I climbed up every hill
See what I'm doing here, Del Rey? I am posting about about volume 8 of Mushishi individually! You may have only published volumes 8-10 as an omnibus, but I refuse to read or post about more than one volume at a time! Mushishi deserves that respect!
Volume 8 is...well, it's a volume of Mushishi. That normally means that it is filled with 5 excellent short stories all connected by the presence of Ginko (the exception being volume 7, which has 4 stories, because one is a two-parter). I would say that this is a particularly strong volume...except that pretty much every volume is this strong.
The volume did start off with its weakest entry. It's not that "The Milk of the Valley" isn't good, but it is one of those few stories in the series where it really seems like it would have been well served by having more than 50 pages to it. I get what Urushibara was saying at the end, but it would have been nice if there had been more room to say it in, and some more characterization of the family wouldn't have hurt.
"The Bottom of Winter," on the other hand, is probably my favorite from this volume. I love all the characters Ginko meets on his journeys, but it's also a breath of fresh air to have a story entirely about Ginko, where he's not reacting to other people, just to the environment (and mushi). I also like this because it's one of the "master of a mountain" stories, which lends it a bit of a mythic nature and fits it nicely into the continuity of the series and the world. This is also one of those "oh my god the art" chapters. Not that they aren't all chapters where you are compelled to stare at the art for a long time, but this one stood out a bit even by Mushishi standards. ...It is also the source for a particularly adorable author's note of Urushibara's- "I've drawn a boar, snake, and catfish as masters, and I suddenly felt my life wouldn't be complete until I drew a tortoise."
"The Hidden Channel" presented one of the more interesting concepts for a mushi (which is saying a lot). This is one of those mushi that I would very much like to see explored again, though I doubt that would happen. I have to admit I didn't entirely like the ending. It was nice thematically, but seemed at odds with a lot of the chapter.
"Sunshowers" is the other real contender for the position of my favorite in this volume. What we have here is sort of a mirror of "The Cry of Rust," with a character whose mushi infection allows for a very different reaction, and yet who has a less happy ending. Teru strikes me as one of the most interesting characters in Mushishi (...I also feel compelled to mention that she is gorgeous). It's also interesting to see Ginko taking on something of an Evayne role (...okay, so that is a reference that only bookelfe will get. too bad.). Definitely a particularly strong story in the series typical mode, the main reason "The Bottom of Winter" beats it in my mind is that "The Bottom of Winter" broke away from form, and well.
With "The Mud Weeds," we get one of Urushibara's demonstrations that when she wants to, she can do good horror. It gives us both some of Ginko the detective and Ginko the neutral party, aspects we haven't quite seen in this volume and which are therefore welcome. The drama and fallout themselves are wonderfully creepy. It's a reminder as to why there's such crossover between the Mushishi and Mononoke fandoms.
...You know, I'm probably going to be in Mushishi-mode all week. Fair warning.
Volume 8 is...well, it's a volume of Mushishi. That normally means that it is filled with 5 excellent short stories all connected by the presence of Ginko (the exception being volume 7, which has 4 stories, because one is a two-parter). I would say that this is a particularly strong volume...except that pretty much every volume is this strong.
The volume did start off with its weakest entry. It's not that "The Milk of the Valley" isn't good, but it is one of those few stories in the series where it really seems like it would have been well served by having more than 50 pages to it. I get what Urushibara was saying at the end, but it would have been nice if there had been more room to say it in, and some more characterization of the family wouldn't have hurt.
"The Bottom of Winter," on the other hand, is probably my favorite from this volume. I love all the characters Ginko meets on his journeys, but it's also a breath of fresh air to have a story entirely about Ginko, where he's not reacting to other people, just to the environment (and mushi). I also like this because it's one of the "master of a mountain" stories, which lends it a bit of a mythic nature and fits it nicely into the continuity of the series and the world. This is also one of those "oh my god the art" chapters. Not that they aren't all chapters where you are compelled to stare at the art for a long time, but this one stood out a bit even by Mushishi standards. ...It is also the source for a particularly adorable author's note of Urushibara's- "I've drawn a boar, snake, and catfish as masters, and I suddenly felt my life wouldn't be complete until I drew a tortoise."
"The Hidden Channel" presented one of the more interesting concepts for a mushi (which is saying a lot). This is one of those mushi that I would very much like to see explored again, though I doubt that would happen. I have to admit I didn't entirely like the ending. It was nice thematically, but seemed at odds with a lot of the chapter.
"Sunshowers" is the other real contender for the position of my favorite in this volume. What we have here is sort of a mirror of "The Cry of Rust," with a character whose mushi infection allows for a very different reaction, and yet who has a less happy ending. Teru strikes me as one of the most interesting characters in Mushishi (...I also feel compelled to mention that she is gorgeous). It's also interesting to see Ginko taking on something of an Evayne role (...okay, so that is a reference that only bookelfe will get. too bad.). Definitely a particularly strong story in the series typical mode, the main reason "The Bottom of Winter" beats it in my mind is that "The Bottom of Winter" broke away from form, and well.
With "The Mud Weeds," we get one of Urushibara's demonstrations that when she wants to, she can do good horror. It gives us both some of Ginko the detective and Ginko the neutral party, aspects we haven't quite seen in this volume and which are therefore welcome. The drama and fallout themselves are wonderfully creepy. It's a reminder as to why there's such crossover between the Mushishi and Mononoke fandoms.
...You know, I'm probably going to be in Mushishi-mode all week. Fair warning.