Manga Review: Radiant, Volume 9, by Tony Valente

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: VIZ Media

Release Date: January 2020

Volumes: 14+

Spoilers?: No.

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

Volume: 1. 8. 10.

 

Goodreads Synopsis:

 

The world is overrun with monsters called Nemeses—and a young boy infected by one will stop at nothing to defeat them all!

Evil creatures called Nemeses fall from the skies and the only ones who can fight them are Wizards—infected ones who survived a Nemesis's corruption. Seth, one of these survivors, vows not only to fight the Nemeses, but to find their mythical nest, Radiant, and destroy it!

The battle for Caislean Merlin rages on. Queen Boadicée enters the fray at great risk to her own life while Seth’s friend Ocoho, of the Queen’s forces, wrestles with a shocking revelation about Mordred, her most trusted comrade in arms. Seth’s other friend, Mélie, must deal with Liselotte, an Inquisitor who captured her while infiltrating Caislean Merlin. And Doc, Seth’s most reluctant ally, shows up with a couple of "friends" who could play a big part in the conflict between Inquisitors and Wizards.

 

Review:

 

Everyone is under attack in this volume, and it's getting much more serious. The wizard knights are fighting hard, and their queen is even on the front lines doing what she can. Melie is off fighting her own one-on-one battle. Ocoho is up on the flying ship being betrayed by her childhood friend.

And then Seth is down on the ground, doing what he can, to get to the bottom of it all with the main enemies. When, as the volume ends, he's faced with a big, surprising casualty that I was not expecting, and another reveal that makes sense but is also surprising, it's clear things are going to get hard after this.

This volume was intense in several parts, and I definitely want to read the next one after that cliffhanger. After what we learned in the previous couple volumes, that blow hits hard.

 

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

Manga Review: Radiant, Volume 8, by Tony Valente

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5

Publisher: VIZ Media

Release Date: November 2019

Volumes: 13+

Spoilers?: No.

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

Volume: 1. 7. 9.

Goodreads Synopsis:

The world is overrun with monsters called Nemeses—and a young boy infected by one will stop at nothing to defeat them all!

Evil creatures called Nemeses fall from the skies and the only ones who can fight them are Wizards—infected ones who survived a Nemesis's corruption. Seth, one of these survivors, vows not only to fight the Nemeses, but to find their mythical nest, Radiant, and destroy it!

The Day of the Accolade has come for the aspiring wizard knights! While Mélie and Myr watch over the festivities, Seth and Doc infiltrate the basement of the castle to find documents about Radiant and finally discover Diabal’s true identity. While the party is in full swing, Cyfandir is attacked by the Inquisition. But why would they suddenly wage war?!

Review:

As Ocoho is dealing with her magical leader, and Melie is attempting to distract and keep watch, Seth sneaks deep into the castle back to the hidden nemesis base. All three are in different places, though they're working together to try and get some answers.

Ocoho makes a big step in this volume, standing up for what she thinks is right, even though people might think she's crazy and it'll likely make her lose her position in the wizard ranks.

This nemesis/wizard knight fight is getting more serious, and finally getting some potential reveals. It also keeps hinting at other wizards stepping in, whether to cause more trouble or to help solve it, and I think we might finally get to see who some of them are. We also discovered something potentially important regarding Seth's brother, and I'm very intrigued there. That seems like one of the main, long-standing plot-lines running right now, and I'm curious about it, but I think we're only touching the surface at this point.

This series is getting a little heavier in the shonen magic aspect, but I don't mind. It's interesting, and I definitely like the characters.

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

Manga Review: Radiant, Volume 7, by Tony Valente

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5-4

Publisher: VIZ Media

Release Date: September 2019

Volumes: 11+

Spoilers?: No.

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

Volume: 1. 6. 8.

Goodreads Synopsis:

The world is overrun with monsters called Nemeses—and a young boy infected by one will stop at nothing to defeat them all!

Evil creatures called Nemeses fall from the skies and the only ones who can fight them are Wizards—infected ones who survived a Nemesis's corruption. Seth, one of these survivors, vows not only to fight the Nemeses, but to find their mythical nest, Radiant, and destroy it!

While the attacks from Nemeses bombard the forces of Caislean Merlin, our heroes try to reveal the conspiracy of the spectrum Nemeses. Meanwhile, the merchant barons continue their mysterious scouting expedition in Cyfandir and they appear to like the surroundings. But how can a small group of nobles hope to get their hands on a fiercely guarded island-continent?

Review:

After the previous volume, I thought that Seth was going back into the real world to help out. Apparently I was wrong, as it takes almost this whole volume for him to finally be ready. He still has some learning to do.

So while he does that, Melie and Ocoho are trying to save villages from the spectral nemesis. We discover something new about Ocoho in this volume, something that's been used against her without her even realizing. It's a rather dirty tactic, and I feel bad for her in this, in how her feelings were used against her.

Now things actually seem to be heading in a real conclusive direction. It looks like Seth has a fight coming his way, and hopefully he's more ready for it this time.

  

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

Manga Review: Radiant, Volume 6, by Tony Valente

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5

Publisher: VIZ Media

Release Date: July 2019

Volumes: 11+

Spoilers?: No.

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

Volume: 1. 5. 7.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Evil creatures called Nemeses fall from the skies and the only ones who can fight them are Wizards—infected ones who survived a Nemesis's corruption. Seth, one of these survivors, vows not only to fight the Nemeses, but to find their mythical nest, Radiant, and destroy it!

As spectrum Nemeses start to appear all over Cyfandir, Seth is drawn into a nefarious plot against his will. Suspicion stalks the very halls of the Wizard Knights’ castle, and the Merchant Barons watch with pleasure as these supernatural events unfold. And it’s only a matter of time before Captain Dragunov and Captain Liselotte get their hands on Seth!

Review:

This whole fight with the spectrum ghosts takes a very different turn in this volume, and by that I mean, we basically go no a training montage in the second half of this volume.

We learn who Myr, the drunk big-bearded man, actually is, and what his connection with the forest is. Mellie and Ocoho meet and work together to try to save Seth, though they're both a little confused as to what's going on with him. The main plot progression is that we discover a bit more about what's going on with Seth, where this thing inside him is coming from and what it might do to him.

I think we're getting back to the current time next, and I'm curious. This volume went off a little bit, and I kind of just want to get back to the main stuff.

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

Manga Review: Radiant, Volume 5, by Tony Valente

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: VIZ Media

Release Date: May 2019

Volumes: 11+

Spoilers?: Light.

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

Volume: 1. 4. 6.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Evil creatures called Nemeses fall from the skies and the only ones who can fight them are Wizards—infected ones who survived a Nemesis's corruption. Seth, one of these survivors, vows not only to fight the Nemeses, but to find their mythical nest, Radiant, and destroy it!

Having escaped Rumble Town, Seth, Doc and Mélie are back at the Artemis Institute. With Alma’s help, Seth learns more about his mysterious brother Piodon. But as much as Seth would like to stick around and learn, the search for Radiant has already been put off for too long, so Seth and his friends head for the island continent of the Wizard Knights. There, he discovers a world that’s completely falling apart!

Review:

As this volume starts, Seth decides to go off on his own to see the wizard knights, hoping to continue his hunt for radiant. He comes upon several road blocks on his journey, though, since he's not a wizard knight and isn't allowed in the restricted areas, and he doesn't know what they're fighting at the moment.

He makes a new friend here, Ocoho, who helps him in his quest to get more information on radiant. But, at the same time, the knights are fighting a spectrum nemesis, which is suspicious, and Seth also stumbles upon its starting point. I'm curious to see what's actually behind that.

Melie also confronts him, since she thought they were friends and he left without saying anything, which I thought was very warranted.

This is a really good shonen series, and I'm really enjoying following it so far.

  

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

Manga Review: Radiant, Volume 4, by Tony Valente

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: VIZ Media

Release Date: March 2019

Volumes: 11+

Spoilers?: No.

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

Volume: 1. 3. 5.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Evil creatures called Nemeses fall from the skies and the only ones who can fight them are Wizards—infected ones who survived a Nemesis's corruption. Seth, one of these survivors, vows not only to fight the Nemeses, but to find their mythical nest, Radiant, and destroy it!

Seth finds himself face-to-face with a man named Piodon, who claims to be his brother. Picodon came to Rumble Town to watch the destruction, but upon finding Seth, offers him something to help with his infection. Meanwhile, Grimm and Mélie continue trying to prevent Hameline from destroying the city.

Review:

I don't know how to feel about a couple of things in this volume. Firstly, the reveal of Seth's brother, a lead to his past, which gets very quickly put on hold, with very little information. And then the plot with Hameline goes in a surprising direction for Seth, and then very quickly downhill.

I was really liking the potential between Seth and Hameline, and am upset by how it ended.

The end of the volume, when Seth and Melie go to town for a celebration, encompasses what happened, I think. Everyone on the outside is seeing something impressive and admiring Seth, but he just went through something real and important, and he's not in the mood to deal with their shit. I appreciated that, actually.

I'm curious to see where Seth goes next. He's forming really close friendships, and possibly getting closer to his goal. Along the way, he's definitely growing and learning to define what he wants and discovering more things about himself.

I'm really impressed with this series, and definitely want to keep reading.

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

Manga Review: Radiant, Volume 3, by Tony Valente

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5-4

Publisher: VIZ Media

Release Date: January 2019

Volumes: 11+

Spoilers?: No.

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

Volume: 1. 2. 4.

Goodreads Synopsis:

The world is overrun with monsters called Nemeses—and a young boy infected by one will stop at nothing to defeat them all!

Evil creatures called Nemeses fall from the skies and the only ones who can fight them are Wizards—infected ones who survived a Nemesis's corruption. Seth, one of these survivors, vows not only to fight the Nemeses, but to find their mythical nest, Radiant, and destroy it!

The battle in Rumble Town rages on, and Konrad shows no signs of stopping the onslaught against his own people. Seth, Mélie and Grimm team up to fight Konrad and the Inquisition, but a new opponent enters the fight—Hameline, a Nemeses Tamer! As the fight destroys the city, Rumble Town’s entire Islet risks collapsing! Will Seth and his friends be able to stop the madness and save everyone in time?

Review:

The color pages in this series are so pretty. Again, I have to mention it. The coloring on the covers themselves are gorgeous, too, and I love that we get a bit more of that in the volume.

We're still in the middle of fighting Konrad as this volume starts. The mysterious witch is addressing the town, and she has a story to tell, one that's shocking to the townspeople. It gives Seth some motivation to finish this fight, too, since he'd been going at a normal level up till this point.

Seth has really grown on me. Instead of seeming like just a normal, over-exaggerated kid, he's learned to hold back and yet to do what he needs to, when it's important to fight. He's not afraid to do what he believes is right, and I like that. He also seems like a quick learner, too; after seeing someone do something, he learns and tries it and gets better because of it.

In the second half of the volume, we meet several new characters. They're part of the Inquisition, and they're coming to take control and do what they can for the chaos and impending danger of Rumble Town. I'm intrigued by a few of them, but it's the one at the cliffhanger that has me really interested. I want to see what it means and where this goes next. It was hinted in the previous volume, and I'm really excited by the prospect.

This series has really grown on me. Now I'm actually excited to read the next one.

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

Manga Review: Radiant, Volume 2, by Tony Valente

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5

Publisher: VIZ Media

Release Date: November 2018

Volumes: 11+

Spoilers?: No.

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

Volume: 1. 3.

Goodreads Synopsis:

The world is overrun with monsters called Nemesis—and a young boy infected by them will stop at nothing to defeat them all!

Seth is an aspiring wizard living in a pastoral village under the watchful eye of his mentor. Like all wizards, he is an “infected”: one of the few living creatures that has survived contact with a Nemesis, creatures fallen from the sky that contaminate all they touch. His apparent immunity led him to choose a path that seemed to be a perfect: to become someone who hunts and fights the Nemesis. But Seth longs for a quest that goes beyond the simple hunt for monsters. He wants to find their home, Radiant. Along with other wizards, he travels the world in search of Radiant, under the sinister eye of the Inquisition…

Somewhat better at controlling his powers, Seth and company head for Rumble Town. Their mission is to capture a living Nemesis! But the Inquisition holds Rumble Town in an iron fist, and they’re promising a tantalizing reward to whoever captures Seth! Plots, manipulations, betrayals, a hunt for the infected: the confusion reaches its height when the mysterious bandaged Grimm arrives. Who is he and why does he attack wizards when he himself seems to use magic?

Review:

The artwork in this series is rather pretty, and I love the color pages at the beginning—they're beautiful. The intense moments, and expressions of realization for instance, are really pointed and well done. The fighting loses me a little sometimes, but that might be partly me, since I don't read much action. That's my only complaint, though, regarding the art. The humor is pretty good, too. It's growing on me in general, but the way the punchline is given, and the pauses for effect, are very good. Doc's way of mispronouncing words is a bit annoying, but I think that's just a purposeful character flaw.

Seth is training to better use his fantasia, and how to blend in like a normal wizard. He's determined to jump all in, though, and wants to start hunting nemesis and find radiant, their source. In his journey to discover it, him, Melie, and Doc go to an islet that hates wizards, and end up being part of a town-wide inquisition. It very quickly turns rough, destruction everywhere, and with a stand-off with the town captain. But it looks like they've all got one common enemy.

The first volume was just okay, but this one grew on me. I really like Melie, and enjoy her split-personality, but also how odd she is, and how badly she wants friends. Seth is a good kid, he's smarter than he looks/acts, and I don't mind following him. I'm intrigued by the new characters in this volume, particularly Grimm. I'm looking forward to seeing where this fight goes next, how it wraps up and where that will leave Seth.

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

Manga Review: Radiant, Volume 1, Tony Valente

Rating (Out of 5): ~3-3.5

Publisher: VIZ Media

Release Date: September 2018

Volumes: 10+

Spoilers?: No.

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

Volume: 2.

Goodreads Synopsis:

The world is overrun with monsters called Nemesis—and a young boy infected by them will stop at nothing to defeat them all!

Seth is an aspiring wizard living in a pastoral village under the watchful eye of his mentor. Like all wizards, he is an “infected”: one of the few living creatures that has survived contact with a Nemesis, creatures fallen from the sky that contaminate all they touch. His apparent immunity led him to choose a path that seemed to be a perfect: to become someone who hunts and fights the Nemesis. But Seth longs for a quest that goes beyond the simple hunt for monsters. He wants to find their home, Radiant. Along with other wizards, he travels the world in search of Radiant, under the sinister eye of the Inquisition…

Seth has big goals of defeating Nemesis, but first he must earn the trust of the very villagers he wants to protect—not an easy task when those who use magic are just as mistrusted as the Nemesis they fight and Seth can barely control his monstrous powers! It’ll take more than battle prowess—although it’ll take that too— to get Seth’s quest out of the boonies and into the bigtime!

Review: 

I believe this series is actually from France, so it's not technically manga. (I'm not sure what the word for French comics is...) It reads very much like a normal shonen, though, with very similar artwork.

When I first started this volume, I really did not like Seth. He acts like a dumb brat, thinking he can just go out and defeat these Nemeses, when he's never even seen one before, so doesn't even know what he's looking for. His mentor, Alma, is a stern older sister-type, and I like her. She's trying to keep him under control until he's actually ready, and she realizes the realities of hiding what he can actually do.

When we find out that he's not just a dumb kid, but some kind of prodigy/gifted witch, it kind of changes things. He still tries to jump into everything without thinking any of it through or knowing the consequences or even what he's signing up for... but still.

The first plot of this volume is when Seth jumps down to save the town they live in, after making himself their enemy. I appreciated the twists thrown in during this, and then what it leads to afterward. We meet a few other odd characters as Seth goes on a new adventure, to learn more, and I particularly liked Melie, though Doc seems nice, too.

This was a nice start to a fantasy shonen series. I didn't mind it. Thinking about it, it reminds me a little of Black Clover, in a good way.

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