The current landscape of battle shonen is rife with series about humans battling with or battling against demonic beings, and has been for ages. To stand out in such a crowd is difficult and requires a good mix of sticking to what makes the battle genre work, while also offering a unique hook that grabs the reader's attention.
Dorondororon succeeds (for the most part) with the former- it's competent, but far from unique. The author understands what makes a battle shonen tick, and works within a comfort zone that, while not boundary pushing, makes for a decent week-to-week read that is easy to follow and entertaining enough to not become boring straight away. It relies on tried and true tropes, but compared to some of the failed battle manga I've read, it at least understands how to use them.
On the flip side, Dorondororon lacks a strong hook; what it does has been done before many times through battle manga history, and to make matters worse, is already being done by a more successful, currently ongoing series in the same magazine (Jujustu Kaisen). With direct competition to compare it to, Dorondororon's lack of a hook- or identity, becomes all the more apparent. You can get by without a hook by being really good, but merely being competent isn't enough, because when that fails, what's left to hold the reader over?
During the past couple of months, the series has rushed into many story beats that felt too soon, too short, and questionable in concept. One of the early characters who felt like a key member of the team was pushed aside for a brand new cast of side characters, who each feel like thinly veiled attempts to capture the appeal of similar characters from other currently successful battle-manga (cough, Demon Slayer and Jujutsu Kaisen, cough). Instead of keeping to its own pace like it was early on, it now feels like the series is desperately trying to catch up with its peers when it should still be establishing itself.
There's also the matter of the art, which while not bad per say, leaves a lot to be desired. There's a sense of stiffness the series hasn't been able to shake, and fights lack a dynamic flair that even its peers were able to do during their humble beginnings. Characters can be expressive, but much like the action, faces tend to be very stiff and often mask-like. The over-all aesthetic is fine, and I think there's some solid visual designs, but the series' is definitely lacking in the visual department.
It's too early to say if the series has delivered its own killing blow or not, but my confidence and interest in it has certainly dwindled over the past few chapters. I'll give the author props if they can recover, but for now I'd suggest holding off from starting this series.
[] Final Verdict: Wait a year and see if it's still around.
