About the Mangaka

No info on either Kakinuma Hideki or Tsurugi Yusuke

About the Manga

junk force 03

All things told I did really enjoy this series, however due to it being severely incomplete it end very badly, without answering any questions.

As this was the third and final volume of the novelisation I had high expectations. Sadly it never comes even close to living up to them.

One of the key elements I was looking forward to getting the explanation of was the name Junk Force. While Hideki explains it in his afterword, there’s no explanation in any of the volumes.

Like the previous two volumes this one is collection of different stories, though the underlying main these of the war against mars continues. Sadly it’s never really drawn out, except in one story where it’s mentioned and used. Though in truth the story could have been just as good without the mention. Reading that chapter gave me the impression that it’s sole use in this chapter was point the gang in the right direction.

Despite this however I have to admit that his stories did connect better this volume, and had a better flow consistency to them.

However the one thing I noticed after reading all three volumes again is that there is no real development in the characters. Sure they move through the story, but their relationships with each other, and their personalities are stagnant and none changing.

At first I didn’t see it as bad, but after three volumes that lack of development was really bad.

Sometimes characters don’t need development since they’re fully developed from the outset, and have a different roll in the story. Age from Heroic Age is a prime example. He’s fully developed from the outset, and while he appears to be the lead, it’s really Dianeira, and Age is her support character that pushes her to develop.

Unfortunately none of the characters in Junk Force fill this role. I suppose with more volumes to it they would have developed, but as there’s only three of them the lack of development is really evident.

I also find the way that the girls treat Louis a bit off, it’s hard to tell just what they think of him, but mostly I got the impression they thought of him as a slave that fixes their tank and does other chores around the place.

Sadly since there’s no continuation of the story it leaves you hanging in a big way, even more so since Hideki goes on to talk about what is due to come up in the fourth volume.

DrMaster actually did a pretty damn good job this time, only a few ransom mistakes, but nothing that really hindered the flow of the story. A huge step forward from the previous volume. Also they brought the italics back for the opening paragraphs of the chapters. Which as I said last time is needed.

Sadly, despite enjoying this series I’m taking it off my essential read list. While I do think it’s an excellent series, the fact that there’s no progression of the main story and it being incomplete, I can’t really call it essential. That said I do think it’s a series well worth investing in, so long as your aware of what you’re getting into.

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