renaissance eve [shamu ito]

after discovering the existence of supernatural blood types, chiaki kaminaga & kaguya daidoji suddenly find themselves exploring societies beyond their comprehension.

review

this manga fucking sucks.

it's endearing how bad this manga reeks. the retcons, the feeble characterization, the stiff art -- it's a pitiful display of the mangaka's attempt to create something relevant.

the potential radiating from these seven grueling volumes makes it so frustrating to read; tantalizing the reader into thinking of what could've been & leaving them groveling in what it is.

the art is serviceable. it's not bad, but it feels like it was drawn by a total novice. blood type v, shamu ito's manga six years renaissance eve's predecessor, had significantly better art. it's a little sad.

blood manipulation is one of my favorite abilities; choso, crona, power, & toga are all fantastic examples of characters that possess blood manipulation capabilities. their fighting styles, design choices, & overall control of their plasma is so intriguing to watch -- blood itself is an interesting topic to explore in fictional media.

yet i find myself so bored reading about strangebloods. the concept of special blood types that give people supernatural abilities? cool as fuck. but the execution is so poor. electricity blood? lighting blood? blood that makes you smarter? they could've given people these abilities without the interference of blood. it's hilariously bad. i might cry.

in most stories, the characters are the driving force. in renaissance eve, however, characters drag the story along. character deaths are meaningless to shamu ito. character development is completely foreign to him. every character -- and i mean every character -- is a tropey, one-dimensional mess. there's no depth to them, save for maybe two (who are still stale as fuck).

despite its preposterous floppage, i still thoroughly enjoyed my reading experience. it was fun experiencing the world through chiaki's pathetic eyes. i found myself laughing at the inappropriately timed jokes. i drooled at the art in some chapters. it wasn't totally horrendous.

overall, 5.5/10

i might be exaggerating... it's not that unpleasant. it's a nice, fast read if you need quick hit of subpar writing & homoerotic tension

^ i really like this chapter art too lol!!!! the art can actually be cute at times