Buronson

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Lenni Reviews: “Fist of the North Star” Vol. 18, by Buronson & Tetsuo Hara

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

In this volume, Ken faces Emperor Balan, who despises the gods due to his lost love. Then Ken searches for Rin and Bat and after Ken loses his memories, they have to help him.

This really feels like the conflict doesn’t start or actually matter until the main character gets there to fix it. He’s more of a catalyst for the plot to happen rather than feeling like we’re following him on a journey. And Ken is so overpowered, he just punches through or wags his finger at the enemy, and then it’s over. I feel like I know his story, but I don’t know who he is, if that makes any sense. The people around him are more interesting to me as they seem to grow and change, while Ken is pretty much the same. It’s okay I just expected more from such a classic. 3 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Fist of the North Star” Vol. 17, by Buronson

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Ken and Ryu arrive in Sava where 3 brothers squabble for the throne of their dying father, King Asam.

While after the 3 brother’s drama there is another story, the stand out here is King Asam. Unlike a lot of the rulers and/or in this series, he’s powerful, empathetic, and loving instead of comically evil. I wouldn’t mind a side series just about him. I’m a little annoyed that his daughter doesn’t get more regocnition as she’d the one child of his that seems to care about him (at first) and – absolutely spoilers for this volume and the movie – this story suffers from the Four Brothers problem (where I was pissed that one of them died leaving only three brothers). You’d expect the life lesson of them working things out between them but nope. They just fight and kill. It felt like a chance for a good story there. 3 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Fist of the North Star” Vol. 16, by Buronson & Tetsuo Hara 

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Ken and Kaioh face off for the final time and we learn more backstory about how the successor to the Hokuto Shinken was ultimately chosen.

Yeah, we know Ken wins and now he’s the last of the bloodline. He takes in Ryu, Lord Raoh’s son, and the story goes back to defeating shitty bandits that take advantage of desperate people. Now, when I say “shitty” I don’t mean the narrative, I mean the characters themselves as they kill innocents on a whim and enslave children. And it’s always good to see jerks like that get their comeuppance. 3.9 out of 5 for the fantastic fight scenes in this volume.

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Lenni Reviews: “Fist of the North Star” Vol. 15, by Buronson & Tetsuo Hara

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Lord Kaioh tricks Hyo into believing Ken killed his intended bride, Sayaka; sending him on a bloody path to get revenge.

I was hoping the deception would amount to more but Hyo just *POOF* gets his memory back and it’s over. That really could have been something that took over a whole story arc but nope. It’s a blip of a stepping stone to get Ken ultimate power to face Kaioh. I feel like I say that a lot for this series; plot threads that could have been compelling if explored longer truncated so Ken can punch more things. Despite this, Ken and Kaioh’s battle was well done. It’s entertaining and drawn very well. 3 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Fist of the North Star” Vol. 13, by Buronson & Tetsuo Hara

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Jask has taken Rio across the sea to the Land of the Asuras; a land so violent and obsessed with battle only 1% of the men make it to adulthood.

The Asuras are like some super fucked up Spartans but, as usual, Ken is able to deal with them pretty easily. I do like exploring more countries and areas but this far into the series, the cycle of show up, trash talk, bash bad guy isn’t as interesting. Particularly in this volume because Ken is so overpowered. The Asuras as a concept were interesting but otherwise, this volume was just okay. 3 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Fist of the North Star” Vol. 12, by Buronson & Tetsuo Hara

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

A warrior of honor, Jako, is forced to face Ken on behalf of an evil despot who holds Jako’s people hostage.

There’s a real odd cycle of the story picking a background character to die so Ken can have more motivation. I believe it’s super lazy to fridge all these characters for Ken’s benefit. He’s plenty powerful as he is. I never feel like he’d in danger and twelve volumes deep, we shouldn’t have to re-up his resolve with the blood of more interesting characters. He’s the most boring part of this volume. 3 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Fist of the North Star” Vol. 10, by Buronson & Tetsuo Hara

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Ken has found Yuria but Raoh is also after her to keep her from Ken. Now, it’s time for their showdown utilizing a deadly final technique.

This was an interesting final battle but it feels a little silly that with the tone of this series, after the technique and strength shown in the final battle really came down to love and feelings. I mean, I get it, it was entertaining but I thought it would come down to all the experience Ken has gained allowing him to win the fight. The final battle between them was cool, though but Yuria was super dull. 3.9 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Fist of the North Star” Vol. 8, Buronson & Tetsuo Hara

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Ken faces the emperor Souther, Toki faces Raoh, brother against brother in epic battles.

This volume goes through a lot at a fast pace along with giving some back story. It’s worth it for the action alone, especially if you’re interested in seeing new abilities along with a bit of drama. It was wild to read but also felt chaotic and unfocused compared to the previous volumes. 3.9 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Fist of the North Star” Vol. 7 by Buronson & Tetsuo Hara

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Ken faces the Holy Emperor, a tyrant who kidnaps and enslaves children.

Now, I like this series and I understand that in order to be a threat, the villains have to actually show they’re dangerous but I’ve never been a fan of a lot of collateral damage surrounding the main conflict. And the main showdown didn’t even happen so this ends on a cliffhanger. It just didn’t seem as thrilling as other volumes; it just felt like disaster porn. 3.8 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Fist of the North Star” Vol 6, by Buronson & Tetsuo Hara

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

This volume’s main focus is the showdown between Ken and Kenoh/Raoh, the most powerful of the brothers who trained together. After it ends, (spoilers, kinda?) Ken goes back to beating down various baddies across the dusty landscape. We do get to know Mamiya, who finally does something for a bit before getting sidelined again. I’m glad to see her around more and being involved in the plot in ways that aren’t cheerleader or hostage (although that still happens) and the volume ends at a point where I wonder if she will be more integral to the plot in the future.

Aside for that little nitpick, the battle between Ken and Roah is amazing; great art and action even though the dialog is very bombastic. But, it all fits together well. 4 out of 5.

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