Paru Itagaki ( 板垣巴留, Itagaki Paru) is a multi-award-winning Japanese manga artist, known mainly for her work Beastars. She is the daughter of Keisuke Itagaki.
This has taken SUCH a turn since the first few volumes, while I like where it's going, I also miss some of the early characters - especially Haru who legit appears in this one for only a few pages.
but i also weirdly loved the last chapter of this book that focused on a completely new character/different story? it was so refreshing and nice and cute - I hope Itagaki continues throwing those into the story.
Mi ojito derecho actual en el mundo del manga no deja de darme alegrías. Y es que esta octava entrega (que se dice pronto) de Beastars vuelve a tope con todos sus elementos característicos. Itagaki suma a su discurso habitual de herbívoros/carnívoros una continua reflexión sobre cuales son los medios moralmente aceptados para obtener la paz, sobre la igualdad y la justicia social. También indaga un poco más sobre el aspecto físico, y hasta tenemos un capítulo completo fuera de trama sobre las redes sociales, en concreto Instagram (InstaGroar en versión animalicos).
En esta octava entrega, Rouis decide seguir en busca de la verdad desde los bajos fondos mientras sufre y se mortifica por las diferencias que lo separan de la sociedad carnívora. A su lado aparece un nuevo personaje, otro herbívoro que habita en los bajos fondos cuyo papel pinta interesante a futuro. Por su lado, Legoshi visita a Gohin para pedirle que lo entrene y así hacerse más fuerte para poder salvar a todos los animales. O eso es lo que cree él. Un octavo volumen donde cada vez esos animales son más humanos, y los humanos parecemos más animales.
Ughhhhh you know when you wanna slap someone or someone's yes that's what I wanna do with Lego and Haru.. but I understood what Lego is trying to do and my heart hurts for him.. he's trying so hard!!
And Louis and this new person??? Wonder if she shall be his new friend. Also his questions about Lego!!! Can't wait for the next volm!!!
At a high school where the students are literally divided into predators and prey, it’s personal relationships that maintain the fragile peace. Who among them is a Beastar—an academic and social role model destined to become a leader in a society naturally rife with mistrust? Is it Legoshi, the scary looking but soft hearted wolf? And what is up with this murder?!
Beastars vol 8 wasn’t the action packed ride of its predecessor but instead showcases Legoshi’s growth as a teenage wolf as he trains with Gohin the panda phycologist. I didn’t mind this was we got to see how his training changed him and made him a different carnivore. Plus Legoshi got a new updated look that makes him look a lot more mature.
Since his is all about the carnivore and herbivore worlds coming to terms with living peacefully together I was really excited to see others form relationships with new surprising characters. And Haru makes a startling revelation about her own feelings.
This may not be a manga that you think you’d like to read, but it’s surprisingly thoughtful, inspiring as well as refreshing and unique. You won’t regret picking up Beastars!
With of help of Gohin the panda, Legoshi has made the decision to unlock his beastly power by undergoing tough and rigorous training as well as getting a new clean cut look gets a lot of attention. Meanwhile Louis saves a cute okapi, whose is an exotic dancer in the black market, being being eaten. As he improves in his training, Legoshi begins to feel changes in his body and mind that affect him in school and his damaged relationship with Haru. A (100%/Outstanding)
Before Legoshi can solve the murder mystery he's going to need to get a haircut -- or no, train! Yes, training would be better. He meditates to overcome his desire for meat and works to become physically stronger.
Everything is still overcooked when it comes to the crime, mystery, and vigilante aspects of the story, but at least nothing was offensively dumb this time. And when the focus turns to the relationships between Haru and Legoshi and a couple of side characters in the final chapters, I actually started to remember why I liked this series' earliest volumes.
La maestra Itagaki puede llevarnos a donde se le antoje con su manga. Lo que empezó como una historia de misterio de personajes antropomórficos, se volvió otra cosa, después fue una crítica social, desarrolló a sus personajes, los llevó a un mercado para carnívoros, hizo que Louis decidiera quién quería ser, etc. Y ahora regresa a tratar de resolver el detonante de la historia pero eso implica más cambios en nuestro protagonista: Legoshi. Eso fue lo que más me gustó, lo vemos meditar, lo vemos casi morir de hambre, lo vemos combatir con sus instintos más básicos. Tambien entendemos mejor lo que hace el panda y cómo Legoshi lo ayuda. Los capítulos con Louis también son muy interesantes. Como personaje me gusta mucho, igual que Legoshi. Lo que no me gustó mucho fue la relación entre Haru y Legoshi, la mestra Itagaki lo había narrado mejor en otros tomos. Aquí se siente tóxico, y no me gustan los papeles que asumen tanto Haru como Legoshi, no se siente fiel a lo que habíamos estado viendo después de que la rescata de la mafia. De todos modos quiero saber quién mató a la alpahaca en el primer tomo así que seguimos adelante.
Un tomo de transición un poco más flojo (y menos turbio) que los anteriores pero en la línea de la serie, que es muy buena. Los diseños de los personajes y las paginazas de Itagaki enamoran. Todavía no se atisba el final ni la dirección que va a tomar la historia, y me gusta.
This series took some turns that I never expected and I am okay with that. Logoshi's new outlook on life and his new appearance is so heartfelt and also motivating. The character of Louis is so well developed I can't even be mad what became of him.
A less plot-advancing volume, BEASTARS 8 focuses on development and character relationships outside of Legoshi and Haru. (I missed focusing on her, but what little we do get is quite interesting. Somebody isn't quite as cool as she likes to appear.)
Legoshi gets serious about his training and his desire to be able to protect both Haru and the herbivores at Cherryton, but his school work and relationships at school are hurting.
Louis is still head of the Shishigumi, but he's hitting obstacles and twists he didn't see coming. He's made a new black market herbivore acquaintance with an interesting—and very dangerous—job, that gives more perspective on how carnivores view herbivores. This part especially gave me a lot to think about. BEASTARS is definitely not a framework to discuss racism, but I wonder...does it work as a frame to explore male relationships with women, which seems to be a pretty universal problem regardless of where we live? I guess we'll see as more volumes drop if this holds up.
And we finish this volume with a short about Sheila, the cheetah girl from drama club and her struggles with being a carnivore and social media prop. This was a rather sweet little story about wanting real connections vs. shallow fake relationships.
Such a good volume! I really like this part of the story, it’s probably an unpopular opinion but I like that the romance between Legoshi and Haru has been put on the back burner in favour of Legoshi’s training. I’m a sucker for a good training arc! I’m a fan of the darker tone that the series takes too, showing us the brutal reality of life in the black market.
I noticed a difference between the manga and the anime with the scene where Louis saves Cosmo. In the anime she is dancing when the cage is suddenly lifted and almost devoured by the carnivores watching, while in the manga she is almost devoured by the carnivore that she is doing a “special service” for. I guess they had to make it less explicit for the anime lol.
I also really liked the side story that was added at the end focusing on Sheila the leopard. It really expands on the world when we get to see the POV of another character just trying to get by.
(Side note but I really like Pina despite how much he irritates Legoshi lol)
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Wow! I love the new character that we get in this volume, and LEGOSHI GETS A GLOW UP??? I'm kind of here for the new look! This story continues to surprise me, and I am honestly excited for this one to continue down the path that it is currently on. It's going to be a good time, and I look forward to how things are going to change for our characters. Legoshi is already making some major changes. I just wonder what that will do for him.
This starts a training arc, and while it is still good, there is less character interaction I feel. I do like seeing Legoshi change, so overall a mixed bag volume.
Legoshi starts to train with Gohin, who wants him to continue his life as a student as a condition for his training. So Legoshi has to juggle a double life, where he has to go to school during the daytime, then train from evening to morning, and basically get no sleep, which is already taxing our poor wolf boy, but then he is also training himself to resist meat altogether, which even Gohin finds practically impossible for him. Meanwhile, on the other side of the black market, Louis, the new head of Shishigumi, is cementing the respect of the lions under him by feasting on meat, but since he literally can't eat it, and there isn't exactly a vegetarian option here, he is also suffering a bit. Louis seems to be playing the long game here, because as of now, he is going along with the agenda of Shishigumi, legitimizing them in the eyes of the people of the black market.
Louis also threatens his father to sign off on him leaving school, which brings a tense moment between father and son; the distance between them in thrown once again into the light as Louis calls him out on being a negligent father, and wanting to cut off all ties with him. Deer father (yes, pun intended) is not yet ready to let go of his 'expensive' son, and calls his bluff and makes him only defer his school enrollment which I gotta say puts Louis at 0-1 with his father. Legoshi's relationship with Haru is called out by the latter when she scolds him for ignoring her, and Legoshi in big train-of-thought-charging-full-steam, skips several steps forward to just propose to her. Legoshi really doesn't know how to talk to girls, huh, as evidenced by him also asking Juno to show him her jaw and fangs so that he can compare and get a profile of the attacker he had basically french-kissed. Poor Juno, who is holding out hope but not getting a straight answer! She might as well give up; she already knows how important Haru is to him.
An unexpected side story (well, sorta connected) appears in this volume, of a okapi stripper working in the black market, who daily deals with the eventuality that one day she might just be eaten by one of the carnivore clients of the strip club. There's a whole sequence of scenes that goes into the complicated instincts of sexual attraction and appetite for meat of carnivores, recalling some of Legoshi's own struggles but also put on a broader scale. She also get rescued by Louis and sort of becomes his herbivore friend in this neighborhood, which was a nice touch but I doubt Louis is much for being little-brother'ed at the moment.
Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review from Viz Media LLC, via Edelweiss.