New releases in this week’s review column include the first volume of Battlefront of the Great Powers, the introduction of a new hero in Solo Leveling, and the first Frieren light novel. Check out our thoughts on these and other volumes in this week’s Reader’s Corner!

Battlefront of the Great Powers (Vol. 1) • The Color of the End: Mission in the Apocalypse (Vol. 2) • Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End ~Prelude~ • Handyman Saitou in Another World (Vol. 7) • Solo Leveling (Vol. 15) • The Unimplemented Overlords Have Joined the Party! (Vol. 3)

Battlefront of the Great Powers, Vol. 1: Rekkyo Sensen

In 2206, the earth’s ecology is all but destroyed, with barely a hundred years left until humanity will likely die off. Only a handful of countries remain, guided under the watchful eye of the great AI known as Gaia. When asked which species poses the greatest danger to the human race, Gaia responds that it is humanity itself; and so those left alive undertake to, ahem, thin out the population so that the species itself may survive longer. And the way the nations hit upon to decide who will die so that others might live iiis…a tournament arc!!! Okay, when I read that, I was about ready to shut the book then and there. But I kept reading, and it did kind of get better. The background plot threads are rather tantalizing: Why is Gaia behaving the way it is, and what are its real goals? What kind of wheeling and dealing will take place behind the scenes between the various nations and their peoples? Unfortunately, the action at the forefront is somewhat less interesting so far: A group of people who possess so-called Theseus Cells are the next step in human evolution, being able to adapt and evolve on the fly—and thus capable of some rather generic superpowered combat. The one saving grace here is the giant question mark over how the series will handle the idealism of its protagonist. Hasuichi Nishizono, Japan’s delegate to the Nation Extinction Tournament, wants in essence to come out on top in a battle royale without letting anyone actually die. Volume one, ending in what is presumably the middle of Nishizono’s first fight, leaves open the question of whether his seemingly impossible goal actually has a chance or not. If that’s not enough to keep you interested, then this gritty, violent, and occasionally graphic manga is probably not for you. ~ Dr. Steve

Battlefront of the Great Powers is published by Yen Press.

---

The Unimplemented Overlords Have Joined the Party!, Light Novel Vol. 3

Volume three of The Unimplemented Overlords Have Joined the Party! feels like the middle volume of a work—the separate pieces are developing through their tales as all parties begin to converge: Party 7 continues to grow closer together and as formidable players; the Crest Guild continues on their attempts to “win” this game, while drawing in someone very close to Party 7’s Rao and Reilan; Misaki inches closer to finding Shuutarou; and he and the overlords continue with their own OP lives. I can’t say that all of these routes are equally compelling; there are dozens of characters now, and some—like various members of Party 7 or the newly-introduced Byakuren—don’t have enough uniqueness to them to hold my interest. Really, I care most about that lovable lead, Shuutarou, and his relationship with the overlords, and their story together is less emphasized than in the first two volumes. Still, this remains a lovely read, primarily because it’s such an optimistic, positive story for placing its characters in a “death game.” The artwork that accompanies the light novel is beautiful, and I’m attached to those characters who do manage to stand out. A lesser volume than previous ones, perhaps, but a worthwhile read nonetheless. ~ Twwk

The Unimplemented Overlords Have Joined the Party! is published by Yen Press.

READ Reviews of The Unimplemented Overlords Have Joined the Party!: Vol. 1 // Vol. 2

---

The Color of the End: Mission in the Apocalypse, Manga Vol. 2

Left lonelier than ever, Saya starts volume two of the gorgeous manga, The Color of the End: Mission in the Apocalypse, by…returning an overdue book. It’s retrieved by a robot, of course, and leads to a “sad robot” story, the kind that anime and manga do so well. This is stuff of melancholy and meaningfulness, and it’s lovely. It also leads into a story about humans, which are what Saya is looking for on her mission, giving another opportunity for a melancholy flashback and hopefulness ahead. I’m really loving that mixture of those two seemingly discordant elements—sadness and hope—that work together so well in this story of the apocalypse and a search for survivors. The artwork remains beautiful desolate as the story of what humans did to lead to their near-extinction and how they tried to recover continues to unfold. Volume two adds a new adventure, one that my heart hopes has a good ending. However, for that to happen, I get the feeling that this series will be coming to a conclusion relatively soon; here’s hoping that we get far more volumes to explore this beautiful and devastated world where, as is hinted at in the first two volumes, hope somehow endures. ~ Twwk

The Color of the End: Mission in the Apocalypse is published by Yen Press.

READ The Color of the End: Mission in the Apocalypse Vol. 1 Review

---

Handyman Saitou in Another World, Manga Vol. 7

When I read the eighth volume of Handyman Saitou in Another World—which I described in my review as “thrilling”—I realized that I was missing “something.” A new arc has seemingly already started, and there was a character I didn’t recognize (a magical staff). I realized that I had skipped volume seven entirely, but even so, volume eight caused me very little confusion; now, going back to volume seven, I realize why, since its chapters are basically a respite between arcs. The last one of these is quite lovely, and focuses on the friendship between Morlock and a new friend he makes. But the others dive into the occasional fanservice-heavy parts of the story, including a “humorous” tale about prostitution. I could have done without those. Still, the art in this series remains very special, and the last part of the volume—featuring both the Morlock story and the introduction to the exciting new arc—remind readers of why this is one of the best isekai stories in all manga. ~ Twwk

Handyman Saitou in Another World is published by Yen Press.

READ Reviews of Handyman Saitou in Another World: Vol. 1 // Vol. 2 // Vol. 3 // Vol. 4 // Vol. 5 // Vol. 6 // Vol. 8

---

Solo Leveling, Vol. 15: Side Stories 2, Manhwa

I found volume fourteen of Solo Leveling—the first of these two “side stories” releases—to be a fun addition to the tale. But volume fifteen, which is the second one and functions as a direct link between the original series and the spin-off, Ragnarok is a complete disappointment. It’s hollow, setting a very shallow stage for the spin-off featuring Jinwoo’s son, Sooho. The first half of the volume shows Sooho as a toddler, and it’s admittedly quite humorous as he immediately shows himself to be Jinwoo and Haien’s son (their marriage and Sooho’s birth are among a number of major life events covered in this volume). The latter half comes after another time skip, with Sooho much older and entering a similar challenge as Jinwoo faces when he became OP, though the volumes buzzes through it much more quickly and without establishing Sooho as worth rooting for. Primarily, we’re meant to cheer for him because he’s Jinwoo’s son; his arrogance, which he shares with his father, doesn’t have time to “grow” on us. Yet ready or not, Ragnarok is coming! But will we care? The illustrations remain lush and rich, with Disciples nearly matching DUBU’s artistry, but the characterization and storytelling are lacking here, and while the spin-off may take the time to develop the next story out properly, this shallow link between the tales may be prescient of a sequel that isn’t worth reading. At the very least, I know this volume isn’t—not as anything more than wish fulfillment for readers and a cash grab to set up a whole new adventure for the Sung Family. ~ Twwk

Solo Leveling is published by Ize Press.

READ Reviews of Solo Leveling: Vol. 3 // Vol. 6 // Vol. 7 // Vol. 8 // Vol. 9 // Vol. 10 // Vol. 11 // Vol. 12 // Vol. 13 // Vol. 14

---

Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End ~Prelude~, Light Novel

Is Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End ~Prelude~, the side-story light novel addition to the Frieren series, ultimately inconsequential? I asked myself that repeatedly while reading the five short stories that comprise the work, with one each focusing on Fern, Stark, Lawine and Kanne, Aura the Guillotine, and Frieren herself. And in part, that assessment is true because this thin novel does what most manga side story collections do—it provides us new material for favorite characters, but is careful not to impact the plot of the story; in fact, Prelude doesn’t really even give us new insights. Take the Aura story, for instance: It’s one of my favorites from this collection (whereas I found Fern’s to probably be the worst, as it’s a bit of rehash from the series proper), building toward a possible character revelation, but it ultimately doesn’t go that far. It can’t, after all. These are stories that are “supervisory canon.” That said, they do a fine job of living within those confines. As the manga’s writer, Kanehito Yamada, himself says, Prelude’s author (Mei Hachimoku) has a deep understanding of the series. She carefully tackles the challenge of making stories that can’t really add anything new to the tale, nor define characters in ways they haven’t already been defined. To do so, Hachimoku-sensei places the characters in situations that pull the best out of their personalities—Lawine and Kanne working together (while bickering), Stark acting his noble self, etc. And because most of these characters are wonderful, the stories themselves are worth reading for Frieren fans, even if they don’t add much. The exception is the final story, which is a standout, capturing the tone and meaning of the original work very well. This brisk read is worth purchasing just for that tale, but the others are enjoyable as well. Inconsequential? Possibly. But the beauty of Frieren is that even the least essential stories in this world are full of charm, depth, and heart. ~ Twwk

Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End ~Prelude~ is published by Yen Press.

---

“Reader’s Corner” is our way of embracing the wonderful world of manga, light novels, and visual novels, creative works intimately related to anime but with a magic all their own. Each week, our writers provide their thoughts on the works they’re reading—both those recently released as we keep you informed of newly published works, and those older titles that you might find as magical (or in some cases, reprehensible) as we do.