Note: this manga contains mature content and may be best suited for an older teen audience.

The second volume of Elemental Gelade takes place mere seconds after the first volume ends. The tyrant is holding onto Ren and Cou is having a minor breakdown over the fact that his Edel Raid is saying horrible things about him, and that she is considering working for the enemy. After Ren uses her powers to blind the leader; his Edel raid is now hurt and betrayed that he would choose to pick the “object” he was about to sell over her, and he lashes out at her to work properly. This gives Cou and Ren time to unify and she turns into her weapon form. They take care of the bad guy with haste and they all leave the village. The steam factory is destroyed and the windmill is spinning again providing free power to the villagers.

The story of this issue is given far more room to work with than in the first volume, as there is already a basis for the plot and characters are defined well, with more depth. The comedy in issue is also slightly better, but still the main focus is on the characters and the action– and there is plenty of action.

Out of the first two, this is the better issue and if you were only “meh” on the first issue give the second one a try. It broadens the universe and frankly it’s worth checking out if you liked the first enough to finish it. (See my review of volume 1 here.)

Overall: 8/10. A great read.

-Cameron S., 12th grade

I should start out saying this is my first real manga that I ever read, or at least, entirely to as much as I could. It helped form my current opinions on the style of Japanese comics. It is also the first time in a long time I wanted to skip reading a part in my book.

The main plot of the story is about Eldel Raids, or one of the 7 Glittering Jewels known as Ren. In the Glittering Jewels line, she is the last. She is the only living member now, and this is where the journey begins. After a very good start, I find the middle to be slightly lacking. However, it picks up extremely well when the story takes a sudden twist. Sadly the first issue ends on cliffhanger, but the Mission Viejo Library has all of them available up to issue 9! (Shameless plug.)

Now onto the book itself which is overall very good and done well. The art style isn’t well used outside of the weaponry in my opinion. That being said, when it is used well it is downright fantastic. The weapons all look unique and special giving them all a reason to be remembered. I think the characters could be a bit more fleshed out, but it put them at a great starting point. The story is well crafted in its entirety, and I personally really like it. The next issue is even better, and this one is worth a look.

Overall, I give this volume of Elemental Gelade a 7/10. A great manga. If you think it’s worth a shot I give it a full recommendation.