I have been meaning to put this up for awhile. This volume is much darker in my opinion then the other three volumes and focuses on a few things such as:
- The relationship between Suiseseki and Souseiseki.
- Shinku’s lost arm and how Jun manages to mend it
- The “evil” mailbox which is well know from the anime.
Artwork: The artwork for me improved slightly from the previous volume, although the storyline allowed it a much better chance at going all out in the previous volume. I don’t think I commented before about how effectively the “joke” style art is during the non-serious moments of the manga. Such as with Hinaichigo spinning around and barking, they do it in a very chibi style manner. The environment I noticed was very well detailed, especially the Rose Mansion which was decorated well with roses and an eerie tone. Just some of the examples where they have outdone themselves in it. The only little problem I do have is sometimes they do overuse the white background to make us focus on the character and I would like to have seen more of a background.
Characters: The character development of Suiseiseki and Souseiseki were most developped, showing how despite each of them having different masters and thus conflicting values, they still cared for each other and they would not attempt to steal each others Rosa Mystica. Suiseiseki lightens up a bit and despite all that happens, still attempts to play jokes on Hinaichigo, which this time involves an evil mailbox which could eat her. It also focuses on Tomoe a bit in the final chapter and focuses on how she feels since losing Hinaichigo. Kanaria also acts as comic relief for the whole manga, trying devious plots to infiltrate the house.
Storyline: The story focuses on Jun and the dolls attempting to save Souseiseki from her evil master, which demonstrates how serious Suiseiseki is about Souseiseki, going as far as allowing Jun to become her medium, and shows how Jun is really willing to risk his life to help the dolls (Either that or he is still scared, which doesn’t seem the case). In the end, it does end up in tragedy with one of the dolls falling in battle. The rest of the volume focuses on two things, the comedy relief manga of the “evil” mailbox and Tomoe visiting and giving some more information about herself. Also, it shows how Jun is finally becoming a better person, managing to break free Shinku’s arm from the cage. All in all, a good storyline.
Extras:
- Double paged character list and brief introduction
- Joke manga involving Peach-pits manga creation method.
- Advertising
- Next Volume Blurb
Overall Score:
Artwork: 4.5 (A)
Characters: 5 (A)
Storyline: 4.5 (A)
Extras: 3.5 (B)
Quality: 4.5 (A)
Overall: 4.4 (A)
Description: Jun is back on the Internet! This time he is looking for answers concerning a “dream.” The closer he gets to understanding the dream, the more he learns about the crazy world of the Rozen Maidens. Jun finds out the answers are hidden within the Rose Mansion. Jun will never be the same once he truly understands his dream.
Manga Information:
Price I bought it for: $AU14.95
Total # of Chapters: 5, not including extras
Total # of pages: 176
English Publisher: Tokyopop
Publisher Website: http://www.tokyopop.com
Producer: Peach-pit
Rating: Teen – 13+
