Right, so this review might be a bit rambly. It will cover only vol 1 as I haven't yet finished vol 2. Edit: now that I've finished volume 2 I will update my review beneath vol 1's.
I'll try to put my thoughts in a chronological and cohesive form.
I finished vol 1 in about 4 hours in a single binge session. The start - the hook of Shinrabansho is absolutely fantastic - an urban fantasy with just enough horror and intrigue. Susumu is an incredibly relatable character. If you've ever experienced anxiety, been ostracized, crushing expectations, suffered bullying or depression, you'll probably find yourself identifying with Susumu to some extent.
He's a gentle man with a heart of gold that suffers from some pretty extreme otrsacization due to his appearance. When the one person that understands him - Reiko - dies, he sinks into a deep depression. After working up the courage and will to break out of that cycle he gets kicked when he's down - attacked by a monster that literally steals his face and leaves him as a featureless human being in the middle of a crowded Tokyo subway station. After barely escaping the panic his new appearance caused, he receives a phone call. From someone who should be dead, the one person who understood him. "You've got 24 hours to find me before you turn into a mindless murder monster that steals people's faces." more or less. And so begins the story, for real. We're introduced to a Myriad of Souls (title drop!) over the coming story and this is where the writing both shines and struggles. We have real introspection, character growth, and action interspersed with excessive slapstick and anime/manga tropes. Kind of reminds me of early Katekyo Hitman Reborn, thinking about it. Now, to be fair, I was warned about this in both the synopsis and the forward. So I can't reasonably lower my rating for it.
Susumu grows. His memories with Reiko remain his guiding light throughout vol 1 - a sort of "Believe in me who believes in you" kind of scenario that I can totally understand. At one point, he's legitimately asked why he wants his terrible and terrifying face back. "It's the only one I've got.". It's the one he has all his memories with - and the thing he's most afraid of isn't turning into a monster. It's losing those memories.
Susumu comes to meet a colorful cast of characters that see him for who he is. Because he has no face? Because they're yokai? He doesn't know, but he makes friends for the second time in his life and he is happy. Even if he only has hours left to live. And he struggles to reconcile this more than once as they uncover more about the Noh-face they're investigating.
I won't talk too much about the cast individually and instead focus on the "comedy". We're introduced pretty early on to a character that can only be described as violent. Rui is the source of slapstick and her interactions with Susumu are the primary source of tropes in volume 1. It gets old, fast. I will admit, there were a number of instances that were actually funny, but for the most part it's just kind of... there. If you've ever read/watched Gintama, you'll know exactly what you're in for.
That is of course my opinion, and there's no accounting for taste. Once again, I was warned. What I stuck around for however, is the growth and introspection which I discussed earlier.
The action is well written. Easy to follow and envision. Appropriately tense, even if you know things will end up alright, it's not obvious what exactly is going to happen next.
Edit: I realize I never talked about the writing in general; so here we go. The author's vocabulary is strong, her grasp of grammar is solid, and her prose reads easily without cringe.
Ultimately, volume 1 of Shinrabansho: Myriad Souls is an excellent story about friendship, found family, and a broken man healing, ironically because he was broken even further.
Honestly, my only complaints are purely personal in nature and have been addressed. I would however suggest that volume 1 could have benefited greatly from more horror elements. As that was the initial hook and was rather conservatively used afterwards.
_____
Vol 2:
I finished vol 2 in three or four marathon sessions. It's a long one, but notably not a slog. It's... difficult to talk about vol 2 without spoiling much of both volumes 1 and 2. So instead, I will talk about what I believe vol 2 does well and what it struggles with.
Probably the most glaring "issue" would be the effective change in genre after volume 2's opening chapters. Without spoiling the entire thing, it's difficult to explain - the story essentially undergoes a drastic change in genre and expectations you may have had coming in from volume 1. Now in the context of the story, this makes perfect sense and even if it is jarring, it's well written. If volume 1 is plot driven with action, mystery, and character growth, volume 2 is entirely character driven with almost nothing but character growth.
While there is an occasional darkness hiding beneath the surface that you would expect after volume 1, I don't think it's used to it's full potential. There were many missed opportunities to crank up the creep factor that would've have kept the more slice of life-y shift more... intriguing. Given the world Rellawing has created, I feel like there should be more going on, supernaturally speaking.
Now onto the good: Past the first handful of chapters, there is no slapstick comedy (to which I am quite grateful for, personally). Tropes have been intensified and the cliches are endless, not necessarily a bad thing when it's done well - and it is. I would comment in detail, about the excellent growth of the cast, the new setting, and how it's all tied up with a cute bow. But I can't without seriously spoiling a good read.
I think, if you enjoyed the heartfelt moments, the character interactions, and the genuine growth of the cast in volume 1, you will enjoy vol 2 despite the drastic changes it brings.
The review for vol 2 is not quite as thorough or detailed as I would like - as I said, spoilers. I will not be writing half the review in a spoiler tag. If what I have written thus far interests you at all, go read Shinrabansho: Myriad Souls yourself. It's worth it.
I'll try to put my thoughts in a chronological and cohesive form.
I finished vol 1 in about 4 hours in a single binge session. The start - the hook of Shinrabansho is absolutely fantastic - an urban fantasy with just enough horror and intrigue. Susumu is an incredibly relatable character. If you've ever experienced anxiety, been ostracized, crushing expectations, suffered bullying or depression, you'll probably find yourself identifying with Susumu to some extent.
He's a gentle man with a heart of gold that suffers from some pretty extreme otrsacization due to his appearance. When the one person that understands him - Reiko - dies, he sinks into a deep depression. After working up the courage and will to break out of that cycle he gets kicked when he's down - attacked by a monster that literally steals his face and leaves him as a featureless human being in the middle of a crowded Tokyo subway station. After barely escaping the panic his new appearance caused, he receives a phone call. From someone who should be dead, the one person who understood him. "You've got 24 hours to find me before you turn into a mindless murder monster that steals people's faces." more or less. And so begins the story, for real. We're introduced to a Myriad of Souls (title drop!) over the coming story and this is where the writing both shines and struggles. We have real introspection, character growth, and action interspersed with excessive slapstick and anime/manga tropes. Kind of reminds me of early Katekyo Hitman Reborn, thinking about it. Now, to be fair, I was warned about this in both the synopsis and the forward. So I can't reasonably lower my rating for it.
Susumu grows. His memories with Reiko remain his guiding light throughout vol 1 - a sort of "Believe in me who believes in you" kind of scenario that I can totally understand. At one point, he's legitimately asked why he wants his terrible and terrifying face back. "It's the only one I've got.". It's the one he has all his memories with - and the thing he's most afraid of isn't turning into a monster. It's losing those memories.
Susumu comes to meet a colorful cast of characters that see him for who he is. Because he has no face? Because they're yokai? He doesn't know, but he makes friends for the second time in his life and he is happy. Even if he only has hours left to live. And he struggles to reconcile this more than once as they uncover more about the Noh-face they're investigating.
I won't talk too much about the cast individually and instead focus on the "comedy". We're introduced pretty early on to a character that can only be described as violent. Rui is the source of slapstick and her interactions with Susumu are the primary source of tropes in volume 1. It gets old, fast. I will admit, there were a number of instances that were actually funny, but for the most part it's just kind of... there. If you've ever read/watched Gintama, you'll know exactly what you're in for.
That is of course my opinion, and there's no accounting for taste. Once again, I was warned. What I stuck around for however, is the growth and introspection which I discussed earlier.
The action is well written. Easy to follow and envision. Appropriately tense, even if you know things will end up alright, it's not obvious what exactly is going to happen next.
Edit: I realize I never talked about the writing in general; so here we go. The author's vocabulary is strong, her grasp of grammar is solid, and her prose reads easily without cringe.
Ultimately, volume 1 of Shinrabansho: Myriad Souls is an excellent story about friendship, found family, and a broken man healing, ironically because he was broken even further.
Honestly, my only complaints are purely personal in nature and have been addressed. I would however suggest that volume 1 could have benefited greatly from more horror elements. As that was the initial hook and was rather conservatively used afterwards.
_____
Vol 2:
I finished vol 2 in three or four marathon sessions. It's a long one, but notably not a slog. It's... difficult to talk about vol 2 without spoiling much of both volumes 1 and 2. So instead, I will talk about what I believe vol 2 does well and what it struggles with.
Probably the most glaring "issue" would be the effective change in genre after volume 2's opening chapters. Without spoiling the entire thing, it's difficult to explain - the story essentially undergoes a drastic change in genre and expectations you may have had coming in from volume 1. Now in the context of the story, this makes perfect sense and even if it is jarring, it's well written. If volume 1 is plot driven with action, mystery, and character growth, volume 2 is entirely character driven with almost nothing but character growth.
While there is an occasional darkness hiding beneath the surface that you would expect after volume 1, I don't think it's used to it's full potential. There were many missed opportunities to crank up the creep factor that would've have kept the more slice of life-y shift more... intriguing. Given the world Rellawing has created, I feel like there should be more going on, supernaturally speaking.
Now onto the good: Past the first handful of chapters, there is no slapstick comedy (to which I am quite grateful for, personally). Tropes have been intensified and the cliches are endless, not necessarily a bad thing when it's done well - and it is. I would comment in detail, about the excellent growth of the cast, the new setting, and how it's all tied up with a cute bow. But I can't without seriously spoiling a good read.
I think, if you enjoyed the heartfelt moments, the character interactions, and the genuine growth of the cast in volume 1, you will enjoy vol 2 despite the drastic changes it brings.
The review for vol 2 is not quite as thorough or detailed as I would like - as I said, spoilers. I will not be writing half the review in a spoiler tag. If what I have written thus far interests you at all, go read Shinrabansho: Myriad Souls yourself. It's worth it.