Manga Review: Blue Exorcist, Volume 23, by Kazue Kato

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: Shonen Jump (VIZ Media)

Release Date: February 2020

Volumes: 25+

Spoilers?: No.

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

Volume: 1. 22. 24.

 

Goodreads Synopsis:

 

Rin and his exorcist classmates are caught in a secret war against the forces of darkness.

Raised by Father Fujimoto, a famous exorcist, Rin Okumura never knew his real father. One day a fateful argument with Father Fujimoto forces Rin to face a terrible truth – the blood of the demon lord Satan runs in Rin’s veins! Rin swears to defeat Satan, but doing that means entering the mysterious True Cross Academy and becoming an exorcist himself.

The tragic story of what happened to Rin and Yukio’s mother, Yuri Egin, continues to unfold. Yuri and Father Fujimoto were once up-and-coming young Exorcists involved in Section 13’s extensive operation to research elixirs of immortality and develop clones to house the spirits of demons. The project seemed to be moving ahead until the unexpected manifestation of a demonic spirt into one of the clone bodies. And not just any demon—the most powerful demon of all: Satan!

 

Review:

 

This volume continues the back story of their mother and Satan. We discover who Satan really is, how he became who he is, and how their mother got mixed up in it all. It definitely gets messy very quickly, and how Yuri decides to help with it only complicates things further. Yukio might be the one who feels like he needs to know more than Rin, but Rin also needs to understand where his powers came from, and what happened that led to him and Yukio.

So far, it's explained some things, but also complicated others. We're reaching the climax of the back story, I think, so it'll be interesting to see how it concludes and leaves the twins where they are now.

I definitely do find this story interesting, but I'm also very curious where the rest of the characters are in the mean time, and what this means for Rin and Yukio going forward.

I really like the direction this series is taking, and I want more of it, faster. This plot is definitely one that would read really nicely in a binge session.

Manga Review: Blue Exorcist, Volume 22, by Kazue Kato

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: Shonen Jump (VIZ Media)

Release Date: September 2019

Volumes: 24+

Spoilers?: No.

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

Volume: 1. 21. 23.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Rin and his exorcist classmates are caught in a secret war against the forces of darkness.

Raised by Father Fujimoto, a famous exorcist, Rin Okumura never knew his real father. One day a fateful argument with Father Fujimoto forces Rin to face a terrible truth – the blood of the demon lord Satan runs in Rin’s veins! Rin swears to defeat Satan, but doing that means entering the mysterious True Cross Academy and becoming an exorcist himself.

The seals binding the artificial Gehenna Gate are broken, and the world is gripped by demonic chaos! As the Exwires try to figure out what to do without Rin and Yukio, and the Knights of the True Cross scramble to regroup, everyone seems lost. As nations around the world struggle to contain the outbreaks, Rin faces Mephisto, demanding to hear about his past. Mephisto couldn’t be more delighted to show Rin what happened all those years ago—but as Mephisto warns him, the story can only end in tragedy…

Review:

Yukio is off on a new adventure, and Shiemi's secrets are starting to be revealed. But all of that is left behind as Rin gets to confront his past, and thus see what happened with his mother.

Yukio is so stuck on being alone and wondering about the past, that he's spiraling and is forcing himself away from all of his friends and his brother. So of course, Rin needs to confront the past that he didn't think he wanted anything to do with. It actually makes sense, really.

We're also getting to connect some dots here. We're discovering what led to Rin and Yukio, and we're discovering what Lucifer is actually up to underneath all of this, as well.

Slow releases, of course, and this series can be rather complicated—but it feels like we're finally starting to get some answers to this mess that's happened.

 A review copy was provided by the publisher, VIZ Media, for an honest review. Thank you so, so much!

Manga Review: Blue Exorcist, Volume 21, by Kazue Kato

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5

Publisher: Shonen Jump Advanced (VIZ Media)

Release Date: January 2019

Volumes: 23+

Spoilers?: Light.

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

Volume: 1. 20. 22.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Rin and his exorcist classmates are caught in a secret war against the forces of darkness.

Raised by Father Fujimoto, a famous exorcist, Rin Okumura never knew his real father. One day a fateful argument with Father Fujimoto forces Rin to face a terrible truth – the blood of the demon lord Satan runs in Rin’s veins! Rin swears to defeat Satan, but doing that means entering the mysterious True Cross Academy and becoming an exorcist himself.

An attack on Tokyo by a huge demon that is visible to almost everyone marks the start of an unprecedented outbreak of demonic activity around the world. While the Knights of the True Cross and the Japanese government scramble to contain the damage, Lightning’s investigation into the Illuminati has pushed the Knights of the True Cross—and Yukio—just a little too far. Now Yukio rushes to confront Mephisto, determined to hear the truth of the circumstances of his and Rin’s birth. Yet Mephisto, aloof as always, still seems to be pulling everyone’s strings. For Yukio and Rin, there will be no easy answers…

Review:

There's something going on with Yukio and now everyone knows it. But because of how he's acting, no one is sure of what it is that's wrong. This all comes to the forefront when there's an attack and normal people start seeing the creatures that hang around everywhere and cause chaos.

I will admit that I didn't see this coming, and yet it makes sense. There's always been a distance between Yukio and Rin, no matter how Rin tried to bridge it and even ignore it was there. Yukio has always kept everyone away from himself, and that included Rin. And now that he might be forming powers of his own, of course he's decided to hide it and figure it out on his own.

It was harsh seeing Rin have to confront Yukio and try to help him, but it wasn't surprising how Yukio reacted. It was sad, and hard being on Rin's side during it.

After all of that, Rin then has to deal with his own powers exploding inside him. Since they're both descendant from Satan, it makes more sense that their powers would be fighting them and taking over in these ways. It's almost been too easy till this point, and now the brothers have to face what's happening as it becomes too much.

There was a true surprise in Shiemi's powers here, though I'd always hoped we'd get to see more of her.

There's a lot going on right now in this series, and I'm looking forward to seeing what develops next.

Manga Review: Blue Exorcist, Volume 20, by Kazue Kato

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5

Publisher: Shonen Jump Advanced (VIZ Media)

Release Date: October 2018

Volumes: 22+

Spoilers?:  No.

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

Volume: 1. 19. 21.

Goodreads Synosis:

Rin and his exorcist classmates are caught in a secret war against the forces of darkness.

Raised by Father Fujimoto, a famous exorcist, Rin Okumura never knew his real father. One day a fateful argument with Father Fujimoto forces Rin to face a terrible truth – the blood of the demon lord Satan runs in Rin’s veins! Rin swears to defeat Satan, but doing that means entering the mysterious True Cross Academy and becoming an exorcist himself.

The holiday season falls upon True Cross Academy, and Rin and his friends kick things off with a combined birthday and Christmas party. More happy news comes as they are invited to Kyoto for the New Year’s wedding of Shima’s older brother. But underneath the festivities runs a feeling of great uneasiness—tension grows between Yukio and Rin as they question the truth of the circumstances of their birth and who their mother really was. Elsewhere, Lightning continues to press the suspects of his investigation of the Illuminati. Sooner or later, something’s got to give…

Review:

There's a Christmas celebration, and it's New Years, and then there's a sweet wedding. These things should be cause for celebration—and it is!—but it's also mingled with some serious plot lines.

It's still unclear what caused Shiemi's change of mind, and then Rin becomes aware of just how far apart him and Yukio are. He doesn't know what Yukio is up to, or why he's been so distant lately, but their differing opinions regarding their birth and their mother give some insight into it. And then there's what Ryuji and Lewin are discovering.

I'm still worried about Shiemi, but more immediate are the concerns regarding Yukio. He's holding so much inside, and he needs to learn to confide in someone else, to get help from Rin in particular, because he's in a downward spiral at the moment.

Given the long periods between releases, I often forget about this series and what's happening in it. But as soon as I look back or start the new one, I'm thrown right back in. This is quite a good, interesting series.

 A review copy was provided by the publisher, VIZ Media, for an honest review. Thank you so, so much!

Manga Review: Blue Exorcist, Volume 19, by Kazue Kato

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5-4

Publisher: Shonen Jump Advanced (VIZ Media)

Released Date: June 2018

Spoilers?: No.

Volumes: 21+

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

Volume: 1. 18. 20.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Rin and his exorcist classmates are caught in a secret war against the forces of darkness.

Raised by Father Fujimoto, a famous exorcist, Rin Okumura never knew his real father. One day a fateful argument with Father Fujimoto forces Rin to face a terrible truth – the blood of the demon lord Satan runs in Rin’s veins! Rin swears to defeat Satan, but doing that means entering the mysterious True Cross Academy and becoming an exorcist himself.

Mephisto Pheles has freed his brother Amaimon from imprisonment and set him loose on True Cross Academy to serve his own agenda. While the Exwires deal with Amaimon’s surprise reappearance, Lewin Light, a.k.a. “Lightning,” continues to investigate the mysterious Section 13 and its connection to the Blue Night event that seems to be the source of all the current troubles. Together they delve deep beneath True Cross Academy, shedding light on long-lost chambers shrouded in darkness and the terrible secrets that were buried there for a reason…

Review: 

Bon is still working with Lightning to discover the Illuminati secrets. They're doing detective work, following clues, and going through files. They've discovered a few interesting elements, some hidden secrets that are rather disturbing. They're getting information from several people, but they know not to trust any of them. Bon is also dealing with his conflicted emotions regarding all of this, especially where his friends are concerned.

Aside from that, exams are coming up, and after that—Christmas vacation. Which coincides with a birthday, and so the gang decides to throw a Christmas/everybody's birthday party. They've split up into groups to get everything, and Shiemi is pushing hard for a party. Which also coincides with Shiemi's change of future plans.

I'm not sure where the plot with Bon is going, but I'm very curious to see what Shiemi found out to make her change her mind so abruptly.

Manga Review: Blue Exorcist, Volume 18, by Kazue Kato

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5-4

Publisher: Shonen Jump Advanced (VIZ Media)

Release Date: January 2018

Volumes: 21+

Spoilers?: Some.

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

Volume: 1. 17. 19.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Rin and his exorcist classmates are caught in a secret war against the forces of darkness.

Raised by Father Fujimoto, a famous exorcist, Rin Okumura never knew his real father. One day a fateful argument with Father Fujimoto forces Rin to face a terrible truth – the blood of the demon lord Satan runs in Rin’s veins! Rin swears to defeat Satan, but doing that means entering the mysterious True Cross Academy and becoming an exorcist himself.

After dealing with the demons of Shura’s past, Shura, Rin and Yukio return to True Cross Academy. While Yukio recovers from his wounds, Rin and his friends get back to their lives. But trouble is brewing as the Illuminati continue to advance their plans. Lightning launches an investigation of the Illuminati, intending to get to the bottom of things. With Suguro in tow, he delves into the archives deep below True Cross Academy, where he may uncover secrets that were buried there for a reason…

Review:

The plot line regarding Shura's demon concludes in the first half of this volume. It's a team effort, though the wrong team ends up with the specimen. Either way, Shura is free now.

The main plot includes Shiemi confronting Rin's feelings for her. She doesn't really know what romantic love entails, and Izumo decides to give her some examples in manga with a sleepover. It's a bit conflicting to me, because while she gives Rin an answer, she has different reasons for them. She thinks she needs to mature more, as she's still figuring out what she wants to do after graduation, and she's still trying to become a stronger person. I respect the the reason for her decision, even if I feel bad for Rin.

Meanwhile, Bon is following Lightning around for some detective work.

I've fallen a bit behind in this series, but I'm still quite enjoying it. I think, since it's been so long, and since the releases are a bit spaced out, it can be hard to keep track of all the little details of the main plot line. All the stuff with the Illuminati and who's doing what in regards to it, is a bit hard to remember after so long between volumes.

Manga Review: Blue Exorcist, Volume 17, by Kazue Kato

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5

Publisher: Shonen Jump Advanced (VIZ Media)

Release Date: July 2017

Volumes: 20+

Spoilers?: No.

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

Volume: 1. 16. 18.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Rin and his exorcist classmates are caught in a secret war against the forces of darkness.
Raised by Father Fujimoto, a famous exorcist, Rin Okumura never knew his real father. One day a fateful argument with Father Fujimoto forces Rin to face a terrible truth the blood of the demon lord Satan runs in Rin s veins! Rin swears to defeat Satan, but doing that means entering the mysterious True Cross Academy and becoming an exorcist himself.
Shura Kirigakure has always been one of Rin and Yukio s most trusted friends and mentors, but her past is a mystery. When Shura suddenly goes missing, Mephisto sends Rin and Yukio to the cold and wintry north to find her. The journey is a chance for the brothers to talk over recent events, and try to sort out where things stand between them. Out in the frozen countryside, Shura reaches her destination, and a meeting with an entity who will impose an ancient curse upon her "

Review:

This volume focuses solely on Shura, pretty much. She's disappeared to her hometown, and so Rin and Yukio have been sent to help her. Rin and Yukio are already on uneven ground, because Yukio has been acting weird, and Rin is trying to find out why.

But then they find Shura, and realize she's dealing with a long-standing agreement with a demon. She's at the point where she is supposed to fulfill her part, and she's trying to refuse it while realizing that she doesn't really have a choice. Of course, Rin and Yukio have their own idea of how to deal with it.

I honestly did not really care about this arc. For some reason I don't really find Shura that interesting? I do like Yukio and Rin's relationship, and I liked seeing that grow. I don't mind Shura, though, and I liked seeing when she was a kid with Fujimoto. She has an interesting backstory.

This series has seemed to stray a little from the main plot line, but I'm not really sure where it's going at this point. I'm still liking it, though.

Manga Review: Blue Exorcist, Volume 16, by Kazue Kato

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: Shonen Jump Advanced (VIZ Media)

Release Date: December 6, 2016

Volumes: 17+

Spoilers?: No.

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

Volume: 1. 15. 17.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Rin Okumura and the exorcist students of True Cross Academy are caught up in a secret war to save the world from the forces of darkness.


Raised by Father Fujimoto, a famous exorcist, Rin Okumura never knew his real father. One day a fateful argument with Father Fujimoto forces Rin to face a terrible truth – the blood of the demon lord Satan runs in Rin’s veins! Rin swears to defeat Satan, but doing that means entering the mysterious True Cross Academy and becoming an exorcist himself.

The surge of demonic activity around the world has the highest levels of the Knights of the True Cross worried. An important meeting at the Vatican will have serious effects on the lives of Rin and his Exwire friends. Back at True Cross Academy, the students get a sense that something is brewing with the arrival of an unexpected and definitely unconventional new instructor! Meanwhile, Yukio struggles to understand the strange fire in his eyes, a fire he has kept secret from everyone. Can he confront the flames inside him alone or will it consume him?

Review:

It's been a while since the last volume.

Everyone is going through something in this volume. Everyone is still getting used to having Shima around again, with his new status. It's really weird how normal they're mostly acting with him, after everything.

Bon is trying to step up his skills, and becomes Lightning's apprentice, though he ends up being more a manager or assistant than anything, it seems. Yukio is acting weird to everyone and disappearing a lot, because he's trying to figure out this demon part of himself. It's hard to watch him, and I wish he would start to confide a little in his friends or at least in Rin.

The most surprising to me, was the scene between Rin and Shiemi. There's kind of, maybe, a confession here? And innocent Shiemi just has no idea how to handle it. I feel bad for Rin, a little, because I'm not sure that she's ever thought of him like that, if she's even thought of Yukio in that specific way. Poor guy.

This series is always fun to read. I should probably give the anime a try as well.

On a side note, just a funny story that I have. I brought this book to work with me, not thinking anything of it. And a friend looked it over and noticed the bath scene it has in it. He accused me of bringing a “sexy” book with me to read at work. It was hilarious to me, because this is quite an innocent book in that way. It has a normal shonen-y bath scene in it, that's all. No sexy stuff here.

 
A review copy was provided by the publisher, VIZ Media, for an honest review. Thank you so, so much!

Manga Review: Blue Exorcist, Volume 15, by Kazue Kato

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: Shonen Jump Advanced (VIZ Media)

Release Date: May 3, 2016

Volumes: 16+

Spoilers?: No.

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

Volume: 1. 14. 16.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Raised by Father Fujimoto, a famous exorcist, Rin Okumura never knew his real father. One day a fateful argument with Father Fujimoto forces Rin to face a terrible truth – the blood of the demon lord Satan runs in Rin’s veins! Rin swears to defeat Satan, but doing that means entering the mysterious True Cross Academy and becoming an exorcist himself.

The operation against Professor Gedoin’s diabolical Dream Town Inari was just the opening round in the growing conflict between the Knights of the True Cross and the Illuminati. As both sides regroup and lay plans for the future, the Exwires try to come to terms with what has happened. Though Izumo finds some peace and a new sense of purpose, serious questions about Renzo Shima’s betrayal still need to be answered. It’s not an easy thing for Rin and his friends to learn that they have become pawns in Mephisto’s schemes, but the game is on!

Review:

Now that Izumo is safe again, the gang is trying to recover from everything. Everyone is still gathering information from what happened and what was revealed. We’re finding out more about the Illuminati and what they want. The biggest reveal, though, is what Shima was actually doing and who he’s actually working for.

Shima is a double agent, only at this point it’s hard to figure out who he actually is working for and who he’s betraying. I don’t like him, and I don’t trust him. Thankfully, most of the gang agrees with this, and I appreciate that they beat him up a bit.

Izumo is still recovering from what happened. She finds out where her sister is. And now that all of that is past, she is able to finally let herself grow close to her classmates. She doesn’t have to keep them at a distance anymore.

This is getting messy. But I’m quite enjoying it. I really like the gang of characters here, in particular.

A review copy was provided by the publisher, VIZ Media, for an honest review. Thank you so, so much!