田中芳樹

Go, volume 11, go!

I enjoyed this instalment a lot! The plotting was very tight, the action scenes were great as usual, and there were many interesting conversations.

Gieve leaves Arslan’s employ, seemingly in disgrace (Gieve and his big mouth!). But there is more to it than meets the eye. It was all an act, and Gieve has a secret mission. Mwahaha. I like this.

Parsian army marches towards Ecbatana! Arslan has quite a few badass moments, both on battlefield and off it. It’s nice to see him show more grow.

And look who is here! Étoile! (Me: yessss.) Étoile gets captured by Arslan & Co, and we have a nice identity reveal moment, he he. I loved the prison cell encounter between Étoile and Arslan. The prisoner refuses to eat. Arslan: ”If you eat this, you’ll be reducing the enemy’s food supply. And thereby dealing a blow to the enemy.” Étoile wants seconds. Then their conversation becomes more dramatic and emotional. It’s a great character development scene!

On the last page, there is a map with locations of all the major characters, telling the readers what they are doing at the moment. This was a nice touch!

I am looking forward to the next volume, just like I always do... show less

Yes, I am funny about my manga series. I had put this one on hold for a loooong time because I felt that not enough volumes had been published. Now there are more, and I can continue at my own pace for a while. Yay!

I am glad I had watched the anime a few years ago, it helps me remember plot points, he he.

A very dramatic banquet follows the power struggle in the previous volume. Rajendra is now the king of Sindhura and he tries to double-cross Arslan, Crown Prince of Pars, and his allies. show more Needless to say, it doesn’t go well, because Narsus is being a clever tactician, as usual.

I like Jaswant of Sindhura very much, I am glad he got be on the cover of this volume. He joins Arslan’s companions. Isn’t it nice how good Arslan is at collecting competent, good and loyal people around him?

Meanwhile, there are intrigues among Lusitanians in Ecbatana, the conquered capital of Pars. Prince Hilmes is in the thick of it, doing his dark stuff. Imprisoned king Andragoras reveals interesting details (but not all, grrr) about a prophecy about the royal family of Pars. You want me to read more instalments of this, don’t you?

Kubard makes an appearance, persuaded to join prince Hilmes for a while. Kubard: i) will fight for wine; ii) one battle only; iii) has issues with subordination. I was happily entertained.

The battle scenes are great, as usual. I suddenly thought that all these ballet moves with spears might not very realistic and will probably get you in trouble in a real battle.
Whatever! show less

Battles and drama

There is a lot of plot in this volume! Good stuff. The characters and their moods were very nicely drawn, too ;)

Arslan & Co are back in the Peshawar citadel, as more people rally to their cause.

The battle at the Zabul fortress, between the forces of Prince Hilmes and the Lusitanian ”Templars” was horrible and very well done. This series does the ugliness of religious fanaticism quite well.
(And it’s a pity Bishop Bodin managed to flee. Hate. His. Guts.)

Prince Hilmes show more gets to be on the cover this time. He is doing things he believes to be right, yet he is flawed and damaged, consumed by hatred. I wonder if there is some kind of redemption in store for him? The anime didn’t get that far in the story, we’ll see if the manga will.

Kubard journeys on, and meets Merlain, Alfarid’s younger brother. He is wondering where his sister is and is looking for her. It is obvious that Merlain has not read the previous volumes, then he would have known that she has been with Arslan & Co since forever already. Oh well. They in turn meet Princess Irina, a refugee from the neighbouring kingdom of Maryam. The Lusitanians conquered it as well. This complicates the plot.

We are treated to a lot of drama in the last pages! show less

Arslan is terrible name. Every time I read it I think of arse.

Despite that, this wasn't bad. Arslan's dad is a capital A Asshole, mom seems to have issues, but the kid himself is humane and thoughtful. There is a decent set-up with clever rebels, internal betrayal, and some good supporting characters.

The dialogue is solid manga and makes me cringe sometimes. The art is lovely and stays consistent throughout this volume.

I may try volume 2.