Shaman King

tells the story of Yoh Asakura, a shaman from Japan. Shamans are described as all types of mystics, fortunetellers, priests and it encompasses everything from Egyptian myth to Voodoo. Every 500 years, a “Shaman Fight” is held to determine the Shaman King, and it’s Yoh’s quest to become this king; the most powerful Shaman on Earth with access to the most powerful ghost on earth, the Great Spirit. Adventure, comedy and philosophical insight make this more than just a battle manga. In Shaman King Vol 24: Shaman Fight, the battle with Dr. Munzer’s golem wraps up and Yoh is struck with a sudden realization; he doesn’t want to quit the Shaman Fight. However, there’s still the little matter of the promise he made to Lady Jeanne, the Iron Maiden leader of the X-Laws to drop out in exchange for reviving his friend Ren. Convincing them otherwise won’t be easy.

Highlights:

That sound you hear is the last of the epilogue arcs wrapping up as the interlude in the Shaman Fight starts to come to an end; in typical Shaman King fashion instead of just pounding their foes into the ground, everyone learns a little something. Dr. Munzer snaps out of it and realizes that he had placed all his hopes and dreams into the golem to protect his children, but that the golem had become an end in itself; unable to see the forest for the trees he had gone mad and even possessed his daughter Salerm from beyond the grave. As an apology, he was willing to fade away and destroy the Golem; but, in a twist that’s also very Shaman King, the drama of his exit was undercut by Anna telling him to grow a spine and stick around to help them all defeat Hao. Her fiery temper tends to keep things interesting, yet another of Takei’s great tools to keep the manga from falling prey to many of the clichés of similar books. One of Hao’s minions, Opacho, is send to give Yoh the message that if he does not re-enter the Shaman Fight, they will destoy the Golem and kill Munzer’s children and this causes Yoh to re-examine his own reasons for joining the Shaman Fight once more, forcing him to realize that his heart was telling him to stay. Yoh confronted the X-Laws with his faithful ghost Amidamaru by his side with an ultimatum; to stay in the Shaman Fight he would battle them all, even the seemingly unstoppable Iron Maiden herself. Yoh manages to hold off the X-Laws’s angels by himself until Marco decides Yoh has to be finished off for good before he becomes a more serious threat. Without warning, Luchist, another of Hao’s minions attacks and his surprising connection to the X-Laws is revealed. Yoh and Lyserg, his friend who joined the X-Laws, can only watch as Marco and Luchist begin a tremendous battle of terrifying power; determined to stop anyone from dying; but what could they possibly do to save people who don’t want to be saved? And there’s still Lady Jeanne, lurking in the water below the X-Laws boat…victim or savior?

Shaman King is an exciting series, and this volume is no exception. The epilogues finally being over is a good thing; as wonderful (and artistic) as stories like the flashback on Mt. Osore were, the story is moving forward again and things are heating up. While I recommend picking up Shaman King from volume 1, this would be a good time to jump on board before the fight starts again; Yoh’s reflections on the past between the two arcs presented in this book help get you used to some of the characters. The translation is as always, crisp and clear; a must when you have a book that deals with more philosophy; although this particular volume was more heavy on the action, action action! As usual, the art is clever and what’s happening in the battles is easy to discern; one of Shaman King’s strong suits (and the observers are mercifully brief in their on site battle descriptions; something that very early volumes suffered somewhat from an excess of.) Particularly amusing are Opacho’s sheep outfit and big, adorable eyes. On the other hand, Luchist and Marco’s “battle clothes” are rather odd; as commented on by the cast. 

I admit to some disappointment when the long-awaited confrontation between Marco and Yoh was put on hold by the sudden arrival of Luchist, but now Yoh has to fight to save him and Lady Jeanne; only furthering the tension between the two teams. It’s a simmering kettle, and I’m going to be glued to my chair waiting for the next volume for certain. This is one series that just gets hotter and hotter.

ComicsOnline.com gives Shaman King Vol 24: Shaman Fight 4.5 out of 5 huggable sheep costumes.