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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Who's the ku:nel?, 10 Mar 2007
Ken Akamatsu's Mahorafest storyline has been building to a climax for four volumes now, and the thirteenth volume of "Negima" doesn't quite get there. But it still reveals new mysteries, and gives us three kinetic battles as the Budokai competition ends.
New mages are revealed as Asuna and the newly clothed Takane go on a mission to rescue Takahata, with the help of some magic nuns. But the girls find themselves in combat with a bunch of killer robots controlled by Chao Lingshen, and elsewhere the skeptical Chisame learns that more info on Negi (including about his dad) is leaking onto the web.
Meanwhile, the final rounds of the Budokai are underway as Kaede battles the mysterious Ku:nel, Negi battles Setsuna -- and the winners will get to the final round. But the boy wizard is distracted by the Ku:nel -- is this his long-lost father, the Thousand Master? As the two do battle, Negi discovers the Ku:nel's true identity, and a message meant just for him.
Unsurprisingly the thirteenth volume ends with another cliffhanger, just as we're about to learn of Chao's secret plot involving the mages. But there's plenty of new revelations in this volume anyway, particularly the real identity of the Ku:nel, how he's so powerful -- even for a mage -- and how he knows so much about Negi and Asuna's pasts.
The thirteenth volume suffers from a bit of middle-book syndrome, since not much is actually finished here except for the Budokai. After all, Asuna and the others are apparently still hunting for Takahata. But Akamatsu keeps things interesting with robot henchmen and kinetic magical battles full of gravity orbs and shadow doubles. There's even some comic relief like Takane freaking out at the prospect of losing her clothes for the third time.
And though virtually everyone is doing something, the spotlight is on Negi in this volume, as he tries to figure out if the Ku:nel is his dad. The final battle of the Budokai has a brief period involving Negi and the Thousand Master, which is both poignant and wickedly funny.
The thirteenth volume of "Negima" doesn't take the plot very far, but reveals some important secrets that promise to make number fourteen VERY interesting.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Volumes 1 to 14, 14 Nov 2009
`Negima!' is the story of the ten year old British wizard Negi Springfield who, in order to complete his training, gets a job teaching a class of fifteen year olds at an all girls school in Japan. Having to keep his magic secret, Negi must deal with both his own problems as well as those of his students and quickly discovers that his class and the school itself aren't quite as normal as they first appear.
To put it simply, `Negima!' is by far the best manga series that I have ever read being hilariously funny in places, as well as having a nice emotional heart and some truly spectacular fights in later volumes.
The first couple of volumes in the series don't give much indication of just how good the series will become later, being introductory volumes that are heavy on both the slapstick and fanservice. It is volume three though when the series begins to pick up and sees the first true battles of the series as the secrets of some of the class start to be reviled and the overall plot of Negi searching for his missing father begins to take shape.
Volumes four to six take things up another notch with the Kyoto Fieldtrip story arc introducing more backstory for some of the members of Negi's class and having some good fights along the way. Even at this point in the story the series barely resembles the first few volumes as although the humour and fanservice still play a big role they are increasingly joined and sometimes surpassed by some great battles.
Volume nine begins the Mahora Festival arc which continues to volume eighteen of the series and it is pretty much at this point that I became totally obsessed with the series. The Festival storyline is brilliant, if a bit complicated at times, and has some brilliant battles especially during the Martial Arts Tournament that takes place between volumes ten and thirteen. In addition to this, this part of the series also sees some of the funniest action as well as some moments that brought a tear to my eye.
`Negima!' is a truly brilliant series with some great artwork and a somewhat addictive plot. It is true that the translations of some of the early volumes leave something to be desired in places but it does soon settle down and is always readable. Each volume also comes with translation notes, explanations of character designs and the concepts used in the story, all of which are very interesting. I may be going a bit over the top but personally I think that `Negima!' isn't just the best manga I have ever read but probably the best work of fiction in general that I have ever come across.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
A pleasure to read!, 25 Aug 2009
In Negima Vol 4, Negi and his class go on a field trip to Kyoto Japan to study the history of japan but Negi real reason of the Trip is to find out about his father. This volume has is the 1st part of the school trip which expands over to vol 5 and 6 as well. I very much enjoy reading this book and it introduces a few new charcters along the way. If you have read the previous volumes then I highly recommend volume 4.
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