About the Mangaka

I couldn’t find anything about Katsura Asuka really, so if you know anything hit the contact me button and drop me a line :)

I have found some things out though, he has a website up and running, though as usual it’s all in Japanese. He also, has made his email address public. It’s a Hotmail one though, so I’m not 100% sure of it’s validity; though it is posted on ANN.

About the Manga

Blood 01 (Manga) Blood 02 (Manga)

To be honest I wasn’t expecting much from this series. While I enjoyed the anime, it wasn’t anything special. I’ve had these sitting on my shelf for ages and only just got around to reading them.

I was surprised at just how good this series has the potential to be. It basically tells the story that was shown in the anime, only it does it differently. Things are changed, new characters, and a swifter flow to the story.

Asuka’s art is nice, what’s more it’s consistent with only minor problems. I didn’t like the way the hands were drawn, and there’s a slight inconsistency with Haji. In one panel his bandages cover his entire hand, so it looks like he’s wearing mittens. However in other panels the bandages cover each finger individually. It was a minor thing, but it caught my eye due to how many times it happened.

The other great thing about Asuka’s designs are the faces. Saya especially has loads of facial expressions and all are done really well. Charles is another with excellent facial expressions. Both are able to evoke the emotions in the reader that matches the way they’re looking.

Story wise it’s just as good as the art!! While the story is pretty much set in stone, Asuka really does a rewrite with it, showing us a darker more gritty version of the story.

Certain ‘soppy’ events in the anime are replaced by a more violent and harsher reality. I like this more than the softer sides that were shown in the anime. Though this doesn’t mean the manga is all doom and gloom, it does have a few moments of what I suppose you can say are tenderness, but these are all preludes to the despair to come.

The manga seems to be focusing on the fact that it’s Saya’s destiny to fight, and that all those close to her pay the price, in blood.

Volume one focus on Saya dealing with her loss of memory, and all the problems that come with it, as well as being the sister to the most sought after boy in school. However as the volume progresses it takes a violent turn, and shifts to her trying to come to terms with who she is really.

I loved this volume since it showed Saya as both the demon, and the human. How the two sides are conflicting, and how she handles it. This was great, since it makes Saya more real, though it also perfectly allows Asuka to show off Saya’s facial expressions.

Volume two takes a darker turn of events, showing the price that the people around Saya have to pay. As well as the price that Saya has to pay in watching those around her suffer, and usually by her own hand.

While both volumes have their dark sides, volume two is my favourite since it shows off the future that Saya is going to be living, and ends with a killer cliffhanger!!

This is another release by Dark Horse, and of course it has a Dark Horse price tag ($10.95/£7.50), and as always it lives up to the price tag. The cover art is stunning, and has a nice glassy covering. The paper quality is the usual generic off-white horrid stuff, so it doesn’t live up to the standard I think manga should have (hell if Yen Press can use good paper then so can every other company!!).

Translation wise it feels smooth and consistent, and what’s more it doesn’t feel as though it’s been edited or re-written, which is great.

Both volumes have a page or two of 4-koma omake’s, and volume one has the added bonus of a taster of volume one of the novel (which I plan to review).

I have no qualm’s about adding this series to my Essential Read list, though I am hoping that this carries on in future volumes.

Where to Buy

If you’re in the UK do not buy this series locally, or even Amazon it’ll cost a fortune.

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