Black Torch

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*SPOILER FREE REVIEW*

Black Torch! A manga I picked up when the first chapter came out because I heard that it strongly resembles Bleach. I loved Bleach but it got really bad afterwards, so if a manga that has Bleach vibes just came out, Why not pick it up? And my decision turned out to be a correct one!

Story:
While not something "VERY" original, it's still pretty darn intresting. A boy who can understand animals saves a cat who he later finds out is a legendary Momonoke that has beeen sealed away for a long time. After a couple of events our MC Azuma Jirou acquires the ... momonokes power, who's name by the way is Ragou.

The story is about an organisation who decide to have Jirou join them to keep a eye on him and Ragou. Jirou joins a team which consists of a girl and a "four eye", the team's name is Black Torch.

So as you guys can see it's not very original, but the execution is on point which makes following the story intresting and not to predictable, something that alot of new Shounen titles are.

It will probably improve and I will update this review later on but for now it's a solid:

7/10

Art:

The art is fantastic, Kubo Tite (Bleach author) used to be a brilliant artist but his arts quality declined throughout the years and ended on a low note. But the art in Black Torch so far is magnificent and especially the double pages, which are breathtaking.

Not a 10 because it can be improved slightly with the background in some panels where the background is just white, but it will definitely improve with time.

9/19

Characters:

Again not original but not badly excecuted. Jirou and Rago are cool characters so you will probably enjoy these 2 characters. The glasses guy (can't remember his name) is alot like Uryuu from Bleach or Sasuke from Naruto. That dosen't mean that he is a bad character tho, he is right now a character that is pretty strong and he easily annoyed by the MC, but he has potential but so far nothing speciall. Let's hope that he dosen't turn out like Sasuke or Uryuu later on.

The main girl is called Ichicka, has a bit of a temper but nothing that is to annoying to be honest. She has a nice design if your're into that kinda stuff. But what I like from here is that 6 chapters in she's already eager to do something and tries to do everything in her power to help out. Which is nice cause alot of shounen girls are useless from the start and doesn't realise that until the end of the series (I'm looking at YOU SAKURA).

8/10

Enjoyment:

Now the thing is I know that this isn't super original, but it's very entertaining. It's not a go happy manga but dosen't take itself to seriously all the time and can have a few comedic moments. To put it simply; It's gives of those early Bleach vibes. Which is a positive thing!

I'm positive that this is the next big thing in Shounen Jump SQ and it can be adapted into an anime within 3-4 years if a studio is quick. But if you're looking for a new shounen manga that isn't as shounenish as the most things published in Shounen Jump today, then this is definitely worth a read!

STRONG 8/10

sometimes black torch is like pow! and other times it's like bang! so yeah it's pretty epic. The art is by far some of the best on offer and the action scenes really jump out at you. The story is short with only 5 volumes which is a bit sad as the world could really have been expanded but also fair as the story wasn't stretched out but condensed, if a little too much. Our main character Jiro is your typical bottomless stomached dumb protag with his run of the mill popular smart guy, hot chick and cool old dude team. Rago the cat he ... picks up is a pretty chill dude and has a basic me no like human then me like human character arc, he's also pretty strong. The story follows Jiro as he tries to process all that's happened to him after this demon cat thing merged with him. Also Jiro can talk to animals for some reason. So basically there are a bunch of ninja and the kill demon things called mononoke and Jiro gets caught up in this after fusing with one. Jiro's gramps is a ninja as well if you didn't guess by the fact that this is as basic as it comes with the upside of being drawn by Michelangelo.

His resemblance to Bleach made me create a kind of "tie" with this manga. The art is very pleasing and its universe provides a rewarding experience.

This does not exclude the amount of clichés and empty characters in some issues.

I hoped that Jirou's growth would come from his relationship with his grandfather, which really put me down. But still, his ability to act in pairs with Ragou leaves the reader content, for one does not nullify the other's abilities...

I hoped that the relationship between Ichika and Jirou would grow into maturity for both of them, but the support they gave to the supporting character through ... Reiji served for both of them to have script support.

So i just finished the last vol. today (at work lol) and i have to say i enjoyed it ,but for different reasons that i had originally thought. I was expecting this to be a long running shonen ,like bleach or naruto and found out after reading the first 3 vol. that it wasn't going to go that route. If this manga is better off for it , is left for discussion ,but for what we got i have to say it was very enjoyable and compressed ( which makes it easier to share with friends). Our protagonist is very likeable and since the length ... of this manga , learns rather fast and isn't heading down the usual cliches , like having 4 different girls hovering over him or learning something only to ignore it in the next chapter. The side characters are also well fleshed out and have a good and memorable design (especially Ichika :). I found the story to be well structured ,but you could have done at least twice as much with it. All in all i can recommend it to almost anybody with love for the medium but especially to anyone who liked bleach a lot but thought it should have been shorter.

Mangwha such as Black Torch have always attracted me for its blend of warrior action, culture, and mythology. Recently I finished reading the first issue of Black Torch and found it to be a perfectly well established mangwha that has the potential to outclass Bleach and Naruto. The story has been superb and the writer delivers readers with a consistency in novelty and creative ingenuity. The art is unique on its own and complements the story very well, each panel and shot of the comic flows well with each setting to deliver to readers an articulate concept of the situation and mood. The author goes ... beyond expectation to deliver to the story with strong historical and cultural ties connected to modern times. Overall the story of this Mangwha was excellently assembled with its eloquent story and aesthetic artwork.

Most of the people will say that Black Torch is Similar to Bleach , Yes it is similar.

some of the characters are exactly same and at first it seems very predictable like bleach fights, but its not like that ,this Manga is full of surprises and I think this is one of the best arts I've seen and it's just keeps getting better.
The manga follows a story about a boy named Jiro in the Universe where exists not only humans but also mononokes. Later you will se how jiro connects to a mononoke , I don't want to spoil you so see the rest yourself ... the story is really intresting.

I strongly recommend this manga for people in love with Action, Shonen manga.

Ill keep this short just like the manga.The story was nothing new,it wasn't something exceptional and neither was it something subpar.The author somehow managed to cram in quite a bit of lore that made sense to me.While the characters were also rather generic and fell into very common archetypes were memorable and had quite enjoyable backstories.The interactions between the characters really stood out to me while reading this especially that of Rago and Jiro.The chemistry between the two was nice and I absolutely adored Shiba's character as the father figure of the group.Although there are such positives they do fall short in their individuality ... and came off as somewhat unoriginal due to their archetypes.The art is probably my favorite part of this entire manga.I'm not well versed at all in the techniques used in drawing manga but I do understand flow of motion and perspective.These points were handled masterfully and the character designs were a bit unoriginal to be fair but so incredible to look at.The action scenes had an impeccable sense of motion and the character designs of full power Amagi,Rago and Jiro were drop dead gorgeous.Paralels to Bleach have been drawn in terms of the art but I feel like it has a lot more similarity to Tokyo Ghoul.The ridiculously detailed character designs and the accentuating background lend a lot to the enjoyment of the series as a whole,As previously mentioned the manga isn't anything '"new" or "original" but it still managed to hook me and keep me interested.I found myself zoning out and losing track of time as I squealed like a fan-girl at the artwork.This was not something I saw myself reading at first but color me impressed.It's short has outstanding art and a flow to it that will end up dragging you by the tail if something along the lines of Bleach or Ao no excorcist fall under your preferences.In short this is definitely worth a read and it's a bloody shame that it got axed.

Here is my first review.
After seeing the premise and giving it a go, I find it very enjoyable.

The plot of the story is fairly simple, with a seemingly powerful main protagonist and a good strong starting point. But it still fall short in consistency and will feel at times weak and predictable. Yet this isn't problematic but should be noted that it's not a ground breaking manga with a superb story. I would qualify it as being on the upper tier of generic cliché story, meaning it keeps you going although you've seen many stories like that.

The art is very well executed for this story, ... fitting would be the word. A bit messy at times and more exaggerated for battles. With dynamic panels and nice framing. Proportions are not going crazy for no reason and background isn't a problem as whether there is one or not doesn't feel out of place.Facial expression is well done, and we feel the intensity of the emotions of the character, they make sense and feel right.

Character is a weak point. The author has introduced a lot of characters in a short amount of time, and although he tries to give them a backstory. We understand them but we honestly couldn't care yet. They feel generic and cliché, not the bad one; but also not the most interesting one either. The main character Jiro feels too weak with the first chapter. A lot of development will be needed from the author to make sure he isn't overshadowed by the side characters. Especially facing Ichika, he got beaten too easily and afterwards doesn't show any real grudge. Thus feeling that the author is forcing the character into one specific male protagonist image with no depth.

Having said all that, this won't penalized your enjoyment as it is fun to read. Just relax and treat it as any action shounen manga. Don't overthink to much. People who love overpowered character should not expect much from this yet. As hopefully the growths and focus will not go too much on side characters.

I rate it a 7.5/10, as it isn't boring or too predictable yet not ground breaking amazing plot. The cliché isn't too strong and has a lot of potential. A recommended manga to relax with.

Honestly I picked up this manga because I knew it would've been a fast read and because of the artwork, and honestly, those are the only things this manga brings to the table.
Plot: the story is REEEALLLY unoriginal: it mixes bleach with naruto with jjk with demon slayer, creating the most shonen manga ever 💀 the funny thing is that the concept was actually interesting especially the villain😭
Characters: considering the pacing and the length the characters are fine but again they aren’t original and nothin new to find.
Artwork: solid amazing artwork, sometimes felt like a bleach copy but I don’t really care, my main ... issue was the unnecessary fan service I found kinda annoying
Fights: sadly the fights felt pretty rushed (yes I know the pacing and length ecc) but they really lasted only a few pages and that was a bit disappointing especially the last one
In conclusion it’s nothing crazy pretty much carried by the action panels, 5/10

Started off with a promising story, but fast became a let-down.

I'm not sure whether Black Torch was originally planned to be a short series, or if it got cancelled and then the author was left trying to pull together something into a somewhat reasonable ending. Either way, the flow of the story was very inconsistent and the characters were so empty and barely used in the progression that they may as well have not even been there. There were many instances of moments where a scene would build up, only to fall flat without a climax or any sort of payoff.

The art style ... is absolutely beautiful, and the reason I picked up the series initially. It's a shame that the story itself was rather hollow. But, if you want something that's easy to read and short, with gorgeous art and an okay story, you may well enjoy Black Torch.

Black torch is a manga that is well written but it is full of holes. It wasn't finished. It has left so many story that has yet to be told. I personally loved it and craving for more. I want to see more of the stories of each of the characters. Yes, they explain it at the end but it is still missing. I wish in the near future they will remake it and hopefully have an anime.

The art style is amazing. the fighting scenes, the characters design is just amazing.

I think this was his first work that gave him recognition and it is ... no surprise there cuz this was just one of the best manga i have read in a while.

The story didn’t really intrigue me as much as I’d expected. Some of the relationships did though. If the story hadn’t been cut short, it would’ve been nice seeing more of the relationship between Jirou and his Grandpa and maybe learning more about his background. (The guy can talk to animals, come on now! The author had to have been planning to do something with that)

The story also promises more of the relationship growth between Jirou and Ragou but it is implemented in a short timeframe. If there were more, we probably would have seen the get the hang of working together and maybe ... see Jirou getting used to Ragou’s power. Man we could have had some real nice bromance (cat and human mance?) right there.

The action scenes are nice in showing the action happening. Like, the artwork isn’t messy.

another shounen story when the MC got a special power and the whole world counting on him , im tired of these kinda shitty story but its shounen so u cant expect more than this regardless the best thing here is the art , ngl its really good and i loved it so much otherwise i felt the mangaka kinda rushed the story , dont get me wrong the plots were good and everything make sens but in such stories u can tell more about it , the characters were good especially the females lol if this anime turn out to be anime ... we gonna get some new good waifus , eventually the manga is good u should read it

Black torch is a series similar to Jujutsu Kaisen, and while the artwork is fantastic, the fights, character development, and plot progression are all pretty basic.

Plot Progression/Story
The narrative isn't very engaging, but the breakneck pace balances that out just a bit.

Character Development
Considering the fact that Black Torch is only five volumes long, all of the main characters are decently fleshed out.

Fights
Of the three main shonen battle types, Black Torch falls into the magic/fantasy encounters, but the fights lack any kind of length and are usually only a few pages long, which is understandable ... due to the pacing.

Artwork
The artwork is fantastic, and it's one of the greatest strengths of the series. Without the beautiful panels, my enjoyment of it would have dropped considerably.

Conclusion
Black Torch is a series that has amazing artwork, but its fights, story, and character development are average.

It's not bad but it's also not great, it's just... okay.

There was a lot of potential with some interesting supporting characters and stories that could've been explored more deeply but was left short and underwhelming in explanation or reason (and unfortunately, both in characters and stories, it seems to prove itself insignificant to the manga as a whole which made it feel pointless so it makes you question what was the point of including it in the first place).

There's no growth, no chance for any of the characters to befriend or even just get to know each other which makes it feel so bland and ... forced.

There's a lot I could say, but frankly I'm unsure how to word most of it. I am however rather disappointed and find myself to be not the biggest fan of Black Torch. I don't recommend it but I also don't really not recommend it either. It's a short read with some interesting concepts and fantastic art.

This book hit a nostalgia point for me. It channeled some serious Flame of Rekka energy, albeit less time travel and more monsters.

It was well paced and I enjoyed the dynamic of Jiro and Rago.

That said, the other characters felt a little on the bland side. I was hoping for more development of Reiji and Ichika. There was also a lack of escalation. The last guy felt like the final boss fight and it was already chapter 18/19.

There were some cool concepts and the art is fucking gorgeous!

I sincerely hope this creator gets another opportunity to make something cool. I'm gunna ... buy the manga anyway, as the art is inspiring.

I will say man, the art is pretty great in this, especially the fighting scenes! However i just felt the story was dragging and I just couldn’t connect much from the characters, especially the main character acting just basic edgy and constantly shouting a lot. I decided to drop this at 16 out of the whole 19 chapters because I just felt less excited what’s going on tbh. This manga might as well be an artists exhibition book than having a actual story to it. I think the story might as well just disappear and let the whole plot go at its pace. It’s just ... a thought......