Manga: Change 123

[Munsu]

I'm pretty sure someone here reads this, and it was what probably made me start it... don't remember who it was.

Anyways, I'm not a fan of ecchi series (though for some reason many of the series I read have ecchi in them) so I was quite skeptical about starting this series. But I have to say, this is quite a cool and fun series... quite funny at times. The plot is not bad, it has plenty of interesting characters, and the fights are really good. The main male character is not great, but the way the manga has used him with all the Kamen Rider refferences and his code of Justice makes him a cool character to have around, even if he's the typical lame shounen harem character.

This is pretty much a shounen romance anime, with some cool fights thrown in, some fanservice, and some comedy. The art is good.

Anyways, I think a few here will get a kick of reading this, and the comedy is not bad either.

Series is released by SnoopyCool:
http://www.snoopycool.com/
7 volumes have been released so far, with 34 chapters.


In Change 123, we meet Motoko, a girl with a very strange problem. In order to cope with her 3 adoptive fathers' incredibly intensive training methods, she developed multiple personalities, each with a different martial specialty. But what happens if none of them can beat her opponent on their own? And what further nugget of wisdom will be imparted by the great Kamen Raider? This one has lots of pretty girls, great art, and comedy.
http://www.mangaupdates.com/series.html?id=11058



http://img374.imageshack.us/img374/1825/change1231001qw3.th.jpg (http://img374.imageshack.us/my.php?image=change1231001qw3.jpg) http://img374.imageshack.us/img374/380/change1231008fa1.th.png (http://img374.imageshack.us/my.php?image=change1231008fa1.png) http://img374.imageshack.us/img374/8743/change1231009sd9.th.png (http://img374.imageshack.us/my.php?image=change1231009sd9.png) http://img246.imageshack.us/img246/6936/change1231010011ks4.th.png (http://img246.imageshack.us/my.php?image=change1231010011ks4.png)

So, who's reading?

[Ryllharu]

Wow. I had been reading this a while back. SnoopyCool had gotten to chapter 14 and stopped for about a month. I had really enjoyed it, but nothing came out for a while. Between now and then they blasted out 20 chaptes in batches.

I guess I'll have to catch up, this was one of the better street-style fighting series to come out in a while. A lot like Peridot.

They handled the muscle-memory and stance element to her physical changes pretty well. Her stances change more than anything, and the artist is very good at maintaining continuity with the concept.

[Munsu]

Hmm, Peridot... I need to catch up to that. I think I only read about 14 episodes or so and was enjoying it quite a bit.

But the fights are really well done, and the art is quite clean. The art at times reminds me of Katsura Masakazu (I''s, Zetman, DNA², Video Girl Ai).

[Ryllharu]

All caught up.

I really liked the twist between volumes 4 and 5. I really didn't see that coming at all until the "Oh my!" panel (as opposed to a scream). From there on out it was obvious. Very well done misdirection on the part of the author.

The rabid anti-American arc in volume 7 is a bit much though. Parts of it are so exaggerated it gets funny, but the rest...well that part of the story does take place in Okinawa, so I can't really blame them with all of what happened there in the past 4 years. (14 year old girls getting raped, cab drivers murdered)
The outright nasty tone the arc took me a little by surprise.

[Munsu]

What was the twist between volume 4 and 5? Was it the reveal of who the warrior was? If that's it I thought it was a great one myself. Had me completely fooled.

And yeah, I hate most of the anti-American propaganda that appears often in anime and manga.

[Ryllharu]

Yeah, it was tricking the audience into thinking the Gadam (island warrior leader) was Tsukiwhateverthehelltherestis (super tall girl) while it was really the "princess" transfer student from the other class, who turns out to be Hino Izuru.

[Munsu]

New chapter is out 35:
http://www.snoopycool.com/torrents/Change123_v08_c35.zip.torrent

Edit: Good chapter, and next one looks like it'll be completely kickass.

[Kraco]

I finished the first volume. It's a pretty good read so far.

[Munsu]

I finished the first volume. It's a pretty good read so far.
Glad you like it... it really is a very fun series. This would make an awesome anime series.

[Uberbaka]

Got given this while doing the "give me a random manga" on onemanga, read the first chapter, dropped it, picked it back a week later and got hooked and read up until current release.

When you saw the blood spurt, you know someone is going to get fucked up.

[Munsu]

Got given this while doing the "give me a random manga" on onemanga, read the first chapter, dropped it, picked it back a week later and got hooked and read up until current release.

When you saw the blood spurt, you know someone is going to get fucked up.
That's why I always try to get a sample pic with some blood on it.

[Ryllharu]

New chapter is out 35:

Edit: Good chapter, and next one looks like it'll be completely kickass.
I'm very interested in the title of the next chapter (I love that all the titles are math-related btw) being Fujiko x 0 != Fujiko + 0.

It sounds like things aren't going to go as they planned, and Fujiko will be as overwhelmed by Zero as readily as they thought the others would. Either way, there will only be more blood that hasn't already been spilt.

[fireheart]

http://www.snoopycool.com/torrents/Change123_v08_c36.zip.torrent

[Ryllharu]

An interesting chapter. Zero was still very much ruthless.

I liked the comedy at the end though, where the idiots mistook the broken juice as a stab wound. It's a comedy cliche, but executed perfectly.

What I like so much about this series is that it has a consistent balance between comedy, action, and a little bit of romance/drama. When Fujiko was embarrassed about confusing the juice enough to make her summon Zero into her, she looked an awful lot like regular Motoko, and blushed fiercely.

So...now we've seen what happens when Zero comes in based on Hibiki (the first time), but Zero-Fujiko was probably a lot worse. It was soooo effortless for her to kill those two soldiers, but she took the sadistic route, dooming them with her final bullet. Can't disarm her, couldn't prevent her from reloading, nasty stuff. Even Izuru, their hope to stop Zero, backfired. When Zero is fused , her focus on the soldier prevents Izuru's abilities from being useful. If no one attacks her, she can't do much.

[fireheart]

I think there are several differences between the first time and this time. First time Zero came out Zero wasn't based on anything she only came out because no one else was "out" at the moment so that's Zero in all her glory. Besides at that time as Kouskegawa noted Zero was using something from all three of them and not based on anyone in particular.

This time I saw it more as Fujiko and Zero fusing together which is probably why her looks didn't change much since it was still Fujiko with the exception that the two of them were out at the same time. Also because Fujikos anger was already aimed at someone she didn't fight Izuru and the others other when they got in the way. Also because it was aimed she wanted that person to suffer as much as possible and not just end it quickly. It also makes more sense that they fused together since that's something they've been aiming at since they after they found out about Zero.

I actually thought the bottle thing was pretty lame, for the reason if he had it there it should have been more noticeable when you look at his body. Secondly I'd think what's-his-name should have noticed the difference between plastic and flesh when he stabbed him.

[Ryllharu]

It was totally lame, that's why I thought it was funny. It's one of the oldest cliches in shonen series. It was supposed to be close to midnight though, so it might be understandable that red fluid becomes blood. As for the knife guy, yeah, he should have known the difference between intestines and a PET bottle. The comedy relief works well though, especially after that particularly tense situation with Zero-Fujiko torturing the guy.

I disagree about Zero's first appearance though. Yes it should have been just her in all her evil glory, and they mentioned the key points where she used Fujiko's moves or Mikiri's, but for the most part, she was using straight lead punches right from Hibiki's usual set. They were just aimed more to kill than simply subdue. Zero's general appearance is a lot like Hibiki's anyway.

I've always thought Hibiki was the dominant member of HiFuMi. She shows up the most often, certainly is one of the most developed personality wise, and she also seems to be the one most obviously attached to Kouskegawa. Mikiri just sees him as a source of food more often than not, and Fujiko likes him, but she's considerably more reserved about it. Hibiki is the only personality he's actually gone on a formal, intentional, full-blown date with. There was also the scene where the four personalities helped stop Zero, and Kosukegawa, 'thought he saw what they'd look like all combined,' and I don't know about you, but I thought she looked like Hibiki more than the others.


Here, you're correct, Fujiko accepted Zero in, which is why she didn't change to Zero outright.

As I recall, the only reason they picked Fujiko to fuse with Zero is because Fujiko is reserved and disciplined enough to possibly hold her back. Hibiki is too fiery normally, and Mikiri is probably too easy going. As this illustrated, that's not entirely the case. That's where the title came in. It was more like Fujiko corrupted by Zero rather than fused with her.

[Kraco]

There have certainly been a good deal of decoy ships lately in this story. First the knife, then the juice bottle. Good stuff despite them, though.

[Munsu]

Just watched the latest chapter, although it was lame with the juice and all that crap, the rest of it was quite badass.

[Munsu]

Here's 37, Boob Problems:
http://www.snoopycool.com/torrents/Change123_v08_c37.zip.torrent

[Ryllharu]

An ecchi comedy side story, although (so tempted to call her Lala from School Rumble) Tsuchimakado(?) leaving was rather abrupt.

She was largely extraneous after the misdirection around Izuru being the Gadam, so I'm not sure how I feel about it.

[Kraco]

Ginga developed her boobs rather fast. She was as flat as a guy when she arrived at Japan, after all. She must have been visiting fast food joints frequently...

[Munsu]

Ginga developed her boobs rather fast. She was as flat as a guy when she arrived at Japan, after all. She must have been visiting fast food joints frequently...
Do you guys have a time frame since she arrived to the present? A couple of months? Weeks?

Anyways, looking forward to meet the dad.

[Yukimura]

Chapter 38 is out now. Lol at the shocking turn of events.

[Munsu]

Chapter 38 (http://www.krnl.net/sc/manga/Change123/Change123_v08_c37.zip) is out now. Lol at the shocking turn of events.
That's chapter 37, got any direct links for 38?

Edit:

Torrent for 38:
http://snoopycool.com/torrents/Change123_v08_c38.zip.torrent

[Kraco]

This shocking turn of events suits me perfectly. I have never liked triangles anyway. At this point anything that could push those two closer to each other is good news to me.

[Munsu]

I was pretty sure this was going to be the case, especially when the chick that he thought was the fiance turned out to be a college student, and since we got no shot of the father, then I thought it would be one of the 3 fathers... maybe the one we haven't seen yet.

[Ryllharu]

I should have known, but it caught me by surprise, and I laughed my head off when she showed up. I expected it would be the tall girl who just left after giving him a VCR.

[Uberbaka]

Add another notch for "thought it would be tall girl"

[Kraco]

Haha. That thought actually crossed my mind as well. It would have given an instant meaning to her departure. But I still didn't really expect it to be her, just thought it one possibility. I was expecting (although not hoping like I said) it to be somebody not shown in the earlier arcs, thus starting a totally new one.

[fireheart]

Ryll: Kinda late reply to this but meh.

I still see the first time as just Zero because for one thing Fujikos style includes weapons it's not like she can't fight without weapons rather her style is heavily aimed towards it. And seeing as Zero at the time did not have any weapons at hand it crosses out a lot of Fujikos style.

Mikiri as we know is based on Judo, Zero used a little of this for example when she protected her artery when Takezou grabbed her since that's something Mikiri knew how to do and not Hibiki. And while there's no real proof Hibiki never really uses throws or I don't remember her using any while Zero did throw Takezou. Next thing is if the Zero that came out the first time was really based on Hibiki then Kosukegawa wouldn't have worried about being caught in a hold. Also he pointed out that if Zero is all of Motokos repressed anger then she wouldn't use any holds if he stood up to her and just attack head on.

The conclusion for me is simply that Hibikis style which is just punches and kicks more or less is far better suited in that situation to use that Judo and weapons. That's why I say it was just Zero and not based on just one of the three.

As for Zeros look, since she didn't have a own hairstyle it also helps to make her look more like Hibiki since she just lets her hair down. And I guess they just kept it that way, as for her face it doesn't change that much, I've always thought of Hibiki as a middle part between Mikiri and Fujiko when looking at her face so it makes sense that Zero is somewhat in between as well.

[Ryllharu]

Chapter 39 is out, closing out volume 8.

A lot of comedy in this chapter about Motoko's third father Tatsuya. The switchblade trick was nice though, definitely the truth unless you have a really good locking one. I laughed at the bathtub scene too, Motoko nearly killed herself.

I've thought this before, but I believe that Hibiki likes Kosukegawa the most. She was the first one who started to like him (while Motoko was busy having a crush on her therapist), and back when Fujiko went on a date with Kosukegawa (ending with the fight against baghead), Hibiki came out and remarked with much embarrassment to the others in HiFuMi that it was her turn for a date next time for sure. Aside from offering him Motoko's body early on, Hibiki just seems like she wants to spend time with Kosukegawa rather than fight. Fujiko is rather ambivalent about things most of the time, and Mikiri still prefers food over Kosukegawa.

If Hibiki is thinking about getting rid of Zero so that she can marry Kosukegawa, while Motoko is worried about Zero in general, maybe Hibiki likes him even more than Motoko does?

[Kraco]

If Hibiki is thinking about getting rid of Zero so that she can marry Kosukegawa, while Motoko is worried about Zero in general, maybe Hibiki likes him even more than Motoko does?

Perhaps, perhaps not. They might like him equally much, but Motoko is a "typical" school girl with all the reservations plus some extra ones due to her situation, whereas the fighting personalities are unreserved and straight-forward - just like they need to be to fare well in a fight. So, I'd say it's just immensely easier for Hibiki to show her feelings with no worries.

Motoko might like Kosukegawa just as much but is holding herself back until the personality issue is solved.

[Munsu]

I'm also of the believe that Hibiki is the one that likes Kosegawa the most. Good chapter overall... I really like this dad. I hope we see him fight against Zero though.

[Ryllharu]

Change 123 v09 ch40 (http://www.snoopycool.com/torrents/Change123_v09_c40.zip.torrent)

Wow. They admitted outright that Hibiki is the one who seems to be the most into Kosukegawa.

I'm surprised this was resolved so quickly, I expected at least another chapter or two. The way they finished him off was pretty funny too. I cringed when I saw that panel.

[Yukimura]

That chapter hurt to read, and to think she went back and made it even worse, harsh. I imagine they're going to head back to school now, I wonder what new adventures await. Some of the girls on the cover pages appeared new so I guess we'll be getting some new and hopefully more productive transfer students for HiFuMi to fight.

[Kraco]

Haha. The hospital visit for some extra revenge was really funny. As vulgar as it was, it was still pretty innovative script writing.

I suppose they could skip a little time and go back to school. Or maybe not. The school isn't really critical to this story, after all. They could come up with something else for the rest of the summer vacation. I suppose it depends on how new enemies and troubles are introduced, now that this surprisingly short arc is over.

[Munsu]

Here's 41:
http://www.snoopycool.com/torrents/Change123_v09_c41.zip.torrent

Interesting chapter.

[Kraco]

It certainly was interesting. The woman at the end doesn't look nearly old enough, though. She hasn't even got any wrinkles. Other than that, I wonder what she will think of Kosukegawa of no martial skills, seeing how she seems to be a leader of a dojo.

[Ryllharu]

It seemed to me more like she was in a position of royalty or very high (and very traditional) society, something like Kurenai, but not to that extreme. While she certainly must be part of a school of martial arts, it seemed a lot more than that.

I thought it was more interesting (and funny) that Motoko's mother was basically a spy, but most importantly in this chapter was how easily Mikiri was able to curb Zero when she came back to her senses. Moreover, Zero wasn't nearly as violent as she usually is. Her first appearance she was destroying joints and involved a lot of impalement or dismemberment. Gouts of blood. When she merged with Fujiko, Zero was very sadistic as well, shooting the soldiers in intentionally non-lethal places in order to make them suffer.

Zero under Mikiri on the other hand, only broke joints, something she already was known to do anyway, even when she didn't mean it. Was this a kinder, gentler Zero because of Mikiri's more childlike personality, does Mikiri have better control over Zero, or are Motoko and HiFuMi finally making a little headway?

They also mentioned how bad it was that Izuru wasn't there to stop Zero, but at this point, even with Izuru's perfect-counter martial art, I don't know how much she'll really be able to do. If she even can counter Zero's blows, how do we know that Zero won't just keep going until she destroys Motoko's body?

[fireheart]

I thought the point that Fujiko asked Izuru was because she counter and hits the head so to knock the other person out fast or jumbles the brain so they can't go on. After all if she can't move her body or is unconsciousness then it won't matter.

[Ryllharu]

But if Zero is "black" as Botan has just informed Motoko's grandmother, the others being Hifumi's respective colors of offense (red), speed (blue), and defense (yellow), Zero should have a nearly perfect defense just as Izuru does. If she's fast enough and defensive enough, Zero might be able to avoid the full damage that comes from Izuru's counters.

It comes into question because all we've seen thus far is that Zero leans towards brutal offense bolstered by speed, and we don't know if she can equally switch to iron defense bolstered by that same speed to alleivate damage mid-counter.

Plus, going back a few chapters, if Motoko is the inscribed circle, Hifumi is the triangle, and Zero is the circumscribed circle, Zero knows everything (even Motoko's blocked past). Including the fact that Fujiko pointed out Izuru's weakness, anything at her back.

She has been working on it, but I question at this point whether or not Izuru can truly stop Zero with all those factors. So far it has just been conjecture and hope from Hifumi, Motoko and Kosukegawa.

[fireheart]

I'm unsure though what you say is highly possible, but for one thing we still have the comment that Kosujegawa made concerning that she will attack head on as long as someone stands up to her. If that comment is true then she'll never really switch to iron defense. But I do think it's highly likely that Zero will be able to avoid full damage from the counters so far we've never really seen her take much damage.

Also don't know if Zero really knows everything going by what you've said she should, but for some reason it feels like Zero shouldn't know everything though I got no arguments to say it should be that way.

Though there's something else that shows that Izuru would have a hard time seeing how little chance she had against Fujiko not only against her but the Zero Fujiko as well.

As it stands I think that Izurus current strength isn't enough at best she can stall Zero but if they're lucky that's enough to stop her. After I went back to read the conversation they had it almost seemed as if her role is to stall for time and protect Kosukegawa if necessary.

[Ryllharu]

Also don't know if Zero really knows everything going by what you've said she should, but for some reason it feels like Zero shouldn't know everything though I got no arguments to say it should be that way.
They have gone over this many times, but I don't mind elaborating.

Both Fujiko's "father," the mercenary, and Kannami (her therapist and Kosukegawa's childhood friend), believe that Zero was the original break-off personality. Zero was created by whatever mental trauma occured when Motoko's mother was killed. Motoko was never angry again after that because Zero has it all. She knows exactly what trauma Motoko experienced at that time because it is the primary fuel behind her fury (Kannami suggested this). Motoko's normal state remembers nothing prior to the trauma she experienced (common to Dissociative Identity Disorder sufferers). Kannami suggested that Hifumi try to merge with Zero not only to curb Zero's anger, but also discover what caused Motoko's DID to emerge in the first place.

The inscribed circle (Motoko), triangle (HiFuMi) and circumscribed circle (Zero) was a diagram shown during the chapters where Zero was lured out. I can't remember the exact chapter. Zero is the outer circle because she knows the most. Though Motoko is the primary personality, Hifumi shares everything that Motoko does. Motoko is always asleep when a part of Hifumi comes out, but Hibiki, Fujiko, or Mikiri know everything that Kosukegawa does when they aren't out or only one of them is. Motoko sleeps through it all.

Knock all of them out, putting them "to sleep" inside their head along with Motoko and Zero comes out. She's the core of it all. She also retains all of the combined training that Motoko recieved which eventually created Hifumi (Kosukegawa remarked on this when Zero first appeared). Motoko is all the way inside the diagram because her "normal" state is actually the most sheltered. She was sheltered from the initial trauma by Zero, and sheltered from the harsh training she was put through by the emergence of Hifumi. Hifumi was powered up to prevent Zero from ever coming out again (Takezo, Mikiri's father, remarked on this during the arc on Zero's first emergence).


In the end, you may be right about Zero not knowing everything. While Hifumi are awake all the time, they refer to Zero being dormant while the rest of them and Motoko are conscious. It sounds like a mistake though, since only Motoko should be left unless she is unconscious as well. This is why I speculate that Motoko herself is not the root personality, Zero is. When everyone else is asleep, only Zero remains.

[fireheart]

Thanks for elaborating on it.

Mmm that's quite a theory it would be an interesting twist to the whole thing. Though it makes me wonder, if Zero is the root it feels kinda weird that she refers to herself as Zero and not as Motoko. Also if Zero sees and knows everything that Motoko and HiFuMi does shouldn't Zero evolve from being more than just all of the anger if she's the base? Also your theory made me think of something completely different what happens when they just go to sleep at night.

[Ryllharu]

I guess when they go to sleep for the night, they all go to sleep, just like normal. However, there was the beginning to the chapter where Motoko woke up outside her door, fully fed, dressed and prepared for school. She had written to HiFuMi about being tired or something and they took care of it for her. Maybe they wake up earlier than she does, perhaps from being used to the training in the mountains?

Maybe "root personality" is too strong of a term. She certainly the overpowering personality. My guess is that if Zero really is the dominant personality (because they mentioned Motoko never really gets angry about anything, so she ends up looking more derivative herself) whatever happened to her when her mother died overwhelmed anything else.

If her mother was a spy, perhaps Motoko witnessed a lot more than what she once assumed was just a simple, honest accident.

[Munsu]

42 is out, don't have a link with me at the moment.

[fireheart]

Change123_ch42 (http://www.snoopycool.com/torrents/Change123_v09_c42.zip.torrent)

Lots of things we've talked about seem to surface in this chapter

[Ryllharu]

I'm at least a little surprised that the idea surfaced this soon, or that accurately to what we were speculating.

We got a little action from Izuru too. More of a setup chapter for whatever mess is about to surface.

[Munsu]

Good chapter, liked the scenes with the Guardian, we got a bit of action, and some good comedy moments.

[Munsu]

Here's 43:
http://www.snoopycool.com/torrents/Change123_v09_c43.zip.torrent

Thought it was a cool chapter, The Guardian is awesome.

[Ryllharu]

Sumire is just plain nasty. Sinking a scapel millimeters from her relative own heart was so brutally ruthless (I think they are mother and daughter but they didn't say that explicitly). That was definitely a "holy crap" moment. Kind of strange for someone like Motoko's mother to come from this kind of "family" only to be killed in a "simple car accident."

Kosukegawa is too noble. To no surprise, Hibiki wanted him to just take Motoko right then and there.

[NeoCybercoin]

Yeah I laughed when I read the part about Hibiki wanted him to just take Motoko and Fujioko being dissapointed that he only wanted a hug. But I must say..the whole scalpel thing was done pretty nicely though. Never ever saw that coming...pretty nasty move too.

[Kraco]

Kosukegawa is too noble. To no surprise, Hibiki wanted him to just take Motoko right then and there.

I'm glad it got sorted out so promptly. It would have been annoying if his depression, hesitation, and gloominess had been stretched for several chapters.

[Munsu]

44:
http://www.snoopycool.com/torrents/Change123_v09_c44.zip.torrent

[Ryllharu]

It was nice to see one of the male characters kick some ass. The Guardian is a good character, not ridiculously strong so he would outshine HiFuMi or Izuru, but strong enough to play a role in the series.

There have been other male characters who tossed some of the girls around, but this is one of the first we can actually root for (and isn't one of Motoko's fathers, who only appear for single arcs at a time).

[Munsu]

Noticed that this series hasn't had any releases in months, and the noticed that Snoopycool haven't released anything in months, I went digging for information. Saw this post by snoopy in their forums in a Change 123 thread on August 12, so hopefully it's good news rather than bad news:


Well, one of the computer did fry... it's fixed now, though, aside from some RAM that I need to buy.

And I am losing my job~ but that's a fairly recent development. (I've recently noticed that our mayor has a tendancy to curse whenever someone disagrees with him. I guess that's what happens when you raise a kid to believe that everything they think is correct.)

Anyway, the lack of releases is because I burned out and slacked off. Motivation has been lacking for a while, and that's pretty much the only thing that's required to do all this stuff... so you know how it is. The staff has been working on some stuff without me, so the next release we have will be pretty substantial.

[TheBladeChild]

Omg finally chapter 45

http://www.onemanga.com/Change_123/45/00-cover/

[Ryllharu]

Normally, I would wait for snoopycool because their quality is largely unparalleled, but Imangascans claim that the snoopycool staff okay'd it.

snoopy has been kind of lacking in motivation according to the staff on their forums, and he has the final say on QC and updating the website.

EDIT:

Another cute comedy/romance chapter.

Pretty vapid until the end, when Hibiki showed up Sora (whose name I had forgotten until the end of the chapter) where Izuru had previously failed. Sora is an evil bitch, maybe Sumire really will kill her. Sora was skirting the line already by hanging around Motoko trying to provoke her without getting caught. If she messes with Kosukegawa too much, she will very likely will turn Motoko and Hifumi against her own family (the clan led by her grandmother).

[Kraco]

Damn Kosukegawa fell asleep.

[Munsu]

Nice to have Change 123 back, and the idiot missed out on a foursome. I hope the group continues it, since it doesn't seem like snoopy will be back any time soon.

[Marik]

Chapter 46 (http://www.onemanga.com/Change_123/46/01)

[Kraco]

How traditional... I hope they won't go overboard with this. Though over a year together and not even a kiss does suggest the relationship might be susceptible to insecurities as well. This should give Kosukegawa some self-confidence if nothing else (at least until he finds out it was nothing but a dirty plot).

[Ryllharu]

I personally think this will backfire on them horribly.

Hifumi sees everything through Motoko's eyes, but it doesn't work the other way around. While having Hibiki see that was bad (considering she is the one who loves him the most openly), even if this pushes Kosukegawa and Motoko apart, the second that Sora shows up at the Clan while Motoko is there, Hifumi will have figured out it was all a dirty plot, no matter which of the personalities is in control on the body (even Zero).

Then the next time Hibiki comes out, she'll probably try to kill Sora.

Then again, since Motoko didn't even see it, this will only cause an issue with Hibiki. Mikiri is rather forgiving, and Fujiko is a lot more objective, and might be able to see past it as just some distraught girl, which Kosukegawa will hopefully be smart enough to attempt to explain, rather than being a moron and keeping it a secret. It may not even backfire, just merely fizzle.

[Kraco]

Kosukegawa will hopefully be smart enough to attempt to explain, rather than being a moron and keeping it a secret. It may not even backfire, just merely fizzle.

I'd be very unwilling to see the usual uber cliched drama that could ensue from Hibiki turning around now and leaving without getting even noticed, thinking Kosukegawa has someone else (yeah, right) and Kosukegawa naturally not saying anything afterwards but remaining unable to forget the whole thing and being tormented and confused by it. Man, I'm sick of seeing shit like that so I really hope Hibiki will storm in and the whole thing will turn moot to Sora.

[Ryllharu]

In any case, Tsukishima (sp? Lala Gonzales clone) can certainly explain it all away, since she knows exactly the type of person that Sora is. However, she seems to like to interfere in this secretly, which really isn't helping.

The series has usually defied a number of cliches and conventions thus far, so I've got hugh hopes for a refreshing outcome.

Come to think of it, while I consider her first appearance a fusion with Hibiki, they haven't really done a tried and true fusion of Hibiki and Zero, as Fujino and Mikiri both got. Maybe this will be a catalyst, and Sora will get her wish, to witness "black." She will certainly regret it.

[Munsu]

Will wait for the next chapter before really commenting... interesting to see how this will turn out. Glad to see "Lala Gonzales" again.

[NeoCybercoin]

Change 123 ch.47 (http://www.onemanga.com/Change_123/47/)

Not sure if any of you read it yet. So I'll refrain from commenting so far.

[Ryllharu]

Well, Hibiki holding back for so long after the kiss was a pleasant surprise. She really has grown in personality since the series started. It was nice to see that HiFuMi has that much faith in Kosukegawa, and he almost told her the truth, though he chickened out at the last minute. I'd like to think he'll tell her eventually.

Sora got exactly what she deserved. She wanted to see "Black," she got it. Zero/Hibiki all but completely eliminated her offensive capacity in a single blow. Stupid overconfident bitch.

What bothered me was how easily Sumire convinced Botan. Sumire's argument was thinner than tissue and Botan didn't even argue. Sumire bases all this knowledge off of what Botan reported back to the clan (pretty obviously assassins now), but compared to what Kosukegawa, her fathers, and Kannami know, Sumire and Motoko's grandmother don't know a thing.

They think that Motoko will be further isolated the more people she meets as life continues onward, but from what we've seen, the opposite is true. HiFuMi have been surprisingly more and more capable of taking over right on the spot, and generally, only the people who know her very closely can even tell the difference. That's pretty much Kosukegawa, Motoko's fathers, Izuru, and increasingly Kannami (who has little interaction in comparison). The more they have been getting out, Motoko has been less isolated than ever before, not more.

I can't believe how stupid Botan is to believe someone who has less experience with Motoko than Botan herself does.

[Archangel]

I just began reading this, it's awesome

Is it a monthly release? What about the groups doing it, are they constant with their releases?

[Ryllharu]

It is released monthly in its magazine. Snoopycool used to be very regular with their releases, but Snoopy himself (the translator and final QC) has been very inactive. Imangascans took over LQ releases with their blessing, but they're not that consistent, since life catches up with them too.

I wouldn't expect regular releases from here on out.

[Kraco]

Kosukegawa is too much a Mr Nice Guy and in addition also over analysed the situation. But seriously no matter how nice he generally is even he should realise going out with somebody who (as far as he knows) likes him is not a good idea when he already has Motoko. It can't be helped they share the same workplace but he should have the wits to limit it there. Anything beyond that only suits a two-timer.

[Munsu]

Bone sitcking out of hand = instant win.

That's all I have to say.

[Archangel]

So the fusion is complete
God i want to read the next chapter so bad, i hope she kicks Sora's ass asap so we can see the repercussions that Hibiki + 0 will have in her psyche

As of late Kosukegawa's cool moments have been slimmer than ever and just about anything can bring him to tears these days, so i've been finding myself consistently disliking his character more and more by each chapter for being all talk and no action.

Even he understood a few chapters back that his sense of justice alone won't get him anywhere and since then he hasn't made any effort to improve himself either physically ( and you'd expect this to be easy with world level fighters hanging around him 24/7 ) or psychologically ( learn to suck it up like a man dude, at least in front of your already mentally disturbed girlfriend ).

Yeah i know he's supposed to suck and that's his charm in a way, but his way of life is seriously flawed and i just keep wishing for him to at least try and do something about it. He's shirou without magic and shonen powerups


http://img697.imageshack.us/img697/2374/94341431.jpg

This guy was awesome!

[Kraco]

Yeah i know he's supposed to suck and that's his charm in a way, but his way of life is seriously flawed and i just keep wishing for him to at least try and do something about it. He's shirou without magic and shonen powerups

You mean you wish he was like Shirou? Kosukegawa sucks because he doesn't even try to do anything. Anything else than to please everybody, which is impossible (and endlessly talk about the fucking kamen show). Like somebody once said: When you bow to the person in front of you, you show your ass to the person behind you. He isn't even systematically trying to take Motoko's side.

Shirou was never weak. He kept practicing his miserable magic year after year never giving up, and when the fights started, he again began to practice martial arts as well. Kosukegawa goes out of his way to flirt other girls with his own girl in such a state that you'd think he would want to help her as much as he could.

The dude sucks plain and simple. Motoko is a saint to tolerate him.

[Archangel]

Shirou was an underdog but he always pulled through somehow. I can't speak for other people but personally that's why i love his character ( that and that he managed to get a king, a sorcerer and the holy grail in the sack )

Kosukegawa is a strange combination of a coward with good ideals. Well coward isn't the right word, he's the first to jump in the face of danger ( even if it takes him a while ) but what really makes me dislike him is his inability to even TRY and improve. He just spouts his ideals out loud and crosses his fingers that his feelings will reach the other person.

He could at least be firm in his conviction that all conflict should be solved without violence, but he himself has already realized this isn't true not to mention that i've never seen kamen rider beat his opponents with fancy words alone ( i haven't watched that many episodes on it but still... )

[Ryllharu]

Shirou was never weak. He kept practicing his miserable magic year after year never giving up, and when the fights started, he again began to practice martial arts as well. Kosukegawa goes out of his way to flirt other girls with his own girl in such a state that you'd think he would want to help her as much as he could.Offtopic, but Shirou had already mastered Kyūdō (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kyūdō) before the beginning of the events depicted. Very early on in the game, other characters mention that they only saw Shirou miss once when he still belonged to the club, and it was almost certainly an intentional miss, just to see what it was like. He only started to learn close combat after the fights started.

On-Topic:
Kosukegawa goes out of his way to be nice, not flirt. Girls in this series tend to find that nice, but most only consider him a friend, and Sora is a lying, scheming bitch, so she doesn't count. HiFuMi doesn't count either, they're still Motoko, and Hibiki in particular offered her body to him first.


Kosukegawa is a strange combination of a coward with good ideals. Well coward isn't the right word, he's the first to jump in the face of danger ( even if it takes him a while ) but what really makes me dislike him is his inability to even TRY and improve. He just spouts his ideals out loud and crosses his fingers that his feelings will reach the other person.I wouldn't go so far to say he doesn't even "try" to improve. We have to face the facts and realize that he's a completely normal person surrounded by extraordinary people.

Can he punch a log into splinters? Nope.
Can he bruise someone with a coin or shoot a gun out of someone's hand? Nope.
Can he choke someone out with their own oversized arms? Nope.
Can he take down ten thugs, kill a leopard, or jump from trees to rooftops? Nope.
Can he knock any of the above people out cold with counterstrikes? Nope.

Leaping in front of these kinds of people to protect them even though he really doesn't come anywhere close to them in physical aptitudes says a lot about him. He's doing the absolute best to his ability to keep the people he cares about safe, or at least out of the harm they get themselves into.

This isn't History's Strongest Disciple Kenichi. Power leveling doesn't really exist in the universe the story resides in. From HiFuMi to Izuru and even that bitch Sora, the people that surround Kosukegawa have actually been training for years. The people stronger than them, have been training and practicing for decades. Kosukegawa is an otaku. He's already exceeded the expectations of most of the characters in how far he is willing to go to bring about his ideals.

[Munsu]

No more Fate/stay-night discussion

[Kraco]

He's doing the absolute best to his ability to keep the people he cares about safe, or at least out of the harm they get themselves into.

I still fail to see how insisting on going out with another girl that declared she loves him, and stole a kiss no less, is in any imaginable way helping Motoko... Or anybody for that matter. Of course we know Sora is nothing but a scheming bitch but for Kosukegawa it must look like she has real feelings for him. So, how exactly does that help even her? To give her false hope in large doses, eh? If she was nothing but a coworker and a friend, it would make sense since men can have female friends, but she already told him that she's interested in more than that.

Showing her landmarks and tourist attractions isn't exactly anything vital, but it certainly constitutes a date.



No more Fate/stay-night discussion
Cool down, dude. No need to start to break fingers yet.

[Munsu]

You don't tell Jack Bauer to cool down,

Since Sora is getting her ass kicked by Hibiki, I wonder how Kosukegawa will react to the whole situation. I can easily see him being angry at her.

[Archangel]

Change 123 - 48 (http://www.onemanga.com/Change_123/48/)

[Kraco]

It went down better than I expected. I haven't had much faith in Kosukegawa lately but at least his priorities were correctly placed in this scene. He realised he was the one responsible (even though it was only being guilty of being naive enough to be used) and his biggest priority was to stop Motoko from becoming a murderer.

[Munsu]

The fight was completely awesome, total domination and destruction.

[Archangel]

The fight really was awesome, but what i really wanted to see was the aftermath of having a fully fused zero so this chapter just felt like one whole huge cocktease for me

Well... not completely, i did thoroughly enjoy Sora getting bitch slapped around while boasting about her blue status

[Ryllharu]

I noted that Zero seems...ever so slightly more gentle when dealing with Kosukegawa. He latched on to her and gets in her way in attempt to prevent Motoko from killing anyone, and Zero doesn't beat the ever loving shit out of him. Kneeing him in the stomach and then choking him with his scarf is quite a bit different from what we usually see when someone gets in the way of Zero's target of the moment, like throwing a bar into a motorcycle wheel, blowing kneecaps out with well placed kicks, shooting people, or throwing them at sharp objects (or sharp objects into them).

Zero seems to recognize that she and Kosukegawa are very close and treats him a bit more kindly.

Bitches who try to trick her boyfriend...not so lucky. I thought he forgave Sora a bit too easily, but I guess that's just the kind of person he is.

I agree with Archie. That magnitude of a teaser at the end is really unfair.

[Archangel]

Well i don't think that it would be a stretch to say that of all the personalities Hibiki is the one that cares about Kosukegawa the most, so i'm sure that helped immensely to him not getting wasted on the very first blow

If you think about it the way she still sodomized his ass even while fused with Hibiki is more of a testament to just how brutal Zero really is

And i think the way he just kinda brushed that shit off with a resounding "whatever bitch, i'm moving on" was way cooler than anything i expected him to say

[Marik]

imangascans

MediaFire (http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?tczmzlak2hz) | SendSpace (http://www.sendspace.com/file/gb1aum) | Online Viewing (http://www.onemanga.com/Change_123/49/01)

[Ryllharu]

Damn, I figured that Motoko's mother had been hit by a truck, but that (http://www.onemanga.com/Change_123/49/12-13/) I did not expect. Way more harsh than I had imagined.

With the rumor going around about Motoko nearly killing another girl for trying to seduce her boyfriend, it might be a more hostile environment for keeping HiFuMi secret. I guess Hibiki is taking over as the primary personality in the meantime. That will probably work in her family's favor, since various people in the school will start to suspect something and keep her at bay, increasing the alienation she feels. Fujiko obviously thought about the advantages, and the others were attracted by the idea of not hiding themselves. Of course they don't seem to recognize that that is precisely the kind of environment they get to be in when they are with Kosukegawa, Izuru, and Ginga.

I sincerely hope they don't take Sumire up on the offer, that would be totally lame. Maybe only go to see her grandmother to reject the offer.

[Archangel]

That a child would be traumatized by such an experience i can understand but you'd think that a grown woman would realize that it wasn't her fault. I obviously can't speak from experience but it does seem like the rational thing; but hen again i'm not sure if reason dictates action when something like this happens.

Maybe this will translate as an opportunity for Hideo and HiFuMi to grow closer, those 3 and vastly more interesting than Motoko anyway

[Ryllharu]

True, but Motoko is not the most mentally stable adult. The fact that HiFuMi and Zero exist at all is proof of that. Motoko's mind forcibly broke Zero apart from her main personality, vowing to never get angry again because that was what (she believes) caused her mother's death.

On the one hand that is good because it decreases the likelihood that Motoko is the Host. Zero seems to be a isolated subset of emotions, rather than Motoko being created for the purpose of daily life.

Reliving the trauma is enough to force Motoko into hiding. Motoko is one of the most selfless people since she doesn't suffer rage. She's only ever slightly jealous of the time HiFuMi spends with Kosukegawa. As for being re-traumatized, Motoko faints when she trips over her own feet, so seeing something this shocking again is bound to traumatize her once more. If you bring logic into play, she might view it as she distracted her mother enough that she failed to notice. One might think that a spy/assassin like her mother wouldn't fall so easily, but then again, her only daughter just told her she wished she were dead.

Now she is just forcing HiFuMi to insulate her from more.

[Munsu]

That a child would be traumatized by such an experience i can understand but you'd think that a grown woman would realize that it wasn't her fault. I obviously can't speak from experience but it does seem like the rational thing; but hen again i'm not sure if reason dictates action when something like this happens.

Maybe this will translate as an opportunity for Hideo and HiFuMi to grow closer, those 3 and vastly more interesting than Motoko anyway
Of course it's not rational... that's why psychologists/psychiatrists exist to help out those that have weak mental health.

I think HiFuMi will go their grandma's house, particularly if people start messing her in school (talking behind her back, etc.). They'll reason that it's for the best, and for Kosukegawa benefit. Then Kosukegawa will get pissed off, and go after her in his Kamen Rider costum.

[fireheart]

I'm more surprised her mom managed to survive something like that. Well survive long enough to get into the hospital and tell Motoko that she had 3 people that would protect her.

[Ryllharu]

More Motoko and friends!

Change 123 - volume 11 chapter 50 [ims] (http://imangascans.com/index.php?site=news_comments&newsID=179&ws_session=4485970e39fda65fdb7567dec398edbc)

[Kraco]

I think HiFuMi will go their grandma's house, particularly if people start messing her in school (talking behind her back, etc.). They'll reason that it's for the best, and for Kosukegawa benefit.

Goddam I hate that plot device. Unfortunately it's much more common than the rare reverse case where a troubled person asks a friend or a loved one to help with something potentially dangerous or otherwise troublesome (asks before he/she has been already beaten by the whatever adversary once or thrice).


More Motoko and friends!

More boobage for sure. Not much else to say about this chapter. However, I'm not too sure of Kosukegawa's sanity (or existence of balls) if the dude sees that every morning yet won't do anything any real man would be forced to do by his instincts before long.

[Ryllharu]

Goddam I hate that plot device. Unfortunately it's much more common than the rare reverse case where a troubled person asks a friend or a loved one to help with something potentially dangerous or otherwise troublesome (asks before he/she has been already beaten by the whatever adversary once or thrice).It usually happens because the one character doesn't want to burden the others with their [perceived] personal problem. They don't see that the others are equally hurt that they weren't trusted with the information or asked. This series has surprised us before, with Hibiki reigning it in when Sora kissed Kosukegawa, and trusting him instead of getting suspicious or hurt, and a few other situations. While it is a possibility, I think it would be more likely that Motoko returns before Sumire attempts to physically take her back. HiFuMi still loves Kosukegawa (they loved him openly before Motoko realized that she did), and Hibiki and Mikiri are using him for support with Motoko gone. Hibiki might feel that she is a burden to him, but I don't think the others would be as easily convinced. Fujiko is mature enough to recognize when she is being tricked, and Mikiri thinks too simply for that to happen.

More boobage for sure. Not much else to say about this chapter. However, I'm not too sure of Kosukegawa's sanity (or existence of balls) if the dude sees that every morning yet won't do anything any real man would be forced to do by his instincts before long.
Kosukegawa said that seeing her (mostly Mikiri) naked each morning has gotten him used to it. It still turns him on, but much to his dismay, not as much as it used to. It is understandable given words expressed by Kosukegawa and HiFuMi previously.

While the chapter was fun, it did have some more serious undertones. Kosukegawa is getting depressed about Motoko being gone so long. We know that Motoko was not a host personality, but the remains when her rage splintered off from the emotional trauma of being angry at her mother right before the tragedy. Kosukegawa and HiFuMi don't, since Motoko hasn't been back. Worse, her disappearance after all three parts merged with Zero makes them more convinced that that is precisely the case.

He's starting to recognize that if she doesn't come back, and with this many months that it is becoming more likely that she never will, he will have to carve out a life for HiFuMi to live in relative happiness. The downside is that that means that he and HiFuMi will be together, but not as lovers. Both Kosukegawa and HiFuMi have expressed that while he loves all four of them and they all love him, without Motoko's consent, they don't want to act on their feelings. To them, Motoko was the main personality, the others were just borrowing her body. Acting on their desires would be a betrayal to Motoko's feelings, like they were ignoring her.

That's why he won't make a move on HiFuMi no matter how much he sees her naked, and why they haven't made any progress with him. They are all too worried about Motoko.

[Kraco]

That's why he won't make a move on HiFuMi no matter how much he sees her naked, and why they haven't made any progress with him. They are all too worried about Motoko.

That makes sense. But still, he could play with her just a little bit. If seeing her naked doesn't get him excited that much anymore, the logical step would be to go just a bit further until he's again excited and stop there. Since he seems to have the uber self-control to stop himself.

[Archangel]

Meh, fanservice chapter

Weird question but from what FT chapter is this from?

http://www.onemanga.com/Change_123/50/Recruiting/

[Munsu]

51:
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=U8QQLMDG

[Archangel]

A whole lot of talking and not enough action, and the worst part is that we didn't really learn anything new

[Kraco]

I get a feeling Kosukegawa's relationship with Hifumi is somewhat strained now that Motoko isn't present anymore. He enjoyed their company in the past when he knew Motoko will soon be back but now he needs to keep himself in check in order to prevent himself from saying that directly and aloud.

[Munsu]

I thought it was a well balanced chapter myself. We see him going on dates, and particularly Hifumi seeing that he's showing fake smiles to them. Then Hifumi taking it upon themselves to force Mokoto out, we then learn a bit more from her family, then we get some fighting, and then we end with a cliffhanger of possibly her secret coming out (which I doubt).

[Ryllharu]

I agree, it was a solid chapter.

Hifumi and Kosukegawa are both desperate at this point. Hifumi hopes that she can find an opponent who can force Merged-Zero out and hopefully jump start Motoko again, since Zero and Motoko are the two personalities the most connected. Unfortunately, even Hino and Ginga combined can no longer take Hifumi down, and judging by her skill and even saving the guy from a nasty fall proves their skill is evolving. I expect that the only opponent that Hifumi will believe can still challenge them are her mother's family.

As for Kosukegawa, he wants Motoko back, but he still cares for each of them too. While they protested, he is still trying his best to make them less worried and happy as well.

[Munsu]

52:
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=MR05I3FQ

[Archangel]

Kosukegawa really is an idiot. Even past the fact that he's now stranded in some gas station what did he expect to do if he even did make it all the way to Kyoto? Ask directions for the nearest secret ninja organization headquarters?

Yeah i know he'll eventually get there with main character hax powahs but the whole thing just makes me like his character even less

[Kraco]

I'm happy he got his savings stolen and was left behind. Such stupidity warrants a punishment. Moreover, I hope he will face really hard times on this journey so that he would grow some balls and common sense. He's remarkably timid for somebody who looks up to Kamen Raiders.

[Marik]

imangascans

MediaFire (http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?dkbkjzghmmd) | SendSpace (http://www.sendspace.com/file/9b92cr) | MegaUpload (http://www.megaupload.com/?d=8PZJTEP9) | Online Viewing (http://reader.imangascans.com/Change_123/053/2)

[Archangel]

It's incredible how his main character powers continuously get him pussy despite all his flaws

He even got rewarded for being an idiot and losing his money...

[NeoCybercoin]

He sure knows a lot of beautiful women for someone like him....

[Ryllharu]

She wasn't really attracted to him. She was more fascinated that he identified as an otaku (and she was convinced there are only anime otaku too). I wouldn't say it is on the same level that HiFuMi (especially Hibiki) have been attracted to him, or even the way the Botan was temporarily attracted to him.

Aside from the four girls in one body, he doesn't have much of a harem to speak of. Izuru doesn't see him that way, or any men really, Ginga sees him only as family and as a friend before that, and Sora was lying so she doesn't count either. He might be surrounded by girls, but the only ones that like him in that way are Motoko and HiFuMi.

This chapter was filler, but I really enjoyed the scene where he vomited all over the guy to let her escape. Even if he knows a lot of incredible people, he's still just a normal weaker than average guy.

[Munsu]

To me this was the worst chapter in the series so far.

[Marik]

imangascans

MediaFire (http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?yx5udnnmjcc) | SendSpace (http://www.sendspace.com/file/scr8ld) | MegaUpload (http://www.megaupload.com/?d=YT4ZAISH) | Online Viewing (http://reader.imangascans.com/Change_123/054/2)

[Ryllharu]

Some group named Cyc released chapter 55. The quality is pretty good.

Rapdishare (http://rapidshare.com/files/395590302/Change_123_v12_c55_Cyc_.zip)

[Marik]

imangascans

MediaFire (http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?hda63s8od787glq) | SendSpace (http://www.sendspace.com/file/k20d3k) | MegaUpload (http://www.megaupload.com/?d=77RHZAGU)

[Archangel]

Hopefully the next chapters will come soon as well, with the series being over i want to read the finale more than ever.

[Marik]

imangascans

MediaFire (http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?ui73hddc3h5gguq) | SendSpace (http://www.sendspace.com/file/6xp8jp)

[Archangel]

Felt short to me, i guess i'll wait till it's fully scanlated and then pick it back up since the manga itself is already over

[Marik]

imangascans

MediaFire (http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?x2rjl1as2ldbnrs) | SendSpace (http://www.sendspace.com/file/152l18)

[Ryllharu]

A good setup chapter at least. Sumire is scary, but I can't help but feel she's been taking this crisis too easy. Enemies have violated their stronghold, but rather than the kind of punishment she gave Sora (rendering her helpless by creasing her heart with a scalpel) she just goes for the stun gun and blackout drugs. Then even complimenting Botan when she disobeys in a similar manner.

Botan betraying the organization was no surprise, nor was Ginga getting all fired up and taking out the other woman with her ability to take damage. All those years of getting hammered by Izuru paid off when it counted.

[Archangel]

A good setup chapter at least. Sumire is scary, but I can't help but feel she's been taking this crisis too easy. Enemies have violated their stronghold, but rather than the kind of punishment she gave Sora (rendering her helpless by creasing her heart with a scalpel) she just goes for the stun gun and blackout drugs. Then even complimenting Botan when she disobeys in a similar manner.

Botan betraying the organization was no surprise, nor was Ginga getting all fired up and taking out the other woman with her ability to take damage. All those years of getting hammered by Izuru paid off when it counted.
You're comparing her treatment of an innocent to that of a fully aware member of her organization. Though i'll agree that she seemed much more ruthless in the beginning.

These latest chapters disappoint me, especially when knowing we're up to our last volume.

[Marik]

imangascans

MediaFire (http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?jeh1pgsqus92zdz) | MegaUpload (http://www.megaupload.com/?d=M25JJA9W)

Only one chapter left.

[Marik]

imangascans

[/URL][URL="http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?a3oar9a7ihybvuu"]MediaFire (http://www.sendspace.com/file/ht5wcw) | MegaUpload (http://www.megaupload.com/?d=6NDBZOU2)

[Ryllharu]

This series could have used a single extra volume to spread this arc out a bit. The ending feels so rushed compared to the rest of the series, where the pacing was spot on.

I'm happy with the ending, but closing so many things in often a single panel each (Motoko's biological father, Sora, the fate of Motoko's family, the whole colors thing, etc) is weak. To use one of those examples, they hyped up the colors (red, blue, yellow, black, which is the strongest?) for volumes and end it with Botan stating twice how surprised she was the straight Red can beat Black no problem (therefore their philosophy of endlessly striving for Black is meaningless).

[Archangel]

Rushed is the word indeed, but i think the series overall was good enough that i won't let this ruin it for me

[Kraco]

It was a fighting manga and ended as suddenly as a fight. I admit Ryll makes a few good points there about largely wasted plot elements, but on the other hand they were not of utmost importance to the core idea of the latter times: Fusing Hifumi back into Motoko. The fight was what mattered and it was carried out nicely in my opinion. I didn't expect the old man to lose and he didn't.

[Archangel]

I think the only real problem was the solving of so many plot points at the same time, it made the whole thing look too convenient.

Not to mention we didn't get to see Zero, who i'm pretty sure was also a personality who would have been part of the whole should the author had had more time.

[Ryllharu]

Zero was eliminated when each part of HiFuMi became possessed by her one at a time. They were pretty explicit about that part. The three of them were "closer" to Zero than Motoko's surface personality, so they would ease into it by having the three of them overwhelm Zero first. Kannami decided they should accomplish that by having each of them bring her out when they were in control. He was wrong in thinking that Motoko was a "host" personality.

Hibiki had her first, then Fujiko in the Okinawa arc, and finally Mikiri with the old lady's ohagi.

They weren't afraid of Zero coming out after that because HiFuMi "controlled" her in a sense. They absorbed her as a whole.

[Marik]

Chapters 59 and 60 got v2'd to fix some typos. Chapter 60v2 contains a couple of posters from v12.

59v2 - MediaFire (http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?jeh1pgsqus92zdz) | MegaUpload (http://www.megaupload.com/?d=M25JJA9W)

60v2 - MediaFire (http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?a3oar9a7ihybvuu) | MegaUpload (http://www.megaupload.com/?d=6NDBZOU2)