The demon-slaying subgenre of shonen manga is rife with contemporary debuts, and the recently ended Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba has blown up in Japan. Showing up back during the growth of the aforementioned Kimetsu no Yaiba, Orient is a fun little romp that’s a bit too derivative to recommend wholeheartedly. That said, it’s a fun beginning that I hope can find its unique aspects soon.
In the land of Hinomoto, there are demon gods that rule the land, and warriors known as Bushi are the ones that will destroy these foul creatures and bring peace back into the land. Except these tales are apparently false, and demons have ruled the world for over 150 years. Main character Musashi and his best friend Kojiro Kanemaki grew up with tales about one day slaying demons, but unfortunately become slaves to the system. After a sudden realization, both friends resolve to slay their overlords and free the world from demonic powers. The end of the volume includes a new group of older Bushi that step in to save Musashi from sudden doom.

The premise of the series feels derivative to other recent shonen series, and as a result feels a little too predictable; I could tell what was coming up a mile away, and it didn’t really wow me quite like recent debuts. The art is mostly great, and the way the enemies are drawn is marvelous; it feels like the demon gods are behemoths for the heroes to destroy, and it looks amazing. That said, the art style on the human characters is inconsistent and rough around the edges, with the first couple of chapters feeling amateurish when dealing with Musashi’s design. I might be interested in checking out future volumes, but for now it’s a passable effort.

(You can read this and other reviews over at Gaming Trend! https://gamingtrend.com/feature/impressions/uwu-whats-this-the-first-ever-manga-minis-review-column-featuring-beastars-orient-and-more/)

I was super excited about reading the Orient since I was a big fan of Shinobu Ohtaka's earlier series Magi. However I was a bit underwhelmed by this first volume. The story and the setting are great and very creative but so far it seems like a very typical Shonen manga and it's probably a fine read if you are like shonen manga. It's not bad in any means! It is fast paced, the art and action is wonderful but the story and the characters themselves are a bit generic. Maybe this is due to the weekly serialization format where something exciting has to happen every chapter because the lots of things happen but the actual story and characters develop very little. They protagonists seem to have a moment of growth or realization every chapter but its the same conflict over and over which becomes repetitive and frustrating. Albeit, the events of the first novel mostly happen over the course of a day so its not surprising but surely a slower pace would make it feel more natural. As of right now, the characters seem to be wishy washy over the same internal struggle which they seem to overcome pages previously. Maybe if I was reading it a chapter a week it would be fine but since I read the whole volume in one sitting it felt both rapid and slow moving. Like lights flashing in your eyes, there is a lot of things happens but at the same time nothing really is happening.
That being said, I didn't have a bad time. While reading it I was having a blast but as soon as it was over I felt disappointed. The demons were so creative and epic and so cosmically massive to comprehend. I felt a similar mix of fatigue in the end of the Magi series where the antagonists were pulling apart times and space and existence at the seams. I wish the earlier parts of the story were less epic and more personal. It seemed too large too fast. The characters were so out of their depth that you never for a moment think they'll succeed to it was more frustrating than tense.

Probably recommend if you are a big fan of Shonen manga and just want to read something new or if you are a big fan of Shinobu Ohtaka's previous works.

I received an arc from netgalley in exchange for an honest review

Musashi and Kojiro have been friends since childhood and they kind of always wanted to be part of the Bushi group, which were people who killed demons. But now these demons are treated like gods, brain-washing pretty much every village.

Still, a 15 y/o Musashi doesn’t want to become a miner just like everybody else and when the time comes, he fights against a demon god. Kojiro helps him and eventually a band of real Bushi appears before them.

Now, this is the first time I’ve ever read something by the author, so I’m not really familiar with their work, though I think this was just like any shonen out there. The premise does seem interesting but so far we’ve only had the introduction of the characters, their main goal and random past scenes that kind of give us a little context, just to keep us interested.

I think this story would be perfect for fans that like samurai-themed manga or shonen in general. I do hope the next volume is far more entertaining though.

3.5☆ As a big fan of Magi I couldn't pass up the chance to read this. Thank you to Netgalley and Kodansha Comics for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Musashi and Kojiro live in a world governed by demons. Everyone around them worships them as benevolent gods living their whole lives without even seeing what they really look like, but Musashi and Kojiro have always dreamed of becoming Bushi, legendary warriors who fight demons.

This was a pretty fun first volume. Musashi is the quintessential action manga main character: fiercely determined to achieve his dream despite the odds and impossibly optimistic. So obviously I loved him. On the other hand, Kojiro is less of a believer, comformed to his fate and even a bit of a cynic. They're a funny duo.

I wasn't expecting this much action for a first volume, but I was instantly caught up in it and Inow I'm intrigued by this story. I'm really looking forward to the next volume!

** I WAS GIVEN THIS BOOK FOR MY READING PLEASURE **
Copy received through Netgalley

~

Orient, Volume 1, by Shinobu Ohtaka
★★★☆☆
194 Pages


Orient is a story of two boys who dreamed of saving the world from demons. It begins when they're kids, showing their determination and eagerness to train as warriors, then flips forward years later to show the world has accepted the demons as their Gods and their dreams have been shattered. But, through hard work, determination, and the strength of friendship, they find themselves in a situation that proves they really are needed as the warriors of justice they always wanted to be.

The story is super cute, a perfect shonen, full of action, adventure and friendship while fighting. It focuses on Musashi and Kojiro, how both have to battle inner demons as well as literal ones, to find their place in the world. At only fifteen years old, they're perfect protagonists for young boys. The story tackles some good teen-related issues like self-doubt, standing up for what's right, holding back from fear of losing friends, and learning to choose between what's popular and what's in your heart.

The art is cute, clean and simple, very similar to chibi and anime. Unlike some of the manga's I normally read, it began as a clean and clear story, not clogged with numerous expression/action terms that can often make the page feel crowded and displeasing to the eye. But, once it got into the action scenes, it became littered with them, and it was hard to keep track of the action. The images were so full of action the tags made it much harder to see what was happening, especially when the demons got involved, as they were all made of multiple intricate parts that made the illustrations busy and chaotic, at times.

While I enjoyed the story and the mix of action/adventure with a rekindled friendship, I found the ending disappointing. Not only did it end on a cliffhanger for the main character Musashi, but it ended on a bit of a sour note for him, as well. It wasn't a happy ending at all, which was disappointing after the big build up. I think I'd have been happier if the cliffhanger came without a resolution to the fight, so there was no clear winner until the next volume, because the reveal of the winner was deflating and devastating for Musashi.

Overall, while I liked the plot and the characters, the execution with the action tags and the abrupt ending left me feeling deflated. I might pick up the next volume, if it becomes available on Netgalley, but I'm not sure I'd want to make the commitment of buying the next issue, yet. I'd want some reassurance that the plot progresses further first.

The art style is lovely, and feels very reminicient of the manga I'd read in my youth. If you're unfamiliar with Manga generally, and are just enjoying my reviews (why, thank you, if that is the case); art style in Manga and Anime often change with the decades. In the 90's we had very big eyes and tiny mouths, as we've moved into the 2000's things became very angular, and in the 2010-s through to now I'd say things have become softer, not realistic by any stretch of the imagination, but if you compare the art on Sailor Moon vs Mahou Tsukai No Yome; you'll see what I mean. The art in this feels like a nostalgic mix of modern roundness and the blocky mid eyes of the 2007's.

It's set in a world where humans are ruled by demons, as Gods. Two plucky youths who were raised as 'Bushi' fight against their regime by fighting demons to free the humans enslaved around them.

The designs on the demons were wonderful, I loved it. They were really varied and interesting, and I couldn't help but chuckle at some of the 'egg with legs' designs. The demon God was badass - his design was amazing, so well drawn and detailed.

The motorbikes made me laugh. That was a nice, unconventional touch. traditional armoured warriors on the spikiest bikes I've ever seen, amazing.

The battle was great, we saw our hero getting knocked down, forcing his way forward, losing his way at the end - I was worried that he'd just manage it and be overpowered, so I'm happy we're not facing a super overpowered, barely trained kid, as I feel I'm a bit tired of those stories.

I'm looking forward to reading more, and hope future volumes will be on Netgalley. I've gone for a 4 instead of a 5 as I wish there'd been a touch more lead in when approaching the story, it felt very fast and right into the action. It would have been good to have a '150 years ago...' kind of thing to set the scene, to show where and how we reached this point. Instead we're thrust right in, and you can't help but wonder why no-one has noticed the miners are just slave food for demons. Why do we train people to do a job to just send them to be eaten? Surely someone would have noticed by now that it's not exactly a stable career choice. It just seemed odd to me, though that's Manga, quite often - and I wouldn't have it any other way.

I have to say thank you for giving me the opportunity to read this; it was enjoyable and I had fun reading the manga. I’m looking forward to future books. I enjoyed very much the 90’s vibe the illustrations gave out since mostly that’s the style of drawing I grew up in. If you all are looking for an exciting read please go ahead and take a look at this story.

Orient combines demons and samurai ideals in an interesting way. As kids Musashi and Kojiro made a promise to become bushi, hero warriors that would fight the demons. They live under a demon rule only to notice that the bushi isn't just a story and that the supposed benevolent demons are actually nasty monsters eating minerals and well, killing people. Musashi's determination is strong, but along the way Kojiro lost his will until a demon is about to use the miners as slaves for food. Obviously we'll see how these boys will become the best warriors, so this is your basic shounen adventure. This first volume moves fast and sets the story rapidly with awesome fight scenes.

Ohtaka is good at drawing the demons and fights and angles, but people's faces are the weak point. The humans look somewhat angular and they have this 1990s vibe to them. We don't really get to know our characters enough aside from the burning passion to fight demons, which makes this lacking in depth. I hope that'll get better though. An OK start, but nothing miraculous. Slowing down the pace would've made this better surely.

Orient Is a manga that swoops you into action from the very first chapter, which is something always appreciated in a shounen title. If you are into those, I'm sure you will absolutely dig Orient. The fights are intense and badass, the designs of the demons really epic and as a Magi fan, I have to admit that the main characters in this volume clicked with me far more than the main characters in Magi. I absolutely loved the dynamic between them and I'm really curious to see where it will go. Usually, shounens show main characters having to part ways with their childhood friends in some way or even kill them of for character development. It was a nice change.
The art style is lovely and very distinct for this author. The characters look great and the introduction of the new gang at the end makes me get a second volume quick. If you're a fan of typical shounen action series, I'm just you will like this one.

I was excited to give this one ago, because I loved Magi and the premise for this one intriguing. The art style was fantastic, and the plot was promising, it was just the pacing that threw it off a little for me and I didn't quite sync with the characters either. However, this is just the first volume and I am eager to see where this series goes, so I will definitely be picking up future volumes.

First things first wanted to thank netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read the book.
I have been a fan of her work for many years.
I throughly enjoyed Orient Vol. 1 it follows the life's1 of two best friends Musashi and kojiro and them wanting to be bushi.
Bushi in their time are they were warriors who fought against the demon lords. And their journey to adulthood. Definitely a good read and can't wait to continue the series.

First of all, wow. The drawings are so detailed and gorgeous. I really admire Shinobu Ohtaka’s talent. I had never read any manga by this author before, though I have heard a lot about her series “Magi”. That’s why I thought it could be interested to look at her new series Orient.

I liked it a lot, but for the moment it doesn’t classify as one of my favourites. The story is promising and I feel something is going to happen between our Musashi and Kojiro. Musashi seems to be a really determined young man while Kojiro is a bit doubting what he really wants to do with his life. There was a lot of action and the drawings of these scenes were impressive but as often, I feel like action scenes are difficult to follow, especially when there are many. It might be just a personal feeling; I remember I had the same problem with One Piece. I am sure I will enjoy the second volume more because for the moment, it just feels like a typical story where the hero fights the bad guys with his friend. I recommend this series if you like action.
3.5/5

Thank you netgally for giving me a copy!

Demons invading the world and demon hunters called Bushi who fights and kill demons? I'm in. Totally my cup of tea.

However, I didn't enjoy this that much. I felt that the characters, Musashi and Kojiro resembles and reminds me lot of Alladin and Alibaba in many ways. If you look closely to the character designs of both characters, you'll really see that they resembles each other (or is it just me). I just felt that that throws off the amazingness of this manga series.

I just hope that there is more character originality and everything would be okay. The art has improved a lot, it was much more better in this manga series and I really like it.

The art style of this manga is cute but I found the story really bland and wasn't into the characters. This is one of those series I might enjoy more as an anime.

7.75 out of 10 stars!
Cool and I'm certain younger audience will love it.

Keywords: manga, fantasy, samurai, demon, shounen

REVIEW
Orient is about two boys, Musashi and Kojiro, who dreamt to become a bushi, samurai warrior who defeat demons to keep mankind safe. But it turns out bushi were not respected and demons were revered in their village. Will Musashi and Kojiro strayed from their dreams?

Overall the concept of this manga is cool. I like the character and monster' designs. A band of samurai wearing armor and riding metal bikes? Two boys single-handedly defeating demon? That's pretty cool. I am sure my younger self would like this manga. I also like how the mangaka blend some of mythological aspects to the designs.

Alas I don't really like the pacing. It feels too fast and lack of emotional connection. Everything feels too abrupt or too loud. Perhaps it's just because I'm not the targeted demographic of this manga. A 20-something adult like me might not enjoy it, but teenager and younger will still love it.

Thank you Netgalley and Kodansha Comics for giving me an arc of this manga in an exchange of honest review.

I’d like to take the opportunity to thank the publishers and netgalley for a free eARC in exchange of an honest review!

This is a fun little shonen manga about demon hunters called Bushi. Our main character and his best friend want to become them when they grow up, but their society tells them Bushi are criminals. In fact they’re told that demons are gods that protect them. However when it turns out they’ve been tricked into becoming slaves they fight back and begin their journey towards becoming Bushi and fighting demons themselves.

The art is nice and detailed and pretty dramatic. I enjoyed the pacing and the friendship between the two main characters, though at times this was pretty repetitive and a lot of our Mac saying the same thing over and over. In some areas it felt a bit rushed but I still enjoyed it.
I don’t think I’d pick up the next volume but I enjoyed reading the manga and it was fun and interesting with a good cliffhanger and lovely artwork.

Ok ladies, gentlemen, and others what we have here is a classic case of 'It was good, but it was definitely not for me.' This could be for several reasons. One is that I am not the target demographic and thus I'm not necessarily supposed to like it. But that is a flawed argument. A more probable one is that it just didn't connect with me. The main character, in particular, is the type that I tend to clash with while reading, and sometimes you just don't figure that out until you start reading. Back to talking about the books in more specifics, I was quite intrigued by the premises. It sounded really cool and from what I read there is some major potential in here. The art was also really nice. Everyone was identifiable immediately and the demons looked really cool. I think other people will like this more and I encourage them to give this one a read.

I’m a big fan of manga, especially fantasy action manga, and Orient looked right up my alley from an aesthetic perspective. For the most part, it definitely hits what I’d expect from a manga of it’s genre.

Featuring a town that is ruled over by Demons pretending to be Gods, two characters named Musashi & Kojiro have been training since they were children to become Bushi — aka demon slayers — in secret. The two find themselves in a situation where they encounter a fearsome Demon God, and the rest of the manga is just basically one giant action set piece with multiple moments of character development.

Some of the weaker moments of this manga involved pacing and the character work. Regarding pacing, the manga starts off fairly slow and interesting but ramps up immediately into an action set piece for the rest of the duration. Unfortunately, because of this, not much worldbuilding in the people, town, or how things came to be the way they are is accomplished. While flashy and cool, it does leave one constantly wondering why, how and when this world became what it is. Not only that, we’re introduced to another force in this world just a little over halfway through of the manga that could have easily been saved either for the next volume or should have been introduced earlier on, as it causes the story to feel too bloated with barely any development on new elements.

The character work is also woven into the fight scenes, which make up most of this manga, but the development either repeats itself from chapter to chapter OR seems to become just a character hitting a realization and then immediately reverting. It made these moments feel confusing and brought me out of the story a few times.

The art in this manga is pretty great though, and I found myself really digging the style and the way characters looked — be it the main characters or supporting cast, antagonists, or even effects. The weapon choice for the main character was also a welcome change of pace, as I’m so used to characters in stories like this using swords or their fists, and here we have something less frequently used.

While I had a hard time becoming super invested in this world, I liked the potential for the story, the main cast, and the art enough to want to continue the series. I’m eagerly anticipating Volume 2 to see where the story will go from here. As of right now, I’m remaining cautiously optimistic and hopeful the story and writing will only grow from here.

There are few historical figures who’ve had such widespread and varied fictional appearances as Miyamoto Musashi and Sasaki Kōjiro. These famed samurai have inspired everything from period-appropriate fighting game characters to sci-fi RPGs, from an Iron Maiden song to Pokemon‘s Jessie and James. Orient, by Shinobu Ohtaka (Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic, Sumomomo Momomo), joins this tradition with an energetic action romp that casts Musashi and Kōjiro as two young warriors in a world overrun by demons and where swordsmanship is a long-lost art.

In Hinomoto, a fictionalised version of Japan, the sengoku era came to a very different end: out of nowhere, mysterious “demon gods” appeared and wiped out the nation’s would-be unifiers. The few humans who tried to fight back were dubbed the “Band of Bushi”, but the demons gods’ rule was overwhelming. Fast-forward a couple of hundred years, and people worship the demon gods and dedicate their lives to servitude, while bushi are remembered as nothing but violent monsters. The descendents of bushi families are discriminated against and shunned, chained to their swords at all times so that they might never forget their place.

But the stories that Musashi and Kojiro heard as kids from Kojiro’s bushi father painted a different picture: of bushi as mighty heroes, standing up to the evil demons. They vowed to grow up and form their own Band of Bushi, but years have a way of wearing down such dreams. At 15 years old, Musashi is an ace student in a school for aspiring miners—a divine profession, as the people who dig up the metals that the demon gods eat—while Kojiro mostly hides from a world that hates him, resigned to the belief that his father’s stories were just that: stories, with no basis in reality.

But Musashi, at least, hasn’t given up on the dream. Star student though he may be, he hates his life as a miner, and spends all his free time practicing the techniques he learned from Kojiro’s father and finding ways to use his pickaxe like a sword. When he finally graduates and discovers that the demon gods are every bit as evil as those old stories said, and that all that awaits him beyond the secluded walls of the town is a life of slave labour, he decides to make his stand, inspiring Kojiro to do the same. And so it is that a new Band of Bushi is born, with the world stacked against them.

This sets up Orient, Volume 1 as a manga that is pretty much all action, all the time. Whether it’s flashbacks to childhood training, Musashi’s particularly boisterous approach to mining, or the full-blown demon god encounters that come in the second half, Orient dials the octane up to 11 right from the outset and only gets more fired up from there. This first volume collects the first four chapters of a book that, in its original serialized format, is coming up on its 100th chapter, and yet it sees Musashi and Kojiro cutting their bushi teeth on a monster that wouldn’t look out of place as the final boss of an epic JRPG.

Ohtaka’s artwork does a worthy job of bringing all that action to life; she brings plenty of energy to every page and a strong sense of motion and impact to every fight scene. Even in the relatively less intense moments, like watching a young Kojiro and Musashi training together with wooden swords feel alive and heated, and when that energy is turned to something like Musashi’s overzealous mining style, what should be a mundane activity becomes exciting. The monster designs are especially noteworthy: massive, hellish beasts that draw heavily on religious motifs—hinting at some of the themes that later volumes might tackle, though in this one that imagery seems purely decorative.

Orient‘s wall-to-wall action is underscored by plenty of humour and colourful characterisation. Musashi draws on the legendary accounts of his namesake—a brash and unorthodox individual who’ll never back down from a fight no matter how stacked against him the odds might seem, and one who’ll never lose sight of his dream. Kojiro is more removed from what historical accounts say about the real Sasaki Kōjiro (though the lines between fact and fiction, for Kōjiro and Musashi both, are extremely blurry)—Orient‘s Kojiro is sombre and full of self-doubt, the consequences of a life of discrimination and being the target of hate. With this, as action-heavy as it is, Orient manages to find some emotional resonance and starts sowing the seeds of some interesting character developments.

Orient is a bold, riveting fantasy action manga that’s off to a strong start in Volume 1. It draws on the heavily-used well of inspiration that is Miyamoto Musashi and his famous rivalry with Sasaki Kōjiro, but still manages to find its own niche within that space. It’s a great introduction to a fascinating world concept, and lays the groundwork for what should be an exciting series to follow.

The art is amazing. The plot is so good too.. This volume was really great start and I hope other volumes will be even better. This manga has a great potential.