HSDK manga discussion thread

[Holy Spirit]

I'll say again, Jenazad you are a beast.

They should have double teamed this dude when they had the chance.

[Eternal Torment]

Oh, look.

So that's how they plan on taking Jenazad down?

[Nik Hasta]

Akira Hongo.

He just does not give a fuck.

[Jmacq1]

Akira Hongo.

He just does not give a fuck.

So basically Akira Hongo has the superpower of "can't die if it means losing?" But then I guess he'd need something like that to keep up with Sakaki's character shield.

Hahahahahahaha.

While I'm sure it won't quite be that easy, I do kinda love Jenazad's "oh shit/WTF" look on that last panel.

[nervmeister]

So basically Akira Hongo has the superpower of "can't die if it means losing?" .

It worked for Apachai.

[Holy Spirit]

Lol. You've got to be kidding me, this better not work.

[Pong]

This is getting silly. How many chapters of "he's down, now wait he's not" in a row can there be?

I hope Akira just takes him down this time.

[Dark Soul # 7]

I am not sure whether I want this to work or not.

Regardless. Akira Hongo is DAMN awesom.

[Jmacq1]

This is getting silly. How many chapters of "he's down, now wait he's not" in a row can there be?

I hope Akira just takes him down this time.

Well, barring false advertising, the match ends next chapter.

And honestly, after that fake-out and comeback, would any result besides Hongo scraping out a win make dramatic/narrative sense? I'd say have Jenazad win to defy reader expectations, but this Manga doesn't really seem to be about messing with readers' heads that way. Not to that extent, anyhow.

Unless say, Hayato appears and Jenazad beats feet before the match can be brought to the desired conclusion, leaving Hongo to convalesce for a while (which he's probably going to do anyway, in the care of that princess that's clearly crushing enormously on him).

[sun tzu]

I am not sure whether I want this to work or not.

Yyyeah. I care about technique and tactics far more than about raw determination. The technical aspect of Kenichi is one of the main reason it's become my favorite fighting manga, and we've been seeing too little of that aspect lately.

[penguin-in-leather-jacket]

i don't think i want this to work. it's not that i want Hongou to die, since he's cool and isn't especially evil despite being a Killing Fist user... but Matsuena (the mangaka) has been building Jenazad as one of the true monsters of the series for a long time. it's not just this arc; don't forget that he murdered a disciple (Radin Jihan) for disappointing him.

[Jmacq1]

Yyyeah. I care about technique and tactics far more than about raw determination. The technical aspect of Kenichi is one of the main reason it's become my favorite fighting manga, and we've been seeing too little of that aspect lately.

Are we reading the same Manga? There's plenty of technical aspects, sure, but pretty much Kenichi's entire story arc has been "determination can surpass/supplant talent." A fighter's determination is absolutely one of the key aspects of the story as a whole. Otherwise Kenichi would never have won a fight beyond the "low level mooks" in the beginning. Plus we've had more than one instance of people "coming back from the dead" and "fighting while unconscious" basically all on determination.

That and the "technical aspects" are kind of silly when it basically amounts to "martial arts superman magic vs martial arts superman magic."

i don't think i want this to work. it's not that i want Hongou to die, since he's cool and isn't especially evil despite being a Killing Fist user... but Matsuena (the mangaka) has been building Jenazad as one of the true monsters of the series for a long time. it's not just this arc; don't forget that he murdered a disciple (Radin Jihan) for disappointing him.

But there's the rub: Unless you're going to promote Jenazad to the "big bad" of the whole series (unlikely with Saiga still out there) he's pretty much served his purpose. That's not to say he has to die, but from a narrative perspective, he's pretty much played his cards. There's still at least one "monster" (Ogata) running around out there, and Jenazad at this point seems to have burned his bridges with Yami, which effectively sidelines him from the main narrative if he's kept around. Sure, you could keep him around as a "wild card" if you really wanted, but then you're basically detracting from the main plotline.

[penguin-in-leather-jacket]

that's true. i even think there might have been a hint that the "wild card" role for Jenazad has been planned for a while. just after the D of D, some of the Yami masters had a minor argument about who should have been their combined disciple. Alexander Gaidar cautioned everyone not to fight, since they were all on the same side. Jenazad said they never had any comraderie (sp?) to begin with, since they (Yami masters) all ultimately wanted to prove their own martial arts were the best.

[sun tzu]

Are we reading the same Manga? There's plenty of technical aspects, sure, but pretty much Kenichi's entire story arc has been "determination can surpass/supplant talent." A fighter's determination is absolutely one of the key aspects of the story as a whole. Otherwise Kenichi would never have won a fight beyond the "low level mooks" in the beginning. Plus we've had more than one instance of people "coming back from the dead" and "fighting while unconscious" basically all on determination.

That and the "technical aspects" are kind of silly when it basically amounts to "martial arts superman magic vs martial arts superman magic."

Oh, don't get me wrong, determination obviously plays a huge role in this story.
But so did technique for most of it.
Kenichi vs Daimonji(sp?)? Kenichi beat him with that step Miu taught him.
Kenichi versus the black belt from the karate club? All Kenichi's determination couldn't save him the first time. In their rematch, Kenichi won entirely due to technique.
Kenichi versus Takeda? Kenichi won by exploiting the boxer's poor defense of his lower body.
Kenichi versus Siegfried? Victory by Mubyoshi.
Kenichi versus Odin? Plenty of determination that wasn't enough to bridge the gap between them in the first fight. While determination still played a key role in the second fight, so did the seikuken and Kenichi's ability to imitate his masters' rhythm.
Kenichi versus that Tai Chi guy? That technique whose name escapes me.
Kenichi versus Ethan Stanley? That other technique whose name escapes me.

Kenichi's story arc, if anything, is about training and effort surpassing talent.

[Dark Soul # 7]

Are we reading the same Manga? There's plenty of technical aspects, sure, but pretty much Kenichi's entire story arc has been "determination can surpass/supplant talent." A fighter's determination is absolutely one of the key aspects of the story as a whole. Otherwise Kenichi would never have won a fight beyond the "low level mooks" in the beginning. Plus we've had more than one instance of people "coming back from the dead" and "fighting while unconscious" basically all on determination.

The story is actually more how hard training and effort can give you the chance to take on the talented. Determination is important but you need a solid foundation of skill beaten into you as well to succeed in this manga. Otherwise you're just Ukita.