You are about to read my personal review,hoping to help you appreciate more this manga and generally to share my opinion on this.
First of all,I have a weird habit of starting some mangas or animes,watching 2-3 episodes/reading 4-5 chapters and then putting them on hold thinking that "someother time I'll be more in the mood for it",which is pretty true.Not all animes are for any time.The same goes for Eroica.I started reading it about a year or so ago and then after chapter 4 I put it on hold.It wasn't that I didn't like it,not that,it's just that it wasn't for that occassion.
Now,after a year or so,I decided to read something light-hearted and funny and thought that maybe I should continue on Eroica,for some weird reason.
Now that I have finally gotten back here I am writing this(and thinking that the introduction is a little bit too big,but who cares,for such a manga once must make a grand entrance and I know the Earl gets me,hehe).
Now getting down to the juicy part of the review ...
Starting with the Story...
I've decided to give it an 8 out of 10.
It's a little bit slow to start,talking about volume 1,where you have a group of youngsters that they never appear again after thheir first meeting,which is also their last one.I don't really wanna go how volume 1 starts,all I am gonna say is that the Earl,Dorian is an art thief and obviously gay,and nothing stops him from getting what he wants.
On the other side we have Major Eberbach,aka Iron Klaus,a military man who can't even appreciate art or anything else in life except for the succession of his mission under any circumstances.
So what happens when these two totally opposite people meet and clash?Find out in the story!All I can say is that there are many enjoyable adventures.It's mostly a comedic manga,although it has a few dramatic scenes here and there but don't worry you want get too depressed,since the comic relief is always there and fitted well.I keep mentioning "comedy",but that's cause it has a heavy dose of it,but don't be mistaken,it's not pointless and boring.It has some of the most unpredictable funny scenes,at least they crack ME up so I don't know about you,you just might not have a sense of humor after all...Aside from joking I think that's its biggest potential.Also regarding the story always expect a somewhat "bold" scene between the Earl and the Major,it's totally worth it even if you are not handed any raw scenes like in other Yaoi/shounen ai manga.
Now it's the ... Art!!!I give it a 10 out of 10
I shall explain why down below,I am imagining you don't understand why at first but hey,don't judge a book by its cover or age.
Eroica has a 70s art style.It may not be your cup of tea with all those different styles today and I am not blaiming you.I too at first found a bit...old-fashioned and lacking in proportions,but actually that does not matter at all.It's art style makes it stand out from the rest and the faces are very interesting,plus if you see some colored covers/pages/whatever you find,you'll be amazed.The colors are amazing,so the details,they're like modern pieces of art.Just do a search in google to see what I mean.Very very impressive,even if it lacks realism and is better off without it.
Moving on to the Characters,it is awarded with 10 out 10
The story centers around Earl and Major(as if you didn't already know that).
So it's to be expected that the get most of the screen time.Supporting characters are there to support and offer help,but who cares.I enjoy watching Major on action and the Earl chasing his butt around(although he claims not too).
You may not notice much of a character development,but her who cares when you are having fun,haha.Nah,actually I think that isn't the case.I pretty much believe that it does have character development,although it progresses pretty slowly,but you know,you get to know a few more new things about each character in every volume.
As I have mentioned before,this story relies a lot of comedy,and the characters too are comic,although the Major not so much,but the lines are,so don't expect a lot of dwelling in the past,traumas,psychological problems,abused during childhood etc etc.None of this makes an appearance.It centers more around the relationship of Major and Earl and their interraction.
The Enjoynment Section.
9/10
I don't think that there is much to say here,I've already made it obvious that I enjoy this throught my whole review,so if you're smart enough(or even if you are not) you can tell by now.I am a big fan of comedy and paired up with some shounen ai is superb.Now the final touch is that it's an old manga that has been running for long.I find old mangas very appealing for some reason maybe because of the differences between todays mangas.
What I enjoy most about this though is the Earl's and Major's metting,that happen by chance.I really enjoy those boy x boy times even if they don't show much,but that's the best part,giving you little to taste so you want more.
Overall
It gets a happy 9!
I have a lot of reading to do,so maybe it is too early to write this,but I'll fix it if I have to.I hope it doesn't let me down in the long run.
The only minus I could give to this manga is the absence of the chapters in the right order.Some chapters/volumes are missing,like you are at volume 10 and then you jump directly to 15 or something like that,which is discouraging to keep you going.Add the fact that you can only find online up to volume 20 while currently it has reached 36-37 volumes.
I hope you find this helpful considering my enthusiasm on this review that may be a bit too objective.I might edit it sometime in the future ,feel free to add comments to my profile concerning this,I'd appreciate some feedback to help me improve on my review.
