Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Vampires and Killer-Robot girls, November 7, 2004
This review is from: Negima! Magister Negi Magi, Vol. 3 (Paperback)
With vol. 3,. "Negima: Magister Negi Magi" fully hits its stride and matures into the amazing series we knew it could be, instead of a quasi- Love HIna / Harry Potter crossover. Akamatsu Ken has found a unique voice for the series, with a darker-edged story, and more attention and affection for the characters with every page. This is definitely my favorite volume so far.
The main story of volume 3 is the appearance of a challenging villain for Negi Springfield. One of his own students, Evangeline, is revealed to be a vampire who stalks the students of the Mahora school. There first encounter leaves Negi soundly defeated, in large part to Evangeline's robot slave (and also Negi's student!,) Cha-cha Maru. In order for Negi to fully realize his powers, and defeat Evangeline and Cha-cha Maru, he must find a partner to magically link with and boost their powers. An old friend of Negi's, Kamo-kun, shows up to help him along. Because this is an Akamatsu comic, to achieve the magical link Negi needs to kiss his new partner, and all the girls of the Mahora school are ready and willing.
Who will become Negi's partner? The obvious choice to Kamo-kun is Negi's crush, the cute but timid Miyazaki Nodoka. However, a new character is introduced, Negi's student Nakase the super-ninja, and there is always Asuna as well as many others vying for the spot.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
It is not a cartoon. It is MANGA!, March 28, 2005
This review is from: Negima! Magister Negi Magi, Vol. 3 (Paperback)
I feel the need to set the record straight on a few points regarding "Negima: Magister Negi Magi".
There is a firmly held belief among a certain segment of the American population, largely among older females, that any entertainment form with artwork in it must only appeal to small children. This has not been true in this country for more than a decade and for far longer in other countries. KEN AKAMATSU's entertaining sagas are not "cartoons" or "comics" they are "mangas", an entirely different art form, and one whose audience in America is largely college and high school students (although I myself am quite a bit older than that). Mangas include love stories, sports stories, mystery, science fiction, and just about every other genre you can imagine. They became popular in Japan because they are a convenient pastime on public transportation, and that is KEN AKAMATSU's target audience: adults traveling back and forth to work and school.
There is a further commonly held erroneous assumption that the movie always precedes the book. While that is often the case in the USA, that is almost never true in Japan. The manga comes first, and popular manga series are made into animated series called "anime". Negima is not the retelling of an anime; "Negima: Magister Negi Magi" is a totally original work. Stating otherwise in another review of this book was a serious disservice to the author.
The Negima series of mangas was a huge hit in Japan, and recently an anime was produced from those mangas. The Negima anime was likewise a huge hit IN JAPAN. However because of language and financial considerations it may be years between an anime's broadcast in Japan and its release in America. So far, despite what others have said, not a single episode of the animated Negima series has ever been broadcast to any television screen in America.
Most parents will not find this title suitable for their young children, but many of the books that Amazon sells fall in that category, the collected works of FYODOR DOSTOEVSKY and ALBERT CAMUS spring to mind. The difference between those books and this one is that in this case the publisher has actually taken great pains (shrink wrap and a 16+ sticker) to indicate the proper audience for the book. What more could parents ask? Good work Del Rey.
In summary if you are over 16 years old enjoy humorous stories with a bit of intrigue, a bit of fantasy, a bit of romance, and a bit of foreign culture, then this is your book. Furthermore if you are the parent of a mature young adult, mangas such as Negima are an entertaining gateway to another culture. One they will never see in the classroom.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Negi's First Fight, May 29, 2006
This review is from: Negima! Magister Negi Magi, Vol. 3 (Paperback)
All of the previous volumes mostly involved Negi trying to gain the respect of his all-girl class, and failing miserably in the process. This volume, however, presented an antagonist that actually wants to do physical harm to Negi, and we get to see what Negi is capable of with his magic. It was a refreshing and welcome change of pace from the fan-service based comedy while still keeping with the traditions set in the earlier volumes. In other words, it isn't a jarring change of pace but one that comes gradually.
In this volume, Negi finds himself the target of a mysterious female wizard who just so happens to be a vampire as well. Yet after the first battle, many problems are presented to Negi. One, he must find a way to get past his fear of the vampire and teach his class, and two, he must find a partner capable enough to protect him while he must cast the intricate spells needed to battle the wizard/vampire. Along the way, Negi ends up getting closer to a few more of his students who, in some way or another, help Negi in his future fight with the vampire.
What made this so volume so great was that it presented the vampire conflict in the first chapter and ended it by the last. It's not a continuation from the previous volume nor does it go on into the next. It can be read in one shot, without any cliffhangers along the way.
For me, Negima continues to get better. It may not have achieved that perfect point for me, but I'm still laughing at the jokes and I was excited when the action really started in this volume. I highly recommend this volume to the more skeptical Negima reader, especially if you felt that Negima wasn't going anywhere soon. It gets a little deeper into the plot and finally lets Negi be a wizard first and a teacher second. And, of course, a pimp third.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
|
