<img src="http://www.animeuknews.net/img/uploaded/2011-01-1613530429m.jpg">
<b>Review of Soul Eater #4 by Raz112</b>
From the pursuit to become a death scythe, to the chaos the witch Medusa brought, to the escape of Asura Kishin from the depths to DWMA, to the revival of Arachne and Arachnophobia, and the search for Eibon's Magic Tools, Soul Eater has indeed taken us on quite a weird and wonderful journey. It's given us some quality Shonen entertainment that at the very least rivals the best, if not surpasses them on many occasions.
In this volume we see the DWMA with its back against the wall, as Medusa walks out of prison scot-free, taking DWMA's strongest meister, Stein, with her. Meanwhile, Asura Kishin forms an alliance with the resurgent Arachne, who then amplifies Kishin's madness across the world, threatening to cause the world to descend into chaos. Furthermore, the last Magic Tool, which for some reason Lord Death so desperately seeks, is still missing, which deepens Death the Kid's feelings of distrust regarding his father's true motives. By giving orders to tackle all three issues, DWMA's forces are spread thin, with the odds of any success being against them. Eventually, the fate of the world and humanity itself lies in the hands of the three young student meisters.
BONES are an excellent studio who time and time again have given us wonderfully detailed, vibrant and polished animation, with decent storytelling, all within a capped number of episodes. People may question why BONES decide to set a limit, yet in many ways the limited nature works to the series' advantage, as BONES ensures that their shows are planned thoroughly, resulting in precise execution and efficiency.
However, the disadvantage of setting a limit in this case (and in Full Metal Alchemist) is that an end to a currently ongoing manga series has to be formulated, and if one weakness exists for BONES it would be that they are not known to be the best of finishers. Their previous endings have often been anticlimactic and rushed, leading to some unsatisfactory closure, and Soul Eater is no exception. This whole volume can be seen as a desperate attempt to tie all of the disparate threads together through one massive battle on three different fronts, and to show that everyone is at least doing something, even if they don't nearly get nearly as much screen time as they deserve. Also, the sense of time goes out the window, with characters traversing from place to place effortlessly. The final battle is arguably the worst and most frustrating of all events - a victim of cliched villain monologuing and the most anticlimactic ending seen in a while.
What the ending does have though is charm, and it is at that point that for all the flaws, story inconsistencies, and Shonen idiosyncrasies that Soul Eater may show from time to time, we shouldn't forget all the advances Soul Eater has made for the Shonen genre. From the stupendous and imaginative designs of its characters and environments, to its bold cinematic direction with abundant action, comedy, suspense, and horror; the visual style of Soul Eater is perhaps the best the Shonen genre has seen thus far. Furthermore, though the performance of the English voice cast was unfortunately low key throughout the series, we must not forget nor ignore the superb Japanese voice cast. Toru Ohkawa as Lord Death was a key highlight; a constant joy and worth the admission price alone. It's just a shame Lord Death's involvement was somewhat scarce compared to the other supporting cast members.<br>
The video and audio transfers are again consistently as good as the other volumes, with the extras being in the same format; a commentary for one episode, textless credit songs and the wonderfully funny and bizarre skits of the Soul Eater Late Show. The music understandably takes a darker tone in this final volume, with the Radiohead-inspired Abingdon Boys School giving us a suitable rock number with Soul Eater's new apocalyptic ending credits.<br>
Despite the rushed end to the series, Soul Eater is a blast, telling us that although human emotions have the power to torture and destroy, they also have the power to allow any of us, regardless of our disposition, to stand up and conquer any fear that we may have. It is highly recommended viewing for any avid fan of anime, and for anyone who is interested in the future of anime through the eyes of the Shonen genre.<br>
<b>Final score: 8 out of 10</b>
<b>Additional screencaps</b>
<img src="http://www.animeuknews.net/img/uploaded/screens/2011-01-16vlcsnap-2011-01-16-23h46m46s192.png">
<img src="http://www.animeuknews.net/img/uploaded/screens/2011-01-16vlcsnap-2011-01-16-23h13m31s218.png">
<img src="http://www.animeuknews.net/img/uploaded/screens/2011-01-16vlcsnap-2011-01-16-23h17m34s78.png">
<b>Review of Soul Eater #4 by Raz112</b>
From the pursuit to become a death scythe, to the chaos the witch Medusa brought, to the escape of Asura Kishin from the depths to DWMA, to the revival of Arachne and Arachnophobia, and the search for Eibon's Magic Tools, Soul Eater has indeed taken us on quite a weird and wonderful journey. It's given us some quality Shonen entertainment that at the very least rivals the best, if not surpasses them on many occasions.
In this volume we see the DWMA with its back against the wall, as Medusa walks out of prison scot-free, taking DWMA's strongest meister, Stein, with her. Meanwhile, Asura Kishin forms an alliance with the resurgent Arachne, who then amplifies Kishin's madness across the world, threatening to cause the world to descend into chaos. Furthermore, the last Magic Tool, which for some reason Lord Death so desperately seeks, is still missing, which deepens Death the Kid's feelings of distrust regarding his father's true motives. By giving orders to tackle all three issues, DWMA's forces are spread thin, with the odds of any success being against them. Eventually, the fate of the world and humanity itself lies in the hands of the three young student meisters.
BONES are an excellent studio who time and time again have given us wonderfully detailed, vibrant and polished animation, with decent storytelling, all within a capped number of episodes. People may question why BONES decide to set a limit, yet in many ways the limited nature works to the series' advantage, as BONES ensures that their shows are planned thoroughly, resulting in precise execution and efficiency.
However, the disadvantage of setting a limit in this case (and in Full Metal Alchemist) is that an end to a currently ongoing manga series has to be formulated, and if one weakness exists for BONES it would be that they are not known to be the best of finishers. Their previous endings have often been anticlimactic and rushed, leading to some unsatisfactory closure, and Soul Eater is no exception. This whole volume can be seen as a desperate attempt to tie all of the disparate threads together through one massive battle on three different fronts, and to show that everyone is at least doing something, even if they don't nearly get nearly as much screen time as they deserve. Also, the sense of time goes out the window, with characters traversing from place to place effortlessly. The final battle is arguably the worst and most frustrating of all events - a victim of cliched villain monologuing and the most anticlimactic ending seen in a while.
What the ending does have though is charm, and it is at that point that for all the flaws, story inconsistencies, and Shonen idiosyncrasies that Soul Eater may show from time to time, we shouldn't forget all the advances Soul Eater has made for the Shonen genre. From the stupendous and imaginative designs of its characters and environments, to its bold cinematic direction with abundant action, comedy, suspense, and horror; the visual style of Soul Eater is perhaps the best the Shonen genre has seen thus far. Furthermore, though the performance of the English voice cast was unfortunately low key throughout the series, we must not forget nor ignore the superb Japanese voice cast. Toru Ohkawa as Lord Death was a key highlight; a constant joy and worth the admission price alone. It's just a shame Lord Death's involvement was somewhat scarce compared to the other supporting cast members.<br>
The video and audio transfers are again consistently as good as the other volumes, with the extras being in the same format; a commentary for one episode, textless credit songs and the wonderfully funny and bizarre skits of the Soul Eater Late Show. The music understandably takes a darker tone in this final volume, with the Radiohead-inspired Abingdon Boys School giving us a suitable rock number with Soul Eater's new apocalyptic ending credits.<br>
Despite the rushed end to the series, Soul Eater is a blast, telling us that although human emotions have the power to torture and destroy, they also have the power to allow any of us, regardless of our disposition, to stand up and conquer any fear that we may have. It is highly recommended viewing for any avid fan of anime, and for anyone who is interested in the future of anime through the eyes of the Shonen genre.<br>
<b>Final score: 8 out of 10</b>
<b>Additional screencaps</b>
<img src="http://www.animeuknews.net/img/uploaded/screens/2011-01-16vlcsnap-2011-01-16-23h46m46s192.png">
<img src="http://www.animeuknews.net/img/uploaded/screens/2011-01-16vlcsnap-2011-01-16-23h13m31s218.png">
<img src="http://www.animeuknews.net/img/uploaded/screens/2011-01-16vlcsnap-2011-01-16-23h17m34s78.png">