Title: Rurouni Kenshin
Volume: 3 (of 28)
Creator: Nobuhiro Watsuki
Format: Unflipped
Original Publisher: SHUEISHA Inc.
US Publisher: Viz
Release Date: 1/14/04
Pages: 200
ISBN: 1591162505
MSRP: $7.95
Genre: Shonen Jump
Rated: T+ (For Older Teens)
Description: A REASON TO ACT
A night out gambling and what Kenshin and Sanosuke bring back are not winnings, but a woman - Takani Megumi, mysterious and beautiful, pursued by the crooked industrialist Takeda Kanry - and in need of Kenshin's protection. Megumi, it seems, is the daughter of a famous family of physicians and, however unwillingly, has been participating in the production of a super-powerful, super-profitable form of opium. But now Kanry wants his "hen who lays the golden egg" back, while Sanosuke - who lost a friend to an opium overdose, and therefore sees only the worst in Megumi - would just as rather she did disappear. Kenshin, though, has looked into her eyes...seen the sadness...and knows that, whatever reason a man may need to act, for one who has seen as much as he, the plight of Megumi is for him enough.
Contains Acts 16-22:
- Act 16: Megumi, Kanryu, and...
- Act 17: The Oniwabanshu Strike
- Act 18: Team Kenshin
- Act 19: Daughter of Aizu
- Act 20: A Reason to Act
- Act 21: The Storm Breaks
- Act 22: Attack on Kanryu Mansion
- End-of-Volume Special (2): Rurouni – Meiji Swordsman Romantic Story
Review:
Cover: What a beautiful cover we have here. It is almost exactly like the original cover. In my honest opinion, I think its better then the original cover. First up, like all the other manga covers to Kenshin so far, we have a nice flowery background pattern; the flower pattern is brown on this cover, a nice little touch. Then in the middle of the cover we have a profile pic of Kenshin and Kaoru sitting down in front of him. The series title is towards the top/center, which doesn’t really take away from the beauty of the cover. The Volume Number is on the bottom right, and the Mangaka is on the left.
The Spine is nicely done as well. From top to bottom we have the Shonen Jump logo, the Series Title, the Volume Number, the Mangaka, and a pic of Kaoru (same one as the front cover, but it is still a nice addition since the last 2 Volumes had Kenshin as the spine pic).
The back cover has the same brown flowery background on the top and bottom of the cover. The top of the manga has the Shonen Jump logo and the series title beneath it. Under that, on the white background, we get the manga summary, with its volume subtitle, ‘A Reason to Act.’ To the right we have another nice picture of Kenshin with a somewhat angry look on his face. Finally, on the bottom we have the volume number.
The cover as a whole is rater nice. I find it better to my liking then the original cover and I don’t often say that about manga covers. It’s usually on par or worse. Hopefully VIZ will continue to pull through and release more awesome covers for the remaining volumes of the series.
Artwork: The artwork of Rurouni Kenshin is rather nice. It is consistent and it doesn’t tend to look as old as some of the series from the mid 90s are beginning to look. A lot of detail was also put into the art, which makes it even more enjoyable.
Translation: Translation is accurate. Names are kept intact and plot lines left unchanged. Only problem I have (like most VIZ titles) is the translated sound effects. I can’t stand translated Sound Effects, but they can be looked over in this situation as so far, everything about this Volume is outstanding.
Content (Warning: May Contain Spoilers): With out me going too far into detail with this volume, I will just go on a little about what happens.
This volume continues the Megumi arc, and it does not finish the Megumi arc (I love long story arcs, as long as they don’t drag on too much). After our heroes saved Megumi from the illegal gambling place, they run into a group called the Oniwabanshu, who want Megumi because she knows how to make Opium. Their purpose is to get her to make enough Opium so that the world will become addicted to this illegal substance.
So, Kenshin and Sanosuke deal with the Oniwabanshu. Team Kenshin defeats the bad guys, but Megumi sneaks out and goes with the Oniwabanshu. Kenshin and the others realize this, so they track down Megumi at Kanryu Mansion, where the head of Oniwabanshu, Kanryu, is located. Kenshin, Sanosuke, and Yahiko storm the mansion and get attacked by the Oniwabanshu along the way. Team Kenshin eventually reach the mansion’s front doors, but a new obstacle stands in their way.
Not much character development in this volume, except for a little with Megumi. There is however a lot of action and progressive story, which is a plus. Also there is a bonus story which was one of Watsuki’s first ever manga chapters with the characters Kaoru and Yahiko (kind of a different way to see the Kenshin story).
Objectionable Content:
- Language: No
- Violence: Yes
- Nudity: No
- Sexual Situation: No
Overall Rating: 5 (Out of 5)
Where Purchased: Walden Books
Original Review Date: 2/20/04
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