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PREFACE

Young Parn is a hero in search of a cause.  

Having inherited the armor and sword of his father, Parn must constantly fight to live up to his father’s tarnished legacy.  When Parn realizes that the forces of darkness are descending on the island of Lodoss, he sets off to defend his homeland.  The combined power of the Emperor of Marmo and the Grey Witch seems to be unstoppable. 

However, all may not be lost.  Parn does pick up a few friends along the way to aid him in his quest.  They are all brave fighters, but will their small group be enough to prevent the complete destruction of Lodoss?

Parn and his allies are truly put to the test as their adventures continue in volume two.  The group comes face to face with the awesome and terrible power of the Grey Witch. Parn also meets the Holy Knights of Valis and learns the stunning truth about his discredited father.  Fighting to save a kingdom may be a little more difficult than Parn expected!

MANGA VISION TEST

ARTWORK:  Yoshihiko Ochi’s artwork is perfect for this story.  His character designs are all unique and distinct, and do a great job of showing off each character’s individuality.  The artwork and backgrounds are very detailed, which helps create the illusion of this fantasy world.  Most importantly of all, the action is easy to follow and all of the swordplay is very intense.

SOUND EFFECTS:  The original Japanese sound effects have been removed and replaced with English translations.  Care has been taken not to disrupt the flow of the artwork, so I have no problem with this approach.

EDITS:  Other than the sound effects, there seem to be no obvious edits or changes made to Record of Lodoss War. The art is flipped to read from left to right.

EXTRAS:  The only extras in volume two are two brief creator biographies.  These also appeared in the first volume.

BOOK REPORT  

STORY:  Ryo Mizuno has clearly set out to create a very vivid, believable and detailed fantasy world in Record of Lodoss War.  In the tradition of fantasy sagas like the Lord of the Rings novels, Mizuno has obviously thought carefully about the details of his world.  As bits and pieces of back-story are revealed, the history, politics, and legends of Lodoss slowly become clear.  The level of narrative detail found here makes "Lodos Wars" the kind of story that will definitely benefit from repeated readings.

TRANSLATION:  The translation seems very accurate, and very carefully done.  Each character’s unique voice comes through clearly.

CHARACTERS:  

The most important characters here are clearly Parn and his band of heroes.  Parn is a young, enthusiastic fighter for justice and all that is right in the world.  He lived through a difficult childhood, and takes his responsibilities as a hero very seriously.  He can be a bit hotheaded at times, but always strives to do what is right.

Etoh is a childhood friend of Parn, and a priest of Pharis.  He is eager to help Parn, and also to curb some of his friend’s more excessive acts of heroism.

Deedlit, the sole female member of the group, is a warrior from the High Elf clan.  She is at least 160 years old, but doesn’t look a day over 18.  It is apparently fairly rare for her kind to be wandering the world, but Deedlit has decided that she can no longer sit by and watch as her world goes to war.

Ghim is a dwarf from the Northern Tribe, and is traveling the world in an attempt to rectify what he views as a past mistake.  Like Parn, he has a strong desire to see justice done and is eager to help in the quest to save Lodoss.  In the second volume, Ghim discovers an unsettling connection between the Grey Witch and the missing girl he has set out to find.

Slayn is a sorceror who doesn’t quite know what to do with himself, so he joins up with Parn.  He soon finds that his former school has been destroyed by the very forces that threaten Lodoss, and becomes even more involved in the struggle to save the island.

The last member of the group is Woodchuck, a thief who spent twenty years in prison for a minor crime, and decides to turn his thievery skills to good use by helping in the defense of Lodoss.  At times, Wood’s motives seem a bit suspect.  Can Parn truly trust him to overcome his selfish nature?

FAN SERVICE:  There is not really any fan service to speak of in this series.  Deedlit’s skirt is fairly short, but there are no panties to be seen here.  Deedlit would probably take a sword to you if you even tried to peek.  Princess Fianna does wear a chaste, yet sheer, nighty in captivity, much to Etoh’s embarrassment.

FOOTNOTES:

“Once humans experience long periods of prosperity, they recklessly desire more power than they deserve.  Unable to control the power that they have acquired, they lose all that they themselves have built and inevitably perish at the end of their frenzy.  These foolish acts must not be repeated.”  These prophetic, and all-too-true, thoughts from Karla, the Grey Witch, start the second volume of this series out on an ominous note.  Karla’s motives are slowly revealed, and they are not as clear-cut as they may have initially appeared.  Karla seems to believe that the destruction of Lodoss is ultimately a good thing, too bad for all the innocents who will die to achieve her goals.  For Karla, no price is too great to pay.

Parn and his friends continue their quest to save the land from the machinations of Beld and his sorcerous ally, Karla.  Their hopes of victory grow when they realize that the holy Valisian Knights are also on the job.  Not only are the Knights of Valis renowned for their strength and virtue, they are also the former comrades of Parn’s deceased, and disgraced, father, Tessius.  In their hands, Lodoss should be safe and secure.

Parn is shocked to discover the extent of Karla’s power, as these brave knights are crushed in just the blink of an eye.  With these heroes to avenge, and a princess to save from the Grey Witch’s clutches, Parn is more determined than ever to do whatever it takes to stop Karla and King Beld before everything he knows and loves is left in ruins.  Now all they have to do is get past her powerful magic defenses, her undead warriors, and her human defenders to face Karla in what would seem to be a thoroughly one-sided battle.  No wonder Woodchuck is having some doubts about his new comrades.

The tension really builds in the second installment of this series.  The relationships between our heroes grow and change, with Parn and Deedlit becoming closer while Woodchuck and Ghim become more caught up in their own agendas.  Their faith in one another is frequently put to the test as their peril becomes more and more real.  Parn finally learns the truth about what happened to his father, and the revelation has a profound effect on him.  There are still some lighter moments here, but the tone does become substantially more serious as the stakes continue to rise for Parn and all of Lodoss.

Record of Lodoss War: The Grey Witch is a solid and well-presented fantasy saga.  Any reader who enjoys Tolkein, fantasy RPGs, or just a well-crafted adventure, will find a great tale unfolding in these pages.  The series has a ton of action, but the characters are well developed and the human side of the drama is not ignored.  You will care about these characters, and root for them as the odds seem to be stacked more and more against them.  In a genre with many mediocre entries, the Lodoss War series rises head and shoulders above the pack.

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