Most folks, after spending years honing their craft, improve at whatever they set out to do. Some with marginal skills may never be great, but can at least reach “competent.” For instance, I was never going to be a concert clarinetist, but when I was practicing 4 hours a day, I got better.
Some people, though, become less good, for any number of reasons. There may be less of a drive to excel; time crunches, over-extension, professional commitments, life all take their toll on some people. And a few just run out of something to say. You can see this in bands, particularly. They start out life all young and angry and edgy, but by the third album extolling the virtues of fatherhood and married life you’re ready to vomit at the blandness of their work. ^_^
And some people…well, some people just get worse.
All of which is to say that the “creative” team known as Kaishaku has absolutely surpassed themselves in crappily executed crap with the creation of Zettai Shoujo Seiiki Amnesium (絶対少女聖域アムネシアン).
I won’t bother summarizing the plot because, frankly, there is no point. The plot serves as the thinnest possible frame around a series of service-y violence, much of it sexual, against the ever-popular punching bags of Himeko and Chikane.
Amnesium is a blivet of a manga, filled to the brim with fetishes, rape, mostly-nude, but you know, not *totally* nude nudity, sexual harassment, more rape, more fetishes and more sexual harassment.
Kaishaku’s writing has regressed to the point that I either have to imagine them chained to desks, staring helplessly at an editor holding a whip, mumbling, “rape Himeko, okay, rape Chikane, okay, okay, okay, okay, okay” or sitting around in the asylum slavering. Because, frankly, this iteration is just…sad. Himeko had a sister Chikane, but she died and now a person who looks and sounds *just* like Chikane-oneesama, with the name Chikane, has arrived, but isn’t Chikane-oneesama, has unsisterly intentions, but may have been the one to kill her sister. /mumble/okay, okay, okay, okay/mumble/
The art is no better than it ever has been, so any action scene is hard to parse, but since they are all the same – attempted rape, Himeko’s and/or Chikane’s clothes are shredded (crotches are miraculously never visible, of course) fighting occurs, Chikane wins when Himeko commands her to – it doesn’t really matter anyway. Whee.
Ratings:
Service: 10
Overall: 2, but only so there’s somewhere down to go for Volume 2
Today’s book was sponsored by LFB-in-training and Okazu superhero Dan P.! You are so getting these Dan. You need them. You *want* them. ^_^
Ah me…I was nodding and laughing the entire time I was reading this. So much truth, and such a waste. For a brief time (approximately two chapters or so), I really had hopes for it.
However, it’s exactly as you say – Kaishaku has only gotten worse and worse as time has gone on, and looking at this, it really does make you wonder how they managed to arrive here after so many years of making manga.
I would sort of disagree on the part of the art since their art really does seem to have improved…though that doesn’t excuse the crap they put in this story. Seriously, it should just be called “Chikane Fanservice” and it would still accurately convey what was in this.
Thank you so much for this review. I know how painful it must have been to had to have read Amnesium, but this was a seriously great review. I couldn’t stop myself from laughing during the entire read.
This review made my day!
This review is so beautifully acerbic that I shed tears of joy as I read it. Thank you for that.
As a Kannazuki no Miko fangirl, and someone who really liked the Himiko/Kaon subplot in a certain other story…
…and someone who scanlated this manga despite her low abilities…
…I can only agree and think your review is spot on. There are scary elder gods out there who’d reject Kaishaku as being too nutty.
I have browsed this volume, and had almost the same thought you did, I really did question if Kaishaku were chained to a desk, ‘forced’ to make horribly fan-service type stuff while ripping away any semblance of intelligence the main characters had going for them in the first place. I like the characters Chikane and Himeko, and now the latest Kaishaku monstrosity really makes me question their motives. What the **** were they thinking/ doing, et cetera, and who knows? You said it very well in your accurate review.
I’ve said this before, but Kaishaku should never be allowed to write manga, just draw. Could we really be staring at Steel Angel Kurumi as the pinnacle of their writing simply for the fact that it made sense?
@Serge – I am not even sure about drawing. Their action scenes are impossible to follow, they are total messes.
Yes, I do believe that Steel Angel Kurumi might well be the pinnacle of their career. At least, for those of use who desire stories with some basic amount of sense and style.
Some of us desire those two, and liked KnM just fine ;)
But either way, I think we can all agree that they’re going downhill rapidly. When there even were 2chan threads complaining about the awful quality, you know something hit rock bottom.