Review: Seraph of the End -Vampire Reign, Vol 4

Review by: Young Jeohn

Author - Takaya Kagami
Illustrator - Yamato Yamamoto
Pages - 200
Publisher: Viz Media (USA), Shonen Jump Advanced (Japan)

As the remaining population of humans struggle against the control of ruling vampires, a young recruit named Yu is covertly used by the human army to unleash an unimaginably vicious power that shocks all who witness the event.

STORY
We knew it was coming. 
What was? 
The Apocalypse, of course. A lethal virus, signaling the end of human dominance while allowing vampire-kind to take over the world. The lucky ones escape capture while the more unfortunate are herded as feed for the vampires. I mean, vampires need nourishment too, right?

It's a tragic tale of two brothers, one of whom manages to escape from the vampires clutches, while the other is killed in the attempt. Or so he thinks. All he knows is, he can't forgive the vampires for the death of his brother and joins the human army to exact revenge.

STORY TELLING
I really like it. Even though it's my first time reading this series (starting at volume 4), the story was well written, plot well thought out, sub-plots defined to keep you wondering (with answers in the next volume, hopefully) and likable characters on both sides. It's also got so much gray area that it's hard to judge between who's good and who's bad. You'll just have to keep reading and guess what's what.

The most useful pages of the whole comic are the first two, as they contain profiles of all the main characters. It's a great reference to re-visit when you run across a new character, or an older one you're not familiar with yet (I've come back to this page more often than I care to admit.) Overall, there's a good amount of complexity, told in a clear, understandable way. 

ART
Good, classic anime artwork, great backdrops and attention to detail. Each character's movement is in sync with facial expressions and emotions, with proper close-ups when needed. Yamamoto did a fantastic job interpreting the story with panels that are well laid out, making the story flow from page to the next. Not once did I stop to make heads or tails of a poorly executed panel. Well done.

CONCLUSION
Go buy it. Read it. Then buy the next volume. Repeat as necessary.
This is the kind of manga where not even grown men care that they're reading a "comic book" on the subway while drawing curious looks from other passengers.

FINAL SCORE
9 out of 10 / A+