RJ Writing Ink

Edens Zero Chapter 240 Review/Recap

Can I just say this: I hate the Muller. I still refuse to call Dr. Muller as a person, my hatred remains so great. And even though we’ve had far worse enemies, he remains near the top of my hate list for Edens Zero. He traumatized Hermit, tortured Jinn and Kleene, and tried to blow up Foresta. Now, in Universe Zero, we find out that it not only took over Xenolith’s body, but destroyed Foresta. Now it’s working directly for ONE Void and duped Shura into picking a fight with Oasis. 

The sooner we’re rid of Muller, the better off everyone will be!

Recap

Picking up where we left off, Xenolith explains that he’s currently sharing MiiMii’s body due to Muller’s actions. Like in the previous timeline, the machines on Foresta went beserk thanks to a virus infecting them. Unlike before, though, it was Muller this time who was responsible. When Xenolith confronted the mad scientist, he started rambling about how it was working for Void who was recruiting machines for Oracion Seis Galactica. To that end, Muller unleashed the virus to find a machine capable of withstanding the virus…and Xenolith just waltzed right in. Using an EMP to disable his Ether Gear, the Muller steals the machine’s powers, leaves Xenolith for dead, and uses them to create a new Xenolith and destroy Foresta. As a result, the real Xenolith had to take refuge in MiiMii’s body as Aruna found them.

After hearing everything, Shura and the Ocean’s Six realized they were duped, and Shura’s angry over it. While he refuses to be friends with Shiki (yet), he does end up leaving Oasis and the others in peace as he returns to The Temple. The others debate on whether or not they should get involved, but Shiki doesn’t want to abandon Xenolith like this. Back at The Temple, though, Void contacts “Xenolith” for it’s first job. Except “Xenolith” is now just calling itself Muller, having created a new, cyborg body for itself.

Review

Oh, crud. The Muller on its own was bad enough, but now? Now it’s crazier than ever before. Did you hear how Muller started rambling all that crazy stuff when it met Xenolith? Muller’s always been crazy, but it’s worse than ever. Yet, there may be a little bit of clarity in his ramblings, mainly the part about the ones and zeros. In binary language, ones and zeros make up programming. Maybe it has to do with the naming of the Edens Zero and Edens One? Or it could be a coincidence. 

At the very least, it’s good to see that Shura in Universe Zero is more reasonable than he was in previous timelines. Plus, it was funny to see him get angry over the fact that the Muller was hired to work for him. Who hired that nutjob, anyway? It was also funny to see Ijuna call him out for not vetting his human resources properly. She really has him wrapped around her finger. They say behind every great man, there is a great woman, though.

At any rate, with Muller currently at The Temple, it looks like Shiki and the Crew of Edens might not have a choice about intervening. That’s fine by me; I want to rid the Universe of the Muller for good.

I Give “The Doctor’s Deviant Disposition” a 3/5

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Edens Zero Chapter 133 Review/Recap

Pop quiz: do you guys know why sports movie or anything that involves a lot of training includes a montage? Because if we had to sit through all the training, then we’d get bored super fast. Also, given how risque some of the training the heroes of Edens Zero is, it’s for the best. This week, Edens Zero finishes its training, gets back on the road, and back on the hunt for Ziggy!

Recap

The chapter opens up with the fourth-wall breaking character Xiao Mei giving us a recap of recent events: the machines on Foresta going nuts. How Shiki met Xeno. Elsie being chased by Justice, and more. However, she soon transitions back to the heroes training with Xeno. Thus far, almost everyone’s shown growth in their skills.

Rebecca on the other hand….

Xiao Mei then wisely flashes us forward by a week, with the heroes departing Foresta. Xeno stays behind to look after the kid Rebecca found. He does offer to let Shiki come back and train some more, though.

Meanwhile, on the Edens One, word’s reached Ziggy that his plans for Foresta failed. Nonetheless, he’s undeterred by this or by Shiki. He then talks to the Dark Stars about how he once lost his memories, leading him to create Granbell Park. Then, he went to find Mother to get his memories back, but gave up when he found Shiki. Now that he’s back, he considers that a mistake. Claiming that Shiki’s a threat to the universe itself, he intends to destroy his adopted grandson and conquer humanity. His next step: seize control of Nero’s empire.

Review

I’m just going to come out and say it: Hiro Mashima, you are really trying to blur the line between official works and 18-and-up fanart, aren’t you? I’m not joking. The whole “bondage” thing was funny, but Rebecca tied up naked in the baths? That’s something out of an 18+ doujinshi.

Teasing us with fanservice aside, this chapter did bring up two interesting points that I kept pondering. According to Witch, the Shining Stars were with Ziggy when he went to find Mother. However, they have no memory of it, and no records beyond the Sakura Cosmos. Xeno doesn’t even remember meeting them on Foresta fifteen years ago. Was that a mistake on someone’s part, or a clue that something bigger’s going on.

Then there’s what Ziggy said. He claims that the Ziggy that Shiki knew was him after he lost his memories. This was something we weren’t aware of before. More importantly, if the way he’s acting is his “original self” as he claims, then he knows the truth about Shiki. And for some reason, he considers Shiki a threat to all existence.

Shiki Granbell. There’s so much we still don’t know about him. It’s a compelling mystery, and the more we learn, the less we know. In other words, we have no clue who Shiki is and what his connection to Mother is. However, I have a feeling that Mashima’s going to hit us with a massive twist down the line. I honestly can’t wait for that to happen.

For now, though, the training’s over, and we’ve left Foresta behind. Granted, I’m bummed that we don’t explore the fallout of the machine rebellion and its effects on the people, but that could end up occurring in the future. Until then, onward!

I Give “Following Ziggy’s Path” a 3/5

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Edens Zero Chapter 131 Review/Recap

So, I think that we can all agree that after the knockdown, dragged out fight on Foresta, Shiki and the others all need training. If they’re going up against Justice, Ziggy, Shura, and Emperor Nero, they need to get stronger. Thankfully, Xenolith is going to train Shiki up to defeat his Grandpa, and the others are going to get in on this. But I should warn you guys: Xenolith’s training methods are a little…out there.

Look, we know Mashima seems to like using fanservice and appealing to fetishes. Let’s not judge him so quickly.

Recap

Fifteen years ago, Ziggy taught Shura how to use gravity Ether Gear. As a result, present-day Shura’s flourished to the point where he calls himself the King of Gravity. However, he also proves to a tyrannical king. Right before he and the Oceans 6 head out, he murders the lone machine member, Reverend Cyca. When the others become horrofied, this is the guy’s rationale:

In the sky above Foresta, Xenolith has the crew of Edens Zero undergo intense physical training using their VR system. According to Witch, the tech they use syncs with reality, letting their bodies feel the burn. She calls it VR-synC. Much to everyone’s surprise, Kleene and Jinn also join in on the training, with Kleene saying that she intends to join the crew alongside her brother.

In addition to physical training, Xeno insists on teaching everyone how to use Ether Gear even when physically restrained. And rather than explain it, I’m just going to show it outright.

I believe this is a case of expectations vs. reality. With the reality involving everyone being suspended from rope and trying to activate their Ether Gear while Xeno throws stuff at them. Unfortunately, not only do they fail to make any headway, but the VR-C gets hacked. The culprit? Apparently none other than Ziggy the Demon King!

Review

So, I’ve got several thoughts about this latest chapter that I would like to make known.

Firstly, I am very disturbed by the level of sadistic cruelty exhibited by Shura. He outright murdered one of his comrades!

It’s made even more jarring with how this chapter reveals that Shura used to be a sweet little boy. But between the time he learned how to use Ether Gear and the present, he became a monster. It’s sad, really.

Secondly, I had a feeling that Kleene and Jinn would join the crew of Edens Zero full time. Hell, I guessed that Jinn would be an eventual ally of Shiki years ago. Also, Kleene’s smile must be protected at all costs.

Third, Xenolith’s a weird guy; I still can’t pin down his personality, aside from the fact that he’s a ladies man. At the very least, he’s taking his job as a teacher seriously. And since he’s going to have to go through maintenance in a week for an extended period of time, he has to.

Fourth, as pervy as using bondage training may be, I can see the logic behind it. The best way to train oneself to use Ether Gear while restrained is through practical experience. And it’s not like Xeno’s intentionally making it sexy. Though he did that to Weisz to troll him, which is awesome.

Good chapter all around. I was caught off guard by the bondage training, as this is still a Shonen manga. That said, it’s not the craziest training method I’ve seen in manga.

I Give “VR-C” a 3/5

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