Re: ZERO ~Starting Life in Another World~, Vol. 29

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By Tappei Nagatsuki and Shinichirou Otsuka. Released in Japan as “Re: Zero Kara Hajimeru Isekai Seikatsu” by MF Bunko J. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Dale DeLucia.

I had heard, when I began the 7th arc in this series, that I would not enjoy it as much as the previous ones, as I’ve said in previous reviews. And yet I was unprepared for how much of an absolute grind this book was, especially in the first half. I suppose the reason that everything comes to a grinding halt is to show how important an ally Yoruna is going to be, and how it should be fairly easy to get her on their side, which a lot of people don’t want. But man, this really felt like a lot of running around to pad a word count. There’s also the latest change to Subaru, which also takes in Medium and Al. I get the sense the author is happy that Subaru has grown as a person but also finds it really inconvenient as a storyteller, so finds any excuse to reset things back to “oh no, flail flail”. That said, not without some good things, see below.

Abel’s group has been invited for an audience with Yoruna… unfortunately, Subaru wakes up looking like a ten-year-old child! And he’s not alone, as Medium and Al (who takes it VERY badly) are also trapped in kid bodies… and, it becomes increasingly clear, more immature mindsets as well. This turns out to be the work of the first divine general, Orbart, who offers to turn them back to normal… if they can defeat him in hide and seek. (Tag was suggested, but it may be too difficult.) They manage to find him once, but the second time proves much harder. What’s worse, Subaru has been lulled into a false sense of security, possibly not helped by Rem, and reveals who Louis is to everyone. This goes VERY badly.

The highlight of the book, written to BE a highlight of the book, is Subaru’s nightmarish ten-second loop of death, one where he actually thinks it’s different that Return by Death because he’s just not getting ANYWHERE, it goes on forever, and he’s just constantly being brutally murdered over and over. It’s the shortest loop we’ve ever seen in the series to date, and it fits with his childish regression that he’s going through, which may also be affecting his memory. The reaction of everyone to Louis, meanwhile, is a great worldbuilding way of showing that Subaru does not ALWAYS have to tell everyone everything in order to move on with life, and that in fact hiding an archbishop is usually punishable by death. Lest we forget, the Gluttonies were terrifying, and just because Louis seems to have gotten a brain wipe doesn’t mean it didn’t happen.

Also unfortunately for Subaru, he may not be able to return to adulthood anytime soon, as something goes wrong with his body and this world again, which leads to hideous cliffhanger, and I am hoping a bit more forward progress in the next book. Halfway there.

A Certain Magical Index NT, Vol. 6

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By Kazumi Kamachi and Kiyotaka Haimura. Released in Japan as “Shinyaku To Aru Majutsu no Index” by Dengeki Bunko. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Alice Prowse.

It is something of a shame that the light novels in this series don’t get any love in North America – well, at least the official releases, I’m sure hardcore Index fans are still swearing by the fan TL as they check out Genesis Index’s latest volume. They may be full of gobbledegook, posturing, and sophistry, but they’re very entertaining despite all that. In particular, before I started this review I glanced at my review of the previous book. First I got sad, as I realized we’re down to twice a year, so this gets even further behind the thirteen years it’s already behind Japan. Then I was amused, as I saw all my predictions about what was happening with Touma and what would be happening here, and boy was I wrong. As it turns out, Thor has the right idea, and Touma is not going to be undergoing any character development to become nuanced and realistic. He is a shonen manga hero, and this is a shonen manga series, in prose form. Just punch things righteously, dummy.

We pick up where we left off, with everything in chaos. Touma’s trying to run around and solve everything despite having been shot, and his gunshot wound keeps reopening. Mugino is being confronted with the corpse of her old teammate back from the dead, and … well, it’s Mugino, so you should know that wasn’t really going to work on her. Sorry, Frenda fans, she’s still dead. Accelerator is having to deal with the return of Kakine, who has discovered psychological warfare really works on someone as guilt-ridden as Accelerator is. Kakine’s bug-shaped minions are also chasing after Last Order, Fremea, Hamazura, Takitsubo, and Yoshikawa, an odd little combination. Fräulein Kreutune is going mad because she’s trying not to eat brains and failing. And, most importantly, it’s a cameo from Shokuhou Misaki! She’s in the novels at last! For about a page.

Given that I was very unhappy with Kakine’s return in the last book, I cannot begin to explain how delighted I am with Rhinoceros Beetle 05. Index has already dabbled in “clones of the original gain their own sentience and do different things” with the Misakas, of course, but this is even more old-school shonen, the minion who turns good and risks his very life and soul defending the girls from his former allies. I cheered this whole plotline. I also smiled awkwardly at Touma. His fighting had indeed gotten a lot more clever and analytical, and his idea on how to resolve Fräulein Kreutune’s issue is brilliant. But that has nothing to do with his HEART! It’s all about GUTS! And so yeah, Touma saves the girl, because that is what Touma does. He also has a big shonen “let’s hit each other with fists till we pass out” fight with Thor, who manages to be even MORE shonen. It’s kinda dumb, but you’ll be grinning.

Did I mention there’s a festival? There is! Next time, all the magic folks have gone home for now, so it’s time for an All-Science side book. I’ll keep reading it, even as the ending will likely come out here after I die.

Who Killed the Hero?, Vol. 3

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By Daken and toi8. Released in Japan as “Dare ga Yuusha wo Koroshita ka” by Kadokawa Sneaker Bunko. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Kim Morrissy.

This was well-written, and I enjoyed it, but I have to say that diminishing returns are starting to set in. I am wondering how many times we can go to the well of what it means to be a hero, and how many times we’re going to get a clever identity twist. The bulk of this book is written knowing that the reader will be trying to “work out” what is happening, so there are lots of false clues and real clues scattered throughout. More importantly, though, we’re back with the cast of the first book, and we get to see what they were like as they started out on their journey. Unsurprisingly, the answer is “not great”. They’re abrasive, strong, and somewhat rotten personalities, with the exception of Ares, and he feels like he’s unable to corral them because they’re all so much better than he is. The real plot of this book may be fixing that mindset, which he does thanks to a real swell guy.

In a prologue, we see a princess open a coffin whose contents surprise her. We then cut to Zack, who is walking the city during a memorial festival when he is accosted by the same princess, who asks a very pointed question: Did he kill her brother? We then flash back to Ares and his team setting off to kill the demon lord, passing through Ludonia, where they can get some experience killing monsters and working as a team. Which they need, as they’re horrible at working as a team, mostly as Leon, Maria and Solon dislike each other intensely. Almost wiped out by an ambush, they’re rescued by Carlos, the prince of Ludonia – and the country’s hero, who defends it from demons, and who has an entourage that worships the ground he wanks on. Compared to Carlos, Ares is just this guy, you know? Still, unsurprisingly with this series, there’s more going on than what’s on the surface.

Ares remains the best part of this book. He and the author clearly define hero the same way, but there are others who see “hero” the same way you would define “savior” or “messiah”, and that’s a problem, especially when you have two heroes in the same castle. We also hear about shapeshifters, who can supposedly disguise themselves perfectly as a friend or ally, but who may or may not exist. It should not surprise anyone to learn that we are led to believe a certain thing about the traitorous shapeshifter, then have it go another way, and then have it go a mysterious third way. I felt Carlos’ story was very strong, although not as strong as Ares’. If there’s a weakness in the book it’s Erena, Carlos’ sister and the princess I mentioned earlier. She doesn’t get much to do for plot reasons, and the ending, which is meant to be more ambiguous and less triumphant than the first two books, also reads a bit like the author had hit a word limit.

There’s apparently a fourth book in the series just out in Japan, so apparently we can go to the well at least once more. I did enjoy reading this, but I would like the author to move on to other series, perhaps. Don’t overegg the pudding.