Reviews

Personally, I love this manga. With former bad guy assassin turned good guy story lines being done to death in various other manga, it's nice to break away from the format every now and then. The manga focuses on the aforementioned reformed character: Train Heartnet. The former Chronos number XIII, ruthless assassin turned sweeper - or plain old bounty hunter. He's partnered up with Sven Vollfied, a former IBI (International Bureau of Investigation) turned sweeper. And of course Rinslet Walker, the famous thief for hire. Later they are joined by a young girl named Eve, who happens to be a genetically engineered bio-weapon who is infused with nano technology which enables her to transform various parts of her body into objects such as hammers, swords etc. In one volume she was able to grow angel wings onto her back. In the opening volumes of the manga, Eve is rescued by Sven and Train from her creator and goes on to be a sweeper with them. Sven treats Eve almost like a daughter to him, although there is a slight rivalry between Train and Eve (not so much on Train's part) for Sven's attention. It's all very cute, and has plenty of comic relief moments.

The story of why Train became a sweeper is more detailed in the manga than in the Anime. With the manga taking place 2 years after Train was "killed" and therefore, was no longer a part of Chronos. Some of the chapters feature lengthy flashbacks, taking the reader back to when Train was a number and when he met Saya, who was a sweeper and lived her life to the full. Train partly left Cronos to persue the person who killed Saya - Creed Diskenth who was once a candidate for the Chronos numbers but was rejected due to his unstable state of mind. In actual fact, Train took Creed's spot as the 13th member of Chronos. Creed then went on to become the leader of the Apostles of the Stars, a group of people who use Tao to create unique powers. A battle ensues between both Chronos and the Apostles, with Train and the others stuck firmly in the middle. As the story progresses, more of the Chronos numbers are introduced such as Chronos number I Sephiria Arks, and the ever enigmatic number VII Jenos Hazard.

It's a well constructed story line, although I must admit that it can be slightly repetitive in some places. The manga itself contain some well defined characters and a flowing art style, although not as graphic as some others that I have read. Still, it's enjoyable enough to read. The plot itself is pretty much easy to follow, and the intermittent comedy moments are an added bonus.