Reviews

Jan 21, 2023
Preliminary (7/? chp)
SINoALICE the manga deviates heavily from the actual mobile game story so you don't need to play it to understand the story. Either way, it is a confusing story, because this is Yokoverse. The same gist and premise of a deathmatch, battle-royale is there, but the relationships and world are vastly different. True to the original material, however, it remains a bloody and ill-fated good time for all characters involved.
The pacing is pretty erratic at first and can be difficult to keep up with, but it begins a pretty typical buildup to conflict later in the story. Characters are given overt but also very subtle chances to showcase what is not shown in their thought bubbles. Aoki and Himiko team up to make small visual Easter eggs that are scattered through the pages for fans to find. The art is a bit interesting due to the combination of almost no shading on characters save for stark shadow, jagged lines, and CG imagery for many backgrounds. There is focus on the variety the artist can pull off in terms of character expression despite some of them appearing rather same-same. The additional special effects for abilities are interesting, and the conceptualization of these are also well-thought out in terms of how they relate to the original game characters and their designs.
The physical copy of the manga also includes a bonus text-only story at the end, which is usually more character-building. It honestly can feel like a bit of a cop-out until you remember this is Yoko Taro we're talking about. It emulates the same reading requirement from his games.
I recommend this for anyone looking for gore and mature themes intertwined with witty commentary and a liking for battle royale stories. However, online scantalations are almost impossible to find past chapter 5, and the chapters can be lengthy to translate, so you will need a decent amount of patience to wait for official translations and just buy the book.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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