Magical Girl Apocalypse – Vols. 1-7 (Manga Series)
April Marie
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Written by Kentaro Sato
Illustrated by Kentaro Sato
Published by Seven Seas Entertainment
Suitable for ages 16+
Since the dawn of anime and manga, magical girls have always been a staple. For only an innocent chibi has the power to wield magic in some way and save the universe! Two popular examples of magical girls are Sailor Moon and Cardcaptor Sakura. It’s such a cliché that some series even challenge the typical magical girl trope, such as Puella Magi Madoka Magica.
If the title hasn’t already given it away, Magical Girl Apocalypse falls into the latter category. From the very first chapter in Volume One, Magical Girl Apocalypse takes what you may or may not know about magical girls and turns it on its head.
Magical Girl Apocalypse starts with main character Kii Kogami living his daily average life, going to school, and hating how boring it all is. His loathing doesn’t last long, however, since his life is forever changed within the first 15 pages of Magical Girl Apocalypse. A young girl in a strange outfit shows up at the entrance to his school, and when a teacher begins to question her, she obliterates his head with a mace. Kii convinces himself that what he’s seen wasn’t real and excuses himself to the restroom. It’s only after he returns to his classroom and finds all his classmates dead that he begins to realize something terrible is happening.
Thus begins Kii’s adventures in Magical Girl Apocalypse, as he continually escapes the magical girls with a varying cast of friends. The series has a Walking Dead style to it with the characters doing whatever they can to survive. They move from location to location to escape the oncoming magical girls. Beyond that, slowly but surely a grander plot begins to unfold as we discover—along with the characters—who is really behind this terrible apocalypse. Within the first seven volumes, a main villain is revealed, with someone even more sinister behind them. The plot continually evolves, making Magical Girl Apocalypse a literal page-turner. Not only are the plot and subplots of the manga exceedingly engaging, the pacing of it is on point. The lulls in action in Magical Girl Apocalypse never feel boring, but rather a resting period before shit hits the fan again. Climaxes and plot point reveals are masterfully spaced for the audience to continue gasping and wondering what will happen next.
The writing in Magical Girl Apocalypse is stellar. The characters and their dialogue are believable, no matter how off the wall they may be at times. Take for example a main character revealed at the very beginning of Volume Two. Akuta Rintarou is a demented police officer who has taken up residence in a shopping mall. When Kii and his current group discover Akuta, he has his pants down, dick exposed, and two naked women are sprawled out dead next to him. His introductory line is, “Woo-hoo!! It looks like there’s some sweet-ass, high school pussy here! Oh yeah!!” That is not a line that most manga could reasonably get away with, and yet, in Magical Girl Apocalypse, it works. Akuta is a relentless perv and usually only cares about himself, so the way he’s introduced sets that precedent.
The art in Magical Girl Apocalypse is worthy of merit, too. Much of the series consists of action scenes, and these are illustrated in a fast paced way without losing out on detail. All of the magical girls are completely different, and this is showcased often in the series. There are scenes where many girls are shown at once, and it’s easy to spot the familiar ones because of the attention to detail. As a side note, it will be interesting to see how many other magical girls are introduced as the series progresses. For now, gore is well-used. It’s deeply disturbing at times, such as one case where a magical girl takes over a child’s body. The magical girl’s head sits atop the kid’s, leaving the child’s face with a zombified look, tongue lolling and eyes rolled back in her head. This is also a great example of how well the character’s expressions are illustrated. The smallest of emotions are visible on their faces, which is no small feat.
All in all, Magical Girl Apocalypse really is a slam dunk of a title. It’s a sincere case of “Never judge a book by its cover” since the title and cover art really don’t give away the gold that waits inside. If you’re looking for a series that brings something entirely new, and in the best way possible, Magical Girl Apocalypse should meet or exceed your expectations. You’re in for a fantastically paced story, with strong dialogue that will keep you turning the pages until there are no more to turn. The evolving plot and discovery of multiple unlikely villains will keep you begging for more. And of course there’s also the twist on the typical magical girl that tickles just the right spot for manga/anime fans. If you liked Madoka Magica even just a little, you’ll love Magical Girl Apocalypse.
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Manga
Categorized:Reviews
