Manga Review: Attack on Titan: No Regrets, Volume 1, by Hikaru Suruga and Gun Snark, and Hajime Isayama

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5-4

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Release Date: June 24, 2014

Volumes: 2

Spoilers?: No.

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

Wishlist Thursday.

Goodreads Synopsis:

THE THIEF AND THE SOLDIER
The young Erwin Smith is a rising star in the Survey Corps, humanity’s only hope of defeating the man-eating monsters known as Titans. Ruthless and dispassionate, Erwin’s mind is devoted to strategies and intrigue. But beneath Erwin’s feet is another world, the Underground, where humans are born and die surrounded by the garbage the Capital throws away. Here, the criminal Levi survives on his wits and agility. But when these two ambitious men cross paths, who will prove himself stronger?

The long-awaited origin story of Levi and Erwin, two of Attack on Titan’s most beloved characters!

Review:

I will say that this volume did not blow me away as much as I was hoping it to. But I will also say that it’s very good. And, if you like Levi and/or Erwin, it’s definitely worth picking up.

I was not expecting this to be how Levi and Erwin first met, or how Levi got started with the Survey Corps, and it definitely gives me a new perspective on Levi. I think I like him even more now.

Levi is a thief at the start of this book, along with two friends that I’ve never met before. They live underground, in a very rundown area. The survey corps are struggling, and Erwin takes it upon himself to do something new, including recruiting Levi (and his friends). Levi is awesome from the start, of course, and his friends take very close behind him, even though the others aren’t very welcoming.

I don’t recognize Levi’s friends, and that makes me wary of if something happens to them. I honestly didn’t pay much attention to Erwin in the original series, and he still doesn’t really have my affection, but he’s an interesting character. I’m getting a new insight on his and Levi’s relationship, and that’s interesting. I was also hoping that we’d get to see more of Hange, particularly how her and Levi meet and grow close. Hange is a really interesting character, and very close to Levi in the original. We saw glimpses of Hange in this volume, so I hope there’s more in the next volume. I want to see their first real interaction. 
Also, the art was very pretty. It still had some of the harsh edges and shadowing that the original has, which I appreciated, but it was also much prettier.

The next volume is the last in this spin-off, and I look forward to seeing how Levi’s prequel wraps up.