d be kind of cool actually. One down, 5 more to go. So it looks like that while the future allies of the Vongola are actually stronger, because of Byakuran, they’re fighting abilities are nullified. Not really sure where Kawahira is going to at this time. And now that Byrakuran knows where the Vongola are, will he send the rest of the Funeral Wreaths, or will they attack one at a time? Decent chapter.
HISTORY’S STRONGEST DISCIPLE KENICHI (chapter 355) – Yomi, the Decider
Honoka tries to visit Tanimoto, only to find a note from him, saying “See ya.” She doesn’t know what to think, but she’s worrying about him. Back to the fight, Enshin and Tanimoto formally introduce themselves to each other. Tanimoto tries for a palm strike that he wants blocked for a counterattack. But instead of blocking, Enshin throws the same attack, but with the resolution to strike his vital point. They both land the blows, both hurting, yet still continuing to fight. Enshin recovers faster, and lands a heavy blow to Tanimoto’s back. The blow causes him to see his sister Kaede, Kenichi’s sister Honoka, and Kenichi as well, all telling him to wake up. He wakes up just before Enshin delivers the finishing blow and manages to dodge it. He’s now angry that Kenichi appeared in his mind, but he remembers that Kenichi faces people stronger than him all the time. Knowing Enshin is stronger, Tanimoto punches himself in the forehead to calm himself down. Sougetsu tells Jisei that Tanimoto will win, because he’s fought more varied opponents. He uses a technique he’s seen his master use: three soft blows that end up causing a destructive blow. Tanimoto wins.
And now, it’s official. Like you weren’t expecting it to happen. Fighting was definitely top notch. Since there still isn’t much to say, I’m just going to repeat what I said last week. – “Still not sure what to think about there being another member of Yomi. Although, Tanimoto is certainly a good character in this series. I’m not sure if even he’ll be able to defeat Kenichi if he gets the Yomi seat.” We’ll have to see what happens when they do fight, because Tanimoto still does want to get revenge on Kenichi. Good chapter.
PSYREN (chapter 89 and 90) – Amamiya and The Harukaze Academ
(89)Matsuri is glad that they’re both safe, along with knowing how she died with Kagetora and Ian. Knowing the future, she’ll now be able to prepare their next stage of attack, along with preventing that outcome. While they want to investigate the school, Matsuri tells them that they should stay out of sight for a while as to not alert the press. Leaving, Matsuri asks Amamiya about the dvd she left for her to watch, but Amamiya didn’t remember it. Matsuri leavs, and Ageha asks Amamiya what’s wrong. She runs to her room, saddened. The effects of Usui’s attack are finally taking place, she’s forgetting her memories. Within the recesses of her mind, she sees the “structure” of her memories crumble away. She also sees a darker version of herself, basically her instinct/impulse. With her more rational side broken, her more violent side is vying to be the more dominant persona. Amamiya attacks her dark side with multiple Mind Jacks, but is overwhelmed. Her dark side lets her go, waiting for the day she’ll forget her memories. She wakes up next to a pool, with Ageha. She confides in him that she can’t remember the time they spent at Elmore Wood with the kids earlier. Ageha then picks her up, and jumps in the pool with her. Saying he’s here for her now, and he’ll always be by her side. Meanwhile, Matsuri calls Kagetora and asks for a favor. He brings along Haruhiko and Lan to assist him investigating Harukaze School. (90) At the school, we see one of the future Star Commanders for the W.I.S.E., Junas. Kagetora and Lan discover that the school is closed, while Haruhiko is investigating around the school. One of the movers tells that that it’s been shut down, and the owner and employees are missing, though they’ve been with the school for over 10 years. Though not much is left, they search for the school records only to find them missing. We next see Junas burning something (probably the records), talking to Amagi Miroku on a cell phone. He tells Junas to find the “Creator” for his ability, and Junas says he has an idea who. However, he’s interrupted by some of the other movers, and one of them physically confronts him. The other one breaks it up, with Haruhiko watching in the trees. Junas was about to pull a knife on the other one. Haruhiko leaves before he gets noticed, and returning to the school, he sees a little girl standing on the roof of a shed. She runs away when he calls to her. He meets up with Kagetora and Lan; they say that the records are gone, but he saw Junas burning something earlier. Lan notices that the kids are getting split up to different facilities. The mover they questioned earlier is looking for the little girl that Haruhiko saw. Lan decides to go get her. He finds her drawing, and as he approaches her, she makes her drawing come to life with Psi. Distracted by the burning rose, Lan is stabbed from afar by Junas. He diverts the next attack with his Trick Room. The other movers noticed the commotion and come to find out what’s happening, but Junas cuts them all down.
Man, a lot happened in this double review. Didn’t care too much about chapter 89. I already thought it was odd that Amamiya was able to survive that attack without any damage at all before Marie interfered. Yes, it was a little touching the way Ageha acted. And this won’t be the last time we see Amamiya’s other persona. Chapter 90 is where the real meat of this review is. Took me a while to remember Haruhiko and Lan’s names, had to search back for them. Yes, I know that they were there at Root to help out, but all I remembered was “It’s the ‘Trick Room’-guy and electro-dude.” Now that they’re a part of the story again, had to find out their names, again. We get to see Junas’ sociopathic tendencies early. And how will the future change after this battle? And with that little girl as the “Creator,” what importance will she have with Amagi Miroku’s plans? Decent chapters.
