Noblesse Chapter 197 Review

[Jammin]

Welcome to the first of my Noblesse reviews. First let me apologize for delaying this long, I promise I will get them out more quickly from now on. I'm going to try to do one these every week, so if you have any comments on how I can improve them let me know.

Now, without further ado lets get to talking about this wonderful chapter.



Chapter Summary

http://img855.imageshack.us/img855/6374/noblessech197p27.jpg
The man has lookin' cool down to an art-form.


This chapter picks up right where the previous one left off, with Raizel gone and Raskreia(We learned her name!) holding both halves of Ragnarok while still unsure of what to do next. She makes a bold decision and sets aside the inherited power of Ragnarok in favor of earning that power herself.

In doing so she triggers another message from her father, but this one was different from the others. It was a loving message from father to daughter. A message of of fatherly pride for her decision, fatherly concern for all that lay ahead of her, and fatherly wrath for any men that dare to approach her. After the message fades we get to see Raskreia in a light we never have before. We get to see her looking happy.

Of course, three idiots pick that moment to barge in and yell out to Regis' "Grampa". Fortunately, everybody seems to still be in good a mood so Gejutel sends Seira to walk the children back home. Including Regis who wakes up just in time to do some mistimed groveling.

Then we get to see Raizel and Frankenstein walking home in the moonlight. As Frankenstein seems more concerned than ever about his master, Raizel brushes those concerns aside with a smile a few comforting words; but Frankenstein looks no less worried.



Jammin's Review

http://img717.imageshack.us/img717/984/noblessech197p29.jpg
The Perfect last page for the perfect last chapter for the perfect story arc.


Substance
This was what a wrap-up chapter for an arc should be like. It solidified everything. This arc has changed everything about the nobles and this chapter showed the results of that. In refusing to take up Ragnarok and showing her father's message creating some cracks her stoney facade, we see the full effect these past chapters have had on Raskreia's character.

I kind of expected a powerful scene with Raskreia but at the very end of this chapter, another powerful scene took me completely by surprise. In this series Raizel has always been presented as an all-powerful immortal but this week, for the first time, he didn't look eternal. He looked like a contented old man who knows the end of his life is not far off but is happy with the life he as led. At least that was the impression I came away with.

Frankenstein has always sounded worried and the previous lord said in his message to Raizel "Don't come too soon. Take your time and enjoy.", but this is the first time he seemed like a man that won't live forever. Which, to me, seemed like a pretty profound way to end an arc about the next generation of nobles.

Presentation
I think the artwork this week is best described as gorgeous, beautiful, or stunning. You could practically feel the emotion radiating off of Raskreia, Raizel, and Frankenstein; the moonscape at the end was just the icing on the cake. The only negative I can think of was the lack of a background in the Lord's tomb, but that served to help focus attention on the character art so I will ignore it.

The humor parts were great too. I loved hearing the previous lord play the role of an overprotective dad.

Final Rating
Chapters that tie up the loose ends of story arcs just don't get much better than this. It tied up everything, set things up for the transitional chapters to come, and displayed the substantive changes in the characters which this arc brought about; and did it all with great artwork and perfect pacing.

For those reasons I am giving this chapter a perfect score. 5 out of 5



Character Spotlight: The Lord (a.k.a. Raskreia)

http://img804.imageshack.us/img804/3797/noblessech197p09.jpg
Even she was surprised to learn her name.


This week we learned not only the name Raskreia gave up to be called Lord but also a great deal about the person behind that name. She gave up enormous power because she understood the difference between "power earned" and "power given".

How she acted when she received this father daughter message showed me that, though she may act cold and detached, nothing could be further from the truth. At her core she's like Seira. She's hard because she's had to be. After this chapter, one of things I'm most looking forward to is seeing what happens when she doesn't have to be like that.

How would she react to Shin Woo's friendly manner, i wonder? How would she handle the girls, who would probably chat with her just like they do Seira? I can't wait to find out!


Thread Question of the Week

Do you think the Nobles are going to go to Frankenstein's school to learn about humans?
If so who and what will they pose as?(student, teacher, security guard, etc...)

[phio_chan]

Thank you for the chapter review, Jammin! I think this is a great start. :thumbs


I kind of expected a powerful scene with Raskreia but at the very end of this chapter, I was taken by surprise another powerful scene. In this series Raizel has always been presented as an all-powerful immortal but this week, for the first time, he didn't look eternal. He looked like a contented old man who knows the end of his life is not far off but is happy with the life he as led. At least that was the impression I came away with.

Frankenstein has always sounded worried and the previous lord said in his message to Raizel "Don't come too soon. Take your time and enjoy.", but this is the first time he seemed like a man that won't live forever. Which, to me, seemed like a pretty profound way to end an arc about the next generation of nobles.

Now that you mentioned it like that, it sounded very natural and possible. I could even imagine the end of the series, but it would be kinda sad... Never mind, still a long way to go. XD

Somehow I feel like Rai was a bit passive and sad on the last few chapters, even up to this chapter, when he walked home. Those are all for the sake of showing Raskreia her real position, but still, it felt like Rai became lonelier even more. Maybe it is like what you said, that he felt that it must be near the time of when he had to leave the world and for a new Noblesse to take his place; or maybe no need of a Noblesse at all, since the nobles are facing a great change and they might not need Noblesse to watch over them anymore.


This week we learned not only the name Raskreia gave up to be called Lord but also a great deal about the person behind that name. She gave up enormous power because she understood the difference between "power earned" and "power given".

How she acted when she received this father daughter message showed me that, though she may act cold and detached, nothing could be further from the truth. At her core she's like Seira. She's hard because she's had to be. After this chapter, one of things I'm most looking forward to is seeing what happens when she doesn't have to be like that.

That's right.
I think in this chapter, although Raskreia still had that sad and lonely look on her eyes, it was not as cold as before. Her eyes from before described emptiness and maybe disappointment for being rejected by almost everyone; even more when Rai handed the other half of Ragnarok to her. But now after understanding everything, Raskreia at this last chapter felt a bit more lively. She had come one step forward understanding her position and power and what she must do. And that she is not as lonely as she thought she was before. She's getting warmer, and I can't wait to see how she's going to grow better as a lord. ^^


Do you think the Nobles are going to go to Frankenstein's school to learn about humans?
If so who and what will they pose as?(student, teacher, security guard, etc...)

LOL~ This questions seems to be the most fun question for Noblesse lately.
I believe they would come visit. As you said, to learn about humans. I think they would be too old to be students. I imagine them to be some kind of executive board who would help Frank in managing the school, while actually their purpose is to study more about humans. XD Or even security guard! XDDD

As for the poll question, I voted yes. I believe the traitors are among those in the highest places of the Unions. I think it would be the most probable explanation of their knowledge of the nobles, especially about messing around with the genes and such. I think they would try once again to remove Raskreia from her throne. I even think that Rael would probably be their connection from the nobles world to the human world.

[Charlie]

It's a very good review and I felt it conveyed the message of the chapter well.

Great job with the review Jammin.


About the clan leaders, I voted that the ex clan leaders are still alive.

It would be interesting to have them come back or at the very least some of their current descendants be integrated into the story line.

As I have mentioned before, I would so love to see the Raskeria in a Ye Ran uniform.

I imagine that Rozeria will go with here and will have to coach her on how to act, not only as a woman but also how to act in her new apparel. :Haha

Especially since her father told her not to wear revealing clothes and such.

I think she will quietly prance around Raizel to show off her new womanliness and will bye shy around him. Rajak will run the security division while the lord attends school.

I'd like to see Rozeria, Seira, Karias an Rajak in the school for sure.

Although I suppose that Rael will be there too. It would be interesting to see him a student and fail at understanding various subjects. Rozeria might be a science teacher, Karias might be a history or English teacher.

[phio_chan]

LOL~
I don't think Rael would be able to stay too long at the school. He's going to be a badass student, ditching class and stuffs. He might even run away from the class and play with other humans or whatsoever. That's more likely to be Rael. XD

[Jammin]

I'm thinking...

Transfer Students

Raskreia
Karias
The young looking one with the shield(i can't remember his name)
Rael(until he goes traitor, which i fully expect him to do)


Faculty

Rozeria(School Nurse:nosebleed)
Kaye(Gym teacher....from hell)


Gejutel and Rajak i expect to stay away from the school and adopt more behind the scenes roles. Possibly even staying behind and managing the noble's other affairs while Raskreia attends school.


As I have mentioned before, I would so love to see the Raskeria in a Ye Ran uniform. *visualizing it*http://www.laymark.com/i/o/95.gif

[Otters11]

This chapter reminded me of an episode of the Venture Brothers, "20 Years To Midnight".

Ghost father Venture using an echoing drama voice to warn his son Rusty of danger.
...Then it turns out he was an alien traveler, plot ripping Contact. (book and movie)

"And remember, don't trust men." ~ But father, you are a man? Should I trust your advice?

P.S. This had the most beautiful fish-eye lens view of a field at the ending.
Check the original, http://comic.naver.com/webtoon/detail.nhn?titleId=25455&no=197&weekday=tue

[benelori]

Thanks for the review, please keep it up!

The chapter was as you said, a wrap-up of the arc...and I think while it conveyed deep feelings, it had another element that a wrap-up chapter needs...light mood, humor...and that was the spotlight of the chapter for me...the previous Lord is just hilarious, and the 3 "idiot" who barged in on a significant moment was a great thing as well...
It is fact that this chapter wrapped up loose ends of the story, but still there are unanswered questions, and I think the balance of answers and remaining questions was kept, which is proof of great storytelling...but of course that's hardly a surprise

The review...I'm not really sure about the term of dying...while the overall message of leaving the world is still there, I think none of them die, that's why I couldn't vote in the poll either, or at least I'm not sure what to vote...these people go into forced sleep, they don't really die or anything...so could it be a reversible process?:blink...Scotty doesn't know:p

I think a Noblesse would go into Forced Sleep(or whatever the term is), when a new Noblesse appears, so that he can pass on that responsibility...which remains, because he claimed it...he didn't relinquish his Noblesse duty, even if the current Nobles will change

So considering this I think it's more accurate to say, that Rai just witnessed the death of the old order, because in my opinion his death is far from near...also he managed to wrap up an age-old conflict, and with that he sort of reinstated himself as protector of the Nobles...he saw the previous Lord again, so I see Rai more like relieved, not concerned...although it's hard to say anything about his facial expressions:tem...I think this feeling can be connected back to the decision of leaving from the human world, back to the Nobles, and IIRC he wasn't happy about that thought

However as you said, the message of the previous Lord and the risk of unsealing his ability are still as bay, so I'm not really sure about this entire death thing.

What I'm looking forward to in the next chapters are the circumstances in which Rai went to sleep...and that would most probably answer my questions regarding the idea of death that I phrased earlier.

Thanks again and cheers!:beer

[Jammin]

@benelori
You might have a point there. They certainly have never came out and called it death. So it could be it's not exactly the same. They just refer to it as "Eternal Sleep". But i think judging from the word "eternal" it's safe to assume it's pretty permanent. So if somebody is dead or in eternal sleep, it seems like they aren't going to be coming back.

So i think in the case of poll "death" and "eternal sleep" are interchangeable, because the idea behind it is the question "Do you think traitorous nobles are going to enter the story?".

How exactly Eternal Sleep and death are different is an interesting question though.....

---------------------------------

Something that i didn't mention in my review, that i probably should have, is that we finally got a partial answer to the question of what prevents Raizel from using Ragnarok.

Despite the fact that ordinarily Ragnarok is only permitted to be used by members of the lords bloodline, Raskreia seemed to think that the previous lord could have weaseled his way around that somehow.

But Gejutel came out said that Raizel is completely unable to use any soul weapon, Ragnarok or otherwise. So we know once and for all that Raizel cannot use any soul weapon. Now the question that remains is "Why?".

[benelori]

@benelori
You might have a point there. They certainly have never came out and called it death. So it could be it's not exactly the same. They just refer to it as "Eternal Sleep". But i think judging from the word "eternal" it's safe to assume it's pretty permanent. So if somebody is dead or in eternal sleep, it seems like they aren't going to be coming back.

So i think in the case of poll "death" and "eternal sleep" are interchangeable, because the idea behind it is the question "Do you think traitorous nobles are going to enter the story?".

How exactly Eternal Sleep and death are different is an interesting question though.....

---------------------------------

Something that i didn't mention in my review, that i probably should have, is that we finally got a partial answer to the question of what prevents Raizel from using Ragnarok.

Despite the fact that ordinarily Ragnarok is only permitted to be used by members of the lords bloodline, Raskreia seemed to think that the previous lord could have weaseled his way around that somehow.

But Gejutel came out said that Raizel is completely unable to use any soul weapon, Ragnarok or otherwise. So we know once and for all that Raizel cannot use any soul weapon. Now the question that remains is "Why?".

Haha yeah, well I wasn't sure about the term, so yeah, Eternal is pretty damn permanent:D...however as you said, there might be a difference...that's why I said, that I'm quite excited to see the circumstances of Rai's going to sleep...because if that was Eternal Sleep, then Rai is awesome enough to transform the meaning of Eternal into a rough 800 years:p

Also about the fear of death or Eternal sleep, or at least the Noble mentality regarding that was pretty much expressed by Gejutel

To answer your question about Rai...well first of all Rai doesn't seem the type to produce an offspring, and the fact that he is Noblesse, with all the character traits related to that term, I would assume all Noblesse before him were the same...unique, without descendants to pass on a soul weapon...
We know by definition that a soul weapon is passed on by the ancestors as it contains their soul...so if Rai can't use a soul weapon, then it probably means that Noblesse is just a rare occurrence throughout the history of the Nobles...an overpowered, mutant Noble:p...and if it's a random thing then Noblesse sould weapons should be pretty non-existent, I think

[phio_chan]

To answer your question about Rai...well first of all Rai doesn't seem the type to produce an offspring, and the fact that he is Noblesse, with all the character traits related to that term, I would assume all Noblesse before him were the same...unique, without descendants to pass on a soul weapon...
We know by definition that a soul weapon is passed on by the ancestors as it contains their soul...so if Rai can't use a soul weapon, then it probably means that Noblesse is just a rare occurrence throughout the history of the Nobles...an overpowered, mutant Noble:p...and if it's a random thing then Noblesse sould weapons should be pretty non-existent, I think

I thought a noble (in this case, a clan leader) can't use a soul weapon which does not belong to his/her clan? I had that idea in my head all this time so it wasn't surprising for me to know that Rai wouldn't be able to use Ragnarok. Maybe swing the weapon, yeah, but no one but the legitimate owner can exploit the soul weapon's true power.

About the soul weapon of noblesse, I'm not sure. Gejutel said that Rai actually had one, though it can't be materialized into a physical form; so I guess it means that the soul weapon he received is probably some kind of power. Maybe the power was too great for his body? I wonder if that really is the case, couldn't Rai give some of that power into a physical weapon, turning it into another soul weapon, so that it wouldn't hurt his body? Though I couldn't picture Rai fighting so openly with physical weapons. XD

But your theory is possible as well, lolo, since up to this point we haven't heard of Rai's ancestors. So maybe we can say he's just suddenly popped in to the world and took the position of a noblesse because of his power. Or something like that. XD

[benelori]

I thought a noble (in this case, a clan leader) can't use a soul weapon which does not belong to his/her clan? I had that idea in my head all this time so it wasn't surprising for me to know that Rai wouldn't be able to use Ragnarok. Maybe swing the weapon, yeah, but no one but the legitimate owner can exploit the soul weapon's true power.

About the soul weapon of noblesse, I'm not sure. Gejutel said that Rai actually had one, though it can't be materialized into a physical form; so I guess it means that the soul weapon he received is probably some kind of power. Maybe the power was too great for his body? I wonder if that really is the case, couldn't Rai give some of that power into a physical weapon, turning it into another soul weapon, so that it wouldn't hurt his body? Though I couldn't picture Rai fighting so openly with physical weapons. XD

But your theory is possible as well, lolo, since up to this point we haven't heard of Rai's ancestors. So maybe we can say he's just suddenly popped in to the world and took the position of a noblesse because of his power. Or something like that. XD

Yup...well the first and third paragraph in your post are related...Ragnarok cannot be used by Raizel, because the previous Lord is not his ancestor, and that is available for every soul weapon...Rai must have some parents or something so in that sense he could have something, but judging by the nature of his power and position, that's not that relevant I guess...so my theory is that he is not the child of another Noblesse, so his soul weapon is sth of his own., as you said...something special

---------- Post added at 12:45 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:41 PM ----------

Anyway, I'm sure we won't be told these things for a long time, and as Jammin said hinted, the return to school has high probability...I think Karias is the name of the guy who carried Regis...I think he will be most comfortable in the school...I find the idea of Nobles going to school to study humans a very good idea, and the fact that the Franky's house will have a new round of guests is funny as well:XD