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CW: Very questionable portrayal of minor, or minor-like, characters.

Let me preface by saying that part 4, Diamond is Unbreakable, is what I consider to be the worst part in the original timeline, so I was quite apprehensive when part 8 was first announced. Having said that, Jojolion shows in many ways how Araki has improved as a mystery writer, yet at the same time, still falls in some of the usual pitfalls when it comes to his writing in general.

Set in the town of Morioh but the new timeline, JoJolion stars Jousuke, an amnesiac man who gets adopted by the Higashikata family after he gets ... found, naked, buried nearby. However, unlike part 4, which was more of cat-and-mouse thriller, this is more of an amateur sleuth mystery. In fact, don’t get mistaken, unlike part 7 which (up to a certain extent) could be considered a remake of part 1, JoJolion is so separated from its original counterpart that you could even start reading it as a standalone if you wanted to.

“This is a story about breaking a curse.”

So starts JoJolion. A strong start, and one that I’d easily put among the strongest in the series. Speaking of, let’s start with the positives!

Unlike part 4, which tended to meander a lot during the middle when it came to its core mystery, part 8 starts from the beginning with it and most chapters tend to advance it in a significant matter. It also has one of the best female characters I’ve seen by Araki in Yasuho, proving to be resourceful, plot significant, and likable. And last but not least, the rock humans make for good antagonists, being threatening, having interesting backstories, and being an integral part when it comes to Jousuke’s past.

However, the longer the part goes on, the more its flaws become apparent. Outside of Yasuho, there are no likable characters in the main cast, which, sure, could be ignored, but a bigger sin is that they’re inconsequential as well. In fact, with the exception of Joubin and Tsurugi, this is probably the most useless cast out of any parts so far, they having no part at all in the story even when their powers would have been really useful in certain situations. Moreover, when it comes to the mysteries themselves, so many get introduced along these chapters, yet few if any have some kind of payoff.

Who or what caused the bite marks in Jousuke at the beginning? What relation, if any, do they have with Stand abilities? What’s the nature of the curse they’re trying to break? Whatever happened to Yasuho’s hair clip animal? Etc.

None of them provide an answer (or at least an acceptable one), in fact, you could even argue whether they actually broke the curse or not by the end; and while you can just shrug it with “Araki forgot”, let’s remember that this part is not your typical action manga, it’s a mystery, and as such, you need to be more careful when it comes to answering these mysteries. Even more so when, sure, today, it's less of an issue since you can binge the part completely if you want, but I shudder thinking how people who were waiting for months for new chapters felt when this was the payoff.

All in all, while an overall improvement over part 4, I still can’t recommend JoJolion. And by the way the synopsis of part 9 is written (coupled with how inconsequential to the original timeline part 4 was), I could even say that you can safely skip this part.

Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of the Light is, unsurprisingly, the manga adaptation of the eponymous first game in the Fire Emblem franchise. In it, Marth, prince of Altea, has to escape his kingdom after his father gets killed in a fight against the neighboring kingdom of Dolhr. A couple years later, however, his new home is being threatened again and so he, along with several new allies, must take up arms to bring peace to the continent, while also dealing with an ancient evil.

Taken by itself, I’d say this is a fine manga. The pacing is adequate, moving fast enough keep the ... reader entertained, yet slow enough to not feel rushed for the most part. The main characters get enough development to fulfill their roles, and we have quite the variety when it comes to them. And I’d say on the whole that the biggest disappointment comes from the art itself, which is not so much that it looks bad but dated, not surprising given that it came out in the early 90s. However, when evaluating it as an adaptation, it’s a whole different story.

This is probably one of the most faithful videogame adaptations I’ve seen, and in a good way. The manga manages to capture several of the mechanics of the game, but unlike other series who mostly just lampshade their source, in this case, they’re adapted in a way that actually makes sense for the media and the story it’s trying to tell. For example, the game mostly having Boss maps instead of Route maps is translated as Marth wanting to spare as much bloodshed as possible by going for the generals. The main characters in the manga? Mostly the good units of the game (though most of them make an appearance). There’s even references to the durability system, with the characters breaking and/or replacing their weapons as the story goes on, explained by them getting worn down battle after battle. But don’t think this is just a 1-to-1 adaptation, there are several additions to the lore as well, getting extra backstory on some characters, relations with others, and even new developments later on in the story.

If you played the original game, or are interested in the franchise at all, give this a try, as you could argue it’s the best version of this story. And if you don’t, I still recommend it as it’s still a serviceable fantasy manga even on its own.

Versailles of the Dead starts simple. The main character, Albert, is accompanying his sister Marie Antoinette as she makes her trip to meet her future husband when they get attacked by zombies. Unfortunately, she dies, so as her twin, he decides to take her place to ensure the alliance between France and Austria. And I know what you’re thinking, this is just going to be a gender-bent historical story where Albert is trying to hide his identity.

And that is where you’re wrong.

Not only is he found out pretty much the next chapter, shifting the story to trying to find the missing pieces of the Diamon ... Necklace instead (which is a scandal that historically happened way after she got into power), but don’t confuse this with, say, Le Chevalier D’Eon or Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, where it’s mostly a historical setting with the occasional supernatural element. This manga is quite the opposite, focusing instead on the supernatural while taking quite a few liberties with its historical materials.

This coupled with an uninteresting cast, “Marie Antoinette” being evil for evil’s sake, and the uneven pacing should give you a good idea of what’s it like?

Is Versailles of the Dead good? No.

So, why am I still recommending it? Because it’s fun.

First of all, the art is gorgeous. Not only on the main characters themselves or the costumes, which are pretty good, but on the monster designs as well. In fact, it could easily be argued that they are the best when it comes to art style.

The plot itself, while uneven, has a strong start that becomes zanier and zanier the more it goes along, and while the cast itself sucks for the most part, I do have to admit that it has what I consider the best representation of Louis XVI that I’ve seen.

There is a fair amount of action as well, and relatively low amount of gore, which should make this an easy to read and accessible manga as well.

All in all, it is dumb fun, with a huge emphasis on the dumb, but fun nonetheless, so if you can just relax and turn your brain off for a few hours, you’ll have a great time.

In many ways, Azure Striker Gunvolt (the anime) reminds me of MegaMan X – The Day of Sigma, not only in that they’re both based in very similar games, but in that this OVA serves more as a companion to the main game than anything else, showing basically the tutorial and how the main characters get to meet each other for the first time. However, when evaluated by itself, the OVA falls flat. At times, it is vague on terms and concepts of the setting, while also not really showing a complete story, giving more airs of a pilot than anything else.

If you have already ... played the game, or are interested in trying it, this will be a nice watch. But if you don’t, you won’t be missing on much by skipping it.