Dragon Eye

(Volume 2)

by
Kairi Fujiyama

Del Rey, September 2007, 202 pp.
ISBN: 978-0-345-49883-0

Genre: Comics
Subgenres: Manga / Fighting
Reviewed: 11/29/2007

Reviewed by: Conan Tigard

Book Cover

Manga Page

Synopsis

Dragon Eye: Volume 1 ended in the middle of a fight with Issa Kazuma battling a powerful Dracule named Kaligera in the city of Mikuni. The battle continues Dragon Eye: Volume 2 and during the fighting, Issu is smothered by some falling debris. Kaligera flies into the air and lands in front of Leila Mikami, who is protecting the man who unwittingly brought the Dracule into the city. While protecting the man, Sôsei Yukimura comes to Leila's aid.

Meanwhile, Issa has recovered and returns to battle the rather large and menacing Dracule. He tricks the Dracule into leaving the city and they have their final battle in the country, where Issa uses his Dragon Eye. A while later, a couple of new members are filling in on Squad Zero when they get a new mission. But because of Issa previous actions, headquarters has assigned a watchman to report back as to Issa's actions during the new mission.

Some large-sized Dracules have been spotted on the outskirts of Mikuni. Because the Dracules may be Level 3, Squad Zero is now a seven-person team. Kajiyami, Sazanami, and Nanbu are all new members while the new sub-commander is Hibiki, who was with the squad in the last mission. When Squad Zero arrives at the scene, they discover a labyrinth of caves. When the ceiling of a tunnel collapses, Issa and Sôsei are trapped on one side while Leila and the other are on the other side. As both parties delve deeper into the cave, the virus count grows. As the Dracule numbers in the caves increase, neither party can find the other. While crossing a ravine on a rope, the Dracules attack and it does not look good for the VIUS warriors.

Dragon Eye: Volume 2 is written and drawn by Kairi Fujiyama. This story was Translated and Adapted by Mari Morimoto and Lettered by North Market Street Graphics. This manga book has the following Missions (chapters): 

Mission Four: The Forgotten Promise

Mission Five: The Captain Demoted!?

Mission Six: The Battle on the Lines

There are also some sections in the book for: A) Honorifics Explained, B) Extras, C) Translation Notes, and D) Preview of volume 3, although the preview is in Japanese. The book reads from right to left and back to front, just like a book from Japan. This manga book is intended for readers ages 13 and up.

Review

I love a lot of action and great fight scenes, and that is what Dragon Eye: Volume 2 is all about. What I find is kind of funny is how bad the Dracules are supposed to be, yet they look all cute and cuddly. You would think that they would look totally evil, but they never do. As for the new additions to Squad Zero, I love the way the look. But, again, they don't always fight as good as you might think they would.

Still, the book is highly enjoyable and once again Kairi Fujiyama has created a beautifully drawn story of mutated beasts that need to be killed.

The translation from Japanese is pretty good, but I do occasionally feel that the translation is a little too literal. Some effort should be made to make the American dialog flow a little better, or at least have the characters speak as we would, not as the Japanese would.

I read a lot of books that DelRey Manga publishes, and this series is in my top five.

So, if you are looking for a lot of action, great character interaction, an interesting plot, and fun fight scenes, pick up a copy of Dragon Eye: Volume 2. You will absolutely love it. Again, like the last book, this book ends in a cliffhanger with the squad still trapped in the tunnels. I sure hope that they find their way out in Dragon Eye: Volume 3. I cannot wait to find out.

I rated this book a 9 out of 10.