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The Valiant Must Fall #3
The Valiant Must Fall Vol. 3
An action-packed and supernatural historical drama about a samurai-turned-rebel and a mysterious young woman–from the creator of the hit manga and anime Gunslinger Girl !
The Tokugawa shogunate has fallen, and former samurai Haruyasu is adrift in a strange new world, searching for a place to die. But when he attempts to assassinate a government official, hoping this will bring the eternal peace he craves, Haruyasu finds himself at the mercy of the official’s bodyguard, a young woman who claims she’s the daughter of an immortal. What will she ask in return for sparing his life?
The Tokugawa shogunate has fallen, and former samurai Haruyasu is adrift in a strange new world, searching for a place to die. But when he attempts to assassinate a government official, hoping this will bring the eternal peace he craves, Haruyasu finds himself at the mercy of the official’s bodyguard, a young woman who claims she’s the daughter of an immortal. What will she ask in return for sparing his life?
- GenresManga
208 pages, Paperback
Published October 1, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
December 12, 2024
Once again, Haruyasu must bide his time in the shadows, lick his wounds, and hope beyond hope the government's watchdogs don't sniff out his and Shino's hiding spot. One might think living as the kinsman and servant to an immortal would portend a grander fate. Not quite.
THE VALIANT MUST FALL v3 draws a direct line from the previous volume's chaotic conclusion toward the tense cooling-off period that invariably follows public spectacle and death-dealing. Will the government demand a sacrifice for the affront of this small band of reprobates? Will the humble workers of the bricktown district bow their heads, or will they stand against the new government's bloody-handed authority? Will Shino's siblings, recalled to Tokyo, levy their centuries of patience and intelligence to hunt down the treasonous one staining their bloodline?
The author takes an interesting tact to developing Haruyasu and positioning the young man's strength and utility. Haruyasu's growth has permitted readers to reason the man is fearless, reckless, and to a point, nearly unstoppable. But this is a fantasy. He quite nearly succumbed to the gatling gun; the power of footsoldier and horse-rider will outlast any samurai in sandals; and the sessho-seki is as unforgiving as ever. Haruyasu was shaken to his core upon watching young Tetsuma give his life to protect Shino and the gang, with the sessho-seki in hand.
The loneliness one feels upon discerning the truth about heroic protagonists is inevitable. Alas, the "black demon" has been a masterless human for so long that he has, very nearly, cast aside all notions of conscientious strategy in favor of sheer survival. When Haruyasu faces off against the kinsman of Shino's siblings, he is constantly (repeatedly) rebuked for his impetuousness, his youth, and his complicity with the times. Readers will find it frustrating, odd, and telling that Haruyasu is rebuked by the old guard for possessing every characteristic for which his master, Shino, gladly and meekly praises him outright.
Shino's sister, Enka, is extraordinarily calm and extraordinarily wise. Her kinswoman, a deferential lady named Hisame, is beautiful, bold, and silent. Shino's brother, Ikumatsu, is brash and impatient, and his kinsman, Kikuji, is a broad-shouldered warrior who believes in the purity of the blade. THE VALIANT MUST FALL v3 sets this group onto the path of Haruyasu, Shino, and the others, poised to settle scores and dredge up an array of awful memories.
Readers will appreciate how, by the third volume, characters in this manga are starting to flex and shift away from the monochromatic archetypes that defined their earliest portrayals. Kai, Shino's eldest brother, is humbled by his loss to Haruyasu. And while Ikumatsu is hell-bent on vengeance, Enka is open to dialogue. THE VALIANT MUST FALL v3 does blade-to-blade combat very well (and provides decent running commentary on actual, old sword styles, too), but the extended reliance on character development to nudge the narrative forward may be a more worthy investment for readers to note. Haruyasu is a fierce fighter, and he has lost a fair bit of his penchant for loyalty in the intervening years, but if the guy knows one thing, it's how to survive.
THE VALIANT MUST FALL v3 draws a direct line from the previous volume's chaotic conclusion toward the tense cooling-off period that invariably follows public spectacle and death-dealing. Will the government demand a sacrifice for the affront of this small band of reprobates? Will the humble workers of the bricktown district bow their heads, or will they stand against the new government's bloody-handed authority? Will Shino's siblings, recalled to Tokyo, levy their centuries of patience and intelligence to hunt down the treasonous one staining their bloodline?
The author takes an interesting tact to developing Haruyasu and positioning the young man's strength and utility. Haruyasu's growth has permitted readers to reason the man is fearless, reckless, and to a point, nearly unstoppable. But this is a fantasy. He quite nearly succumbed to the gatling gun; the power of footsoldier and horse-rider will outlast any samurai in sandals; and the sessho-seki is as unforgiving as ever. Haruyasu was shaken to his core upon watching young Tetsuma give his life to protect Shino and the gang, with the sessho-seki in hand.
The loneliness one feels upon discerning the truth about heroic protagonists is inevitable. Alas, the "black demon" has been a masterless human for so long that he has, very nearly, cast aside all notions of conscientious strategy in favor of sheer survival. When Haruyasu faces off against the kinsman of Shino's siblings, he is constantly (repeatedly) rebuked for his impetuousness, his youth, and his complicity with the times. Readers will find it frustrating, odd, and telling that Haruyasu is rebuked by the old guard for possessing every characteristic for which his master, Shino, gladly and meekly praises him outright.
Shino's sister, Enka, is extraordinarily calm and extraordinarily wise. Her kinswoman, a deferential lady named Hisame, is beautiful, bold, and silent. Shino's brother, Ikumatsu, is brash and impatient, and his kinsman, Kikuji, is a broad-shouldered warrior who believes in the purity of the blade. THE VALIANT MUST FALL v3 sets this group onto the path of Haruyasu, Shino, and the others, poised to settle scores and dredge up an array of awful memories.
Readers will appreciate how, by the third volume, characters in this manga are starting to flex and shift away from the monochromatic archetypes that defined their earliest portrayals. Kai, Shino's eldest brother, is humbled by his loss to Haruyasu. And while Ikumatsu is hell-bent on vengeance, Enka is open to dialogue. THE VALIANT MUST FALL v3 does blade-to-blade combat very well (and provides decent running commentary on actual, old sword styles, too), but the extended reliance on character development to nudge the narrative forward may be a more worthy investment for readers to note. Haruyasu is a fierce fighter, and he has lost a fair bit of his penchant for loyalty in the intervening years, but if the guy knows one thing, it's how to survive.
October 15, 2025
Honestly, nothing happens in this volume. For a book priced much higher than regular manga, this story moves at a snails pace.
The art is mostly good but all too often they fill in history etc in comic like narration boxes or confusing flash backs that are not clearly labelled as such.
Three volumes to barely understand the basics.
I will be stopping here and can’t recommend this to anyone else.
The art is mostly good but all too often they fill in history etc in comic like narration boxes or confusing flash backs that are not clearly labelled as such.
Three volumes to barely understand the basics.
I will be stopping here and can’t recommend this to anyone else.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews