Reviews

Hiro Mashima had already fully realized his ideal shonen in his debut manga, Rave Master. Although I was never fond of Mashima’s brand of shonen, I gained newfound appreciation of his style through Rave. What made this manga distinct from other generic shonen is the emphasis and love for friendship. This, first and foremost, is the defining characteristic of Mashima’s stories. And like any other Mashima work, this essential feature is both a strength and a flaw. His obsession in friendship gets in the way of meaningful character writing and consequential conflict. The characters never go beyond their archetypal models. It fails to sell big battles because the main antagonists aren’t simply compelling. It doesn’t help that Mashima doesn’t tweak the formula for each arc, making the entire trajectory of the series look like a sine wave.

Even though Mashima’s fixation on friendship is the heart of the series' flaws, it is also the reason why it does some things better than other battle shonen, even the greatest like One Piece and Hunter x Hunter. Friendship will always be a part of the shonen vernacular and it’s played out in different ways. In One Piece, camaraderie is found and strengthened as the characters embark on their grand adventure. Meanwhile, Hunter x Hunter explores friendship in all kinds of morality whether it be a twisted friendship between its heroes or wholesome fellowship between its villains. Rave is different as it focuses on the use of plot irrelevant adventures and slice-of-life elements. It shows us that friendship is formed in small detours and inconsequential adventures. It is strengthened by the little familial moments the heroes share together. And these bonds are simply affirmed in the battles they fought. Other battle shonen simply lack this element because they are plot-heavy. In comparison, Rave is never afraid to frequently indulge in its downtime where there is little conflict to build rapport between its bountiful cast. Even if the characters are walking cliches, their friendship is undoubtedly real and compelling.

Perhaps the lack of meaningful rapport between its heroes is the reason why Fairy Tail failed to reach the level of its predecessor even if they made the same blunders. Nonetheless, Rave is a fascinating experience and an entertaining read. Its strengths also caused its faults, but if there is any consolation, it is the fact that Mashima’s brand of shonen is worth considering.