Urushibara Yuki - Mushishi, vol. 08-10 (Eng. trans.)
I am so glad Del Rey released the rest of this series, even if it is in a slightly clunky omnibus format. (It is very hard reading the omnibus when you are desperately trying not to crease the spine!)
For anyone who hasn't read the series, it's largely a collection of short stories about Ginko finding various people influenced by mushi-strange little beings that have all sorts of odd effects-and attempting to help them. It's a very easy series to get into, as you don't have to read x number of volumes to wait for good plot to kick in, and the first volume is a good sample of what the entire series will be like.
The series ends as well as it begins; not much is different from the beginning because the story is so episodic, though it's nice to get a slightly more in-depth look at Ginko in these three volumes. Other than that, the strengths remains the same: Urushibara's delicate sketchy art is still gorgeous; the stories are still disturbing, beautiful, weird, and bittersweet; and the world is still as fascinating as ever.
My favorite stories in here are of course the one about Ginko being found right after his encounter with the Tokoyami, the one about the shadows for the sweet relationship between the grandmother and the grandfather, the beautiful imagery in the story about the girl in the well (the stars, playing hide and seek with someone who's not quite on the same plane of existence as you), and I love love loved the final story about the human master and her struggle to be the master and to be human.
I always wish I had more to say about Mushishi.
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For anyone who hasn't read the series, it's largely a collection of short stories about Ginko finding various people influenced by mushi-strange little beings that have all sorts of odd effects-and attempting to help them. It's a very easy series to get into, as you don't have to read x number of volumes to wait for good plot to kick in, and the first volume is a good sample of what the entire series will be like.
The series ends as well as it begins; not much is different from the beginning because the story is so episodic, though it's nice to get a slightly more in-depth look at Ginko in these three volumes. Other than that, the strengths remains the same: Urushibara's delicate sketchy art is still gorgeous; the stories are still disturbing, beautiful, weird, and bittersweet; and the world is still as fascinating as ever.
My favorite stories in here are of course the one about Ginko being found right after his encounter with the Tokoyami, the one about the shadows for the sweet relationship between the grandmother and the grandfather, the beautiful imagery in the story about the girl in the well (the stars, playing hide and seek with someone who's not quite on the same plane of existence as you), and I love love loved the final story about the human master and her struggle to be the master and to be human.
I always wish I had more to say about Mushishi.
Comment | Read Comments (
) | Link