Old-School Battle Manga LEGENDZ Vol 1-4 by Rin Hirai. Art by Makoto Haruno
Legendz, Vol. 1
Rating: (4/5)
2005, VIZ Media, 208 pgs
Ages: (8+) A
"On his first day at school, Ken is challenged to a battle by Hosuke Dekai, a top Legendz player. Armed with his gigantic troll, Hosuke can't wait to teach Ken a lesson in humility, but even more, he wants to win the school's Legendz tournament--and the prized Golden Soul Figure--by any means necessary!"
Borrowed a copy from the local library.
Rating: (4/5)
2005, VIZ Media, 208 pgs
Ages: (8+) A
"On his first day at school, Ken is challenged to a battle by Hosuke Dekai, a top Legendz player. Armed with his gigantic troll, Hosuke can't wait to teach Ken a lesson in humility, but even more, he wants to win the school's Legendz tournament--and the prized Golden Soul Figure--by any means necessary!"
Borrowed a copy from the local library.
This is a short (4-volume) old-school manga series, that focuses on a battle game ala Pokemon. It's rated A as suitable for All Ages. Both my son and I found this a fun light fantasy diversion. The name of the game here is Legendz where everyone has a Legendz to care for and do battle with (these are like tamogochi's and the series was created by the same people). They are all legendary creatures such as trolls, mermaids, werewolves, dragons, etc. Ken is new at the school, a battle game freak, but one who plays with honour and a conscience. He teaches the kids a new kind of respect for their legendz. Ken ends up being the rightful owner of the "Golden Soul Figure" but doesn't want it as he's vowed to only play with his beloved Winddragon. And that's where the book leaves us. Lots of battles and just pure fun, nothing heavy, but a good read and lots of great old-school battles. The last page leaves a collection of cards showing all the stats for the Legendz who fought in the volume. This would make a great beginning series for a youngster!
*****
Legendz, Vol. 2
Rating: (4/5)
2005, VIZ Media, 208 pgs
Ages: (8+) A
"Ken's classmates Ririko and Hideaki are kidnapped by students of a rival school as bargaining chips for the coveted Golden Soul Figure, and it's up to Ken and the top Legendz players at Ryudo to save them Trapped on the top floor of Kokuryu Elementary, the hostages can only pray that their friends have the power to fight their way up floor by floor--past hordes of Hades hounds and other nasty surprises--and liberate them."
Borrowed a copy from the local library.
Continuing on from the last volume Ken must first battle to save his kidnapped friend. Then battles abound in glory one after another as Ken goes to the Legendz Carnival, only the evil Leo is out to destroy all the Legendz so he can crystallize their energy into crystal form and use it for his own Legendz. As we leave the story, a crystal has been formed and Leo sets off after Ken to retrieve it. Plot is being added here to make the story more than just battles, but still it is very heavy-duty battle-game manga. The younger kids will love this and my 13yo ds and I are simply having fun with the mythological creatures and old-school battle-game manga. Nothing deep, just fun.
58. Legendz 3: Necrom Menace by Rin Hirai. Art by Makoto Haruno (buy)
Rating: (4/5)
2005, VIZ Media, 208 pgs
Ages: (8+) A
"Ken's classmates Ririko and Hideaki are kidnapped by students of a rival school as bargaining chips for the coveted Golden Soul Figure, and it's up to Ken and the top Legendz players at Ryudo to save them Trapped on the top floor of Kokuryu Elementary, the hostages can only pray that their friends have the power to fight their way up floor by floor--past hordes of Hades hounds and other nasty surprises--and liberate them."
Borrowed a copy from the local library.
Continuing on from the last volume Ken must first battle to save his kidnapped friend. Then battles abound in glory one after another as Ken goes to the Legendz Carnival, only the evil Leo is out to destroy all the Legendz so he can crystallize their energy into crystal form and use it for his own Legendz. As we leave the story, a crystal has been formed and Leo sets off after Ken to retrieve it. Plot is being added here to make the story more than just battles, but still it is very heavy-duty battle-game manga. The younger kids will love this and my 13yo ds and I are simply having fun with the mythological creatures and old-school battle-game manga. Nothing deep, just fun.
*****
Legendz (3)
Rating: (4.5/5)
2005, VIZ Media, 224 pgs
Ages: (8+) A
"Ken and his rival Kaoruko recover the mysterious crystal that will prove her scientist father isn't a crackpot. But Leo, the ringmaster of the Legendz Carnival, has other ideas and will do anything to get his hands on it. Their explosive duel finally releases the true power of the Golden Soul Figure, but will it be enough to stop the forces of Darkness that are closing in on Ken and his friends?!"
Borrowed a copy from the local library.
Rating: (4.5/5)
2005, VIZ Media, 224 pgs
Ages: (8+) A
"Ken and his rival Kaoruko recover the mysterious crystal that will prove her scientist father isn't a crackpot. But Leo, the ringmaster of the Legendz Carnival, has other ideas and will do anything to get his hands on it. Their explosive duel finally releases the true power of the Golden Soul Figure, but will it be enough to stop the forces of Darkness that are closing in on Ken and his friends?!"
Borrowed a copy from the local library.
The plot really picks up with this volume. There is a twist in the plot and we found out who the real bad guy is, a famous mythical creature that made me squee with glee. Relationships develop all around, Ken and his Windragon get some pretty cool powers and of course very heavy on the battle scenes. Quick-paced, certainly not a deep story but fun for the younger crowd or those looking for some old-school battle-game manga. Ririko, the girl featured on the cover of the volume, has managed to get herself kidnapped once again and the volume ends with a secret revealed and our gang poised to rescue friends and defeat the enemy. Since the next volume is the last one, I'm expecting a pretty fast rushed ending but the whole series so far has been a fun whirlwind with this one bringing us to the brink of the climax.
60. Legendz 4: Legendz Become Legends by Rin Hirai. Art by Makoto Haruno (buy)
*****
Legendz (4)
Rating: (4.5/5)
2006, VIZ Media, 224 pgs
Ages: (8+) A
"Ken, Kaoruko and Leo set off for South America to rescue Leo's sister and Ken's friend Ririko from the forces of Darkness known as Necrom. Their quest takes them deep inside Necrom Palace, a place crawling with dark Legendz of enormous power. There, Ken and his friends will face the greatest test of their abilities in the battle to stop the resurrection of Jabberwock, the lord of Necrom!
Final Volume"
Borrowed a copy from the local library.
Rating: (4.5/5)
2006, VIZ Media, 224 pgs
Ages: (8+) A
"Ken, Kaoruko and Leo set off for South America to rescue Leo's sister and Ken's friend Ririko from the forces of Darkness known as Necrom. Their quest takes them deep inside Necrom Palace, a place crawling with dark Legendz of enormous power. There, Ken and his friends will face the greatest test of their abilities in the battle to stop the resurrection of Jabberwock, the lord of Necrom!
Final Volume"
Borrowed a copy from the local library.
The final volume concludes with a lot of emotion and loads of high stakes battle scenes. All four elements (earth, wind, water & fire) have been assigned to a specific child and as the saga of that element they can combat with their legendz along with the special powers they have received from this "evolution". Sibling and friend relationships are explored, the plot deals with sacrifice and the series comes to a satisfying conclusion. All somewhat rushed, it's a fast-paced series that is over all too quickly in four volumes but it was an enjoyable read and perfect for this age group. Kids wanting to read real manga, but parents having a hard time finding something suitable that doesn't have the frequent sexual innuendo of most T rated series will find perfectly clean and fun. Viz is making a lot of it's backlist available digitally and this would be great to see available again for this age range. It also would make a nice 4-in-1 omnibus edition. But for now, it's out of print and you'll have to seek the library or secondhand market.
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