Sometimes I wonder to myself why I haven't already dropped Samurai 8. So far, it fails to grab my attention. There are two reasons for this, its uninteresting narrative and confusing aesthetics. These two sometimes go hand in hand together making every read a Herculean task.

The first problem lies in the fact that Samurai 8 is essentially another bland battle shonen in terms of narrative. It lacks early Naruto's heart and ambition. Normally, I have great patience when it comes to such kinds of manga. Even with Black Clover's clumsy start, it managed to carve a niche and refined its narrative. For Samurai 8, it's still an unknown but I trust Kishimoto on this.

Unfortunately, its aesthetic problems are far more sinister than its narrative troubles that it might be a deal breaker for this manga. I wish that Masashi Kishimoto was the one drawing this instead of Akira Ookubo. I was only able to follow other "generic" battle shonen because their art is as straightforward as their narrative. But for Samurai 8, it's potential for worldbuilding is pretty much stunted by the convoluted art. Reading Samurai 8 is not only a bore but its takes more effort to read than your average manga. There is no depth and shadows. It's hard to distinguish between character and background. It looks like a coloring book instead of a manga.

Unless there is a dramatic shift in the art, Samurai 8 might just be a missed opportunity for a compelling manga.