The Story:
Overall, I LOVE THE STORY! It’s unique and it’s well paced and I just love it. Problems? After the first two chapters the story just DRAAAAAAAGS and it doesn’t have the tension or the mature themes like before. It also reintroduces some pointless characters from the very beginning of the first chapter. I’ll get to them later. But I love the first two chapters but after that it just loses all the things that made it good. After the first chapters the manga just adheres to the same tropes of other manga we have seen a million times. The awkward date, the pointless fanservice, the misunderstandings. Oh god is it just so boring! If you are going to read it be aware of some gore and mature themes. Okay I have said all I can say so let me explain the characters.
The Characters:
I do love the two main protagonists. Both feel natural and work off each other very well. Furuya is funny and his passion is infectious. He is funny when talking about his love of Moe Zombies but he also has a lot of depth when you see what his true intentions are. He’s a character you can root for and like once you get to know him.
Rea is a tragic character that makes you worry about her and care for her well-being. I don’t want to spoil anything but she is a great female lead. In a world full of shitty damsels in distress, Rea feels like a real girl and not just a sex object (though that doesn't stop the occasional panty shot). She is a character I grew emotionally attached to and her plights and troubles affected me emotionally. She is may not be the most “liberated” female, but she just feels natural and yet also feels like a complex and unique character.
The villain, Rea’s father, in the beginning was very cold and dark. There was always an air of malice in him and he felt like a real prick. He was a great villain for the story, being a true monster and always seeming to have dark intentions. However, after the first chapters they change him into a whining douche that parades around with stars around his face. He is played towards comedy rather than as a villain which is where he shined the most.
The supporting cast is incredibly weak in this story. First you have the perverted best friend. Then you have the childhood friend that secretly has feeling for Furuya. Then you have the cold gothic Lolita sister. And finally, the crazy grandfather who may be smarter than he seems. None of these characters are interesting in the least and luckily don’t play any part in the story during the first chapters. After that they become main characters. I feel like my soul is dying.
Overall, I LOVE THE CHARACTERS! Well, the main characters and villain at least. Every other character has no purpose other than to fill a role. But the main characters are awesome and I can live with that.
The Art:
Overall, art is good and I have no complains. MOVING ON!
The Overall:
Overall, Sankarea could have been great but it instead just tried to conform to standard manga formulas for popularity. If you want a short but good read, just read the first two chapters. However, Sankarea continues and will always be my most hated manga of all time. Be aware, I hate it because it made me love it. The adult themes and the limited cast of characters and the excellent pacing and stroytelling were what made it so painful to see it go through the same formulas I had seen so many times before. Thanks for looking at this review and tell me if you found this helpful. Good luck!
The WTF:
Zombie Moe? WTF! And yet, it doesn't feel creepy at all if you read the manga.
The Post Script:
Be aware if you look at my list it will show I haven't read a lot of Sankarea and that is because I don't update it often and I find it tedious to change the chapter listing every time. "Note: This area is only to be used for posting a review of the series after you have seen it. This is not a discussion area. " That made me decide to put this little PS into the review. Just ignore this part if you don't care. Also, nice grammer MAL, u r gud.
