Shakugan no Shana, Volume 1
Publisher: Viz Media
Author: Yashichiro Takahashi
5-Second Review: Strong lead characters, interesting concepts and a well-thought out setting more than make up for an incredibly lacklustre introduction and annoying quirks in the writing style.
Synopsis:
Yuji Sakai has it rough. Looking forward to his hum-drum day-to-day routine, he gets caught up in a phenomenon that challenges his perception of reality. Surrounded by wall of flame in a sunset-tinted world, he witnesses two bizarre demon constructs slowly consuming the crowd around him.
Almost eaten himself, he is saved from above: a young female warrior with long hair like tendrils of flame and eyes burning crimson descends upon the creatures. For Yuji and Shana alike, it is a fateful meeting, one that will rock their lives and reveal a more sinister plot slowly coming together in the shadows…
Review:
Shakugan no Shana – The Girl With Fire In Her Eyes was a entirely different beast for me to review. As this is my first foray into the Shana franchise, I had absolutely no expectations or knowledge of the series short of a couple of illustrations of our heroine. If you are looking for a comparison to the anime or manga series, this is not the place for you (and would be better served clicking here).
However, if you’re looking for a story that manages to dodge some the more scalding criticisms to emerge largely unscathed from my review’s flames, please read on.
I must admit, when I first started reading Shakugan, the first 30+ pages made me cringe inwardly. Whether this is due to a poor translation or the Takahashi’s actual writing ability I unfortunately cannot say, but it is not a stellar start to the series. The introductory battle feels contrived and the word choice is particularly dismal, (I’m sure there is a literary equivalent to the Geneva Convention that forbids using “Ugh” as an exclamation more than five times in the course of a couple of pages). Takahashi seems to battle with exposition, often throwing in explanations in an off-the-cuff, oh-by-the-way manner that jars with the flow of the story.
Go beyond these failings, however, and Takahashi shows that his true ability lies in two areas, the first being the setting. In describing his world and the mechanics that drive it, there are clear rules and laws that cannot be broken aside from certain instances, which are either explained at a later stage or fit into the larger plot that goes beyond the first volume.
These concepts give the story an overall darker tone, and add a touch of mystery to the plot. For example, you have the Torches who act as placeholders for human beings who have been devoured by the Crimson Denizens. They are differentiated by a light in their chest which slowly burns out, whereupon they disappear completely from existence, wiped completely from both the world and people’s memories. This is the position one of our main protagonists, Yuji, finds himself in.
Likewise, Shana, gave up her humanity to become the Flame Haze – technically a container – for Alastor, one of the most powerful Lords of the Crimson Realm, for reasons she refuses to divulge (at least, in this volume).
This point leads nicely into Takahashi’s second strength, which is character portrayal. While the secondary characters are a bit cliché and one-dimensional, the main characters shine with a light beyond that of mere Torch. Whether it be the show-stealing Shana, the disembodied noble voice of Alastor or the doomed yet calm Yuji, you get a clear sense of their subtle nuances in thought, attitude and character – even the villain avoids being a cookie-cut evil antagonist.
Takahashi manages to achieve this without laying it out on a plate for the reader, instead letting the interactions and dialogue between the characters reveal these facets of their personality. It results in fresh, interesting individuals who manage to side-step many of the conventional stereotypical characteristics and you can’t help but like them.
Finally, since this IS an action novel, I suppose I should discuss the fight scenes. They’re explained fully and fairly gripping, yet lack the dramatic elements that make a battle truly epic. I put this down to the simple style in which the scenes are described, a factor which improves somewhat from the first introductory scuffle (thank God). But for an author who has supposedly done this kind of work before, it comes across as a little drab.
In terms of presentation, Viz Media have taken an alternative route to Tokyopop, opting to try and remain as close to the original as possible. As a result, we have the original image gracing the cover, and both colour and black-and-white illustrations strewn throughout the novel. Below is a comparison of the two covers:
I’ve also included a couple of photos of the illustrations found inside. Click on a thumbnail to get a larger version:
Conclusion:
All in all, barring the poor initial start, I enjoyed the story and am quite eager to see how the manga and anime versions compare. While I’m not sure if it will appeal to fans who experienced the anime or manga first, I am quite willing to recommend it to anyone who is looking to give light novels a go, or looking for a new series to start reading.
Hopefully, Viz will continue to translate the rest of the novels.
nice work
Did Viz retain the Japanese honorifics or no? Just curious.
One of the things I do remember seeing when this novel came out is that the artwork is not as complete as the Japanese version, meaning things are cut off or appear to be censored somewhat. At the time, considering this was a Viz release and I had no interest in anything Viz put out, I didn’t care. Now that Viz has bought some brownie points with their manga releases of Honey and Clover as well as Hayate the Combat Butler, I’m a bit more interested.
@AstroNerdBoy: No, they did not; at least from a cursory glance through the novel to refresh my memory. But it’s definitely something I will keep an eye on in future reviews.
I’m not too fussed about honorifics myself – when they translate it, I prefer them to remove items like honorifics, because it could potentially act as a barrier to understanding and, at least to me, interrupt the flow.