Customer Reviews

Suikoden III: The Successor of Fate, Vol. 1 (Suikoden III)

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There's alot of controversy (okay, so maybe not alot) as to whether or not one should simply read the book or play the game. The Suikoden 3 game is played out very similarly to the story, but the first book takes a look at the pasts of the characters of Hugo and Chris, where Geddoe stays mainly in the background. But never fear, Geddoe fans, because he's supposedly having a larger part in the third issue.

The first part of the book focuses on Hugo and his relationship with Fubar, which I felt was an excellent way to begin the story, especially for those who haven't played the game. Later we get some insight on Chris' character and how she became a knight. Geddoe, as mentioned before, gets little fame in this issue and is merely introduced.

There were some downsides to the manga as well. The art wasn't spectacular--more along the lines of average. Some of the characters, I'll be honest, looked downright ugly compared to the illustrations in the game, especially the Zexen knights. It might be that the author simply isn't accustomed to drawing them yet, but if you're looking for spectacular character art you're not going to find it here. All in all, it's a good retelling of the game and a nice book to read for the casual reader, but if you're looking for a spectacular way to spend your time and money, just put in the effort and buy the game instead.

Based on a fantasy video game series, Suikoden III: The Successor of Fate Volume 1 takes place eighteen years after Suikoden I and opens with the birth of Hugo, the son of the Chief of the Karaya. Moving quickly into his childhood, while out hunting with a Karaya warrior, Hugo comes across a fallen gryphon shot down while leading it's chick away from danger. Hugo finds the orphaned babe, brings it home, and names it Fubar--however after living with him for a few months, Hugo's mother decides it's time to sell the growing animal with the reasoning it could kill someone since it is still a wild beast. Sneaking into the shadows of darkness to save it's life, Hugo sets Fubar free only to have a surprising experience change their relationship forever.

The second storyline is about Lady Chris Lightfellow, a girl orphaned by a father who is presumed deceased. After entering the Service Academy, Chris rose to the position of Secondary Knight in the Zexen Federation and this is where her story begins, with Chris on a battlefield accompanied by Sir Salome, a character of which we are introduced to through a flashback along with several other key players as the backstory continues. Jumping back to the present, Chris watches helplessly as the soldiers fall around her, mercilessly slaughtered until an unforeseen incident leads to her earning the title of "The Silver Maiden."

It is at this point where the two storylines converge and build the groundwork of why these two clans, and specifically Hugo and Chris, suddenly find themselves deep in conflict even though they both were trying to build towards peace.

The artwork effectively elaborates the storyline and generally speaking Suikoden III is drawn fairly well providing fine detail as needed, like with Chris's backstory, and offset enough with a heavier pen to show contrast in scenes of high action or when featuring masculine personas like Hugo.

The characters themselves, from Chris to Hugo to a varied assortment of usual archetypes came across as distinct personalities, although there's always that one that makes you wonder what the authors/artists were thinking ;)

In closing, Suikoden III: The Successor of Fate Volume 1 is good Manga that offers the beginning to a complex storyline and shows good promise of developing into an attention-holding, entertaining read. Enjoy!

So far I've only read this edition of this series. I bought it for a friend and nearly didn't send it to him >.> I very, very much enjoyed the characters and the drawing style. Definetly recommended.

This manga is sooo good to read !
If you like mangas, you would definitely love this one !
Thanks to Shimizu Aki for giving us the chance to reading it ;)

The Suikoden series is the best video game RPG series of all time (yeah, you heard me Final Fantasy fans) and this manga is based on the third game. You don't really need to play the games to understand the manga but it will help keep you interested. This volume covers some of Chris and Hugo's back story and some of the events that take place early in the game. I could have done without a lot of Hugo's story but Chris' was pretty interesting. The art is pleasant but not overly stunning. Also, Geddoe fans will be disappointed because he's hardly in this volume. Other than that, this manga does a good job of staying true to the game and I'll be reading future volumes.

I'm going to say right now that just from reading this one volume, the manga works better than the game does. The best thing about the game was the story and the manga does a great job of capturing the games story.
There are three main characters in this story
Hugo: He is the son of Lucia, Chief of Kariya village. This volume shows him as he grows from a little boy to a teenager. And it was nice to see this because in this we get to see things that were not covered in the game. Like how he met and became friends with Fubar.(A Gryphon.) And then he sees as the war goes on between his people and the Zexens and how horrible it is.

Chris Lightfellow: She is a knight of Zexen and has become very popular lately and (Due to a recent victory.) is now known as the Maiden of Silver. In this volume we get see how she got to where she in her life and how she got her title.
Again, I really liked this. I'm already beginning to like her more than I did in the game.

Geddoe: Unfortunately right now the manga shows very little of him. In the game he was my favorite character and I'm afraid he might get overshadowed by Chris & Hugo in the manga.

Now I said that the best thing about the game was story, but I would say it isn't the same with the Manga. The best thing abotu the manga is how well it captures the violent war that is going on.
This manga has a 13 & up rating and it is not afraid to violent. This is about a war so it needs to be violent and bloody to capture it properly. Don't worry about it being excessive though. It's just that it's pretty bloody for a manga with a 13 & Up rating.
And it also does a very good job of capturing the emotions that the characters are going through.

I have to say that I am really disappointed with the character design. Some of the characters barely look anything like their video game likenesses and that disappointed me. But it's more than just that. Even without having played the game I'd still have to say it's not very good. Some of the worst ones are Ace(One of my favorite characters in the game.) & Aila. While for some strange reason they seem have made all of the major characters actually look quite good. Hugo & Chris both look great & Geddoe looks just awesome. It really doesn't make much sense.
I'll say I'm very curious to see how Thomas ends up looking.

So I would say that even if you haven't played the game, that this manga is still worth checking out.