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theseventhl 's review for:
PandoraHearts, Vol. 1
by Jun Mochizuki
Originally posted here at Anime Radius.
Despite being a colorful hodge-podge collection of bits and pieces from different sources like Alice in Wonderland and The Wizard of Oz among others, Pandora Hearts has a style and story that is very much its own. What starts out as an innocently humorous romp through an overgrown castle turns into a literal tumble through the rabbit-hole into the world of the Abyss and a brand new destiny for one Oz Vessalius. Oz is an arrogant little scamp who makes a surpisingly competent hero, mainly because of his friendship with Gil and his unabashed curiosity. In turn, Oz's new companion Alice is a stark contrast to the innocent blonde-haired girl from Lewis Carroll's story. Alice is a dark-haired 'bloody black rabbit' with amnesia issues whose own conceitedness and smug attitude rivals Oz's; it's pretty obvious from chapter one that Alice is a killer tsundere in the making (and I do mean killer).
Pandora Hearts has a lot of things going for it in its first volume: it has a sizeable cast of characters that really push the story forward; I especially like Lady Sharon and her manservant Xerxes Break with their snarky banter and dubious agenda. It's set in a world that is similar to eighteenth-century Europe but with unnatural creatures and magic better suited for the world of dreams (or the Abyss) than reality. The Abyss is like someone took the world of the original Alice, added the aesthetic senses of Rozen Maiden and .hack//sign, then literally shook it up like a snowglobe until it exploded. I hope there are more scenes in the series set in the Abyss; it was truly an interesting place to explore. Above all, the pacing is rather good for a first volume - a little fast, yes, but it sets up the foundation for the entire series without wasting too much time on exposition. Plus, there is plenty of intriguing foreshadowing for future events, like Alice's past and the identities of the mysterious robed figures who tried to kill Oz; it seems that Mochizuki certainly has a way with subtle plotting.
Right now, Pandora Hearts is looking like quite an awesome fantasy series, especially if one enjoys a darker take on the kind of world-hopping adventures seen in the pages of Lewis Carroll's books. Plus, for tsundere fans, Alice and her relationship with Oz is a dream come true. I'm looking forward to reading the next volume, and the next one, and the next one; I'm sure this series will be drawing more and more readers under its spell soon enough.
Despite being a colorful hodge-podge collection of bits and pieces from different sources like Alice in Wonderland and The Wizard of Oz among others, Pandora Hearts has a style and story that is very much its own. What starts out as an innocently humorous romp through an overgrown castle turns into a literal tumble through the rabbit-hole into the world of the Abyss and a brand new destiny for one Oz Vessalius. Oz is an arrogant little scamp who makes a surpisingly competent hero, mainly because of his friendship with Gil and his unabashed curiosity. In turn, Oz's new companion Alice is a stark contrast to the innocent blonde-haired girl from Lewis Carroll's story. Alice is a dark-haired 'bloody black rabbit' with amnesia issues whose own conceitedness and smug attitude rivals Oz's; it's pretty obvious from chapter one that Alice is a killer tsundere in the making (and I do mean killer).
Pandora Hearts has a lot of things going for it in its first volume: it has a sizeable cast of characters that really push the story forward; I especially like Lady Sharon and her manservant Xerxes Break with their snarky banter and dubious agenda. It's set in a world that is similar to eighteenth-century Europe but with unnatural creatures and magic better suited for the world of dreams (or the Abyss) than reality. The Abyss is like someone took the world of the original Alice, added the aesthetic senses of Rozen Maiden and .hack//sign, then literally shook it up like a snowglobe until it exploded. I hope there are more scenes in the series set in the Abyss; it was truly an interesting place to explore. Above all, the pacing is rather good for a first volume - a little fast, yes, but it sets up the foundation for the entire series without wasting too much time on exposition. Plus, there is plenty of intriguing foreshadowing for future events, like Alice's past and the identities of the mysterious robed figures who tried to kill Oz; it seems that Mochizuki certainly has a way with subtle plotting.
Right now, Pandora Hearts is looking like quite an awesome fantasy series, especially if one enjoys a darker take on the kind of world-hopping adventures seen in the pages of Lewis Carroll's books. Plus, for tsundere fans, Alice and her relationship with Oz is a dream come true. I'm looking forward to reading the next volume, and the next one, and the next one; I'm sure this series will be drawing more and more readers under its spell soon enough.