Okay so the Negima sequel, UQ Holder has been relatively quiet so far. Yeah they had some steady storylines going on, with some cool moments, some cute moments, the standard fanservice moments, and so on. But then a couple of weeks ago, this happened:
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| AWESOME HAPPENED. |
I was of course estactic. Finally, one of the miracle generation girls show up! A proper cameo, instead of a subtle reference to the series that tore out my heart with its ending. And not just a creepy villainous Fate with some random information that instantly gets forgotten as soon as that arc is done with.
Of course Mana shows up and kicks all kinds of ass. Like of course. And look at her schooling his grandson much like the way she helped guide Negi all those years ago. (Is it weird I feel old thinking about this timeskip?) Now up until here I'm kind of just thinking, what a great cameo. I'm so glad I get to see someone from the miracle class. Then just before the cut she drops THIS:
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| THANK YOU MAGICAL GUN-WIELDING SANTA |
I-is that what I think it is? Is it really..."that"? The holy grail of shounen tropes gifting training from hell, taking levels of badass and CMoAs? IT'S A FUCKING TOURNAMENT ARC FUCK YEAH. I AM SO PUMPED HELL YES. Oh Mana I knew your appearance was going to be good but I didn't think you were bringing a freaking tournament arc with you - BUT I'M NOT COMPLAINING.
The this week brings...oh man if I thought Mana dropping a tournament arc on us was Christmas, this week just hands out treats like Halloween on top of it. Check out that nostalgic flashback. Check out the miracle girls killing it, as always, of course,
naturally. Here I'm thinking "wow Mana, a tournament arc AND flashbacks to the girls? The only thing more adrenaline pumping would be a cameo by the man himself -"
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| RIPS SHIRT OFF |
NEGI! I've been so starved for a time skipped you, I'm practically fainting just from a back profile. But I'll be real, the reason I'm very excited is not because I'm thinking Negi will actually show up. It's just me being excited over the fact that last time, Negi also kept fighting in the tournament in order to see his father. But more excitement over the differences that keep showing up between grandfather and grandson. Negi heard of his father's strength and admired it, strove to reach for it; he grew up fighting in order just to catch a glimpse of that back. But Tota hears of his grandfather's strength and gets depressed. He sees his grandfather as a distant challenge, but even Mana says it 'that's why I didn't say you
want strength. I said you
need it". Negi always had a very clear image that he looked towards, and he wanted strength in order to touch it. Tota didn't grow up on legends of his grandfather, and I think maybe that was a kindness Eva gave him. His vision of the future is wide and broad. Ah youth.
As if to further up the nostalgia factor, Eva appears what is still my favourite form for her, the loli grandma vampire (copyright Jack Rakan). And on top of that she appears looking for information on a certain legendary thunder mage who saved the world and had a great impact on her. My goodness, why it's like I'm back to Mahou Sensei Negima Volume 3 Chapter 17. Then just as I start to think that they couldn't be fitting more retro characters in:
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| Oh I'm sure you'd like to see it wouldn't you |
Creepy villain Fate shows up! Honestly another character I'd prefer not to see time-skipped. He was cuter as a ten year old trying to decide what's good and bad, and showing being thawed by the warmth of human kindness. In UQ he's kind of really creepy. And Akamatsu (or his editor) isn't even trying to prove me wrong, since his arrival is accompanied by the tagline: "Any sign of Negi and Fate is there!! His obsession knows no bounds!!!" Ahaha oh Fate, might as well just change your name to Foe Yay.
But anyway, I'm really digging the current vibe the UQ manga has going for it right now. It's like in the glory days of Negima, where it was just one awesome chapter after another, with the taglines just upping the stakes with every release. Recapturing the magic. However, you've got to take it with a grain of salt, because all this pumped up feel is from nostalgia coming in a strong way. Like I said way back when I first discovered UQ Holder, it's going to have to be able to stand on its own. Hopefully, we'll see some intense successive CMoAs during the tournament arc - UQ Holder style~
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