Kagerou-Nostalgia

Publisher
ADV Manga
Writer
Satomi Kubo
Artist
Satomi Kubo
Country of origin
Japan
Year
2002

Manga Fans Unite! Kagerou-Nostalgia GN 1 The Resurrection

By David Rasmussen
25th Aug 04

Studio - ADVManga
Age - All Ages
By Satomi Kubo
ADV Manga credits
Translator - Eiko McGregor
Lead Translator/Translator Supervisor - Javiar Lopez
ADV Manga Translation Staff - Kay Bertrand, Amy Forsyth & Brendan Frayne
Publishing Editor - Susan Itin
Assistant Editor - Margaret Scharold
Editorial Assistant - Varsha Bhuchar

Graphic Novel 1
For centuries upon centuries upon centuries conflict has raged.
The "Ground zero" of the conflict? Medieval Japan. They are no strangers to endless strife and violence, as blood is spilled endlessly in a war between factions. In this case it is two factions (the Hi and the Yu), which leads to the deaths of many many people over time immortal.

The leader of the Hu, Haku, was reborn 5 centuries past.
Six who fought against Haku tried to bring Haku down.
But that was then, this is now, and the war against Haku is once again on.

In the here and now those who have spilled their blood in this war against Haku of the faction Yu have been given a second chance to redeem themselves and strike back against the enemy that killed them.
Of course the death of a beloved princess, and a lot of death in general is also good motivation to go out and seek vengeance against the nemesis of humanity.

But things have changed since they have died, including the forms in which they now inhabit.
They now live in the bodies of "extraordinary" teenagers, but is that enough to carry through?

Only time will tell as the war truly begins, and rages.

Kagerou-Nostalgia Breakdown the 1st
What's Hot?
It seems to have quite abit of action and is kind of interesting from what I've seen so far. It has potential which I hope it banks on (and thus "invests" in during future Graphic Novels which builds into a hopefully good ending).

What's Not?
However it seems this series just plows right into it, and powers through strong -- yet too strong.
Not much time is spent on character development, at least for my taste. Abit more build-up and set-up which gets me more into this story would have been greatly appreciated.

Moments to Remember?
The fights and what interactions you have are good, and you should pay attention because they are important to getting to know the characters better so you can get into the series.

What to Ignore?
OH-KAY... last time I ever want to see a female character want to renounce her womanhood and become a male character. Thanks, Satomi Kubo, thanks a lot. I'm going to ignore you.

Overall?
It has potential no question about it, but plows through into the story like a Lord of the Rings gameplayer plowing through the armies of Sauron and Saruman... yeah, that's not entirely good.
Abit more patience in pacing, and some more depth would have been nice. At least that's what I think.
Maybe Graphic Novel 2 will change my mind, but I'm right now at 50/50 on this.
It's good, but could have a few better points to it.

-- David Rasmussen 25th Aug 04