Manga Review: In/Spectre, Volume 5, by Kyo Shirodaira and Chashiba Katase

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Release Date: July 2017

Volumes: 9+

Spoilers?: No.

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

Volume: 1. 4. 6.

Goodreads Synopsis:

The new mystery thriller with a romantic edge from the creator of Blast of Tempest, and The Record of a Fallen Vampire!
Both touched by spirits called yokai, Kotoko and Kuro have gained unique superhuman powers. But to gain her powers Kotoko has given up an eye and a leg, and Kuro's personal life is in shambles. So when Kotoko suggests they team up to deal with renegades from the spirit world, Kuro doesn't have many other choices, but Kotoko might just have a few ulterior motives...

Review:

Kotoko has come up with four possible theories, and she's going to throw all of them to the online forum. She's decided to flesh each one out, and see what happens, one at a time. The first one is a frame job, which might make sense to some people. And then she decides to agree that she is a ghost, and flesh out that idea. They're all a bit far-fetched, and she knows that a lot of people will counter her ideas and she's ready for that. She's giving a history lesson, throwing out possibilities for why Karin might be vengeful or why someone might want to kill the detective. She's thought out all of these possibilities thoroughly.

Her main opponent is Rikka, who is killing herself just like Kuro and grabbing strings to get to the conclusion she wants. It's a hard foe to fight.

This series is really thought- and text- and idea-heavy. There isn't a whole lot of action, and I admit I'm kind of waiting for more of that. But I do like the way it's been adapted, as I imagine the novels were even more so. The images and way the online forum is visually portrayed is well done, and the artwork is so pretty.

Manga Review: In/Spectre, Volume 4, by Kyo Shirodaira and Chashiba Katase

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Release Date: May 2017

Volumes: 8+

Spoilers?: No.

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

Volume: 1. 3. 5.

Goodreads Synopsis:

The new mystery thriller with a romantic edge from the creator of Blast of Tempest, and The Record of a Fallen Vampire!
Both touched by spirits called yokai, Kotoko and Kuro have gained unique superhuman powers. But to gain her powers Kotoko has given up an eye and a leg, and Kuro's personal life is in shambles. So when Kotoko suggests they team up to deal with renegades from the spirit world, Kuro doesn't have many other choices, but Kotoko might just have a few ulterior motives..."

Review:

The murder sets this case on a much higher level, both for the coverage it gets, the theories around it, and the power it gives the ghost. It's a very bad outcome so far.

As Kotoko is trying to figure out how to spin this story and create their own conclusion and reason to decrease the current popular theory, we get some flashbacks. Because Kuro's cousin is apparently directly involved—the cousin that was in the hospital, who Kuro clearly had a history of some kind with. This leads to some revelations for Saki regarding her relationship with Kuro and his relationship with Kotoko.

It clears up some questions from the beginning of the series, and possibly some between their relationships.

I really like the ideology behind this series. The idea of a fandom online creating a ghost much like yokai is quite thought-provoking, and I like the use of modern methods being put to old-time theories. All of the explanations are really interesting to me, smart and well-thought out.

I'm excited to see where this goes next. I'm enjoying all of the text-heavy explanations and theories more than I thought I would, plus I like seeing the humor and reprieve between it all.

Manga Review: In/Spectre, Volume 3, by Kyo Shirodaira and Chashiba Katase

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Release Date: March 2017

Volumes: 8+

Spoilers?: No.

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

Volume: 1. 2. 4.

Goodreads Synopsis:

The new mystery thriller with a romantic edge from the creator of Blast of Tempest, and The Record of a Fallen Vampire!
Both touched by spirits called yokai, Kotoko and Kuro have gained unique superhuman powers. But to gain her powers Kotoko has given up an eye and a leg, and Kuro's personal life is in shambles. So when Kotoko suggests they team up to deal with renegades from the spirit world, Kuro doesn't have many other choices, but Kotoko might just have a few ulterior motives..."

REview:

This series is very heavy with explanation, backstory and story-telling. I suppose it makes sense, since it was a mystery novel first. And I'm glad they're keeping in all the story-telling and explanation; it takes longer to read, but it is interesting; it's not boring blocks of text, even if it is heavy.

Kotoko explains ghosts and yokai to Saki, and then Saki explains what the police know about Lady Nanase. Saki is still freaked out by ghosts, and Kuro is pretty much along for the ride. Kotoko goes to speak to a real ghost at the crime scene, and we get to rule out the actual-ghost theory out.

Near the end of the volume, we get to learn what Kuro's powers really entail, and what his limits are. Kotoko is still figuring out how to work everything to a good ending, but she's calculating it all. We draw to another cliffhanger as this is happening, as Steel Lady Nanase gets even more dangerous.

I'm hoping we get to some real action next, though this was still an interesting volume. I also really want to understand Kotoko and Kuro's relationship. He seems to be dealing with her, while she pushes herself on him. I want to know if there's more there for him or not.

Manga Review: In/Spectre, Volume 2, by Kyo Shirodaira and Chashiba Katase

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Release Date: January 2017

Volumes: 7+

Spoilers?: No.

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

Volume: 1. 3.

Goodreads Synopsis:

EX FACTOR
Kotoko investigates the mysterious death of former idol Karin Nanase, who now terrorizes the sleepy town of Makurazaka as Steel Lady Nanase. But with Kur missing and the threat of the Steel Lady potentially causing harm to the Makurazaka s citizens, Kotoko is left with no choice but to team-up with Kur s ex-girlfriend, Saki. And later, as the Steel Lady strikes again, the origins of Kuro s bizarre powers are revealed.

Review:

This is a relatively short light novel adaptation that I think is really well done. Sometimes they're a bit weak in character development, but this one really isn't. I quite like all of the characters, and the mystery plot is interesting as well.

Saki is trying to better herself and get past her previous relationship. Having Kotoko show up has not helped her do this. Kotoko is adorably shameless and obnoxious. She's trying to show off to Saki, but Kuro doesn't help when he doesn't seem all that in love with her. The poor guy, honestly.

I really like Kotoko; she's refreshing and definitely my favorite character. I like her relationship with Kuro and think he balances her out, but I do want to see more of their dynamic. After the time skip, it's hard to see where they stand in their relationship.

One particular high note in this volume was seeing Steel Lady Nanase's back story. She starred in some seriously cheesy movies, and I think it was cheesy and funny in the best way.

We also got a back story on how Kuro became what he is, what his family did leading up to him. It was rather disturbing, honestly.

This is a really interesting series to me. The mystery is intriguing, but there's also a lot of depth into the characters' and their stories and personalities. I really want to see how this continues.

Manga Review: In/Spectre, Volume 1, by Kyo Shirodaira and Chashiba Katase

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Release Date: November 2016

Volumes: 6.

Spoilers?: No.

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

Volume: 2.

Goodreads Synopsis:

KINDRED SPIRITS
The 17-year-old Kotoko has a unique situation. When she was a child, she was kidnapped by spiritscalled yokai, and returnedmissing one leg and one eye. Since then, she has been able to communicate with otherworldlyforces, both benevolent and dangerous. Kotoko is alone in her power until she learns that the crush she's watched from afar, Kur, has had his own encounter with yokai! As if being touched by the supernatural wasn't enough, Kur 's personal life is also in shambles. With their shared experiences and understanding, Kotoko and Kur form a partnership to deal with mysteries, from ancient demons to the ghost of an idol. But for a girl who's used to dealing with spirits, winning love might prove to be the bigger challenge!

Review:

This series intrigued me a little when I first heard about it, but it's taken me a while to get around to starting it. The artwork is pretty, though I hadn't really read the description.

We meet Kotoko at the beginning, a girl who was kidnapped by yokai when she was young, and has to visit the hospital regularly for check ups. She has a crush on Kuro, a boy who also regularly visits the hospital, but she hasn't really talked to him until now. He also has an interesting connection to yokai that Kotoko is curious about.

I like Kotoko from the beginning. She's tiny, looks much younger than she is, but she's smart and she doesn't mind the scars she's earned to be where she is now. She's very upfront and shameless in the way she talks, and I appreciate that.

In the second half of the volume, we skip forward some, and we see what a different character has been up to. I'm intrigued to see where the next volume goes, given the switch of characters, and I like what I've seen so far.