Jigokuraku

What could easily be a generic BR rip off quickly becomes something different as it steadily adds to what is happening. At first it looks like a general shonen, but has a surprising level of unreliable narration and people lying to themselves. It even plays with formalistic structure in a way similar to what some of the 80s DC mature titles did. Even something as simple as exposition can be delivered with a constant series of crosscuts and scene jumps which wouldnt even quite work in film. It really takes the medium as far as it can.

And thats all before the issue of the flowers comes up. Basically, this is a ero guru masterpiece. Worth reading for the character design and mutations and bodily warping/destruction alone.

"That's not weakness. It's a type of strenght."

I'm really impressed with Jigokuraku, I didn't expect that much from a shounen, since shinobi fights are not my favorite style. But this one got me.

This review should begin talking about the characters.

When they say this is a story about Gabimaru, or an adventure-fantasy-fight story, I tend to disagree. It's about every character, their relationships and their redemption. While the shogun must give one pardon, we are open to pardon all of the worst outlaws from Japan. Those characters are beautifully shown to us through flashbacks, casual moments and fights. No, the fights are not simply fights, but an excuse to show what's happening at the character's mind - and we would hardly know them if it was not the fights. Forget the condemnations, the bushido. Now they are exposed, we can see them clearly. We can see their motivations, the flow of their thoughts, and because of that, the change is evident. Most of them are not plain; they change wonderfully and humanly, almost tangible. The terrible Gantetsusai, or the egoistic Yuzuriha, Gabimaru the Hollow - they are not the monsters we think they are. They can change, and they are good, but their development is hard, not a miraculous that turns the bad guy into a good guy. They must suffer, love, hate and see other's suffer, and only then they can change. On the other hand, we have those strict, close-minded samurai, who walk through the same path of suffering until they can open their mind to see goodness inside criminals - in such a way they even renounce their samurai duties! Because they are more than samurai who follow rules - they are human,, and see how the criminals are similar to them. I can't forget the villains, who also show a potential of changing. Of course, not all of them could be good, but the glimpses of humanity that those immortals deities reveal is an indicative that they are also open to change, and they could be good if the conditions were different. It doesn't mean you'll love them, or every character, but your judgement won't be that limited.

Next, the story: to summarize, Jigokuraku is about a group of condemned to death super-criminals who are sent to an island - from where it's impossible to come back - where, supposedly, they could find the elixir of life. The one who brings it to the shogun will be pardoned. With each criminal, there is a highly-trained samurai to kill him if necessary. The problem is: the island is ruled by immortal deities who control the Tao, and whose immortality comes from a juice made from humans. If the criminals and the samurai want to come back to Japan, they have to fight together, kill those deities and their monsters.

I must admit, I didn't expect the story to be so deep. I mean, I thought it would be a battle royale of criminals and samurai. But it's about how the criminals and the samurai must adapt to defeat immortal beings. It can be a bit complex, because taoistic references are everywhere, and westerners may not understand it well, so you'll have to pay attention, or you'll get lost. Besides the characters, other subjects made me very glad: the author doesn't explain everything about the power of the characters. Oh, why are the shinobi that strong? Oh, how can they can see Tao? Oh, how the samurai can be that strong without knowing the Tao? It doesn't matter. Actually, it would take more time and brain cells to explain it. This is not Naruto, you'll have to suspend your disbelief and let things go. The narrative technique of telling character's past through flashbacks during fights is really nice, and the story doesn't seem rushed; the flashbacks can hold the fights, explain the characters, and then give the fight a deeper meaning. On the other hand, I didn't like how the fights were developed sometimes; the willpower saves them more than I could deal with, and there should be more deaths if it was not because of that. Maybe I have said before that it's not necessary to explain everything, but "the Tao" is not the answer to everything! It's just deus ex-machina. The fights should have another rhythm if the villains should die. What balances this problem is how hard things get through the story, with more problems coming until the end. They always have a dilemma to solve, so the psychological pressure on the characters is always at the peak.

Now, the art. It's gorgeous. Even when the manga is black and white, I can see the colors through that psychodelic hell's paradise. The characters design is really remarkable, and reflects well their personalities. The contradiction between beauty and brutality in the scenery fills our eyes, and we can understand why the characters say it seems "artificial". The influences of Chinese and Japanese aesthetics, as well the Taoistic and Buddhist imageries turned into monsters and scenarios is astonishing. You see how Eastern this manga is. The eroticism is also attractive, but not vulgar, what means it's done correctly; and this same eroticism counterparts the brutality and blood, following the concept of yin and yang. Finally, remember to spend some time admiring the watercolor paintings before each chapter, and the huge canvas covering entire pages.

I don't think that is necessary to waste more time talking about the enjoyment, as I stated my impressions through this review.
Story: 8/10
Art: 10/10
Character: 10/10
Enjoyment: 9/10
Overall: 9/10

Jigokuraku focus on the story of a former ninja searching for the elixir of immortality in a mysterious land, so he can be pardoned from his crimes. Overall, the premise of the story isn't quite new, but not quite old. However, the author makes up for this!While the story is young and still developing, the author has done a great job with the series. This is due to great world building, art and characters expression.

Because of the plot, we're suppose to be in a mysterious world with the unknown; therefore, we (the readers) are suppose to feel that and feed off that energy. My hair is suppose to stand! And from this author I can feel it! The author has done a great job of keeping that energy and constantly introduce new elements to keep the readers on their toes and interested.

Secondly, the author can't keep that energy going unless he has great art to portray expressions of characters. This I might say is where the author excels the most. He constantly brings better art each week which is nice. This allows the reader not to get bored or distracts by bad art instead of the art helping the story come along.

Overall, while it is a young story, I feel like it is moving in the right direction to becoming a main stay in the action manga we talk.

Hell's Paradise is the least known member of what I've seen referred to as Shonen Jump's "Hell Trio", consisting of this manga, Jujutsu Kaisen, and Chainsaw Man. However, least known does not mean worst in this case, as I'd put Hell's Paradise on par with either of the aforementioned series (It's written by a former assistant of Chainsaw Man's author, and the eye for quality shows). While the action scenes are awesome, it's the character interactions and art direction that really distinguish this series from other Shonen Jump titles.

The main reason why I found myself so engrossed in reading this manga when I first picked it up last summer was just how likable all of the characters are. This may seem strange if you've only read the synopsis, seeing as half of the characters are death row inmates, but the author does an excellent job of explaining the circumstances surrounding each character's imprisonment. You can safely assume that any character that doesn't die immediately after they're introduced has redeeming qualities beyond their criminal history and genuine depth. This is especially true for the main character, who I kept forgetting is the most feared assassin in all of Japan due to how endearing he is. The samurai executioners who are assigned to each criminal are understandably biased against their partners in the beginning, so seeing them gradually begin to warm up to the criminals is also really fun to watch.

The other aspect of the manga that really shines is the art and overall style. This series incorporates elements from several different religions, and blends them into a disturbingly beautiful island that looks as much like heaven as it does hell. Watching the characters be hunted by disturbing imitations of divine figures is both exciting and surreal, and each character having a unique fighting style and demeanor keeps the action scenes varied and interesting. I often found myself going back through a chapter after reading it just to look at some of the art again.

One last thing I want to touch on is how different the character's attitudes towards death is in this series. Most typical Shonen has every death be drawn out and the characters have to be sad about it for a full five chapters before the story can get back on track, but not Hell's Paradise. Given that each character has seen their fair share of death in their lives, deaths tend to push characters forwards towards their goals rather than driving them to despair, which I really liked. This is necessary to the story as well, seeing as characters die pretty often in this series.

TL;DR - Hell's Paradise is an exciting dark Shonen with beautiful art and one of the most interesting and likable cast of characters I've seen in any manga. I'd absolutely recommend this series to anyone looking for a new action manga to read, and I'm excited for what the author does in the future. I'm also excited for the upcoming anime to release, so if you're here from that then 100% give the manga a shot too.

If there is confusion whether a place is hell or heaven, you can be sure it’s hell. And this particular hell is all about sexy times between Buddhist sculpture, Taoist esoteric teachings and Boschian thicc predatory plantlife. Body horror meets clerical gardening in a tale that’s interesting to look at, but not so much to actually read through.

It’s a fresh Asian-themed flavor of the deadly mutant-infested “zone”, normally characteristic of post-apocalyptic settings. It’s just that it’s pre-apocalypse for now and not a wasteland – like really, it’s quite lush.

And it’s also often so pretty. In later chapters a reveal of a new landscape makes you stop and whoa – it’s imaginative, beautiful and striking like best comic locations are. The designs of the characters are also masterful and well thought out (author’s notes on how he designed clothes were impressive).

In addition it’s a battle royale. With a culling of the cast coming early, heads flying and real final deaths even for named characters.

So yeah, there’s blood and there’re naked bodies. Jigokuraku is an example of fanservice done in an adult almost proper way. Characters pose naked when it’s logical for them to be naked, sex is a thing that people do. The fanservice is very male-centric in its vibe, with only female bodies being shown off, thought there’s narrative BL bait for ladies, some clothed handsome men and there’s attention to the struggles of women in their world. Yet I say almost, because while it’s written so much better than the vast majority of similar manga, a bunch of same worrying stereotypes is present – an age shifting mute loli with a dark past, several evil seductresses, an incestual bromance… There’re hints on sexual violence (which is fair considering the context, but it may make some potential readers reconsider). Oh, and the unique fetish this manga can satisfy is gender-flipping hermaphroditism with a darker edge.

…Too bad that all of this still isn’t engaging enough. And a big part of the reason is because the plot is overstructured. It’s a typical battle shounen with power levels, bosses and skill acquisition, and a battle royale with additional interpair relationships between executioners and their charges. The system is too rigid, familiar and predictable – no miracle has happened because of the fusion, no fresh meat has been grown on the bones. Now, it may change with the addition of new characters and forces, but it’s a maybe at 70+ chapters.

And the rest of the reason is that the concepts of the characters are also old. Gabimaru, the repentant ninja, is basically Mumon from Shinobi no Kuni, but less interesting, or the main character of Basilisk, and the executioner, Sagiri, is a great female character bound to be protected, sidelined and too ideal for her own good, like Tokine from Kekkaishi or Hime from Bleach. The worst part of writing is the tell-don’t-show approach to aggrandizing, when the author spells verbally how great the characters are – a character is often “thinking” that another one is oh-so-strong or cool: “Look, she/he is so cool, look”.

Additionally I honestly can’t say that battles are exciting. Too much is delegated to energy levels and weird ninja magic, so you can’t exactly build expectations, worry and celebrate, you just follow the lines.

In short, the manga drags, because it lacks emotional hooks. You know who is going to win and the character development isn’t engaging. Plus only several characters in the focus get it, side chracters remain largely simplistic.

When I read Jigokuraku I constantly feel the pull of two opposing forces. I want to see more of the gorgeous disturbing feast that the world of this manga is, its visual proficiency and mature (both in themes and in skill) narrative ideas make me want to continue to follow and enjoy it. But then the plot drags and drains, most revelations are predictable, I struggle to care. Tastes and mileage may vary tho, so Jigokuraku is totally worth checking out – for its interesting hellscape and rare brands of body horror, for a big amount of great female breasts and bi-everything plant handsome people, for Buddhist inspirations and historical fantasy fighting. Maybe the story will redeem itself, but for now it tests my patience, you can see for yourself how much it strains yours.

I really enjoyed this manga, and I think most other people would enjoy it as well. Its pretty mature/graphic, but the gore never feels gratuitous. The art is also stellar, and although there is nudity, it rarely comes across as fanservice. I guess the best way to describe how Jigokuraku handles nudity/gore is moderate, which is cool taken how the characters in the manga moderate their emotions to gain power.

The main plot is fine, but nothing stellar. If anything, it is pretty generic shounen stuff. However, the characters are what bring this manga to another level. In one piece fashion, everyone gets a sad backstory, and they almost always make you feel something for everyone, even the villains at times. Also, pretty much everyone gets a character arc, which I always love. I will say though, Gabimaru is not the best MC I have seen. I would have preferred that his one character trait wasn't just "has wife". I know this is a generalization, but he did bore me at times.

Overall, Jigokuraku was a fun shounen manga, that knew when to end. I will say though, they kinda botched the ending with chapter 127. It seemed like the author was pressured to show more, which is a shame because I thought the ending of 126 was really cute.

I would give this manga a 4/5, although you can't do that here. Idk if its a 9 or an 8 but it is certainly worth anyone's time. Anyone who can stomach a bit of violence should be able to find something they like in Jigokuraku.

The fight to survive and make it back home or find an elixir that is said to grant immortality?

The manga starts off at first like every other manga that takes place during its time period with the added in ninjas for a sprinkle of flavor. The main character starts off seeming like every other, overpowered or just has some kind of tragic backstory that makes them the way they are, Edgey. Now, as I continued to read this manga, it surprised me with how different it actually was. Sure, the main character has a tragic backstory as mentioned (no surprised there) but the way the character is written is unlike many others. After a certain chapter, I couldn't get enough. Each important character is given a spotlight that is well deserved. You are given insight into why that character is the way they are at the right given time. It gives the reader a nice break from reading all the battle scenes to take a small dive into who that character really is aside from what other characters have said, and what possible events either changed them for the better or the worse.

All in all, I really enjoy this manga and can't wait to continue reading it some more.

Since there are already several reviews, I will keep this brief. Jigokuraku is what the ideal action shounen manga should be. There are many battles, and while they last for more than a chapter or two, they aren’t repeatedly drawn out for 30+ chapters. Most of the characters are fleshed out, even characters introduced towards the end, and there is character development. While as with any action shounen there are convenient deus ex machina moments, it’s not near the level of Dragon Ball Z, and readers will have to say goodbye to characters. The story takes some common story ideas yet manages to create a situation that feel different enough. I strongly recommend this series.
Story: 8
Art: 9
Character: 9
Enjoyment: 9
Overall: 9

Jigokuraku is a little bit hard for me to describe, because it's not really a genre I'm too familiar with. I've never been big on shounens, let alone historical ones, but something about the style and flow of this series had me so captivated I felt a need to sit down and write about it. From the first chapter, something about it just instantly hooked me with the thought of oh, this will be good. And excellent it was.

This is one of those manga where after I caught up to the ongoing releases, I would wait months before picking it up again. I say this to mean that I don't think it's as good when you read each chapter individually, but somehow as a whole the story truly comes together and sings. The premise is almost like a twisted classic in a way, following a group of convicts and their executioners as they travel to a mysterious, spiritual island to find the elixir of life with the promise of being pardoned for their death sentences. Our main characters are the duo of Gabimaru, a well-known, cold-hearted shinobi and his appointed executioner Sagiri, a thoughtful woman trained in swordsmanship by the Yamada clan. As one would expect (this is after all a shounen manga), throughout their journey they gain respect and appreciation for one another alongside some other new friends.

I mentioned that the beginning of the series immediately struck me, and that's because from the very start, Jigokuraku has managed to make me really care about its characters. It's normal to find a series with interesting characters, but to form an emotional attachment is another story. Obviously, nobody in this series is particularly relatable (they're criminals and executioners from historical Japan), but something about their problems just felt real to me, and I was genuinely concerned and sad for almost each and every one of them. Additionally, despite having a decently large and scattered cast (characters spend most of their time traveling separately or in small groups), the author manages to elaborate on all of them in a way that you don't feel like you're missing anyone. Each person has their own carefully sculpted backstory, and there's rarely a feeling of someone being skimmed or missed.

I want to attribute my feeling of connectedness to the atmosphere of the manga. Though very good and engaging, I don't think the plot of the series is remarkably strong, but the author has such a great talent for storytelling. I say this because the world he builds feels so vivid and immersive. I mentioned previously that this is a series that I would binge read rather than keep up with weekly updates, because it was hard to get the full experience reading just one chapter at a time. The series really struck me the most after my first 60 chapter binge read, and then going 15-20 at a time so that I could fall in love with the world again. There was something so stunning about the setting and its incredibly bizarre cast, and being a part of it always made me feel a sense of awe and amazement. I don't love shounen manga, so big fight scenes and toots of friendship aren't usually for me, but the fight scenes in Jigokuraku were so strange and captivating. I also enjoyed how the darker premise played into the series' morals and messages; I appreciated the careful balances between good and evil and light and dark.

I've never seen the show Mononoke so this could be incredibly off base, but something about the art style reminded me of a Mononoke poster. There's this sense of mystery to it, with the floral themes and the genderless villains and the true strangeness of the world. The constant florals representing intersections of life and death were particularly visually stunning. I didn't think that flowers growing from a person's face could feel so macabre. Looking at the villains, this is again incredibly evident, as each is associated with images of nature and growth to a dangerous degree. The juxtaposition of that concept was spectacular.

Ultimately I think Jigokuraku is such a storytelling feat. It's a classic journey-type plot with a dark edge and a thrilling, lovable set of characters. However, its true strength lies in the world-building. There is something so hauntingly beautiful about the story's set-up and slow burn, like being ushered into a rakugo theater or opening an old novel for the author to spin you away in a tale.

Fighting for survival/ Path of returning home or searching for immortality

I didn’t have any expectation. But after a few chapters or 65 chapters later, I came out close to addicted.

If you are searching for some fantasy fighting or shounen-ish manga while hoping it can combine the element of thriller or plot-twists, you should check out this manga~~ Oh yeah, not only this is a gory manga, but this manga also heavily details on its characters’ development.

***Warning, this is not a ninja manga that focuses on whose Jutsu is cooler or stronger. If you are trying to read a manga that makes you happy or laugh, this is not a manga for you*
*Minor Spoilers*

Before talking about the story, I must mention the MCs.
-Gabimaru: “Best” Ninja/ Prisoner.
-Asaemon: Sword Master/ Executioner.
Due to “coincidence” or “story setup”, these two MCs somehow “teamed” up together along with the other executioners/ prisoners to pursue the elixir of immortality on a mysterious island in order to be freed and return back to home.

Along the way, both of them must face or prevail their personal conflicts and weaknesses. More importantly, they must survive death-threatening opponents or challenges ahead of them.
For Gabimaru, he was supposed to be a heartless human killing machine; however, he must find a way to incorporate emotions and feelings to become his strength.
For Asaemon, she was supposed to be arguably the best swordmaster; however, she must find confidence in herself and her expertise in the samurai sword.

Other than the MCs, the side characters can be extremely interesting as well. Overall, the characters in this manga are hella striking in their own ways and can actually steal some spotlights away from the MCs.

For the story, the setup is extremely unique. Despite having the samurai/ninja element + Edo-ish vibe, the mangaka, Yuuji san, completely created his own universe. With the existence of a mysterious island, Yuuji san demonstrated crimson contrast between hope and despair, survival and death.

For the art category, it is definitely a highlight of its own. Don’t want to go further into this, go READ x)


Story: 9 (unique, well planned, smooth)
Art:10 (meticulous, aesthetically pleasing, astounding background, love the human sketches)
Characters: 10 (detailed, see growth, consistent)
Enjoyment: 10 (Became a huge fan of this manga)
Overall: 9.5 (highly recommend to give it a shot)


P.S. Yuzuriha is THE BAE

I don't feel that there is a lot that can be said about this series, I enjoyed my time with it but it still has its flaws. First off the main appeal for me was the art. The art within this series is sublime, the way fights are drawn and the beautiful environments completely gripped me. The story could have been leagues worse but I would've sticked to the series because of the art. That takes us to the story which is gripping enough but can often grow convoluted. There were points where I found myself totally lost and somewhat frustrated. The characters though are written quite well, they have intriguing motivations and rarely feel one noted. The villains though aren't exactly my thing. I've always loved villains like Johan or Pain who are very multi-layered which this series lacks. Overall it's worth a read and I think most will enjoy it even if it's just for the art.

Looking at the cover page of the very first chapter feels like opening the gate to Hell, matching perfectly with its title: Hell’s Paradise: Jigokuraku. This contrast of Hell and paradise is exactly what you will get in this manga. Suffer and joy, beauty and ugly, rough and smooth, all this at the same time! How could such a contrast story work? How is it possible to create a pure evil protagonist, but still be a kind-hearted hero? How can you make a total madness of action, but remaining sane? All these questions will be answered in this Hell’s paradise!

Note: see below for a short overall review.

- Story (8/10):
The story itself starts as simple as it could: a bunch of criminals go to an island where nobody came back from until now. Each of them gets an executioner to overwatch their doings. The mission: bring the Shogunate the elixir of life, which may lay on the island. However, just one of them gets a full pardon if she or he comes back… Until now, it sounds like any other battle royal story. Of course the action, the characters and art are nice to watch, but with such a simple story the joy remains simple… At least, that’s what you may think! After the start it begins to develop and construct its own world on this island, literally!
The best way to show that, is the power concept. For example in Naruto or My Hero Academia the concept of chakra/jutsu or quirks are mentioned at best in 2-3 sentences, and it is there from the beginning. You just accept that is the power of this world. However, not in this manga! You will experience a new kind of power or the evolving of it at the same time as our characters. It is like seeing the birth of something new, but not like in a ‘training arc’, rather like fighting an undefeatable boss again and again, until you suddenly learn something which increases your chances to kill it. So you try harder and harder, until you finally win! This struggle makes it so exciting and real!
Okay-okay, these are the reasons for a really good action manga and a basic good story, but for an 8 out of 10 you need more… And you get it! After the roots of this power concept are deep enough, the main story, worldbuilding, character development and backstory trees can finally grow! Learning more about this living hell of an island, about our protagonists and antagonists, while the outstanding action keeps the whole natural and thrilling! Not to mention, that at every corner something sudden can happen, which holds the death tense permanently.
And while you learn more, your own morals get questioned. Are the criminals good? Are the Shogunate/executioners bad? Is being weak the true strength? Is the meaning of life to die? Of course, right now these sound like total nonsense, but this balance of contrasts is the core of this manga. It makes you think. And a story which does that, is truly outstanding!
However, there are some little stains on it. First, it touches the dark/mature surface, but at the end it fears to really dive in. So nearing the end the surprise elements get duller. The second problem is the enormous amount of action, which is amazing, but suppresses the story.

- Art (9/10):
I saw some truly extraordinary manga artists in my life, like Boichi (Dr. Stone, Sun-Ken Rock) or Takeshi Obata (Death Note, Bakuman, Platinum End). To be such one, you have to have your own special style with long-term high quality. The speciality could be super realism, high variety or both (just to name some). For heavier/darker mangas the “rule” is, the more realistic, the more it devours you. If the mature parts of the story are not realistic enough it could easily feel childish and it won’t convince you.
I wouldn’t say that Yuuji Kaku is on the same level (for example) like Boichi, however it is still on a very high level. That is because of his outstanding artistic style. While other mangas feel like robotic drawings (even if some of them are really high quality) due to a too simple/uncreative world, this feels definitely more like art. As mentioned, the very first cover page catches the reader’s eyes instantly! It looks like a surrealistic portrait. This is also true for the character designs (particularly the antagonists), the action scenes and the whole environment in it. It feels literally like a famous painter would have drawn a manga.
Further on, the diversity. It isn’t as simple as you may think, because you have a specific style, so to draw different characters is not easy. For example, delete 1-2 individual marks of a character and it looks equal to another one where you delete 1-2 particular marks. That’s one of Boichi’s weak points (in my opinion), but one of the strengths of Tite Kubo (Bleach), and also of Yuuji Kaku. Jigokuraku shows you many different character types, physically and mentaly. This is especially important for the villains, where the gender characteristic became meaningless.
However, the manga has one deficit. There are too many backgrounds which are empty or at least felt like it.

- Characters (8/10):
Continuing with the characters. Every character has its interesting and mostly individual backstory, development and goal – especially the protagonist, Gabimaru, is well-written, and his struggle represents the manga’s contrast theme perfectly! – however, the problem is with this ‘mostly’. We get a nice amount of characters, so we have enough time to focus on each of them. Learning their backstories and goals one after one, but with the 6th or 8th character you will get suspicious. Something doesn’t feel right…
Thinking about it a bit, the solution was simple. Villains or heroes, side- or main-character, everyone has kind of the same development and backstory. Of course, they are all criminals or evil beings, so they have one certain point where they turn vicious, but I don’t talk about that. And don’t misunderstand me, their stories are different, but somehow still are the same. For example, one character's purpose is to fight and defeat as many as possible, and he doesn’t care about others. But at the end, he is one of the team helping and fighting together. Okay… Then we have another one, she is rotten to the core, egoistic and wants an easy life. But at the end, she is one of the team helping and fighting together. Hmm… Sounds familiar… Then we have… I think you got the picture, so let’s stop here.
So the best way to describe this, it’s like all our anti-heroes, villains and heroes turn from pitch black/bright white to greyish. And yes, that’s also somehow the concept of the whole story. Nothing is pure bad or good, everything is both. However, it still felt a bit uncreative, and I missed, like I mentioned at the beginning, the risk of going really dark and not just touching it.
One other thing which was disturbing is the amount of characters. As mentioned we have… or had a really good pool, but nearing the end ‘suddenly’ we get 3-4 new totally unnecessary personas. They had their own short backstory and even shorter developments, but their purpose was just to be there or to die, which felt like failed story dragging or deus ex machina events.

- Enjoyment (10/10):
This manga has some weak points, yes, but none of them are really disturbing. The art is amazing, the action is overwhelming, the story concept is basic but modified to something interesting! Especially how the powers in this world got explained and constructed was very exciting,and that is what I loved the most.
The characters are also really enjoyable. I'm the kind of person, who is bored of all this shiny and perfect or super weak but with huge development protagonists. Also I love anti-heroes. So a manga full of them, plus brilliant designed villains and different ideologies are more than satisfying.
However, someone who is searching for a darker and more mature, or a less action manga I would rather recommend something else. You could still find it good, but not as good as a 10 out of 10.

- Overall (9/10):
Altogether, we get a great constructed story, especially if it comes to the powers in this world, but it is missing a scent more darkness and due to a lot of actions it gets a bit duller/predictable with time. The art is amazing, with an artistic style. Action scenes and character designs are positively unique, however, the backgrounds are time-to-time too empty for such a good fantasy. The characters are all individual and well-written, with good back stories and developments, but they show little similarities. But at the end, the enjoyment is at the maximum, if you can overcome these small mistakes. It’s definitely a high-class manga and not some average work.

I don't particularly think that a group of people journeying into a closed off island/civilization with strange happenings is exactly a unique idea, but Jigokuraku manages to mod such a generic synopsis into something special.

First of all, the mysticism surrounding the island gets revealed in not too short of a manner, yet not too long winded either. Plot progresses at a satisfactory pace, something that manga of this type tend to not be able to do. The introductory sequence into the island makes enough sense, as in: why do the people even journey to this death island? Overall, the beginning of this manga is very well executed, with the plot make sense. And once you get into the mysterious island, you will see some riveting imagery: truly artificial, yet terrifying. Abominations made by collecting seemingly random species of animals into a single one, and the imagery shows, and it makes you wonder: what exactly is going on in this island? This mystery is definitely explored, and keeps you wondering as to what is going on.

Of course, characters play an important role in this manga for it to be successful. If I don't really like or care about these characters on the island, or they're just plain one dimensional, I don't have this anticipation on whether or not these character will survive or not, and the manga definitely captures the characters' feelings when writing it. Motivations, life or death experiences, and bonding all change each character into different people, and the ever changing circumstances make you wonder what the characters will end up doing. Sure, there are indeed some drastic changes in character in the first chapters of the manga when they land on the island, and it might seem a little forced at times, but on the same token, having to experience something so drastic will definitely change people. I don't really think of this as a huge flaw. Of course, some characters barely change at all, but you get to know them better, which adds to the depth of the stories. What exactly are these people like? Sometimes, the answer is not obvious, and it eventually get explained as you watch them act in different scenarios.

In the case of this manga, the mysteries of the island are not exactly revealed at the end, so the plot still continues. I always find the wrapping up or ending arcs of these sorts of mysteries to be a little messy or badly executed, and this is not exactly any different. It really makes you wonder, how much plot armor characters have at some point. There are very questionable moments where they could have been slaughtered, but due to, I don't know, the laziness of the enemies, they survive and get stronger. In the end, the island is wrapped in strife and danger, and the fact that their weak selves got to the point of "getting stronger and leveling up" is hard to believe. I do admit though, this manga is not afraid of killing off some characters. It's not overabundant, as in, I still know who gets killed, and I understand them to an extent, but it's also not too little, where you are certain this character will survive to the end.

I've mainly mentioned only good points, but my biggest gripe with the manga is the "power system." It's extremely convoluted, but it takes inspiration from the trigrams, feng shui, and fundamental concepts of daoism. As a person that has read chinese cultivation novels, or "xianxia," this manga does a much worse explanation in terms of how people gain energy. In chinese novels, its real simple: take in the spiritual energy that is present in the world, and use it to enforce your meridians, flesh, and dantian. This manga takes in different inspirations from everywhere, the way dao is actually strengthened is fuzzy, and the overall concepts are just very obscure and vague, despite there being many chapters dedicated to focusing on it. How should I say this? Dao as a form of power is emphasized very much in the manga, yet it still is confusing as to how exactly its being used, and it's just the result of mixing in a bunch of Chinese ideologies that might not conform to the single concept of "dao."
Another kind of fluctuating point I want to talk about is the art. Sometimes, the art is great, like the depiction of grotesque beasts and animals, as well as the scenery are stunning, but at other times, it feels mediocre at best. Fight scenes also vary from beautifully drawn, to messily coordinated. It's honestly a mixed bag, so I can't say the art is consistently the best, but there truly are times where it shines brightly.
edit: I just finished the manga, I think the ending was quite good for this type of series. It's coherent, makes sense, and it's not a "it was just a dream" sort of conclusion. A good series overall

Strong start, Okay end

Jigokuraku is the epitome of everything a shonen battle manga is, with the events of it taking place on what is essentially the Dark Continent of HxH in a no holds barred arena slugfest style.

The beginning does a perfect job at showcasing this, managing to perfectly depict the otherworldy nature of the island with the help of amazing art, it also manages to introduce the cast of characters in a way that shows their character off really well, particularly focused on Gabimaru who is already one of the more fleshed out characters in the entire story, overall a very good beginning.

Though from here its flaws as what is essentially a pure battle shounen become more apparent, particulary in its cast. While one can't really argue that most if not all of the cast performs some amazing feats in the story, that's basically what it all boils down to, "Criminals Do Cool Shit And Kill Each Other, The Story" While it has well choreographed fight scenes and great art to boot, it sacrifices most of its character nuance or depth for it, which is perfectly encapsulated in one of the main characters, Sagiri.

Sagiri shows exactly why the show don't tell mentality of writing is so important, constantly being touted as having the potential to rise above her peers and possessing a strong motivation for doing so, but always falling short and requiring rescue at every step of the way, with some brief moments of badassery here and there, making this facade of a strong character that grows into their own when in reality they never quite achieve their goal, it doesn't help that she's not very interesting as a character

It doesn't help much either that on the other end of the bland protagonists, are the even more bland antagonists that serve as the major conflict of the series, the Tengen. They possess absolutely any individual character that could let you even identify any distinct qualities between them, sans two, that would allow you to know who you're even following the narrative of, they are the rawest purest form of villan fodder, existing simply for the protagonists to have a goal to tend towards, and nothing more. Even their origin story does them no merits, its no surprise you'd never see any in contention for character popularity because outside of their role in the story, they have no purpose.

The later chapters don't do well to rectify this problem, its flaws get even more amplified with the introduction of Shugen and his crew, characters who arrive far too late to really be anything more than additional muscle to tip the odds in our main characters favours. They only ever get the obligatory origin story coupled with a flashback and nothing more, simply providing some level of conflict and continuing the grand fight slog that is the manga, and nothing more, the worst part is that this would probably have been the case regardless of when they were introduced into the story.

While it clings to some themes and few characters show some level of potential, it never really dwells on them long enough for what the story did to be anything impactful. It only ever succeeds with Chobe, a character who starts strong and remains consistently good and interesting throughout the duration of the story, on top of managing to top out practically all of the cast in badassery, an indication of the potential the writing had in later chapters, but ultimately didn't really reach.

Its ending never quite finishes on a grand note either, wrapping everything up completely but in what was perhaps the most boring predictable way possible, while ultimately the events of the ending are liked or disliked on preference, I can't help but feel it was a bit too abrupt and condensed, not really giving off the feel of a definitive ending to the series.

Overall, jigokuraku is a very solid battle manga, but a very average series on its own, recommended if you just want to read a manga where people beat the shit out of each other, but you may be disappointed if you were looking for something a bit less predictable and generic in its narrative.

This review is only based on the first 50 chapters. Although I gave it an overall score of 8, I may rise it if the quality of the manga keeps improving as it did. Also, I'll try to keep this review as spoiler free as I manage to, and I'm super sorry if you'll find any error, as English is not my native language.

So, what makes this manga really worth reading to me are characters and art. The two things are connected, as every single character is well drawn and, of course, many times the way a character is drawn in this manga gives hints to what to expect from him in terms of characters or combat. Fightings are really important, one of the fundamental parts of this manga, and the author's attention to details is so high that every single fighting scene is clear, even where some strange powers are involved and he clearly doesnt want to let the reader understand too much about those.

The premise of the story is quite simple: some criminals, sentenced to death, are given a second chance to redeem themselves and become free. Each one of them will be followed by an executor, who'll kill them if they don't follow the rules or try to run away. The quest is to bring back the Elixir of Life from a mysterious island cloaked in mist, and anyone who manages to do so is free for the rest of their lives. The thing I like the most about how this premise develops, is that every single character has some reason to go to that island, and if they don't have one the author soon finds a way to give them one. Something I don't really like are the big evil enemies, who as of chapter fifty seem put there only to provide us some good fights and to explain the powers surrounding everyone on that island. They don't seem to have a good personality and/or some reasons do whatever they're doing other than gaining power or achieving eternal life.

Another thing I don't really like is world building: the island looks as mysterious as vague, the author did not manage as of now to give it some consistency, meaning that it looks more like a floathing thing made of nothing and out of nowhere, and not an exact place in which the story is taking place.

Every other aspect of this manga is awesome, and although it has some minor flaws I expect it to really improve over time and become a super good reading for everyone who likes this kind of stuff (it already is!).

Is a person really in any position to rightfully judge another person, being as flawed as all humans are?

Story:

The world of Jigokuraku is mind-boggling, be it visually or morally. The story is very interesting, and keeps the reader involved at all times. Once you start reading it, you just don’t want to stop. The pacing doesn’t seem rushed, nor is it too slow. Essentially, it’s a ‘good’ vs ‘evil’ shounen-type story, packed with good action, interesting characters and a lot of plot-twists. However, it goes beyond that, in a sense that it portrays lives of the individuals pretty ‘realistically’; although half of the cast is consisted of humans deemed criminals deserving of the capital punishment, we get to see the all too well-known human traits and emotions pouring out of them. This manga does not simply paint its world in black and white, rather, it serves to show how nothing really is just one or the other. Throughout the story, we get to see ‘the beautiful’, ‘the ugly’, ‘the perfect’, the ‘abominal’, ‘strength’, ‘weakness’, ‘the good’ and the ‘evil’, explored in such a way that it makes us wonder if anything is as it seems and whether we are worthy of judging the nature of things or not. It also touches upon topics of personal goals and to what extent is someone willing to go in order to achieve them, self-doubt and rebuilding oneself, finding new strength, loss, hate and forgiveness. The story also relies heavily on the principles of Tao, and such a religious motive gives it a whole new level of complexity.
I do, however, feel like the love is the biggest motive of all, in it’s many shapes and forms.
Really, if you’ve ever loved any shounen manga, chances are you’re gonna like this, since you will be reminded of a lot of good characters and lessons from them.

Art:

Beautiful. No matter the scene type, the mangaka manages to preserve art’s dominant beauty and a degree of consistency. However, when circumstances call for it, it goes very, very well with the overall vibe of the moment, adapting to the point it’s trying to make. Character’s outer appearances go pretty well with their personalities for the most part, and when it comes to panels that really focus on something or someone, the details are absolutely on point and done with a lot of care.
It interesting how even in those panels where the reader’s supposed to get shocked or feel goosebumps, the art maintains its high level, in spite of the repulsive, eerie or gory nature of the scene.

Characters:

It is a rarity to find such a fine mix of seemingly similar characters and their motives, but so utterly different at the fundamental level. It becomes pretty obvious early on that we can crudely divide the characters into two groups by many standards: social standing, status, gender, good and evil, intelligence, species. However, it is with the progression of the story that we see the tiny bits and pieces of their personalities and personal history that truly make it impossible to simply deem any one of them as purely ‘good’ or ‘evil’.
Absolutely every character of any importance for the story gets character development, and most of the plot twists are character induced – be it due to their intelligence, resourcefulness or adapting power.
A person might be a villain in the eyes of the world, but the biggest hero to have ever lived in the eyes of a single person. Due to this, a lot of characters in this manga hold the MC potential, as well as the main villain potential. However, everything is well balanced, and in the end the respectful roles they end up having is story-wise justified one way or the other.
One thing that separates Jigokuraku’s characters from others is how beautifully and tragically human they all are: be it a high-class samurai, a murderer or a god-like creature, all of them will show some type of imperfection at some point, being reminded in the process of just how nothing is ever carved in stone, nor is it forever.
You might find it hard to actually hate any character; you get their motives, stories, hearts and souls displayed in front of you, and as you follow them through their battles, getting attached to at least some of them is pretty much inevitable.

Enjoyment:

This is a highly thought-provoking piece of art, there’s just no other way for me to sum it up. Other than that, the battles are portrayed very well and little is left for discussion considering the outcomes. Character interactions and bonds are also very interesting to observe and follow, as well as their inner monologues and memories. Every time a comic relief scene is used, it is well thought-through and just in time to make the most of it.
I must say, this manga really is not for everyone, since most of the fight scenes are pretty gory and graphic to an extent, while the surroundings or the story’s setting fits the words eerie and creepy perfectly, as well as nauseating at times.
All in all, be it deep philosophical thoughts and ideas, or just sheer bloodshed and chaos, there is enjoyment in every layer of this manga, depending on your personal preference.