Rating: Summary: Witty and hilarious...definitely a favorite Review: Okay, time to write some online reviews! Before i buy anything i always come and read the reviews here, so i guess i oughta do my part and write some of my own! Dragon Knights Vol. 1: The chronicles of three somewhat crazy knights as they cavort across a magical landscape full of bizarre characters with the head of their former enemy Nadil. Meet Rath, a Yokai Demon who's bent on destroying those of his own kind, Rune, a somewhat feminine and sensitive elf who just wants to follow orders and get home safely, and finally Thatz, a lazy human thief and former gangbanger who's only interested in food, sleep, and cash of course. This is a hilarious series that is definitely a feat in comic manga. So, why the four-star rating, you ask? Well, truth be told i think this volume is one of the better mangas out there, but I reserve my five-star ratings for things like Nausicaa, and anything Miyazaki and whatnot. I was originally put off by this series when i first started reading manga becuase of the cover art (pretty bad on this one folks...since when does RATH have PURPLE HAIR?...and who the heck is the other guy?) well, at any rate i got bored one day and browsed thru it in B&N, and it turned out that the cover art wasn't anything LIKE the stuff on the inside. The characters are drawn way more three dementionally, etc. However, a word of warning before you get your hopes up: the artwork changes very quickly with the progression of the manga,(ive browsed through later volumes) in much the same way that X/1999 by CLAMP does. However, i think if you ignore it the artwork QUALITY remains very good, even if the style differs. As to comic level, this books great; full of knights in drag, man-eating witches, demon fortune tellers, and robotic storekeepers!!! after i started reading this the first time, i was disappointed to find the seemingly pointlessness of the stories, but i dont think thats true at all. whats really happening here is the author is giving you the lag time (that most mangas lack) between destinations in the form of several witty, comic adventures. its just that it is put in the first volume, then travels backwards in time to explain it later. From what i hear, the series gets a darker feel as you go, and the plot stabalizes. The reason i personally enjoy this manga so much is that the comic humor is great, and the characters and their expressions are unique and full of life as demons and the like plot to get nadils head (btw, once you read this, is it me or is Cesia like...a fourth dragon knight who doesnt know it and controls the WIND? hmm...)and of course, cat fights between the dragon knights ^-^!!!! for this volume, the art is still good, but it lacks wide-angle shots, which may be part of the style. Usage of screen tones is excellent! The best kind of Manga artwork is the kind that maintains consistency, explores different angles without obvious effort, and is servicable to tell the story rather than look pretty. Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind, Akira, MARS, and anything by Rumiko Takahashi (Inu Yasha, Ranma 1/2, Maison Ikkoku) are all excellent for that, and dragon knights vol 1 definitely goes along witht hem okay, so ive spilled my thoughts and opinions! btw, this manga has less cheap humor and more laugh out loud, comical, clean humor. its a great buy, i highly recommend it! i notice something new every time i read it!
Rating: Summary: one of the best manga i've ever read Review: this was the first manga comic i've ever read and it's certainly the greatest. Dragon knights started off as a light, comical manga, but then it got pretty heavy and serious. the animation has evolved a lot throughout the series, but it's still very decent artwork. what i like the most about dragon knights is the use of character developement. normally, people think of demons as evil killers, but this manga proves them wrong. it's most of the demons that sets the book in action. for instance, take my favorite dragon knight, rath. rath is a demon whom, for some queer reason, likes to kill other demons. he was very funny at the beginning of the series, but when the series got serious, he became pretty evil and did a lot of bad things such as killing poor gil (who is also a demon) but later, he turned out all right. yeah, almost everybody likes rath. the other two dragon knights, thatz and rune don't develop much compared to rath, but they're enjoyable characters as well. in this book, you can't help but pick out your favorite characters (my favorite is gil).
Rating: Summary: A incredibly humorous and highly amusing series. Review: With TOKYOPOP's new "100% Authentic Manga" line, the company attempts to wipe away the mistakes they made with previous manga series ("Sailor Moon", "Cardcaptor Sakura", etc.) while at the same time giving the reader an "authentic" reading experience. The results so far have been nothing short of amazing, as brand new series are given a much higher scope of their potential. This quality extends into "Dragon Knights", a highly amusing series that benefits from TOKYOPOP's new format and showcases a humorous and entertaining story. "Dragon Knights" tells the story of Rune, Rath, and Thatz, three Dragon Knights that must deliver the head of a man named Nadil to the Dragon Lord Lykouleon. But this isn't easy, as the three characters have very conflicting plans: Rune just wants to get the head to the capital, Rath just wants to fight demons, and Thatz just wants to get money. Add in the mix a bunch of oddball characters after the head for their own ends, and the story takes a series of bizarre twists. The front cover of the volume makes it look serious, but the story is far from that. If you've ever seen "Slayers", then you'll know what to expect: complete zaniness. In what other manga does a soccer ball appear in a magical world? In what other manga does a bad guy threaten to banish a good guy from the comic? But the plot isn't shallow, either; beneath all the craziness in the first volume is a deep story that'll most likely be fleshed out in later volumes (all 16 of them). The first volume is very entertaining, and it gives a reader a lot to look forward to in the next installment. Visually, "Dragon Knights" isn't the best-looking manga on the market. However, the style really suits the series' oddball humor and characters; it'd be difficult to imagine the series looking any other way. If you had to compare it to something, I'd say it looks like the artwork of "Sailor Moon", only a LOT more polished and refined (and that might not even be a good comparison). Also, with TOKYOPOP's "100% Authentic Manga" format, the artwork is presented in it's original right-to-left format, leaving it untouched by photo-reversing affects and therefore leaving it clean and crisp. Regarding the translation, TOKYOPOP is indeed getting better. Previous efforts like "Cardcaptor Sakura" and "Gundam Wing" sounded stale and emotionless, but the translation of "Dragon Knights" is actually good. I counted one spelling error, but it's really nothing to get worked up about. And the overall dialogue is very convincing and emotional, thanks to the fact the text appears handwritten and not typed. Overall, "Dragon Warriors" is a great series that shows a lot of potential and will most likely live up to that potential. While it's not the best manga series out there, it's worth any serious manga reader's time to look into it, and fans of "Slayers" and other similar anime/manga should definately give this a try.
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