Soul Eater 76: Salvage my Sanity

nenena‘s translation and the discussion surrounding it [here] are so enjoyable and encompassing that I almost feel this post is superfluous.  However, I’m still writing it if anything because I want to admit to the world that my ultimatum to Ookubo in my last post failed: I told him after chapter 72 that he’d better bring Medusa back within 3 chapters and here I am, still Medusaless, still reading Soul Eater.

Master Evans, ever so dapper

And it is interesting.  I still feel the Baba Yaga arc was better, probably because it had a point to it (= taking out Arachne and her crew).  “Now wait,” you might say, “surely this SALVAGE arc has a point too: rescuing Kid!”

The reason I have a problem with this goal is that from the beginning this tale has revolved around three heroes: Maka, Black Star, Kid.  And though they get into trouble often enough, they always end up fixing things themselves.  I don’t think Ookubo will switch gears now: Kid has to save himself.  And so the whole debate over whether Black Star will do it, or whether the Thompson sisters will or what, will probably be moot.  We’ll see.  But it’s obvious that if Kid does end up breaking out of the book by his own power, then the whole focus of Salvage is lost.

But I said it was interesting, and it is.

a) The Death Scythe situation – this could have been very embarrassing: we were expecting Soul to achieve Death Scythe status at some point and become the most awesome weapon ever.  But the series became more and more popular and Ookubo wasn’t about to finish it just then.  I mean, the manga should have ended about 4 or 5 chapters after Soul became a Death Scythe.  So how to allow for this transformation to happen without bringing the series to an end?  By ignoring it.  Well done.  In this chapter, as he does periodically, Soul mentions the fact that he’s become a Death Scythe and then carries on.  Obviously the enemies from now on are so strong the pre-Death Scythe Soul/Maka combo would have been obliterated in battle against them…or something.

b) Summonings – Soul actually summons the dreaded Piano lord to help him against Gilico.  This is Ookubo in a nutshell.  I’d totally forgotten the whole “black blood plus demon in a room with a piano” deal.  Ookubo conjures it from thin air, employs it, and moves on.  If I were a black-blood fan, then I’d be getting really excited by now, slightly disappointed by the lack of mention later on, but still hopeful of more development in later chapters.  As it turns out, I’m a Medusa fan, so I’m sure in a chapter or two Ookubo will do the same thing to me: throw in a mention, perhaps even a panel, on Medusa, and then move on…until he decides to deal with it.  And Ookubo’s storytelling is spread on such a wide anything-goes canvas that it all holds just because he wants it to.  It’s madness, in short, it’s like how the fabric of a dream holds together simply because anything can happen in a dream…or a nightmare.  And Soul even calls upon the power of Arachne!!

c) Arachne – I guess there’s a chance the big witch can come back.  My speculation will go along these lines: Medusa has her body, Evans has her soul, so if the two were to have a baby voilà.

d) Girlico – Girico…Girico…The character confuses me.  Is he a major foe or is he a wimp?  Is he his own man, a mercenary willing to sell himself to the highest bidder, or just Arachne’s Gopher?  And now his gender’s all messed up.  I give up.

Oh, and on the cover with Maka and the skull…I do think it’s as bad as it looks.

~ by Haloed Bane on July 18, 2010.