Noblesse

The Overall feel of this manwha (Korean manga) is amazing. When I first started reading this series years back, I thought the artwork was a bit off in the beginning. Be patient and the artwork will vastly improve. The comedy found within Noblesse is in a league of its own. You will find yourself literally Lol'ing with the humor that Rai brings to the series as he tries to cope with his new surroundings. The action sequences are pure win, leaving chills and goosebumps for avid readers.

The story revolves around a vampire theme, and (without spoiling it for you) I find that although it is not some drastic change and new look into vampire manga, the Noble look at vampires is the focal point concerning the vampires, nobles, and the humans. The story is building up well (currently at ch202) and there is the potential for many more hundreds of chapters to go before the series can be concluded.

If you enjoy the bishounen feel and noble-like win of a main character, you will surely love this manwha.

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Noblesse- is it because its a manhwa? Since its not from japan, its not what you would expect? Honestly? I have absolutely no idea. All I know is that this manhwa is unlike any other vampire story Ive ever read, novels, manga, manhwa- this is definitely original, and great at that!

Story-10: Like I expressed before, the plot is most definitely not-your-average-bloodsucking-vampire-story. It actually took me a while to pick up this manhwa and read it. I had so many recommendations to read it already, but it just really wasn't piquing my interest. Then finally I picked it up. My first thought? "Umm, really?" I almost put it down right then and there. The entire first chapter contains ABSOLUTELY nothing except for a vampire coming out of a sealed coffin and opening the blinds. No exaggeration. So even though I was clearly disappointed, somehow that ridiculous chapter triggered my curiosity. So of course, I read on. I will not go into detail about the plot or ruin the storyline for you, but I will say this. Take what you know about vampires, and leave it on the side of the road for someone else to pick up. Take all the cliche vampire movies and disassociate them when you refer to this manhwa. Just pick this up and start to read it; let it intrigue you.

Art-10: Maybe its because im used to reading manga that having color in the art on every page is a nice plus. The characters are very gorgeously drawn, and the action scenes are incredible. I think my favorite part about the art is how well it is able to portray the personalities of the characters; a simple glint in the eye can tell so much in this manhwa.

Character-9: There are several characters in this story that you will absolutely fall in love with, of that I have no doubt. The personalities are mysterious and constantly developing, exactly the kind of characters needed in a great manhwa. The abundance of characters makes things a little complicated, because of course, one always gets involved in something and then the whole group comes running behind, so to speak. Nevertheless, that doesn't make the story too predictable, there's always someone who pops up and intensifies the plot.

Enjoyment-9: At times the storyline can get a bit predictable. Bad guys come, good guys conquer, but I believe that this has less predictability in the plot itself then most manga/manhwa you will read. I couldnt put this down once I picked it up, I really thoroughly enjoyed the intensity of the plot and the subtle character development in this beautiful manhwa.

Overall-9: This was a great read! It still has a while before it ends and its currently a little under 300 chapters in. I would recommend this to anyone who's looking for an intense read that keeps you excited, pick it up! Be intrigued :)

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Honestly... Noblesse despite being Korean (and i seriously don't care) is just amazing~... the characters in it are great, both in serious ways and in humour and the humour present sort of makes you feel like one of those facepalm moments where you can't help but laugh...
the story line itself is filled with twists and turns and it's great as you have no idea where the story leads which is great for a break from the predictable storylines that can be found. It is honestly a great read... and is unusual in it's art which is surprisingly in colour, that was a surprise to me when i started to read it, but it doesn't take away the awesome feel to the Manga... it is one that i believe doesn't get boring.

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Themes surrounding vampires has become commonplace nowadays, where readers are accustomed to see the regular school setting, in which protagonists either cope or familiarize themselves with those. Although Noblesse treats the same theme, it does tweak it by taking a somewhat different approach on its themes and interpretations of it, combined with great humour across the board. It basically could be seen as long running gag manhwa surrounding the topic of vampires with great action. What is important to note is that humour is an integral part of the manhwa, and for those who do not like this will not be able to enjoy this work in its fullest; what is more, its main protagonists are not teenagers, but adults.

~Story~

The story of Noblesse is focused on Cadis Etrama Di Raizel, or Rai in short, who after a 820 year slumber woke up to current human society, where mankind has made a huge scientific progress. Upon finding his loyal servant Frankenstein, he decides to learn and consequently blend in the human world in the very school his servant made. Along with his lacking knowledge on current society in addition to his own personality, hilarious situations are ensured. Even with the peaceful atmosphere surrounding him, the world is in fact no safer than the old. Mystery, deceit, blood lust and greed are on the order of the day. I might want to point out that the earlier chapters are in fact quite different from the rest. This means that the first batch of chapters are devoid of hardly any dialogue and with a strange format regarding its art progression; this may lead readers to assume (me included) that it would progress in the same manner, which much to my surprise was not the case.

As stated earlier, the premise of the series is generic and nothing innovative, yet what makes it intriguing is its approach: it utilizes the mystery surrounding its characters and themes to its advantage in order to create an overall atmosphere which makes readers curious on what is to come next. Surely enough, there are three greater factions: the Union, known for their human body enhancements, meant for the protection of mankind. Then there are the Nobles, the "vampires" (not in the traditional sense) if you may, the superior race, and then ultimately there are the werewolves. What is curious is the fact that the Nobles are not painted as the usual villains which is often frequent in the medium; instead a lot of neutrality is involved for the different factions. Deceit, greed and honor are central themes when addressing these groups, which in turn creates a lot of conflict between these.

Action is also a predominant factor in the manhwa: these are generally well executed without the abundance of any "asspulls". From a structural point of view they often play out in a similar way, but what makes them easily enjoyable are the different abilities of the characters, their growth as well as the progression of the battle itself. However, there were times where it got fairly repetitive, as well as characters of minor importance receiving constant convenient upgrades for the sake of keeping up with the plot, and thus not lose importance. Regardless, for the mayor characters this was not case, so it could be overlooked. Now it must be noted that it can be quite tensionless, as it is quite obvious that some of the characters are very overpowered, yet this was hinted at from the beginning, and thus was not a big issue.

Humour is not to be overlooked in the manhwa; it is as a matter of fact of crucial importance that enhances the overall experience. This is done by using the unknowing of the world of several characters about customs on both factions; in addition, the different personalities complement to these situations. What is remarkable, it is able to maintain its quality over the span of the story, in addition to introducing it in the appropriate moments without breaking immersion in the narrative. As mentioned earlier, it has a school setting, yet the only purpose of this is to enhance the comedy as well as delve and flesh out its cast. Speaking of which, school students were sometimes involved in the greater fights, and were rather cliché as it only served to create tense situations in which these dominated the decisions of the cast.

~Characters~

The main cast of characters of Noblesse are in fact very intriguing and interesting, having diverse personalities, especially when concerning the main protagonists Cadis Etrama Di Raizel and Frankenstein, both shrouded in mystery. Character development in general is rather lackluster, yet its fleshing out is well done. Cadis Etrama Di Raizel is a very silent and apparently an emotionless person, yet it soon becomes apparent that this tied to his very own background: he is fact a very cunning and thoughtful person, having experienced both loneliness and discovering friendship. Frakenstein is the servant of the former, and is characterized by his wacky and crazy personality, yet at the same time a very cunning and intelligent person. His absolute loyalty to his master and the cherishing he has to his belongings often creates well suited comedy, as well moments of "badass". In fact, it could be said that these two are the driving force behind the story of Noblesse.

Concerning the other characters, these are far from developed, especially when their motives are considered. The "villains" motives are rather shallow and unexplored, seemingly being one-dimensional antagonists with no real purpose other than to create conflicts between the different factions. To be fair, the manhwa is still ongoing and thus such issues may be explained later on in more depth. Nevertheless, the exploration on the Noble's side was satisfying as it gave introspection into the general culture and thinking behind these, in addition to their motives. There were some little gripes with these, as their own motives and personalities changed slightly according to story progression without a very convincing reason.

Other thing to note are the present student that converge and are in direct contact with the main cast; these are very generic and serve no other purpose than to create unneccessary situations as well as enhancing the comedy. This doesn't mean that there are no characters of interest; in fact, there are quite some with interesting personalities, being either very easygoing ones, excentric, strict, silent or just funny. Other also have the addition of having some intriguing past, including what could be considered one of the main villains of the story - it is really the mystery surrounding them what makes it an intriguing read.

~Art~

The art style of Noblesse is simplistic and not very detailed, which was done in favour to accommodate the full colouring of its work. The different colours used in its schemes and various atmospheres matched well with the narrative. Panel placement was at the beginning quite spacious and a bit immersion breaking, as it gave the impression of being a very slow-paced narrative. Concerning the characters design, there are overall somewhat varied, yet ultimately a bit generic, from a manhwa point of view. What is hilarious at a personal level is the portrayal of Frakenstein himself: a bishonen instead of the looks of an old and weak crazy scientist. Characters expressions are very well done, easily conveying the emotional state, be it either fear, cluelessness, surprise or sadness.

~Enjoyment~

Noblesse was overall a very enjoyable experience with the humour and intriguing main characters that just kept me reading and reading. The fact the approach on it was somewhat different, the gags and action was well executed, was one of the main factors that made it highly enjoyable, It must be mentioned that character-wise it is rather lacking is some aspects, especially when motives of the different factions are concerned. Despite all of these, I highly recommend anyone trying this manhwa out, as it was highly entertaining. However, I would like to add that the comedy can be a hit or miss for some, and thus these can be a hinderance to some.

Thank you for reading.

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