Story:
If you read the synopsis it is pretty much self explanatory what is going on in the series, but what makes it special is the way the story is told and the twist and turns that go along with it. This is not your typical samurai / ninja story with super powers or super jumps, the only story that is similar in awesomeness is Lone Wolf and Cub, which is a masterpiece of storytelling. In BotI the way the fights happen, the character lines, their motives and all this delivered with some amazing art is just almost perfect. Yes, almost, as all amazing things this story as of late have been a bit dragging on or bringing characters that for one reason or another they just don't stick like some of the older ones. The prison story arc took too long and the current storyline is very good, but some of the characters are just lacking, they are awesome, but there is something missing from the magic of older chapters. Still this level of storytelling is way above most of the rubbish generic stuff that you get every other day.
Art:
In a few words, this manga is as much story as it is art, and I mean WOW, the art, the flow of action, the detail or lack of it just complement the story so well that I don't remember any manga that have achieved this (please correct me if I am wrong). The artist (and lately his team) just produce beauty out of decapitations, and similar kinds of gore, it is a treat to just view each manga. There is an artbook out, you may want to get your hands on...
Character:
Hmm, the characters of this manga are just short of amazing. Their backgrounds, their emotional scars, their values, are all laid out in most cases perfectly (except for the latest chapters where it is lacking just a bit). You get Manji which is trying to redeem himself, you get Rin in her quest of vengeance and inner growth that challenges her motives the more she grows, Anotsu which is on a quest to be the best in a time where being such is dangerous, Magatsu a self taught swordfighter that just exhales cool, and the list goes on and on. What is amazing is that in many cases these amazing characters show up for a few chapters and are killed off in amazing ways which most mangas just don't do, you are stuck from beginning to end with a bunch of characters and some cannon fodder comes along to move the action forward. Here you see the characters go and you wonder how the writer will be able to come up with some new cool character and Samura always delivers.
Enjoyment:
I have a big smile on my face every time a new volume or chapter is released, after so many years is still there, nothing else have captured me like this manga.
Overall:
If it were not for the fact that Hiroaki Samura (the creator of BotI) have been slipping on the story (just a bit I should remind you) and that it seems that the story is in its final arc well, I can't recommend it more, it is by far the manga that I have enjoyed the best in my life. I want to say that the Anime unfortunately didn't capture the magic of the manga (only the beginning credits do), they used a horrible music and they couldn't manage to portrait the emotional baggage of each character which is so important to make them believable. Pick the manga up, you will thank me later.
