Pandora Hearts

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I don't really write reviews for manga but quite frankly, it is pretty upsetting to see how many 10/10's this series recieves. Apparently the bar is set pretty low. Pandora Hearts is an explicit adaptation on Alice in Wonderland. It is a pretty standard isekai theme, with nothing that original, with a lot of shota/fujo bait. If that was the only wrong, it wouldn't be that bad.
This series is extremely confusing. Not that it's to intricate to understand, but more in the direction itself. I found myself having a very hard time understanding how the text was supposed to connect with the illustrations. Many times, ... I was re-reading pages to understand what was happening. It was the first time I actually tried watching the anime as I was reading so I could make sense of what was going on. I feel like the artist tried way to hard to incorporate cinematic styles in the art direction. I honestly don't understand how this series is so highly praised. This is the type of series that heavily relies on its artwork and unique character design to cover for its flaws overall. I would consider myself easy to please as well, and I can enjoy something for what its worth, but Pandora Hearts is a nightmare to try and navigate through.

"Someone once said it was a dark place that swallowed everything up- but it wasn't as if there was never any light there."

No matter how long it has been since I first started reading Pandora Hearts, the sadness, and happiness I felt after I finished reading it are still vividly in my heart. The story and characters are just phenomenal, with everything meticulously planned and devoid of any mainstream clichés.

Story ~ 10: Unlike most adventure and mystery series, Pandora Hearts actually focuses on the story and world-building just as much as it does on the protagonist. It has a remarkable storyline and plot twists, ... and the way everything is introduced makes the experience so enjoyable. Nothing is expected yet, it all makes sense as the story progresses. The story is truly like a puzzle. Every piece has a meaning, and the full picture only reveals itself once every piece is present. Yes, this manga has a slower pacing than what people are used to, however, no other manga conveys emotions as well as Pandora Hearts does.

Characters ~ 10: In addition to its incredible storyline, Pandora Hearts also has many well-written and dynamic characters. For example, they all have unique designs that match their affiliations, history, and personality. As every side character is important to the progression of the story, instead of being there to make the protagonist shine, the side characters make the story shine. By the end of the story, almost none of them will be forgotten by the reader. That is how incredible the characters are in this manga. The immersion and experience while reading it are no joke.

Art ~ 10: Finally, this manga's beautiful art brings the story and characters together. The author has such an extraordinary ability to draw atmospheric panels that every panel can be hung on the wall. As one reads the manga, an overwhelming feeling of melancholy is present, and this is such a strong emotion as it resonates with everyone. While joyful panels are drawn in a way that evokes sadness beneath them, dark panels elude a sense of hope. As one can tell, the author's use of blacks and negative space is unbelievable.

Overall ~ 10: This manga is an absolute masterpiece. It has such depth and complexity that cannot be found elsewhere. I love it so dearly that I hope others can too. Also, while the anime is a whole different situation, listen to its soundtracks! They are so fitting to the series's mood.

"Someone once said it was a dark place that swallowed everything up. But...it wasn't as if there was never any light there--"

I consider Pandora Hearts to be in its own category above all others - the level of craftsmanship and love gone into the storytelling is simply nothing short of a masterpiece. It is an exploration of psychology, an exposition of life and death, and a story filled with immense joy and sorrow. The artwork starts out good, and continues to improve significantly until the very end. Pandora Hearts is not just a typical Shonen/Action/Fantasy manga, but rather it supersedes all that. Please, please give ... it a read.

We start at the beginning with Oz, Gilbert and Alice. The dark mysteries behind the Abyss, Chains, and the Tragedy of Sablier are slowly explored over the course of the manga, and you grow to appreciate every single chapter. Who really are Oz, Gil and Alice? Unravelling the mysteries of their pasts, along with many other characters, is also one of the strong points of the storytelling.

Pandora Hearts is not just a fantasy story about the Abyss, Chains and supernatural powers beyond our comprehension, but it is a story about trauma, tragedy, friendship, love, and life itself. One common recurring theme in Pandora Hearts is "self-sacrifice", and throughout the course of the story, the meaning and perception behind "self-sacrifice" is constantly explored through multiple perspectives and characters.

Another major theme explored in a lot of depth in Pandora Hearts is "trauma" - how do we face our future knowing the sins we might have committed in the past? Overcoming trauma, realising our own fears, these are all things that each character in Pandora Hearts eventually have to come to terms with.

As you read the manga, you will begin to greatly love the main characters, whether it be Oz, Gil, Alice, Break, or Elliot, and the level of character development is unrivalled. Each character's action has a noticeable impact on the story, and by the end, you will feel extremely attached to many of the main characters. The beginning, the journey, and the ending are near-perfect.

Pandora Hearts really forces you to think about life on a larger scale, and to appreciate the world and beauty around us. I've really taken a second look at my own life and my surroundings after reading Pandora Hearts, and I really thank Jun Mochizuki for writing and drawing this masterpiece of a manga. The experiences I've had reading this manga will be carried with me for my whole life, and I am truly grateful for it.

Pandora Hearts is the most beautiful story I have ever read in my life.

Pandora hearts is a really complicated psychological dark fantasy with a lot of plot twist. Almost every chapter you will see pieces of memories from the character so you will be thrown to the past a lot of time, sometimes you will even forget things. If that happen, simply read a again from the beginning. For me, this is what make Pandora Hearts is beautiful. You need creativity and empathy to understand the story. You need creativity to understand the world of Pandora Hearts because many things are really different with ... our world and you need empathy to understand each character. No one in Pandora Hearts is absolutely wrong or right (Well, maybe Levi is the most toxic here but we don't know his past so I can't say anything). This story is just a bunch of purpose, misunderstanding, and feeling intertwined and sometimes clash so there are many conflict born from it. Considering the world they live in, many characters are twisted.

I never feel so betrayed by a story in my life as hard as Pandora Hearts. It feels like when you try to gather pieces of glass to make it into a ball. You heard that ball of glass will be so beautiful when it becomes ball again. You feel so excited to know what it will look like. You treasure every piece of that glass and glue it carefully. Suddenly someone bring all the remaining glass. And when you finally make it into ball again. It's pitch black. All of the things you believe in the beginning is a lie. You feel betrayed. But then you realize. Even if it's pitch black, it still looked so beautiful. So in the end, you keep it as it's.

I read this when I was in elementary school in which I was ostracized without knowing my fault for years. Little by little, it makes me think, "Maybe my existence is the wrong one, maybe whatever I do is wrong because my existence itself is wrong" that's why when the male lead was said to have a sin which is his own existence, it makes me cry. In the end, I know what is the meaning of this sin which is true but it's not his fault. It makes me think, even if now I am surrounded by people who make me think my existence is wrong, as long as I have hope, one day I will meet people who treasure my existence like Oz. Thank you for give me hope and motivation, Pandora Hearts.

Please do not disregard my review simply because I've given the overall rating a straight ten, as well as most of the other aspects of this wonderful manga. (And the only thing not rated a ten is the art, which is given a nine!) I tend to skip over reviews that look like the only thing they will do is rave about the topic myself, but I can assure you I will be as honest and unbiased as possible. After all, PandoraHearts deserves nothing less.

(Yes, "PandoraHearts" is written as a single word with the "H" of "Hearts" still capitalized--the proof stealthily given in a ... few parts of translated material, most notably the blurbs of the Caucus Race side novels.)

Before I go on to covering the separate parts of the PandoraHearts manga, I'd like to put in a few words about the anime. Said anime aired for an extremely short period of time during 2009, and it was cancelled for good reason. Although the soundtrack was quite good (not exceptional as a whole but still admirable, with only certain tracks reaching "exceptional" territory), this did not make up for the multiple failures the anime had in regards to the manga.

The animation/art itself that was used in the anime would be considered incredibly poor even before 2009's standards. The colors are too bright and don't flow well, the outlines of character designs are strangely sharp, the movement that is animated is unfaithful to how human beings actually move, and overall, it is all excessively simplistic.

While it followed the manga decently, it still managed to omit several confusing but vital details in order to reduce the complexity of the anime for the audience. It got progressively worse as the anime continued. Eventually, when the anime was cancelled and the manga was nowhere near finished (in fact, the "true" plot had barely been introduced), the former produced a horrific ending that left all strings hanging and made little to no sense.

I've been ranting about the anime for too long now, I suppose.

Basically? Don't watch the anime. Read the manga.

As for the manga...


ART - 9/10

There is only one reason why I didn't give the art of PandoraHearts a ten, and that is because the art starts off someplace a bit below what I would consider "mediocre." At the beginning, PandoraHearts' art looked...rather odd, if I'm being honest. The lazy depictions the anime chose to use looked worse even though it was based on the original art, but the art in the first place had a weird habit of being unusually disproportionate.

However, when I hear the term "art evolution," I'm forced to think of PandoraHearts every time. Jun Mochizuki's art skills increase drastically in very short periods of time, and by the end of the manga, it's drop-dead gorgeous. Stunning. Ethereal. Take your pick.


STORY - 10/10

Ok...I wrote 10 for everything. It's hard not too! I adore this manga...I first started reading manga Sailor Moon and that got me hooked. When I watched the Pandora Hearts anime I was; Meh...I loved the characters but my personal opinion is that they messed up the plot a bit. Too many holes. Then I read the manga and it was wonderful!

Each character has a good/ happy/ tragic backstory. The plots twists are amazing, they will surprise you. I didn't expect to really like this because surprisingly I am not fond of Victorian era. Kurshitsuji is a exception. This is a wonderful manga that ... you should read! It made me cry, laugh, and cry some more. The plot and the art is breathtaking. Pandora Hearts is one of the best mangas out there.

"Those who come to the Abyss are all the same. They're all desperate to get something back. But everyone goes mad partway..."

*shock face*

See, I really, really don’t understand how a mangaka and f-ing story writing genius, can immerse readers in something so gloriously messed up, beautiful, emo, crazy, funny, deep, and downright strange like it's nothing. More than just a few times I laughed out loud and shook my head thinking: psshh, that’s absolutely ridiculous and stupid, then turned the page only to stop just short of curling up into a ball in a dark corner, gently caressing the book and whispering softly to ... it, while crying myself to sleep. How the heck can a person accomplish not looking like a mad person while reading this series (it’s not that I’m actually just crazy…honest)? This is just one of those books where you WILL get people whispering about you and strange, slightly fearful, glances if you read it in public, cause incomprehensible outbursts of emotion are a thing throughout this series.

Okay, now that I’m done with my rant, on with the actual review:

I honestly never expected to really like this series and wasn’t expecting much from it. I tried to watch the anime a couple years ago, but couldn’t really get into it (never made it past the first part of the 1st episode). After the first volume I figured I’d enjoy it, but it probably wouldn’t be a favorite. Once I got to the 4th volume I figured I’d really like it, but might not buy it (in my poor defense I’ve got a pretty extensive list of manga to buy so I’m really reluctant to add to it). But past that…I stopped caring about the total price of the series, food, and sleep. The last couple arcs almost killed me with all the FEELS.

“Finally I saw... A world so bright I almost wanted to cry... It was then, that my consciousness was engulfed in darkness."

I actually had to put the book down a few times and walk away in an attempt to take it all in, especially since I was still trying to deal with the aftermath of a few events in the arcs before that. Wait, my bad, I’m ranting again lol.

Okay…

The Story:
A well-deserved 9/10: It's got an Alice in Wonderland type thing going on and explores pretty complex themes, primarily identity and existence, and how things like the presence/absence of memory, human (or otherwise) bonds/connections, and the past can shape one’s identity and sense of self.

The story is riddled with mysteries that Mochizuki skillfully reveals bits of in each arc like puzzle pieces that don’t become a clear, coherent picture until the last arc. Only after completing the series did I understand that there was actual meaning behind some of the seemingly unimportant details I glanced over volumes ago. This is honestly one of those stories that you could re-read multiple times before being able to take in how carefully put together the story is. I even really enjoyed the side stories at the end of most chapters/volumes that I admittedly tend to skip over the first time I read a series.

The Characters (8/10):
Most of the main characters are made up of the typical shonen anime/manga archetypes which made me think of them as shallow at first, but they all have quite a bit of their own depth. Through there ventures they experience past and present grief, love, despair, and even emotional/psychological challenges. Character development is a thing all the characters go through, even a lot of minor characters.

The only issue I had was with Alice. Despite being such a central figure I was left feeling like she had much less depth and development, especially when compared to Oz, Gil, and even a few less central characters like Xerxes. Even so, none of the other characters felt like cookie cutter versions straight out of other works (even the minor ones), and I loved, or at least liked, pretty much all of them.

And, though I’m no expert, The Art-8/10:
It’s clean, easy to follow, and Mochizuki draws the expressions of characters in a way that conveys a wide and complex range of emotions, from emotional agony (he’s pretty good at this one), surprise, downright insanity, joy, anger, and everything in-between. You can tell he put a lot of work and detail into each scene including the backgrounds. I personally really like Mochizuki’s style (the darker, creepy scenes are done and arranged very well) though, at least from what I read so far, it’s a pretty typical one.

Overall: 9/10

Anyone looking for a good fantasy, and/or mystery, should definitely give this one a shot.

"Someone once said it was a dark place that swallowed everything up. Even if that were true, an enveloping darkness like that...in this world that holds every color possible...also contains the light of hope."

Overall Rating: 10
Story: 9
Characters: 9
Development: 10
Pacing: 10

WARNING: DO NOT WATCH THE ANIME, THE ANIME ENDS PREMATURELY AND YOU WON'T GET THE SAME EXPERIENCE.

... Genres: Psychological Thriller (differs among sites), Gaslamp Fantasy, Mystery, Adventure, Shounen

Synopsis:

As the story starts off seeming somewhat typically, we are thrown into the light-hearted introduction of Pandora Hearts which takes place in a setting somewhat reminiscent to the Victorian-Era. Oz Vessalius, the next-of-kin as heir to the Vessalius house, one of the 4 Great Dukedoms alongside the Nightrays, Rainsworths and Barmas, is seen picking on his timid servant, Gilbert, not long before his rite of passage in which he will be introduced into society.

However, this calm before the storm is quickly blown away as during the Rite of Passage, Gilbert suddenly attacked Oz with a sword, and cloaked figures appear and banish Oz into the Abyss, the setting of a fairy tale that was supposedly told to keep kids from misbehaving. They declared that the sin Oz was committing was his very existence.

As we are thrown into the story we learn that the Abyss is home to denizens called Chains, and one such chain is the B-Rabbit, Blood Stained Black Rabbit, Alice, with whom he must make a contract in order for them both to escape the Abyss. It isn't long until the two are backed into the corner by the eccentric Xerxes Break into assisting the organization known as Pandora in obtaining the Core of the Abyss. Oz and Alice agree, so that Alice can recover her fragmented memories in the process.

Review:

Do not let the Shounen genre and some somewhat familiar themes such as Alice's amnesia deter you from reading this manga, for, as the plot develops over time at an amazing pace you'll come to find why I gave the manga such high marks. In fact, the iffy introduction and the somewhat familiar themes are the only reasons I gave this manga's story and characters 1 point short of perfection. However, over time these familiar themes are shown to be handled with such care and are presented so interestingly and amazingly, which is why it was ONLY 1 point short of perfection.

I, at first, was planning on dropping this manga, though the setting itself made me feel somewhat hopeful that this series would evolve into something more. We see so commonly modern, medieval or futuristic settings, or some odd hybrid of any or all of the three -- and in all 3, it is so tiring for every series to take place in a high school setting. The fact that Jun Mochizuki, the author of Pandora Hearts, thought to put the series in a less common setting interested me greatly.

And right I was. You may find yourself hooked about 6-10 chapters in when the psychological themes of this manga begins to become more prominent when its finally shown that his series shies away from letting anything be irrelevant, and it makes everything relevant in such a great way. And its at this moment that the manga will start doing what it does best: Making you feel like it, like many shounen, has already presented all necessary world building information, and that the plot will revolve around that, while its mystery themes leave you with questions that also make you doubt the former feeling, interesting you to find out what more developments will take place, and though I don't wish to ruin the surprise, it is better to tell you that its definitely the former. You must never underestimate the world or the plot, as you can be sure there will always be more information that'll be incredibly relevant that only makes the plot all the richer.

This series will gradually develop into a more complex, beautifully tragic story with an immersive world and amazing characters. Another one of this series' strong points is its pacing and development speed, and the characters, some of which may start off seeming typical, will develop into characters who'll make you feel sorrow for some of them, and how each of their personality traits and actions taken by those personalities have story-relevant reasons behind them and the interesting motives behind each character's motives.

This series is greatly recommended to any fan of manga, especially mystery and fantasy manga. Despite the scarce fight scenes, the series presents an amazing story with great pacing, great development and is beautifully tragic. The series melds together its somewhat odd mix of genres in an interesting, incredibly way and puts them in a setting within an incredibly immersive world. Do not drop this manga early on, as you will be missing out. I recommend reading 10-25 chapters, as its introduction is somewhat iffy, but later develops into something greater, though it'd be better for everyone to just read it through to the end.

WARNING: DO NOT WATCH THE ANIME, THE ANIME ENDS PREMATURELY AND YOU WON'T GET THE SAME EXPERIENCE.

When I first came across this manga, there were two things that made me stay to read the general synopsis. The first thing is the name, the second is the art. I thought that name sounded pretty nice. There was just a vibe that attracted me to it.The art looked pleasing enough, so I then thought to give it a try.

Pandora Hearts was probably the manga that let me stop disliking the Victoria era style. I would usually stick to reading stories of modern settings with modern style clothing. So this has been a new experience for me.

The general storyline is quite interesting. It is ... also a bit confusing at times. The mangaka would give hints along the way that would usually lead to a very unexpected situation. The links to Alice in Wonderland are also quite interesting. I, myself, am not very familiar with that series of books but I think the references were quite ingenious.

The characters were quite well developed in Pandora Hearts. Each character is quite different from one another (except maybe that they all seem to have a dark side to them). Throughout the story, each of the main characters' past is explored. I really like this element of the manga because a reader would not get bored with only knowing one or two of the characters' past.

Sometimes this manga makes me laugh, sometimes it gasping in awe at the twists present in the story(the mangaka surprises us all the time). I really like how this manga isn't just all comedy or just all dark moments. It is a mix of both. This is probably my main reason for finding Pandora Hearts very enjoyable.

I recommend this manga to anyone who doesn't want to read something too dark. Even if you don't especially like the Victorian era (like me), you should still give it a try. It's definitely worth it! (I myself have read it two times and am currently onto my third.) Just a final warning, this is a monthly manga so once you've read all the updates available, you will probably be left with a cliffhanger that will bug you for a whole month! ^o^

well i thought i give my thoughts on Pandora Hearts (i'll try not to be one-sided with this :'D im kinda in Love Pandora Hearts)

Story: I'll admit the story is a bit confusing, its one of those series that can't be explained in one sentence (believe me I've tried :'D) It starts out 'looking for Alice's memories' but slowly Jun got away from that and it's focused on the Head-Hunter in recent chapters. But i think Jun is going to tie all those 'unsolved mysterious', loses ends whatever you want to call it, into the ending.

I can also see how Jun jumps around in PH ... too, which adds into the confusion. But it's a story based off "Alice in Wonderland' It's supposed to be confusing, right? I think it's not knowing whats coming next is what draws me in every month waiting for what Jun has up her sleeve. and hey it's getting even bloodier right now with the head-hunter and soooo many plot twists too.

Art: if your looking at like Chapter 1 you can tell it isn't the greatest thing you ever scene but the newer chapters like 50 and up are (in my mind) amazing! Jun has improved so much since doing Crimson-Shell and the first chapters of Pandora Hearts.

Characters: I love the character designs so much. and i love the way the characters interact with each other. in more recent chapters Oz has been a lot more gloomy (he has a very good reason might i add) but i think with whats going on right now Oz will become more mature and more development to his character. I think a lot of the cast members (who didn't die at Yura's... i mean what? 8D *shot*) are going to go through more development right now *coughLeocough*

when you compare how the characters were at the beginning to now you can see how much they've change and to me it's quite amazing.

Overall: I love Pandora Hearts. It's a must read for any Gothic-Fantasy fans. and i love the fact if you re-read older chapters you can pick up those hints that Jun left behind

Im sorry if this Review isn't that good o.o; this is my first time doing a review *bows*

[i]This manga like a puzzle...

First you take a a fragment stick together him to another — it turns a little picture. You take a second, and wonder, when you realize that the expected fragment is not glued! Pictures are confused, many fragments... It would seem that you do not gather the puzzle, consisting of unlimited possibilities of turns! But gradually, you find a a clue... A little insight allows to glue a few pieces. But then all is lost with a bang... and you begin to re-glue the unfortunate image.[/i]

The author was able to capture the story, forcing to watch not only the plot, but ... also feelings, emotions and reasoning heroes. By forcing feel their emotions, fears... The characters are not «empty», «soulless» heroes, drawing on a stamp. Here, every hero has its own little story, which later becomes yet another puzzle in story conundrum.

During the whole manga, we can not determine who stands on the side of «evil» and who is on the side of «good». The author traced fine line between them giving us to choose the side on which we are, because sometimes «evil» can act
from good intentions, and «good» could easily be by this the most «evil». Probably of all, we wanted to show exactly that, because in the world not there is absolutely pure people, because the even have someplace there are black spots...

Eyes pleases story, although he also shall issue the brain. To be honest, starting to read, I did not think of such a scale the developments. First, we see an outset — the peaceful idyll of one noble family. A little later denouement — emotional experiences of the characters, flavored with different battles and riddles. At the end of receipt to completion - a dramatic story, for the most part which are memories and answers to questions, that confuse even more...

The plot is really thought out to the smallest detail, behind the whole history, I have not met any retreat, which would later not have poured into the story, also did not see the empty chapters, which would simply be forgotten. A drawing is truly a masterpiece!

Bitty stories weave a mystic, fantasy, romance, detective, humor and a host of it would seem somewhere just to not be combined genres truly attracts, enveloping in mystery. It makes read to the very end, just for that would find answers and finally unravel this tangle of puzzles!

Well , the first thing I want to say is that this manga series is a masterpiece. My seven days of journey in this manga series ended today.

When you see the title of this manga series all you remember is about the pandora box from Greek mythology. And yes the story of this manga series, in all the ways, means to show what happens if you "open the pandora box" . Generally it means how calamitous and radical consequences occur by your small and innocent action.

This manga series follows the basic story of the popular novel "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland"by Lewis Carroll and pulls ... it off to a different level. Beware , its no fairy tale. It has the most cruellest story to begin with. The story has no bounds. It shows how cruel it can be to blame our selfishness on others. [ You think you are always right because what you see is your own world in which you can decide what you want to happen and what you do not want to happen. But you never put yourself in other's shoes and see the world in their view. Because you are afraid to accept the reality. ]. But it has its own humour too. Chillax!

Unlike the novel ,this story does not focus everything on Alice. Every character is given equal importance. Every character's life spins its own tale. And we will see how labyrinthine the intertwinement of their fates is. The story starts with no plot. I personally did not understand what was happening at the beginning. Chapter after chapter , my thirst for the truth of the story kept on raising. At starting ,after every chapter my thoughts were like these - "That's it!" , "That might be it!" , "He is the bad guy!" , " No , he might be a good guy" , " The story might end soon because the plot has been revealed" , "How come there are more than 75 chapters yet to read?!?" . But once I reached the midway of the series I dumbfounded myself. The story has been twisted in a very brilliant way and the plot I have build till that point have all gone haywire. But I was so happy how ridiculously awesome the story has turned into.

Story- 10/10

Its about a boy named Oz Vessalius , the heir to the one of The Four Great Dukedoms Vessalius. The other 3 dukedoms are Nightray , Rainsworth and Barma. The story starts with him being thrown into a different dimension which is known as Abyss by some Unknown people wearing blood red cloak who are later known to be The Baskervilles ,another dukedom which is known to exist before The Tragedy of Sabrie along with The Four Great Dukedoms. But, what is this abyss ? Why only 4 dukedoms and why The Baskervilles are not recognized into these dukedoms? What is The Tragedy of Sabrie? So many mysteries are present in this series which tangles around you and never let you stop reading this series. You got to compete the series to find out what is there at the end of the story. Think like you just entered a rabbit hole at the starting of this story and at the end of the rabbit hole you will see a whole new beautiful world. And so never try to find your way back. Keep going till the end.

Art- 10/10

Well, I personally never care much about the art as long as the story is good and intelligible. But Jun Mochijuki-san , the manga artist of pandora hearts, has presented it in a very majestic way that I imagined the whole story myself with background music too. I enjoyed the full manga to my heart's content. Not even a single chapter displeased me. It is a wonderful piece of work by him.

Character- 10/10

As I said before , all the characters are special. You can never judge a character without knowing his/her past , what he/she went through to reach that level. All the characters are based on the novel "Alice's Adventure in Wonderland" but their personalities pretty different from what you are expecting. Their powers come from chains which are actually the personalities you would expect from the novel. To understand this, reading the manga is the only way.

Enjoyment -10/10

No need to describe how much I enjoyed it. You should remember that " All the best people are crazy" and just enjoy the madness this story is going to present to you.

Overall- 10/10

Because , it is outstanding. Trust me , you will never regret reading this manga series. But you will regret for not reading this manga series till now.

That's it folks.

PS: This is my first review ever. So please feel free to point out any mistakes I have done. (^_^)

Pandora hearts is really something special for me. It's plot and storytelling is outstanding. When I came across this manga I didn't have much expectation. I thought it was just an ordinary fantasy-shounen manga. So, I started reading it to pass my free time but then I realized I've underestimated it. Starting from story, art, characters, enjoyment overall everything is perfect. It is one of the most well developed manga I have ever read.

Story: 10
I'm not going to describe the summary since it's already written in MAL. Now at first, Pandora hearts's story is very mysterious. It's more like a puzzle. When I started reading ... it, I got really confused & couldn't grasp the story. I thought the author is just tossing us some unnecessary mysteries. But all the mysteries got clear after reading it fully.

The author, Jun Mochizuki played her trick very well. She covered the whole story under a coat of mysteries. So, it's really hard to predict the story's movement. When a mystery got revealed, it raised more questions in my mind. But whenever I thought about the story's movement or predict something, I got always fooled by it's plot twists. And "Plot twists" are the best thing of Pandora Hearts. I've never seen amazing plot twists like it in any other mangas I've read so far. So, I can assure that, you'll be at least surprised by it's amazing plot twists. Another amazing fact about Pandora Hearts is, it doesn't have that much filler like chapters or plot holes.

So, overall Pandora Heart's story might look uninteresting at first but if you read it further ahead you'll able to understand what Pandora Hearts really is.

Art: 10
I really liked the art-style of Pandora Hearts. It suited with "Victorian era" like environment pretty well. Though first few chapters might look pretty much decent but it'll get much better and better, when you'll read further more chapters. Jun Mochizuk's art has another specialty. It can bring our inner emotions while reading emotional panels. And character-art is also amazing. Almost every character looks beautiful. Background arts like feathers, flowers, chains, ribbons, dark shades etc symbolic things looks very amazing and also gives Pandora Hearts some uniqueness.

Character: 10
It is indeed one of the best thing of Pandora Hearts. It has a large cast of characters. Every character has his/her own unique personality. After reading some chapters you'll start to love the characters eventually.

Starting from main character Oz, Gilbert & Alice, almost all the characters have their own important role in this manga. The background story of all the characters are very well made. I couldn't predict who is the good or who is the bad guy here. It's like all the characters are tied up together from the very beginning of the manga. Their acts are also mysterious. It's hard to predict what are they thinking or what they are going to do. And this fact interested me form the very start. I knew that the characters were just fictional, nothing else. Still, when I was reading it, I also got quite attached with the characters.

Enjoyment: 10
As for enjoyment, it's not like other shounen mangas, where it has a lots of fighting sequences or something like "nakama power" etc. But it is still enjoyable for it's awesome storytelling and characters. Since, I prefer psychological & mystery over other titles I enjoyed Pandora Hearts a lot. The most enjoyable part of it is, how it explains or reveals mysteries.

First of all Pandora Hearts might look like ordinary and full of cliché moments at first. But if you read further you will understand how much dark it really is. Sudden turn of events are another enjoyable fact of Pandora Hearts.

Overall: 10
So, overall I think even Pandora Hearts has some odds, it still deserves 10/10 rating. It is a "Masterpiece" in my opinion. It's really hard to find mangas like it. It took 22 chapters for me to get hooked up into it. So, if you find it boring at first don't drop it. Otherwise, you will miss something great.

Anyway, Pandora Hearts is my most favorite manga. It might sound like I'm just glorifying it because I'm a fanboy of it. But, it's actually not true. Read it yourself to judge it. At least, I'm sure if you read it completely, it will also become one of your favorite manga (If you don't like mystery then that's another case :| ).

Pandora Hearts is a must. For me, most of the genre are found in this very manga. Comedy, Romance, Action, Adventure, Mystery, Tragedy, Super natural and others. Characters are very well represented. The story well created which I adore Jun for that:) And, I really enjoyed it very much to the fullest. Pandora Hearts is the only manga I have ever felt to cry, laugh, get angry, upset and the others all at the same time. To the reader/s who is/are reading this...I recommend you to read it; and enjoy the creation made by the one and only Jun Mochizuki :D

I.... I can't believe it... After 1 1/2 months or more of reading. I have finally finished this !!!!

I have no idea why it took me so long. Normally really stuff like this within a week or a two. But i would put this off so long. Even with me forcing myself to read this it still shouldn't have taken this long.

I don't even know where to start with this.

The manga isn't bad really. It just starts loosing focus i feel like is the way to describe this. First 5-10 chapters are solid i'd say. You get a sense that the story is gonna ... be like X. Then later it just starts dragging on with stuff that seems needless imo. Entire chapters worth of content could be remove and the story wouldn't be affected.

Later on around chapter 60 the story starts picking up again. Some deaths happen that the story puts the atmosphere that this scene with X dying should be sad and emotional. Yet i just come across as board. The last 20ish chapters turn into utter meh.

Having random things that never seemed important come up and suddenly be important, Along with the story going on with more and more Preachy type dialogue .

I believe the 2nd to last chapter had one of the most retarded scenes i'v seen in recent time. Having X come back in his true form saying something dumb along the lines of " I'm back" or " Sorry for taking so long" Along with just a goofy looking close up of X face. It honestly looks like this scene was meant to be badass and just a cool scene. But i was sitting there laughing for awhile after seeing that.

How many things happen with all these stories finishing at the end just seems like an utter mess. Instead of spanning the completion of these story arcs over the span of the past 40 chapters, They decide to do it within 5.

The very ending where it shows what happened with characters over the years is just annoying and i feel that they could have just not had this at all and could've end this on a better note. Especially sense they mostly seemed very depressing. You don't want to end you 100 chapter story on a sour note. I feel this is common sense.

The re-use of character designs really started messing with me. Such as Lacie and Alice and Alice's sister i guess or her 2nd personality. It's not just them. We start getting other characters that look a ton alike. I had trouble remembering between the women. With Alice being one of the only one's that are noticeable on sight.

I can't even properly explain what's wrong with the ending. I know what's wrong with some parts and i can't even begin to think on where to begin typing for other parts.

Really you ( I guess i should say me, Sense my opinion probably isn't going to be that popular) Will only have much interest in two maybe three characters. Some aren't bad and actually interesting, But not enough to keep people hooked with them on screen. Most interesting characters being

Alice: By far the most interesting character. You can't help but want her to be the MC. She is so fun and interesting to have on screen. It is kind of annoying that she get's so little time on screen for some reason. She is mostly used in small dosages for comedic effect. While not bad. It's no where near as good as when she is on screen and is serious. You compare her to someone like Oz. You wish he wasn't apart of the story and wish it was just her and her split personality to replace Oz.

Break: You compare him to Oz and he is just a better character all together. Actually has notable character faults and is a better character overall. His slow degrading of the body also add's all the more interest. If this was Break and Alice as the main characters then this would be awesome.

Echo: What little screen time she get's is always of note. I'm always a sucker for her character types. It's later revealed that she is actually not the owner of the body or something along the lines. ( Side note :i ship AlicexEcho)

Reading through that will probably give you the impression that i'm not impressed with Oz. You would be right.

Oz: While for the firs 30ish or so chapters he is actually pretty alright. I like his " Not a care in the world" Attitude. Also played for good comedy. Makes you think he was meant to be more of a comic relief character. Later on he just became so boring. Instead of him being the one with little to no fighting capabilities, He is now the most OP character. Not any real build up. It was actually nice seeing a MC where he has little to no power and must rely on his allies.

The reveal that Oz was actually B rabbit and not Alice was cool at first. But the more i thought about it, It just ruined my opinion of the already degrading quality of the story. Alice is just the one who should be the B rabbit.

In fact. As soon as they started trying to humanize Alice is where the story started dipping in quality imo. Instead of being a mysterious entity from the Abyss, She is actually just a girl born in the Abyss and has no actual power besides a special eye color.

It makes even less sense when you wonder why Alice was the one that was freely in control of B Rabbits power. So we now have an awesome badass chick reduced to nothing more then a damsel in distress really. While yes she isn't really needed to be saved that much. It is just mind boggling to me that this is how they chose to go with the story.

The crap with Jack and Oz's body is too stupid for me to go into it. Especially how Jack was able to use Oz's power freely without Oz's having any ability to stop it.

All the time travel and how some characters are from 100 years ago is eh i guess. Nothing i really like about it but nothing i hate. Just so bleh

Overall it was a fun read for the most part. Especially when you look past the faults. Just has some issues that bug me a ton.

I maybe look like I`m overrating this but no ... I feel this manga is one of the best yet one of the most unjustified and I spouse due to two reasons the anime and first chapters was kind slow and boring although personally I enjoyed the anime ... there also another reason some may feel it`s complicated but even though I recommend it the art ,the character is not shallow and you can feel connected to it ,the action is good , romance there is but not the way kill the story ... what else yes the ending it really great ...I hate when ... a good manga ruining by bad ending but here it`s the opposite it make much better
Overall I love it and I recommend it

"What's left in the end, is not always what we wish for"
-Xerxes Break

Out of all the numerous mangas I had read, Pandora Hearts will always be the one which is close to my heart. It was a rollercoaster of emotions. There are some times where you will find yourself smiling because you just love how happy and cute they are, and you'll just wish for them to stay like that. And there's also a time (most of the time) where you will find yourself crying and grieving for the death of a character who don't deserved his death or who became really close to ... your heart. Moreover, the plot and story line was so cleverly written. The plot twist is so unexpected and mind blowing. I just love everything about this manga and hope you'll enjoy it.（。＾▽＾）❤

What can I say, it's a masterpiece, a hidden gem.
It's a pitty there are so many people out there who didn't even hear about it.

It never gets boring and stops giving you more information,
The art is beautiful,
The characters are relatable and so loveable,
a real non-linear story,
It will explain everything and leaves no questions at the end,
and at last the story is perfect, like you wouldn't imagine how interesting can it get.

... This whole not-knowing concept at first was bothering me but little by little I couldn't stop reading cause I was finally going to understand and I think that's Mochizuki's trick and I love it.
Also I thought the art was going to bother me on the first chapters cause it was a little oldish but it changed and Ibecame one of my favourites.

Honestly, Pandora Hearts is one of the greatest series I've ever read.

The character development is so wonderfully planned and carried out throughout the volumes- which each character having so much depth and the art is beautifully drawn. Its story is full of plot twists and turns everywhere and has interesting arcs. It had me hooked. Pandora Hearts was complicated and sometimes difficult to understand, but that was the beauty of it. From the small comedic scenes to the serious challenges and scenes, I loved it. However, the relationships between the characters is the most inspiring and tear-jerkingly beautiful thing. The relationships of friends- It truly ... is something so... wonderful.

This series has certainly made me go on a wild emotional ride and is by far an underrated series. And I would never say anything against it or never re-read this series.

Might pick this one up again if I can find the next volume secondhand at Book Off, but I'm not 100% sure considering the beginning of the story was really bizarre/confusing for me. I had a hard time following it, though it did start to make a little more sense after a few chapters. It just didn't grab my interest enough.

Again, I'll probably pick it up another time because it comes highly recommended to me from SO many people and I have a friend that absolutely loved it so I feel a little bad marking it as 'dropped' but... I'm just not motivated right now ... to finish the series.