Ranked #3780

Crimson Shell (Manga)

Crimson Shell is a short but very rich story. Combining drama, mystery, a bit of humor, in a supernatural dark setting, it can move and engage the reader, making him care about the main character,Claudia, and wonder about the others.

--There are no spoilers in this review.

I gave a straight 8 to everything:

Story:
Although it contains a fair parcel of action which leads to its climaxes, this is mainly a drama, a very twisted one considering its length. The romance is not cheesy. The twists, the characters and their emotions create its true complexity. Don't get the wrong idea, the story has a great pace, every page reveals something, making it impossible to not turn them and uncover the truth.
While you try to figure out who are the good and bad guys, you'll be surprised by how "grey" this story is. I think that's the author's style, judging from Pandora Hearts, her longer series.

Big THOUGH here: the story could go on. The interesting setting was not fully developed. Also: this story has no "happily ever after", which in fact I think is a good thing.

Characters:
I bow to this author's characters. They're deep and interesting. And I know that because I can't define them with few words, they come to you by their actions and thoughts. We have maybe 7 or 8 supporting characters, and 4 of them have less "panel time" and so you have no development on them, but they all have a reason to be there.
Actual char development, there is Claudia.

Art:
I'm really no art expert, but I can consider it pleasant or unpleasant. Crimson Shell's is ok. Char designs are close to Pandora's ones (or the reverse, since Crimson Shell came first), the mangaka's style is impressive and easily identifiable, though you can notice she progressed a lot on PH, after all Crimson Shell's her first published work.

Enjoyment:
I haven't read a lot of manga, but I took a look to many, and one thing I have to say, both PH and Crimson Shell, are great at attaching the readers. They make me literally want to eat the manga!

Cons:
-You may wish it was longer.
-A somewhat open ending. Ok, it has an open ending, but as short as it is, it's forgiveable. But I warn: it can be a bit disappointing.

Summary:
This series incarnates the very meaning of trust and loyalty along with always present betrayal. Though it's grey, there is an enemy, and from the very beginning you know they are close, but who are they? What is their goal? Why? Who's really on Claudia's side? You'll get those answers.
An one volume story is cheap, a fast and easy read. The pace is good. I recommend it.

Conclusion: It's not overwhelming, but it's generally enjoyable.
If plot twists are your favourite meal, give it a try! For me it totally worth it!


~Personally, I wrote this review because previously I needed one and all feedbacks I had, from all over the internet, were quite negative, so I'm happy I bought the manga and liked it, but it was a complete shot in the dark.
My first review, sorry for the size. Feedback appreciated.~ read more

So - I admit I don´t read much manga, but I´m translating one series by this mangaka, Pandora Hearts. And I browsed around and found Crimson Shell. As I saw it has only 6 chapters, I decided "why not read it?" In the end, the length was the thing that made this series lose a point because it was outstanding.
Story - 9
The story was shockingly outstanding right from the beginning. It was exciting from the start and in the ends it had breath-taking situations which is a great +. Yet after finishing the last chapter I was like "why is this not any longer?" that´s why I gave it a 9
Art - 10
Was outstanding, well-developed at the start and at the end too. It was all-clear, and the whole manga had a bit of a dark-styled feel which I really like. (I wish there would be an OVA for this.)
Character - 9
The point goes down because of the length, again. They seemed awesomly developed, but there weren´t enough chapters to know them well enough.
Enjoyment - 10
As I said, this manga was exciting from the start and even got into the breath-taking zone in the end. So a 10 without any doubts
Overall - 9 - Should definetly be longer. But definetly was amazing!!! read more