Review copy kindly provided courtesy of Yen Press

About the Mangaka

Sorry, but I couldn’t find any info on KangHo Park or HaNa Lee. If you have anything on them please use the Contact Me page above to let me know.

About the Manga

This is one I’d been following originally under the Ice Kunion label, and was glad to see it being released again.

Yet I have to admit that after four volumes I still can’t decide if I like it or not. I seem to flow between liking and hating hehe. For me the biggest problem is the art style of Park. He (or she) has a unique drawing style that takes some getting used to. And while it certainly fits the story, I can’t help but at times, feel it would have been better if it had been drawn in a more normal style.

However this doesn’t detract from the fact that at times the art is stunning. and he has grown a lot as an artist over the volumes. Comparing the art between volume one and four you’ll see what I mean. The art in volume four is cleaner and sharper, than in volume one.

However for me, it’s Lee’s story that makes this series worth following. I’ve loved following Chiwoo as he tries to find his dad, as he comes to terms with his origins, and finds his friends, and enemies.

I finally figured out something though, it was something that had been bugging me for a while. There’s no real love interest in this series, usually we get a token girl whose in love with the lead, and tags along causing mayhem. There’s none of that in this series however.

This could be a good thing if it’s handled right, however the love aspect usually adds a needed element of light relief. Without this it has be included another way, otherwise the series will become bogged gown in seriousness

Chiwoo is an interesting character who initially annoyed the hell out of me, though now he’s growing on me more and more.

The thing I really like about this series is also how they’ve included how aspects of the story were in real history, not just in fantasy. This shows that Lee has spent a lot of time researching the elements he wants for his story, and put a lot of care into his writing. Keeping it close to the original, but still giving it the fantasy twists.

Yen return again with another awesome release (damn I’m beginning to sound like a broken record, just once for a change I want to say they suck lol).

The translation flows well, though I have to admit I did find the shrinked text annoying at times, usually because there was no need to shrink it, and it has the occasional gutter problem.

Overall though, it’s a great release. The cover art is awesome, and the inside colour page is even better, though I wish they’d made it a double page poster, that would of been awesome!!

Where to Buy

The Book Depository and Waterstones as always, or you can support Yen in the UK by buying from the official supplier directly, over at Little, Brown