*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.
Tokiyuki and his allies flee south to the Southern Court, where Emperor Go Daigo tests him.
Tokiyuki is also preparing for his next battle, which is at sea. Also, what the heck…
This creator needs a horror manga… That shit’s terrifying.
Shizuko brings back the magic angle to this series, and again, it’s all just meh. There’s something just so bland about this that makes it hard to care. 3 out of 5.
*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.
In this fictionalized account, we follow some young girls recruited as assistant nurses in WWII. As the conflict worsens and resources become scarce, the idealized dream of serving their country crumbles in the face of dismal reality.
Yeah, this is as depressing as you’d expect. It left me with the same sinking sadness as Come and See. I’m almost glad the art style dulls the edges of spilling entrails and maggot-infested wounds, but it’s still horrible. There is at least (spoilers?) an upbeat ending. It’s not completely hopeless. The whole thing is absolutely heartbreaking. 4.5 out of 5.
*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.
This volume is the Battle at Ishizu where Akiie’s army is outnumbered and Tokiyuki faces his former retainer, Morofuyu.
I get that fleeing is Tokiyuki’s thing, but wow, he is losing allies and friends right and left. This is historically based, and yes, when waging a war, things don’t go smoothly and you lose people. But still, this volume doesn’t really make Tokiyuki look good. 2.5 out of 5.
*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review and is suggested for mature readers.
Takezo faces Kohei, Master of Chain and Sickle.
While we learn Kohei’s backstory, we also learn about Kojiro, a deaf child raised by Jisai. Kojiro’s growth into a skilled swordsman takes up the bulk of this volume. It seems he’s destined from birth to wield a sword, but like a lot of stories in this genre, that’s a tragic fate. This had to be my favorite of the series so far. It’s everything I love about this genre, despite including some SA. 5 out of 5.
*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.
Tokiyuki and his vassals fight Kono Morano while Akiie has to deal with ineffective nobles in order to win.
I do enjoy how Akiie treats his troops, making sure they can have celebrations to keep up morale. He’s a good leader, so it’s clear Tokiyuki can learn a lot from him. But as he’s still going through this learning process, this still feels kinda dry. I couldn’t even get it into the fight scenes. It all feels like that Simpsons meme:
I honestly wonder if I should drop this series or succumb to the sunk cost fallacy and power through. 2.5 out of 5.
*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.
Tokiyuki and his army head to Kyo where they face the powerful Toki Yorito, and a former friend appears to kill Tokiyuki.
While there is a lot of action in this volume, it doesn’t feel smooth. It’s very “This happened. And then this happened.” but didn’t feel like I was enjoying a story. They felt unconnected, like Sunday comic strips: all our familiar characters are there, but from scene to scene it doesn’t flow. It’s not bad. The tactics and battles are cool to look at, some of the character reveals will raise an eyebrow, but overall, this is just ok. 3 out of 5.
*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.
Musashi challenges the Yagyu school, not realizing that the wealthy patron who took in Otsu is the master of that school he wants to defeat.
It’s nice to see Otsu doing more than sitting and pining for Musasgu. She’s traveling with Jotaro after Musashi once again sets off on his own. Since she was staying with the Yagyu, she’s picked up a few things, so she’s not a complete damsel. She’s nowhere near the swordsmen like Musashi, which figures since she’s not on a mission to become the best like he is. 3.9 out of 5.
*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.
Tokiyuki has joined forces with Kitabatake Akiie and Go-Daigo’s southern court to seize Kamakura again but faces a powerful enemy when they try to get through the pass.
Shina is still the MVP. She’s so interesting and cool that the story had to nerf her just to make room for the others. I’d read a side series about just her. The other good thing about this volume is Takauji getting a brain blast to compare being 17 in two vastly different time periods. I think the message rings hollow to prefer being in blood, life threatening battles as a child instead of living in relative peace and worrying about the future of your job with the advent of AI. I’d rather worry about AI than worry about getting shot at, honestly. This was overall okay. 3.5 out of 5.
*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.
After Tokiyuki’s loss to the Ashikaga forces, he has retreated from Kamakura. Two years later, Emperor G0-Daigo and Takauji are fighting for control of the land.
After a section dedicated to the use of human excrement as fertilizer and bomb-making material, we have Tokiyuki looking for allies so he can take on Takauji and they’re a bunch of weirdos. His new allies even include the son of his enemy, Nitta. It’s a twist for Tokiyuki to have to trust these new people in battle and navigate dealing with so many different types of warriors while increasing his own skills. He’s also not directly in charge, so things have changed for him and it’s nice to see most of this have tactical thinking. 3 out of 5.
*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.
After the loss at Sagami River, Yorishige faces the consequences of supporting the Hojo rebellion. But Tokiyuki refuses to allow it, offering Ashitaka a challenge: If he can kill Tokiyuki, he wins. But if Tokiyuki escapes, Ashitaka loses everything.
I want Tokiyuki to win using all these abilities and lessons we spend 12 volumes watching him learn; to finally see everything come into play and feel satisfying. But, I felt kinda bored reading this one. At least the scene with the challenge was effectively done. Other than some of the creepier enemies I’ve seen in this series, it was nice for a one-on-one with “normal” combatants. 3 out of 5.
(
