Sayonara Sorcier

Edit

What would you like to edit?

SynopsisBackgroundAlternative TitlesPictureChapters/VolumesPublishing DatesRelationsTypeExternal Links  

I have mixed feelings about this story. On one hand, I was incredibly excited when I found out that there was a manga that focuses on Vincent Van Gogh's younger brother, Theodore. And the way the story set itself up at first, with Theo's ambition to break from the Conservative clutches that the Art Academy has established and a passion for bringing his brother's genius into the limelight.

Other than the story, the art is decent with some very nice depictions of art pieces from the time.

Our protagonist, Theo, is captivating. Much like a performer on a stage, everything he does demands attention in all ... its charisma and intellect. That said, his brother Vincent was a lot less interestingly written. The creative changes to his character made him feel rather plain and unmotivated for the majority of the story, though the writing itself acknowledges this perception.

On the other hand, if you are expecting historically-accurate storytelling, you will be disappointed. The artistic divergences from actual known events that the story decides to take were a little less favourable to me. Without spoiling the ending - I had hoped and been looking forward to the exploration of the brothers' bond in their times of struggle, particularly in the events of Vincent's psychiatric struggles and Theo's chronic health issues. Unfortunately this was not explored in the way I had hoped, and that really ruined my enjoyment of the series.

Overall, I wouldn't say the series itself is bad. If you like the re-interpretation and twisting of commonly known events into something new, you may love this manga. However, from my very subjective perspective, it just didn't meet the particular expectations it had set when I first began it.