Yaotsukumo

The subject of immortality is one that I have always been fascinated with. Surely it would be painful, so much so that you would seek your own death in any way you could. So when I find something that deals with immortality, I can't help but be curious as to what shape the story will form. Yaotsukumo is about an ancient line of females that can grant immortality to anyone they so choose, and about one man who has been there since it all began. Even though that paragraph may make the story sound interesting, it is so riddled with plot holes that it makes swiss cheeselook compelling. On top of the plot holes, we have characters who are introduced for a chapter, and then never really appear again. A few of these characters are immortals too, so not having their backstories ruins the whole point of telling a story about immortals, in my opinion. The art is rather rough, and looks down right bad in some places. The characters eyes bother me to no end. It isn't the worst artwork I have seen, and there are some pages that actually do look good, but altogether the art was displeasurable. As for the characters, aside from the two mains like I said earlier, no other characters get fleshed out, and never appear again in most cases. If you get interested in one of the side cardboard cutouts, be prepared to be disappointed because literally no side characters get developed in any meaningful way. All in all I give this manga a 5, mainly because the story had an intriguing premise. If you are a fan of immortality stories, it's short enough that you may as well read it. If you aren't bump the score down to a 4, and don't bother with this.

A dramatic romance featuring the themes of reincarnation and immortality! Jumping right in, Yaotsukumo introduces us readers with a common tale of a mortal who wants to live, and an immortal who wishes to die. The story is intriguing and there are many elements that set it apart from every other story about immortals. ...Right up until the end, where it falls completely flat. Whether it is due to the author's poor storytelling ability or whatnot, the fact remains that Yaotsukumo starts off with a great amount of potential, but is unfortunately not utilized to its full extent. One of the key charms of Yaotsukumo isthe art style. While others may disagree, I really enjoyed the art style. It is a refreshing change: the author utilizes bold strokes of black with creative angles that give scenes a very intense feeling. This works especially well for such a manga filled with gore and action, and the clean artwork makes it easy for the reader to follow along. However, it is important to note that sometimes the character anatomy is a bit off, and the art style combined with said unique angles makes it difficult to differentiate between what is the author's style (eg: thin limbs) vs. what is anatomically incorrect (eg: heavily elongated limbs). The two main characters have simple designs, but they are effective and memorable. Side characters tend to have slightly more complex designs, but their main flaw is that they are one-time-use characters. Whether it be Tsukumo's best friend, the servant Mutsuki, or even the tsukumogami Aria, they are all quickly introduced and abandoned just as quickly. There is absolutely no room given for these characters to develop. Even the growth between the two main characters is small and limited. Overall, Yaotsukumo was an enjoyable read, albeit far too short. The manga pulls you in for an enriching and one-of-a-kind tale, only to suddenly disappear and leave you yearning for more. Unfortunately, no amounts of fantastic artwork can fill the huge gaps within the story of Yaotsukumo. In short, a summary: + Easy to get into, and easy to follow. + Unique and attractive art style. + Imaginative and heavily action-packed. - Unsatisfying story that feels undeveloped and incomplete. - Barely any character development. - Characters aside from Yao and Tsukumo are never delved into and hold no significance after their entry-chapter ends.