Manga Review: Limit, Volume 2, by Keiko Suenobu

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5-4

Publisher: Vertical

Release Date: November, 2012

Volumes: 6

Spoilers?: Not really.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. Powells. RightStuf!

Volume 1. Next Volume.

Goodreads Synopsis:

In the second volume of The Limit, Mizuki has found herself in a position where her not only her social life is at risk, but her survival rests in the hands of the young women she was so desperately attempting to avoid. In the wild the strong survive, and while Alisa may not be smart or cute, she is physically strong. So she immediately takes command by gathering anything that may be used as a weapon to threaten the lives of anyone who may attempt to usurp her new found authority.

Mizuki will have to win over the trust of three people who truly despise her. Whether that means doing all the most dangerous tasks to survive or she must endure bullying, right now she understands that unity will be their only way home. Keeping that unity may be improbable, though.

Review:

At this point, I’m really glad that I picked this up. Because this is a pleasantly surprisingly good read so far.

This series is really showing the darker sides of humans, the brutal, hidden sides that only come out in extreme situations. Like this one, where a group is stranded, alone, with no way to contact the outside world, most of their classmates dead. This is definitely an extreme situation, and this is a group mixed of very different, clashing people.

I am starting to really like Konno, which I am surprised by. She notices what’s right and wrong, she has a good sense of it, and since she’s been thrown so out of her follower routine, she’s starting to use that judgment actively. And I like that. I like watching her struggle with it and come to a conclusion, and I like being in her head as she reflects on what others are doing, why they’re doing it, and why she thinks they’re wrong.

Then there’s everyone else. Kamiya is showing other sides of herself, and I’m not sure what I think of her quite yet. I suspect a big confrontation will happen with her soon, and I look forward to that. Haru and Konno seemed to have made up, and I’m intrigued by what will happen with her next. I don’t like Morishige, the violent, power-hungry one, but I look forward to finding out more about her. Usui, the one who’s hurt, got some reflection time, and we’re seeing a much darker, hurt part of her that isn’t very good.

We got a glimpse of what the school and bus company are doing, whether they know if the bus crashed or not, and I hope there’s more of that in the next volume. I like seeing the other side of things, knowing what’s going on with everyone, no matter how horrible it is. There was also an exciting cliffhanger at the end of this volume, and I really look forward to seeing where it goes next. 

I love the psychological aspects to this series so far, the darker parts of humans, even though it’s so horrible sometimes. I love the art, too. It’s so pretty, and detailed, and well done. The violence and the hurt and the graphic details are portrayed so well. It’s really nice to look at, and I am really happy that I picked this up.