Immortal Rain

VERY UNDERRATED!! I remember stumbling on this series at my local library, it was a random volume 2--which I find odd even picking up since I hated reading out of order. I was completely drawn to it from that point on and couldn't wait until my holds would come, now this was before I had REAL internet...the dial-up stuff was running at my house; and I didn't even know scanlations was a thing--I was very young. I love the authors art work and diverse characters. I remember being in middle school and hiding it under my desk because I couldn't wait to read it. There's somuch nostalgia that I have for this series. There's such good build up, climax, resolution, and conclusion. If you like complete and fulfilled closures, this would be it. There will be protagonists and antagonists, but by the end of it all, one feels very relatable and great sympathy for all the characters. I don't know how else to convince anyone to read this series but it is one of my all time favorites! I don't understand how it's not an anime...a big loss really.

This is one of my favourite works of fiction, in any media, ever. And unfortunately, it seems tragically under-read. The art is beautiful, crisp and clear. You can almost feel every little frown, smile or look of sadness. The plot is addictive - it combines the drama, action, and loss with just the right amount of humour and romance to lighten the mood, in the appropriate places. The only reason I failed to give it top marks is beacuse it has certain moments where the pace could have been a little quicker, or it seemed a bit repetitive - but these were brief, and didn'tmajorly detract from the plot at all. However, Immortal Rain's strongest point, by far, are it's characters. These characters, with their twisted, sad or lonely lives are what draw you into the series and hook you there. The main chacters, and key side characters, all have their pasts explored and developed. The characters never seem half hearted, or shallow. I remember first reading this series, 4 years ago, when I was 14, realising, for the first time in my life, I was jealous of a fictional character - Machika. You can't help but fall in love with Rain, and even a little with Eury, as the series gets on. The characters make you laugh, make you cry, make you anry - sometimes all three. You truly feel like you've read a much, much longer series than you actually have, because you simply know the characters so well. I will finish this rambling, unpolished fangirl rant-ish review by simply saying this is a sometimes heartwarming, sometimes tragic story of love, loss, and the value of life. I am eagerly awaiting the conclusion in May, as I'm sure many are, and many who've waited much longer than I have too. There's no more I can say other than: read it. You'll never forget it.

The immortality of one's soul... is it an amazing gift or a foul curse? After reading 62 chapters, I remain with the first few lines from volume 2, chapter 8: I have no name, I have no form, I have no home. I will take your hand with these ethereal fingers. I will call you with this soundless voice.// If I could only embrace your flame in this empty heart. I liked the story before reading those lines, but it was exactly them that made me love the story, the characters, and even... Yuca. Pain is a double-edged sword: in Yuca it brings hatred and an almost sociopathic streak,while in Rain it brings a better understanding of the human soul. Both are in pain, and they struggle to end this scorching feeling. And, almost ironically, it is exactly Machika who, in spite of her young age, brings a sense of peace and love to their existence. The visuals - are so contradictory to the grave plot of the story. It actually hightens the feelings we - the readers - have while reading. Such lovely colors and design that make us or - better said - made me cherish Rain and Machika's beautiful relationship even more. The charaters are well-drawn and almost realistic. They deal with loss - of loved ones, of their humanity, of their freedom. They love and hate, fight and forgive. And even Yuca, who claims that he is sick of this world, shows signs of being able of feeling. If there is one thing I dislike about this manga, it is only its 66 chapters span.

I wish I could've enjoyed this manga. But, the truth is that it just simply is not that good. There is so much potential in this manga, but I guess Ozaki's writing skills just weren't good enough at this point in her career, as the execution is just short of terrible. I loved the premise of this manga, where there is a mysterious immortal man who eventually has to take care of a teenage girl. I thought that their dynamic would develop into some kind of wholesome father daughter relationship. As the series went on and more characters were introduced, I also thought that this woulddevelop into a more philosophical series where there doesn't seem to be a good answer to the challenges presented. I thought that the important characters would go through their own character arcs and have a nice resolution. The series never really did into any of these things. I think my favorite part of the manga was during the beginning third of the manga, when the story was still being developed. I think the villains were introduced very well, especially with the character of Yuca. I loved Yuca's introduction, and I loved the explanation of the Methuselah's past that came along with that backstory. But, after this, the manga just kind of devolves. I can tell that Ozaki had a good outline of what to do with the story, but nothing is actually followed through well. I know I said just a few sentences ago that my favorite part of the manga was during the beginning, but in truth that may be the only actually decent part of this story. As the series goes on, many of the main characters start to feel crazy and inauthentic. The main character, Machika, starts to become unbearably annoying, and originally interesting characters such as Sharem become simplified and one dimensional. Yuca, who I thought was the most interesting character, did a 180 and started to act in a way that felt out of character. The worst part of this manga for me was the romance. It's just so bad. I was immensely uncomfortable anytime anything romantic was shown. Machika is too young a character, and I felt that she didn't really have any chemistry with Rain. At some point it starts to feel like all the romances (background ones included) only happen because the author felt some need to include needless romance in the story. I hate to say it, but it just feels like there is no reason for anyone to read this manga. If you want something with that same old school 90's sci-fi feel, go read Trigun. If you want a very, very good story about an immortal man who has to protect a teenage girl, go read Blade of the Immortal. If you want a good romance story that is better than this, go read anything else because the bar isn't very high. If you want to read something else by Kaori Ozaki that is actually very good, try either The God's Lie or The Golden Sheep. These series, while short, were good enough for me to try out this series just because they shared the same author. I rated this manga a 4/10, but truth be told I think this score might still be too high. I decided to give it a few extra point(s) because the art is good and also because I'm biased due to how much I like Kaori Ozaki's other works.