Reviews for Bestiarius
Back to Manga(No Spoilers) This manga is amazing. The art is breath taking. The story is spectacular. The characters are very well thought out and easy to relate to even though one of them is a frickin dragon. It's beyond enjoyable. This manga may be only two chapters long but it is an amazing read. I highly recommend you read this manga and even on the small chance you don't like it you wont feel as if you've wasted your time considering its only two chapters long.
Very few mangas have a roman setting so this is sort of a gem for fans of the movie "Gladiator". As a oneshot there is very little room for this title to move around in terms of action and story, but the author manages to admirably make a story that is more driven by the characters' relationship with one another than the actual action itself. Probably the best selling point for this one shot is the awesome artwork, great detail was resent in every panel and there are also some decent fight scenes that have nothing to do with super powers or special techniques that require theirnames to be shouted before being used. Although it can also get pretty confusing sometimes since the transition from panel to panel is pretty hard to follow sometimes
The biggest letdown aside from it being short is the fact that even though the Roman Legion plays a key part in this setting, they don't actually stand out as well... "Roman" they might as well be a fictitious army similar to those in other fantasy anime and manga, the only resemblance they have to Rome's mighty legion is that they have their uniform but I was hoping to see just a little bit more of their trademark formations and tactics such as the Legendary Testudo formation. But of course this is just a one shot, and I'm hoping for this title to become a full blown manga series in the future similar to Berserk so it can have more room for development and added detail to become a rich Roman / Fantasy hybrid epic.
What can we say except that this epic journey was a breath of fresh air, but also a rollercoaster of emotions. Not since Karakuri Circus have such strong values been conveyed with such accuracy and force. Kakizaki has the gift of conveying so many inspiring things, whether here, in Green Blood or even in Hideout or Rainbow. I liked absolutely everything, from the drawings to the story, the atmosphere, the message and the characters. Speaking of characters, name me a manga in which all the protagonists are so inspiring and brave. With every defeat, every victory, every step forward they took, they had the strength to carryus along with them. All the characters got the glorious end they deserved and the honor they were due. Even antagonists like Saeros were swept along in the wake of values traced by this band.
And that splendid ending! What author could dream of having such a solid track record as Kakizaki when it comes to successful manga endings from A to Z?
Words are far too weak to express my love, but also my sadness at having to leave this magnificent adventure.
I recommend it to you more than anything. Go and read this masterpiece that is Bestiarius!
My favorite work by Kakizaki. The way the story is told is very innovative. Each arc has a different protagonist, but the old ones appear and play a prominent role, and each arc has a new core of essential characters and they are all well crafted. I love the cast. The author is very mature and kills the characters without fear, and the story always revolves around colisseums, but I always use a good justification for this to happen, there is a decision here and there in the script that I didn't like, so much so that I gave it a 9 , but I recommendit, I love this manga.
Minha obra favorita do Kakizaki. A forma que a história é contada de forma bem inovadora. Cada arco tem um protagonista diferente, mas os antigos aparecem e tem papel de destaque, e cada arco tem novo núcleo de personagens essenciais e todos são bem trabalhados. Eu adoro o elenco.
O autor ele é bem maduro e mata os personagens sem medo, e a história sempre gira em torno de colisseus, mas sempre uso boa justificativa para tal ocorrer, tem uma decisão aqui e ali no roteiro que eu não curti, essa tanto que dei 9, mas eu recomendo, eu amo esse mangá.
To start things of, "Bestiarius" was a read I greatly enjoyed. The story overall is not the newest invention of storytelling, however, it is easy to follow and and the smaller stories combine greatly to one bigger picture. The characters are well written, which I noticed mostly in the antagonists of the story. The author did an awesome job in making characters likable and, of course, hate-able. Even though the manga was a rather short read, with 54 chapters (7 mangas), I felt a solid connection and involvement with the characters, what happened to them and how they saw every part of their storyline. Most importantly....the art.The visuals in "Bestiarius" are absolutely outstanding. Each and every single panel of this manga is filled with astonishing quality of artwork. The big shots as well as the smaller, more detailed pictures. It had a great supporting role in making the characters hate/ likable, because the looks on their faces were portrayed really realistically.
In total, I rate this with an 8/10, especially with the monumental artwork!
Original review in french below With plenty of shonen pitches, the fact that a seinen author shows up with the idea of recreating ancient Rome in a fantasy light seems to be enough. Bestarius is therefore a summary plot in a universe of odds and ends... which, however, can be penetrated, rather skimmed over, without forcing too much. Because with its numerous mythological references (in the choice of surnames and recreated figures) and its angular, careful lines, undoubtedly a little busy, it cuts to the chase. The idea of a world where humans and monsters coexist, the qualifiers often being reversed, tinges these stories of rebelliousgladiators and slaves with a touch of dark fantasy which is not unpleasant. The way of embedding the mini-stories in the first volumes, and of gradually integrating the different protagonists into the same miniature epic works not too badly, and allows us to hold on despite fights that are not always very inspired and a rather summary Manichaeism .
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Dans la profusion de shonen à pitch, qu'un auteur de seinen se pointe avec l'idée de recréer la Rome antique sous un jour empreint de Fantasy semble suffire. Bestarius, c'est donc une intrigue sommaire dans un univers de bric et de broc... qui pourtant, se laisse pénétrer, survoler plutôt, sans trop forcer. Parce qu'avec ses nombreux clins d’œil mythologiques (dans le choix des patronymes comme des figures recrées) et son trait anguleux, soigné, un peu chargé sans doute, il taille dans le vif. L'idée d'un monde où cohabitent humains et monstres, les qualificatifs s'inversant bien souvent, teinte ces récits de gladiateurs et d'esclaves révoltés d'une petite touche de dark fantasy pas déplaisante. La façon d’enchâsser les mini-récits sur les premiers tomes, et d'emboîter peu à peu les différents protagonistes dans une même épopée miniature fonctionne pas trop mal, et permet de tenir malgré des combats pas toujours très inspirés et un manichéisme assez sommaire.
The story is split up into different episodes all featuring a different main cast and the only continuous characters through out the manga are the dragon and the main character Fin. The story is very basic and not that deep but the fact that rome is the setting makes the story interesting. The art is amazing, It kinda reminds me of Berserks art in a way but its a shame that you can only read up to chapter 23 online, You need the physical copies to read volume four through seven. I'd say give this a read if you like rome as a setting and if youlike the artstyle.