Muhyo & Roji’s Bureau of Supernatural Investigation Vol 15 Manga Review

 

Title: Muhyo & Roji’s Bureau of Supernatural Investigation Vol 15

Author: Yoshiyuki Nishi

Publisher:  Viz

ISBN: 9781421528373

 

May Contain Spoilers

From Amazon:

Exorcism Incorporated: Specialists in Supernatural Law Enforcement; No exorcism is too creepy or too small.

Are you a victim of unwanted spirit possession? Is there a ghost you need sent up and away…or down to burn for all eternity? If the answer is yes, then you need Muhyo and Roji, experts in magic law. Serving justice to evil spirits is their specialty. Envoy Possession is forbidden by the rules of Magic Law, but Busujima and Umekichi aren’t above breaking a few rules to put Teeki on the ropes. Meanwhile, Muhyo and the rest go head-to- head against Enchu, but will they be able to save him from the darkness of his own making?

The Enchu story arc finally wraps up, and to be honest, I had some trouble getting into this volume of Muhyo & Roji.  I think it took me three tries to get past the first chapter, and I’m not sure why.  The chapter even features Page, one of my favorite characters, and a really cool envoy that rides a horned beastie that would cart you around town in style.  Better than a limo.  Wondering if the trip through Elysium, a phantasmal dimension between here and Hell, would be required.  That would make the limo safer.  But just not as cool.

The conclusion to the epic story arc was disappointing.  Enchu, despite being consumed with jealousy and allowing it to warp his personality, still has loyal friends.  Friends who he has repeatedly tried to sabotage and kill.  Friends who he has betrayed and schemed against.  While others would have written him off and given up on trying to force his redemption, these guys just refuse to turn their backs on him.  That’s probably for the best, because he has developed a habit of stabbing people in the back.

There is tension, suspense, and fighting galore, brushes with death, and tears of frustration, but when all is said and done, the motivation behind Enchu’s drift to the dark side is too predictable.  It was a reboot of Rio’s fall and rise back to the good side, but it lacked the emotional punch because it just happened a few volumes back, with different character.  The circumstances behind Enchu’s path to evil is only slightly different than Rio’s, and I felt let down because there wasn’t more behind it.  There should have been more, but there wasn’t.  Instead, Enchu proves to be just another weak-willed character who has been manipulated by Teeki.  It rendered him less bad ass and more pathetic, and I liked Enchu better when I thought he was rotten to the core. 

The next volume of Muhyo & Roji takes them back to the agency, and now I am wondering where else the story can go.  What else is left for them to accomplish?  With the series running for only three more volumes, how much more trouble can the duo get into?

Grade:  C+

One Response to “Muhyo & Roji’s Bureau of Supernatural Investigation Vol 15 Manga Review”

  1. Paradigm Shift, new Tatsumi manga, and more! « MangaBlog Says:

    [...] Touch (Slightly Biased Manga) Greg Burgas on MPD-Psycho (Comics Should Be Good) Julie Opipari on vol. 15 of Muhyo & Roji’s Bureau of Supernatural Investigation (Manga Maniac Cafe) Bill Sherman on vol. 1 of My Darling! Miss Bancho (Blogcritics) Lissa Pattillo [...]


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