Gleipnir - Reviews

For the most part the author is trying to give his readers a decent plot for his readers. Shuichi has a interesting power, turning into a powerful fursuit mascot as well as let people jump into his body. The mascot element reminds me alot of the villains from Smokin Parade, although I think Smokin Parade uses the element better to be honest.

This is a seinen series so the author definitely doesn't shy away from the gore. SPOILER) The aliens in the series seem to play a huge role in the story, especially with collecting the coins for power-ups. I have read up to chapter 19, so I have no idea where the story is going to go now. As for the art, it seems okay enough, although I think the author could improve if he wanted to.

One of those people that expects a lot when it comes to art style. And now we come to what I consider to be a major downside to the Gleipnir series. It isn't from the fact that Shuichi can be hesitant and cowardly or that Claire can be a bit aggressive at times but the fact of fanservice within the series. Whether its the female characters who ditch their clothes when they're about to enter the fursuit, or choose to not put clothes on during a scene that bother me the most.

Feels like the author goes hard with the fanservice and its not to my liking. If this were a harem series like Rosario Vampire it would fit the tone but it doesn't. It feels like the same exact thing that the author of Elfen Lied did with his female characters. Its all done for titillation, which is something I have grown tired of as a fan of manga and anime.

Whatever happened with having respect for the female characters? For the love of God, why can't we have more authors like Norihiro Yagi, the author of Claymore, with the respect he gave to his female characters? That is what I want with this series and I doubt it will happen, so from this point I have washed my hands of the series. To those who want to read Gleipnir be my guest, but don't expect the fanservice to change. 

So while watching the whole first episode of the anime, I went straight into reading this manga. I thought it was going to be an alright read but instead, it just was rather too over the top in adding pointless scenes for the sake of horror shock value , killing off a potentially good character, and fan service. I also find it just pure frustrating that they made the MC pretty dumb. I find it would've been more interesting if he didn't have a sidekick and let him find his own way. 

Seriously, reading this series made me completely go frustratingly crazy! Yeah I just had to drop this after 9 chapters!

I'm actually really enjoying this story, despite its really disorienting beginning. The concept of Shuichi being able to transform into a mascot suit and then Claire being able to climb inside of feir suit and gain joint control of feir body is a really weird concept, but it's also really cool. And the way they portray this merging of the bodies is pretty erotic. There are a couple specific goals and final bosses they're aiming for over the course of the manga, but the basic idea is of fighting against other people who also have these mysterious monster powers. The way the monsters work and grow stronger in this manga is a bit reminiscent of Inuyasha, in the sense of finding scattered coins and the coins will allow for powers to be awakened and expanded upon. The monster powers are gained through a deal-with-the-devil type of situation and even though the powers are a fulfillment of wishes, they can feel more like curses (especially with the first girl who wished for quicker legs, but then got monster legs). I think the monster forms look really awesome, but the normal humans don't always look the best.

Shuichi's past is shrouded in mystery and as they continue their journey, fe realizes that parts of feir memories have been wiped. The past, and what actually happened with Shuichi and others is one of the central drivers of the plot, with details slowly being unveiled as the series progresses. While the sense of intrigue this creates is sorta neat, I don't exactly appreciate how it makes Shuichi and feir friends so central to these history-altering events. I also feel that this manga is writing itself into a corner, where it won't have anywhere to go once this story arc is resolved. And the apparent final boss for this current arc isn't the most interesting (fe's powerful, but not very interesting), so I'm not really even looking forward to their confrontation or anything. But I do find the monsters and fights to be well-drawn and I find Claire and Shuichi's relationship dynamic to be compelling, so for the most part I'd say that I've enjoyed this manga.

[Reviewed at chapter 54]

Foreword: Reviews are a highly subjective and personal thing. To find one that matters to you, you must find a reviewer who has similar tastes to you. Cause in the end of the day reviewing something for its quality is fairly straight forward. Its either good or terrible. There is no middle ground in that regard. So all that leaves is taste and personal opinions based on how much you enjoyed the thing. So for my opinions to matter to you dear reader you have to know abit about me. To say my tastes in a few words for your benefit. I love the Resident Evil and Monster Hunter games, I love the Transformers movies, I love metal/rock music, I hate more then anything in the whole wide world Avengers Fans Insulted & Betrayed Endgame but was a hardcore marvel fan up to that point. Now on to my review.

Bloodlord's Review:

Ok so this is Gleipnir. First off right off the bat I'd like to say that this is by and large the most original thing I've ever seen. Like the sheer concept and style is so weird, awesome, unique and different. I discovered this manga by means of reading the Tales Of Berseria manga cause at the end of each volume it advertised some animes and mangas. What got me interested in checking out the series was the mixture of two genres that in all honesty have no right being mixed, Ecchi and Horror. I thought that the very idea of mixing those two together was straight up bizarre and that there was no way it could work. Still the idea was very exciting in its strangeness so I gave the series a go.
And damn am I glad I did. This story is disturbing, erotic, cool and badass at the same time.

Now while the horror tag isn't listed here on AP (even though Kodansha Comics referred to it as a body-horror, whatever that means) make no mistake this series is most definitely a horror many times, there are some artwork scenes that are so damn creepy my eyes were hesitant to dwell on the pages and I just scanned them briefly, but even a glance is enough to burn some of the creepy stuff in my mind. Then again I hate horror so I have a much lower tolerance to it then most.

STORY 

This story is a science fiction story dressed as a supernatural one. The pacing is good, I never had to wait too long for action so I didn't get bored, the drama was very compelling and the entire plot just has an otherworldly magnetic gravity to it that sucks you in and won't let you go until its done. In a sentence I'd call Gleipnir a rambunctious, crazy, super entertaining fun ride.

ART

The art was fantastic. What appealed to me in particular were the sick creepy grins that the artist is really skilled at drawing on the female characters, particularly Claire is always done really beautifully. Its done in a way that the smiles are creepy, demented, alluring and undeniably sexy all at the same time. The monsters are also really freaking well drawn. Some look hella cool (which are the ones I like, Sanbe for instance looks badass!) while others are stuff out of darkest depths of human fear filled imaginations and terrors.

CHARACTERS

A cool thing about the series is that even though there are alot of characters their tales are all well balanced and I feel as though everyone gets there spot in the limelight. I love it when authors do stuff like that, I always enjoy to see a side characters backstory fleshed out. As for who the main character is... Is it Shuichi or is it Claire? I'd argue that its neither on there own. Many times throughout the manga a lovely sentiment is shared between the two.

"Together... We are one"
I feel this to be only way to understand their relationship. They aren't really two different characters at all but they are in fact two sides of the same coin. Together these characters make up a single person and in there different halves they show you two wholly different sides of humanity and human emotions.

Shuichi Kagaya: He's shy, he's timid, he's very empathetic and compassionate. He's a good guy straight up and down. Or.... is he?
Claire Aoki: She's a monster, she's madness, she's ruthless, sinful and pure evil. Or.... is she?

Nana Mifune: She's really small cute and cheery, I'd love to see more of her in some light and fluffy scenes.

Tadanori Sanbe: Shounen protagonist who wants to gain power and look cool while doing it.

IN CONCLUSION 

Avidya. At one point at the end of a chapter this word is shown. Apparently its meaning is.

"Pure darkness which blankets the mind and admits not a single ray of light"

A terrifying thought to be sure, one that strongly conveys the feelings of deep dark depression. But here's the funny thing. Its a lie, its a lie made up by a monster. The monster known as our inner demons and devils. The truth is that there is always light, for light is stronger then darkness, just as the coming of night is inevitable so too is the light of dawn fast approaching everyday. Unstoppable in its own course to illuminate the shadows of the world. This is true of life and the manga. For it never gets too dark, it never crushes your spirits too much. For every time the situation at hand gets to dark and weighty, a funny scene and joke comes along to make you genuinely laugh and smile. For me one of my absolute must haves in any show is comic relief, particularly in darker stories such as this. Now I can enjoy a tale without it but in my opinion comic relief is always nice to have and I always appreciate it.

In closing I can't really explain why but I found this manga to be intimately appealing to me on some deep down and dark personal level. Its like if you had a really sexy nightmare but the nightmare actually turned out to be so fun that you actually enjoyed it and weren't scared at all. It's a manga made by a weirdo for weirdos. So strange but so cool and so freaking good so far!

I can not wait for volume 9!

Not very good at writing reviews but i will say story is reall good exepct for the aot level of bad ending