Until Death Do Us Part = surprisingly not a bad Shoujo. Who would have thought?<br /><br />
STORY: 5/10<br />
It’s about a middle school girl who can kind of predict the future and "hires" a swordsman with limited vision to protect her from villains. The swordsman's name is Mamoru. Technically blind, he uses high-tech sunglasses that allow him to see the world in basic detail by reacting with vibrations from his cane-sword to send images directly to his brain. Also, they help him dodge bullets... yeah. This is one of "those" manga. There's a lot of tech jargon involved. All weapons and combat are heavily tech-driven, from Mamoru's super molecule-cutting sword to assassin kill-bots. It's undeniably a sci-fi manga. However, the plot is somewhat... meh. A bad guy targets the schoolgirl or Mamoru himself, Mamoru defeats them, rinse and repeat. It's a familiar trope.<br /><br />
ART: 9/10<br />
I genuinely appreciate the art style here. Each character has a distinct (and cool) appearance, and I haven't mixed any of them up yet. The backgrounds and scenery are meticulously drawn, giving it an almost manhwa vibe. The females have well-proportioned figures, all males are depicted maturely, and the lines are clean. It's visually appealing and can immerse you into the story at times.<br /><br />
CHARACTER: 6/10<br />
We’ve got the schoolgirl, Mamoru, and his white-suited gangster friend, who's a tech genius. The tech genius hasn't shown much personality by chapter 45, mostly expressing his desire for no deaths *yawn*—he's pretty dull. The schoolgirl is just that, a little girl, with a relatively minor role. Mamoru is the central figure responsible for all the fighting and "badassery." But let's not get carried away with that term. The effort put into making Mamoru appear ultra-cool is almost comical at times. From his sunglasses, leather jacket, to his catchphrases, he seems like a parody of Arnold Schwarzenegger. For the sheer amusement I derive from mocking Mamoru's over-the-top "badass" persona, he gets a 6.<br /><br />
ENJOYMENT: 5/10<br />
Trying to take this manga seriously made me dislike it. However, when I sat back and quietly mocked it, I had a decent time. If I were to grade "Until Death Do Us Part" as it was meant to be read, I’d give it a 5. BUT, treating it as a parody sometimes brings me to level 7 giggles. That's only occasionally though. Most of the time, it's just barely entertaining enough to keep me turning pages.<br /><br />
OVERALL: 5/10<br />
If I read this as a parody, it's not awful, but it wasn’t intended to be one. It's a mediocre seinen with one-dimensional characters that try too hard. For that, Until Death Do Us Part earns a 5.
Popular Reviews
STORY: 5/10<br />
It’s about a middle school girl who can kind of predict the future and "hires" a swordsman with limited vision to protect her from villains. The swordsman's name is Mamoru. Technically blind, he uses high-tech sunglasses that allow him to see the world in basic detail by reacting with vibrations from his cane-sword to send images directly to his brain. Also, they help him dodge bullets... yeah. This is one of "those" manga. There's a lot of tech jargon involved. All weapons and combat are heavily tech-driven, from Mamoru's super molecule-cutting sword to assassin kill-bots. It's undeniably a sci-fi manga. However, the plot is somewhat... meh. A bad guy targets the schoolgirl or Mamoru himself, Mamoru defeats them, rinse and repeat. It's a familiar trope.<br /><br />
ART: 9/10<br />
I genuinely appreciate the art style here. Each character has a distinct (and cool) appearance, and I haven't mixed any of them up yet. The backgrounds and scenery are meticulously drawn, giving it an almost manhwa vibe. The females have well-proportioned figures, all males are depicted maturely, and the lines are clean. It's visually appealing and can immerse you into the story at times.<br /><br />
CHARACTER: 6/10<br />
We’ve got the schoolgirl, Mamoru, and his white-suited gangster friend, who's a tech genius. The tech genius hasn't shown much personality by chapter 45, mostly expressing his desire for no deaths *yawn*—he's pretty dull. The schoolgirl is just that, a little girl, with a relatively minor role. Mamoru is the central figure responsible for all the fighting and "badassery." But let's not get carried away with that term. The effort put into making Mamoru appear ultra-cool is almost comical at times. From his sunglasses, leather jacket, to his catchphrases, he seems like a parody of Arnold Schwarzenegger. For the sheer amusement I derive from mocking Mamoru's over-the-top "badass" persona, he gets a 6.<br /><br />
ENJOYMENT: 5/10<br />
Trying to take this manga seriously made me dislike it. However, when I sat back and quietly mocked it, I had a decent time. If I were to grade "Until Death Do Us Part" as it was meant to be read, I’d give it a 5. BUT, treating it as a parody sometimes brings me to level 7 giggles. That's only occasionally though. Most of the time, it's just barely entertaining enough to keep me turning pages.<br /><br />
OVERALL: 5/10<br />
If I read this as a parody, it's not awful, but it wasn’t intended to be one. It's a mediocre seinen with one-dimensional characters that try too hard. For that, Until Death Do Us Part earns a 5.