The truth of the being known as Oz Vessalius is exposed to Pandora, which has been captured by Leo and the Baskervilles. Amidst the warped tragedy that plays out mercilessly, the one who has lost everything catches a glimpse of the ridiculous fairy tale contrived by one man. The forbidden box has just been opened... What will be found within?
So intense volume! A lot of revelations again, with some action. Again, heartbreaking and beautiful. Oz- we understood who you are Gilbert-we understood who you really serve and bound with a loyal heart Alice- we understood why your memories were scattered. Echo!-You sweet lollipop! Comforting Oz, thank you very much! Vincent-you are going to become a good one eventually, I know)) Zai Bezarius (Vessalius-Oz's father)-we learned the story from your own tongue. Seeing Break and Oz captive melted my heart!
but imagine they remade this anime and actually completed it. Like I kinda want that just so I can sit back with popcorn watching everyone be so confused every episode as I am now
Finally getting back to Pandora Hearts! Having such a long break after vol.18 made the plot even more confusing but probably will finish it all (hoorah) this time round! No. More. Breaks.
This review will be slightly incoherent at parts, emotionally heated at others. This is because Jun Mochizuki, whether through a pact with a witch or a contract with the Abyss itself, has the unmatched ability to metaphorically pluck out the reader's heart and squeeze it dry before putting it back, leaving the person in a pool of their own tears. Do I speak too strongly? Perhaps, but it only begins to describe the emotional roller coaster that Oz, Gil, Alice, and the rest of the Pandora Hearts crew have been on for the last couple of volumes. Volume nineteen is the breaking point, an explosion of drama and revelations, and much like any explosion, it's so very hard to look away.
-omgggg oz said the same thing jack said about being good at climbing trees - wait i'm wondering now if oz wanted gil to say his name to affirm his existence, like how alice needed that.....and now she is gone
Chapter 76:
-poor baby vince man
Chapter 77: -no thoughts - but oz is the bare soul of the rabbit chain in the rewounded body of jack...i kinda predicted it but couldn't understand the soul thingie
Chapter 78:
- i don't understand how Gil would do so much bullshit for Oz but not for Vincent, when everything vincent ever did was for him???? like it's all jack & lacie all over again...
i don't know i'm not convinced with their relationship and also vincent isn't included in the people gil wanted to protect.....sigh....... i don't understand his blind dedication to be subservient??? this is not love??? he doesn't say i'm your friend, but your servant??? like??? we're 78 chapters in and that didn't change, actually pisses me offfffffffffffffffff and his ass gained all memories auggghhh
thoughts:
because this story is old, i feel like i have a lot of judgment and distrust in the author, what can i say anime does that to a motherfucker, and even though i was proven wrong before i still have this distrust.
anyway, i think when it comes to Gil and Oz/ Jack relationship, i think it's a mix of both the spell the old hag put on Gil 100 years ago for "his master" that he forgot the identity of and his fear of abandonment and losing security for himself and Vince, and the way jack exploited and manipulated him, and the future's love and affection he was given by "OZ" after he was spit out of the abyss.
but in the end, he wants to believe in the "Oz" the black rabbit in Jack's body, not Jack. but the thing is how much affect does Oz have in Jack's body?
My reactions can be explained thus: ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????
I am SO darn lost. I think I need to sit down and read these all at once. Taking a week-long break between Vol. 18 and 19 was a bad idea. All I came away with was: 1) one character lost an arm to gain freedom 2) there are two (possibly three) characters that look like Alice, and two of these three are named Alice 3) Break is still alive, which rocks 4) Time travel will become a major part of the rest of the series. As if things weren't already confusing enough.
such a painful volume but unavoidable, after many discoveries on the previous volumes I hope Oz realize that, even though he was/is the B-rabbit and not a person from the very beginning, he’s still valide and that he has to continue to fight with Gilbert and his other friends. Also, LEO I LOVE U I CAN’T SEE U SO BROKEN PLS RESURFACE
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
I'd like to start by saying that with my two decades of manga reading, Pandora Hearts has recently earned its way to being one of the best manga series I've ever read - and to think I almost didn't pick it up!
There's actually a bit of a story to it: Pandora Hearts was being released around the time I knew I would be moving overseas. At the time, I had no idea how moving to the other side of the world would affect my manga buying. Also at that time, I was working at a comic store with staff discounts at my disposal and I never had to worry too much about picking up whatever I fancied. When I first saw Pandora Hearts, I thought the art looked beautiful and this just might be a really good manga. It also struck me as a manga series that could go on for quite a while [which was a reasonably accurate assumption as 24 volumes is not a length I could commit to lightly]. Not knowing how I'd get my hands on manga or how long this series would be let me to putting it back on the shelf. And I confess, it was filled with quite a bit of regret.
When I finally did move overseas - a family friend had a good bye gift. The shape was easy to discern: it was undoubtably a manga volume. While thankful for receiving a gift, I was also nervous: having worked in a comic store, I knew for sure: I either already own it or am not interested in it. In addition, the friend in question doesn't know the first thing about manga. To my surprise, it was the first volume of Pandora Hearts which was probably the single only volume she could have taken from the shelf that wasn't already in my possession and did interest me. How she managed to pick out that one I don't know, but it's a coincidence I feel thankful for and, in some cheesy way, made me feel like it was just meant to be that I read Pandora Hearts after all.
Fast forward to 2023, I finally found the time to read this 24 volume series and am absolutely delighted. My original observation remains: the art is absolutely stunning. With the exception of a oneshot debut work, it's hard to believe that this is quite close to being a beginner's work - you'd not believe it just looking at the first volume's art.
My other thoughts are largely around how hard it is to praise a story you think is so thoroughly good as this one is. It's not really a plot you can explain to someone, it's a story you have to read for yourself as even the latest volumes will throw some surprises at you. But I think, besides the art, what really contributes a lot to this work are the characters. Oz might be our main character, but we have a large cast and they are all lovingly created. There's hardly a character you won't be able to like in one way or another, even the most broken of them. It's quite a feat to create a story that makes you care and worry about almost every character's fate.
And worry you can indeed: it has light and beautiful moments, but it is essentially a dark tale and you'll constantly worry whether the characters will make it through. Needless to say, there are losses throughout the story. There are plenty of twists and turns, things that will surprise and shock you.
I will also add that the plot is complex and not always easy to follow. Some characters have multiple names - this becomes even more difficult for some characters who also have multiple personalities who also have multiple names. Not everything in the plot made entire sense to me - it's hard to say whether they were plot holes, not explained well enough or I was simply missing something - a reread might answer that. But regardless, when these moments arose, I decided to just go with the flow and it didn't disrupt my reading experience at all.
Besides a bit of confusion here and there, I can't fault this series with anything. The pacing is well done, the 24 volumes were neither too long nor too short [something I often complain about] and it wrapped up nicely. For such a dark read, there's also a lot of soft story telling which just concludes this with a very wholesome ending. There is close to no romance but I wasn't missing it [and I'm a big romance reader] - the friendships and bonds between the characters were absolutely beautiful even without much romance thrown in.
I'm glad I did read this series and it is definitely going down as one of my favourites. Highly recommended.
-omgggg oz said the same thing jack said about being good at climbing trees - wait i'm wondering now if oz wanted gil to say his name to affirm his existence, like how alice needed that.....and now she is gone
Chapter 76:
-poor baby vince man
Chapter 77: -no thoughts - but oz is the bare soul of the rabbit chain in the rewounded body of jack...i kinda predicted it but couldn't understand the soul thingie
Chapter 78:
- i don't understand how Gil would do so much bullshit for Oz but not for Vincent, when everything vincent ever did was for him???? like it's all jack & lacie all over again...
i don't know i'm not convinced with their relationship and also vincent isn't included in the people gil wanted to protect.....sigh....... i don't understand his blind dedication to be subservient??? this is not love??? he doesn't say i'm your friend, but your servant??? like??? we're 78 chapters in and that didn't change, actually pisses me offfffffffffffffffff and his ass gained all memories auggghhh
thoughts:
because this story is old, i feel like i have a lot of judgment and distrust in the author, what can i say anime does that to a motherfucker, and even though i was proven wrong before i still have this distrust.
anyway, i think when it comes to Gil and Oz/ Jack relationship, i think it's a mix of both the spell the old hag put on Gil 100 years ago for "his master" that he forgot the identity of and his fear of abandonment and losing security for himself and Vince, and the way jack exploited and manipulated him, and the future's love and affection he was given by "OZ" after he was spit out of the abyss.
but in the end, he wants to believe in the "Oz" the black rabbit in Jack's body, not Jack. but the thing is how much affect does Oz have in Jack's body?
Wow okay so Oz is technically living in Jack's body, and that's the reason why Oz's "father" Zai hates Oz so much. Jack has been "living" for like 100+ years. That part where Gil sacrificed his left arm for Oz was my favorite.
That one little snippet of Break getting "killed" actually confused and scared me. But thankfully he isn't dead, but he was unfortunately captured by the Baskervilles (ugh.) I just don't get why they want him dead so badly. Didn't Duke Barma or whatever his name is, tell everyone the truth about Jack and what really happened at the tragedy of Sablier, and not just Break? He even told Leo (aka "Glen") I believe. I just don't get it. Maybe cause Break's the "mad hatter" or whatever but still. What would be the point in killing him off? To me, Gil seems more or less like a target, especially now that he's "betrayed" his original master, Glen, and has chosen to protect Oz instead. I'm just hoping someone comes to Break's rescue like Sharon. Where has she been this whole time? And if Break is going to die, I hope his death isn't rushed over, I hope it's more meaningful than that, like it's not just some simple kill.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
The book “Pandora Hearts” is a simple graphic novel about a young master of a house being beaten and abused by his father and family. After a few years, he gains a servant whom he befriends. There is a small time skip, about 4 years, and the characters have now grown. The main character is being held in a cell as punishment for actions of disobedience. His friend is now gone, fighting an internal conflict since they were abandoned by the main. This book was one of a few parts, so the story ends about there.
Overall, this book was well made with good characters, however, I could not find them relatable. The imagery and pictures depicted a very old and rustic setting in a manor owned by generations of a family. The author was very descriptive and I was in fact captivated in the story and characters. I would recommend this as a personal read if you are interested in manga or have read any of the previous “Pandora Hearts”. It has an amazing art style and story and I definitely suggest reading it, should you find the time.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
"Que esté cuerpo sea propiedad de Oz Vessalius... Es una completa mentira".
Estoy llorando. Todo el desarrollo de la historia es perfecto, brillante y al mismo tiempo lleno de oscuridad.
Es una tragedia que se vino prediciendo desde el primer capítulo y aún así, Jun Mochizuki se las ingenia para darnos comedia, una chispa de alegría danzante que nos hace fantasear con un mundo mejor.
Y lo cierto es que aunque todo está mal, siempre hay una pequeña luz reluciente que nos haga seguir adelante.
¿Qué onda con el poder narrativo de Jun Mochizuki??? Yo pensé que ya me había terminado de contar lo de Oz cuando le metió más sabor (sufrimiento) a la historia. El desmadre que hizo Jack, insuperable la vdd.
La escena de las tres Alice no importa cuánto la lea no la entiendo haha.
Mis pobrecitos Oz y Gilbert no merecen esto. Ni el tío Óscar.
No le doy cinco porque soy idiota y hubo cosas que no me quedaron del todo claras.
meio que o Gil está carregando esses últimos capítulos, sempre acreditei que a era de ouro dele chegaria.
(obs: tô adorando esses últimos capítulos mas só achei muito cômico como o mundo tá virando de cabeça pra baixo e o Reim ainda tá dormindo e nem foram atrás dele, vai gostar de ser secundário assim na pqp)
Again, lots of revealations. I also feel like that things get a bit confusing sometimes - Things will probably clear up on the next volumes or a reread. Ofc, there is no way Gil would betray Oz. Alice crying over Oz was kinda cute haha, and it's also pretty nice to know how she became B-Rabbit.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Oh Gil.... How the fact that now there is going to possible be time-travelling in this story doesn't shock me is proof that Jun can pretty much write anything and in the end make it work.