Note that Cage of Eden is a new manga, and only a few chapters are out. The review is based solely on those chapters, up to the latest (10 at the time of writing). If there are updates, I will change this review accordingly. Also, Cage of Eden is very new, and there is not much to say yet. Consider this review as a preview instead.
One-liner: For a starter, this manga looks promising overall. Nice art style. Interesting storyline. Average-y characters till now.
Total Rating: 7 / 10
Quick Synopsis: A plane full of students crashes on a mysterious island, and there are survivors. The island at first seems deserted, but strange things happen there. You are thinkling Lost, right? That's correct. Cage of Eden is Lost with weird animals and fan-service!
- - [ Story: 7/10 ] - -
Can't really say much about story when only 10 chapters are out. For now, I can say that the story resembles that of the TV series, Lost. Survivors on a seemingly deserted island, where strange things occur. Whereas in Lost, there are strange occurrences, in Cage of Eden, there are strange animals. Well, for now. I don't know what will come later in the series. Up to the current point in the story, the characters are still trying to get to know the island, and try their best to survive. There is also some fan-service such as lots of panty-shots, but not much apart from that. The story has a good enough flow, and at some points you do feel the sense of urgency and danger, but still not very heart-thumping. But that's only 10 chapters. I believe that the story will progress nicely if allowed, and offer some nice twists. Cage of Eden does make a nice read if you like survival-mystery type.
The part about the animals is good too, and there can be lots of development here. I'd just like to see them discovering some friendly animal, instead of just meat-eating angry ones that only want to harm or eat them.
- - [ Art: 9/10 ] - -
The art in Cage of Eden is alright. You have good enough details in the backgrounds that represent the trees and plants of the island, the characters are well made and pleasing to the eye. There are not much to say about Art for now, considering the small number of chapters and scenes already seen, but it's good enough. There are better arts out there, like in Berserk, but Cage of Eden manages to hold its own against others, and is certainly better than other manga. The characters look realistic enough, as manga characters of course. The animals depicted are well drawn, considering their nature. (I cannot tell you more without spoiling.). Overall, nothing to complain about here.
- - [ Character: 7/10 ] - -
We haven't seen many characters yet. If I were to compare it with Lost, I'd say that you have the Jack, Kate and Locke equivalents at this point. For those not familiar with Lost, you have the main male lead which acts as a leader, the main female character - I think she'll be the main female, not sure, and the other guy/geek that seems to have an idea about what's happening around. I liked the fact that not all the survivors were seen immediately at first, and that we are getting to know the characters better at a good enough pace. There is not much background story given yet, so I cannot comment on character progression just yet. Unfortunately, till now, they don't seem to have particularly interesting backgrounds. They look like normal students to me, so maybe their whole stories will develop on the island. There are, after all, just school children. There are some (one, till now) adult character in the cast, but they are mostly just following around the kid-leader which is a bit weird.
One thing I don't like is that only one character is getting the airtime, while the others are just having secondary roles. It's as if everything revolves around the main male lead. The female lead seems to be just a scared little girl that needs protection at every turn. She's not been of much use lately, except when considering her panty-shots and chest-shots. I don't like it when the female characters are just there for show and fan-service. Too bad. I hope this changes soon.
- - [ Enjoyment: 7/10 ] - -
I like series about mysteries and strange happenings, so I am enjoying Cage of Eden. I also appreciate good art styles in Manga, and Cage does provide me satisfaction here too. Not much to say about the characters yet. Cage of Eden makes a good read, in between the normal releases.
- - [ Overall: 7/10 ] - -
The series has potential to grow into a good mystery series. The art is certainly there to back it. There is also ecchiness to fill in the void in the boring parts, but not much till now to cause concern. Character development is still limited but that's ok considering the recency of the series. Overall, I can say that Cage of Eden makes a nice read and will be worth your time everything goes as it should. It's a typical shounen, including the usual fan-service, big-chested girls and panty-shots, but it does offer interesting mysteries and good action scenes. For now, let's wait and see what happens.
Thank you for reading! :P
