Manga: Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha ViVid

[TheBladeChild]

http://i43.tinypic.com/24x3lnb.jpg

Courtesy Wikipedia:

Set four years after StrikerS, the Sixth Mobile Division has disbanded and Nanoha Takamachi has taken a leave of absence to raise her adoptive daughter, Vivio Takamachi. After reaching the fourth grade of her primary school, she is finally given her own device, which gives her the form of the Sankt Kaiser mode. Meanwhile, a new danger comes in the form of a girl calling herself 'Ingvalt', the same name as the ruler of the Sankt Kaiser era.

First chapter from Onemanga:

http://www.onemanga.com/Magical_Girl_Lyrical_Nanoha_ViVid/1/01/

[Kraco]

I have to say I was as surprised as Fate when Vivio's henshin happened. I'm far from sure if it's a good thing.

[TheBladeChild]

chapter 4 is out:

http://www.onemanga.com/Magical_Girl_Lyrical_Nanoha_ViVid/4/01/

[Kraco]

I have hard time recognizing the characters. I'm so used to the anime with colours and voices that half of the cast looks the same to me here in the manga. It's kind of annoying, especially with those combat cyborgs now having bigger roles. It's not like I'd have absolutely learned their faces and names in the first place during Strikers. The high number of named characters the Nanoha universe has always had certainly makes it no easier either.

[Ryllharu]

It's kind of annoying, especially with those combat cyborgs now having bigger roles. It's not like I'd have absolutely learned their faces and names in the first place during Strikers. The high number of named characters the Nanoha universe has always had certainly makes it no easier either.
The colors were the only thing that would help you in the anime with the cyborgs. More than half of them shared voice actresses. Cinque (eyepatch-chan) Wendi (pinned up ponytail surfboard?) were both Marina Inoue, and both of them appear here.

The Nanoha universe only really got cluttered in StrikerS. A's only had 7 really important characters.

But I sympathize. The scene in the first chapter where Vivio mailed the photo to all the characters in StrikerS took me a long time to remember who everyone was.

[TheBladeChild]

5 is out:

http://www.onemanga.com/Magical_Girl_Lyrical_Nanoha_ViVid/5/00/

[Kraco]

Friendship beam!

Well, there was no beam but they surely became friends fast. If chatting, eating breakfast, and going to the police station together equals to being friends, that is.

I'm actually looking forward to Vivio and Einhart's fight. I wonder if those two can become friends as well...

[RyougaZell]

Interesting to see Nove seeing Subaru as a sister now.
Wasn't Nove defeated by Subaru on StrikerS? I still have a hard time identifying everyone of the 'numbers' (aside from the pyscho b... that wore glasses)

[Ryllharu]

Teana was the one who took out Nove in StrikerS along with Wendi and the one with the twin swords. Subaru was busy taking down the brainwashed Ginga with her friendship punch.

They are all cyborgs from the same string of research, and the "good" ones were probably going to be taken in by Ginga and Subaru's father during the final scenes, so it isn't all that surprising that she views her as a "sister" now, particularly because they are so similar.

I'm surprised how quickly they revealed Einhart, much less that she will probably become quite friendly with Vivio.

[Kraco]

I'm surprised how quickly they revealed Einhart...

Yeah. I thought that was going to be the main story of this series. But now the big bad mysterious enemy has been entirely revealed in the chapter 5, and there's not really much indication what will make up the rest of the bigger plot.

But those numbers surely did become decent folk based on this.

[Ryllharu]

Checking Wikipedia, apparently that was all cleared up in one of the Sound Stages, along with being focused on the third ancient Belkan girl, Ixpellia. In short:

- The three evil ones, super loyal to Scagletti, Uno (secretary one), Tre (musclebound mannish one), and Quattro (evil glasses one) are still in prison. Duo was killed in StrikerS.

- The "good" ones, who showed some form of remorse about what they were doing in StrikerS, Cinque (eyeptach), Dieci (sniper cannon), Nove (red head Subaru), and Wendi (surfboard), were adopted into the Nakajima family.

- The remaining ones, Sein (deep diver), Otto (boyish looking support one) and Deed (twin swords) joined the Church as nuns. The one with the horn mask, Sette, finally was allowed to leave prison and is in rehabilitation.

So now the Nakajima family is (oldest to youngest), Ginga, Cinque, Deici, Subaru, Nove, and Wendi.

[Kraco]

So now the Nakajima family is (oldest to youngest), Ginga, Cinque, Deici, Subaru, Nove, and Wendi.

Haha. The old man Nakajima must be really happy to suddenly have such a host of pretty girls calling him otousan...

[Ryllharu]

Chapter 7 is out:

http://www.onemanga.com/Magical_Girl_Lyrical_Nanoha_ViVid/7/00/


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

EDIT:

I get the feeling that these matches haven't been entirely fair to Vivio. Both matches against Einhart have been without the use of any magic. From what I remember in StrikerS, Sankt Kaiser Mode Vivio used a number of punches, but most of the damage that Nanoha took in that fight was Vivio breaking out of holds with energy bursts, and throwing iridescent charges of explosive magical energy.

Sure she was charged by the Cradle and the Relic that Quattro and Scagletti forcibly implanted into her, but she didn't use straight-up Strike Arts, it was definitely a mix. Einhart steadfastly refuses to use anything but her fists, even in serious fights like the one against Nove, and has trained to primarily use techniques by the sound of things, so not letting Vivio use more of her magic seems like Einhart is using her full strength while Vivio isn't allowed to use all of hers.

[Kraco]

It wasn't actually fair to Einhart. It seems like this fight was what Einhart had been living for, and it turned out to be nothing like she had expected. However, for Vivio is was just another match against someone she hardly knows, like in some unofficial martial arts contest. Going all out with everything they had would have been what Einhart desired, not this match that would have seemed to favour Einhart from an outside observer's pov, but was flawed from her own.

[Ryllharu]

Going all out isn't good enough for Einhart. She wants to be challenged by the Sankt Kaiser. I think she is unreasonably disappointed because Vivio has only been training for a short time, while Einhart, full of the Emperor's memories, has been training much longer even if she is younger than Vivio.

I bet Subaru or Ginga could go all out and beat her, but then she wouldn't be satisfied because it wasn't Sankt Kaiser. Einhart heard that Vivio is the Sankt Kaiser the same way that she is the Emperor, and she is obviously disappointed when it isn't the glorious rematch (that she needs to win to prove his strength) that she expected.

Right now, I have zero sympathy for Einhart's circumstances. She comes off as a spoiled brat with a jaded vision of life and unreasonable expectations. I don't doubt that she will continue to win any rematches where Vivio isn't allowed to use magic. Neither of the two are going "All Out" in the traditional Nanoha sense. That phrase usually results in Nanoha blowing the holy hell out of her opponent with Starlight Breaker. Vivio isn't even allowed to use her full capabilities, which are obviously less focused on the physical aspect of Strike Arts than Einhart.

[Kraco]

I very much doubt Einhart herself is anywhere as powerful as her original, just like Vivio. Surely the originals of those two were at least as powerful as Nanoha. So, if Einhart's dream is to face something as powerful as the Sankt Kaiser, she wouldn't last for 10 seconds. I'd say her dream won't be fulfilled (following her current way of thinking) until she has been in a real deadly match with Vivio with no restrictions and really needs to struggle to win, or lose, but in either way it would be evenly matched and the winner decided by a hair thin margin.

[Ryllharu]

Einhart keeps saying that she wants to prove the Emperor's strength (who from her dreams apparently repeatedly lost to the Sankt Kaiser), but is never satisfied with the fact that she keeps winning.

After thinking about it at work, what really bothers me is her attitude. Not about what she's seeking, or the cold way she acts, or anything else, but her general vision of life. She's obsessed with and stuck in the past. She only dreams of defending her ancestor's honor and fighting style. It doesn't really seem like she lives her own life.

Vivio is completely the opposite [now]. She doesn't really care at all that she is the clone of the Sankt Kaiser, she has her own life and lives it. Rather than go into Strike Arts because of who she is, she pursues it because she enjoys it, and because her role models use it. When she was transformed at the end of StrikerS, she had a similar outlook to what Einhart has, but others, particularly her mothers, allowed her to get past that and go back to living as Vivio, not as a reincarnation of someone else.

Fate wasn't even as bad as Einhart is though. Nor where the three Belkan Knights. Those three even went their separate ways, despite how much they are tied together. Vita and Signum are in separate battalions and Shamal is wherever.

I guess I'll probably like her more later as her attitude eventually shifts, since Fate had Nanoha, the Knights had Hayate, and Vivio had both Nanoha and Fate. I can only assume that Einhart will in turn have Vivio to help her break from the past she has decided to chain herself to.

[Kraco]

If Einhart didn't have a mama or papa raising her normally I think her way of life is perfectly normal. Kids of her age aren't really rationally planning their future. They want to be firemen, police officers, doctors, princesses, artist, actors, whatever. So, this little girl has implanted into her brain a full-bodied image of some past hero plus this hero's wishes and regrets. It's, in my opinion, 100% natural those desires override some other flimsy dream she might have had otherwise, and that would have as soon changed after watching some cool tv show.

However, I'd expect those things change once she hits puberty... After all, at that age you don't want anybody else to tell you what to do. Though after all those years she might have integrated Emperor's personality too much to anymore make a distinction in order to rebel against it.

[Ryllharu]

Chapters 8 and 9 have been released.
Onemanga (http://www.onemanga.com/Magical_Girl_Lyrical_Nanoha_ViVid/8/)

Lutecia's personality seems a bit...different. She became quite a bit more perky since getting her mother back.

Just the girls having fun training aside from that. Vivio once again reminding Einhart that she isn't alone anymore. I'm hoping that in fighting Subaru during practice matches, Einhart gets a real challenger to her Kaiser Arts from the Strike Arts practitioners. Subaru and Ginga are supposed to be the best after their mother was killed if I am not mistaken.

Whoever accomplishes it, Einhart needs to lose just to experience loss. Judging from the water splitting training, Einhart's training isn't as well rounded as the other girls is, and the benefits of being a couple years older and disallowing magic during the bouts are really helping Einhart against Vivio. Nove lost to Subaru pretty easily during StrikerS, as well as Teana, so if Einhart went up against either of those two, she should be considerably more pressed.

[Kraco]

I don't think a whole lot of people (on the good side) aside from Subaru and Ginga displayed unarmed martial arts in Strikers, or did they? Quite a few can fight nicely with some sort of a weapon, though (still melee), so if Einhart doesn't have problems with that, she would have lots of people to train with. In fact it would be better that way since it would give quite a bit of variation. Actually I'd like Erio to fight her - though I wouldn't like him to lose. I have no idea how well he fights without magic (did he ever train with Signum, or am I remembering some doujin?). But as it is, the all-girls party is getting kind of boring.

[Ryllharu]

I don't think a whole lot of people (on the good side) aside from Subaru and Ginga displayed unarmed martial arts in Strikers, or did they?
...
But as it is, the all-girls party is getting kind of boring.
Nanoha series are known for being all-girls parties, so I disagree there. That is what Nanoha Force is for.

Zafira (the Belkan Knight's familiar) used unarmed combat abilities during StrikerS, though his primary role is support. Eariler in A's, the cat twins (though they were "bad") used unarmed combat too. They fought more like Sankt Kaiser Vivio though, using magic attacks from their bare hands. They were familiars too. I don't remember Arf's combat style too much, she was far more invested in support.

[Kraco]

Nanoha series are known for being all-girls parties, so I disagree there. That is what Nanoha Force is for.

Yeah, unfortunately I know that only too well. But I can't help it. Even Erio made me so glad in Strikers despite the fact he was a little runt not good for anything really. A fight is a fight no matter if it's a man or a woman but outside of fights mixing bother sexes somehow creates better dynamics in my opinion. Different kinds of tensions, disruptions, and behaviors (in a plot wise positive manner).

[Buffalobiian]

Onemanga - Chapter 10
(http://www.onemanga.com/Magical_Girl_Lyrical_Nanoha_ViVid/10/)

This manga's monthly!? :(



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

I don't think a whole lot of people (on the good side) aside from Subaru and Ginga displayed unarmed martial arts in Strikers, or did they? Quite a few can fight nicely with some sort of a weapon, though (still melee), so if Einhart doesn't have problems with that, she would have lots of people to train with. In fact it would be better that way since it would give quite a bit of variation. Actually I'd like Erio to fight her - though I wouldn't like him to lose. I have no idea how well he fights without magic (did he ever train with Signum, or am I remembering some doujin?). But as it is, the all-girls party is getting kind of boring.
__________________

Erio trained with Signum in StrikerS for a little while. I wonder how his style's developed, since he always looked funny. He's always flying with his spear like it's a rocket, which limited him so literally spearing oponents and not much of anything else. From a realistic point of view, it's weird how he can maintain a certain direction and stuff yet swing his spear when its booster is going at full blast.

My favourite scene of him was when he dashed up the escalator to grope save Caro in StrikerS ep1 or 2.

-----

I echo Ryll's comments about Lutecia. She's much more talkative. She even teases people now.

I'm having the most amount of trouble telling Subaru and Nove apart, but since we're mostly seeing Nove, it's less of a problem. The one that gets me the most is Teena. Since she's hanging out with the cyborgs, I automatically assume she's Ginga 90% of the time.

I also laughed a bit when they mentioned Einhart was heterochromatic. Like we could tell. :p

And I have a hard time adjusting to seeing her hair as a shade of green. For some reason she reminds me of Felli Loss (Chrome Shelled Regios) that I always see her hair as pink.

I remember how.. sad I was when Fate grew up and lost some screentime in StrikerS, but now that the protagonist is Vivio, I can't complain. He cuteness makes up for it 100%. :)

[Kraco]

Onemanga - Chapter 11 (http://www.onemanga.com/Magical_Girl_Lyrical_Nanoha_ViVid/11/01/) (solelo (http://www.solelo.com/blog/index.php/2010/04/magical-girl-lyrical-nanoha-vivid-vivio-memory-11/))

[Buffalobiian]

I have to say, nicely balanced teams indeed. Can't wait for it.

Very entertaining chapter for obvious reasons, and naturally my only complaint is that Nanoha and Fate didn't go for a bath with them. Perhaps they intend on having a "private" one elsewhere - kukuku. :D

[Ryllharu]

I'm having the most amount of trouble telling Subaru and Nove apart, but since we're mostly seeing Nove, it's less of a problem.After careful observation, there is an easy way to tell the two apart. It was more difficult before because they shaded the hair colors the same (less of a problem now). Still, this trick has held true through the series.

Nove's ahoge goes forward. Subaru's ahoge goes backward.
----------------------------------


I noticed that neither of the teams have Erio on them. He never gets a chance to show off. Poor guy.

I just hope Vivio is able to use magic against Einhart now. We haven't seen her use it at all in the series. I don't think she can beat Einhart straight up in hand to hand combat. Add in some thrown projectile magic, and she can probably win. Vivio also used close combat blasts more like Subaru.

[Buffalobiian]

After careful observation, there is an easy way to tell the two apart. It was more difficult before because they shaded the hair colors the same (less of a problem now). Still, this trick has held true through the series.

Nove's ahoge goes forward. Subaru's ahoge goes backward.
----------------------------------


Ah. I must remember that.




I noticed that neither of the teams have Erio on them. He never gets a chance to show off. Poor guy.


He's the Guard Wing(?) in Nanoha's team, facing off against Fate.

[Kraco]

Indeed he is. And Caro is in the opposite team! No way those two could fight against each other even if they happened to meet face to face... Well, it's just like Nanoha to break them up.

[Ryllharu]

[Erio]'s the Guard Wing(?) in Nanoha's team, facing off against Fate.
Hmm, for some reason I thought that was Dieci, but apparently during the bath scene I got her mixed up with Caro...I blame Nove-Subaru Ahoge tunnel vision.

I don't remember Caro having a long ponytail like Dieci before, and I didn't notice it until now. She even has the bow.

[Buffalobiian]

Memory 12: The match begins!

MT (http://www.mangatraders.com/manga/series/5067) | Onemanga (http://www.onemanga.com/Magical_Girl_Lyrical_Nanoha_ViVid/12/01/)






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

- Wing Guard (Erio & Fate) have more health than Center Guard (Nanoha & Teana)? I'd understand Erio vs Teana, but Nanoha having less HP than Fate is a bit eye-boggling. Guess these points are tied to their positions more than anything though. After all, if they were based on real attributes it may be unbalanced.

- One of my dislikes with manga as a medium is how difficult it is to make out action scenes sometimes. Exactly what happened in that scene where Vivio said "whoops"? Did she slip, or did her kick miss? Was that Einhart moving in for the opening too? :S

Vivio's first couple of magical attacks were nicely done. It really shows that she's both a Strike Arts practitioner and magician in one.

-Corona's summon was unexpected and pretty cool. Huge golem that even has armour, you can't go wrong with that.

-And of course, "to be continued" is placed right where Fate's fight would have been. :(

[Ryllharu]

- One of my dislikes with manga as a medium is how difficult it is to make out action scenes sometimes. Exactly what happened in that scene where Vivio said "whoops"? Did she slip, or did her kick miss? Was that Einhart moving in for the opening too? :S

Vivio's first couple of magical attacks were nicely done. It really shows that she's both a Strike Arts practitioner and magician in one.

-Corona's summon was unexpected and pretty cool. Huge golem that even has armour, you can't go wrong with that.
For me, Corona having a summon was obvious when Lutecia was discussing creating her device in the previous chapters. She's probably the only one qualified to create a device for an up and coming summoner. It being that big was another matter entirely...

I wonder if it has some sentience of its own like Garyuu and 'Fried or if it is very much the golem it appears to be. That aside, it should be interesting to see if Lio's destructive potential can counter Corona's defense.

Einhart got Vivio with a leg sweep, hence the "oops," remark. Vivio left herself wide open for kicks when she was off-balance from her own kick that Einhart blocked.

As we saw in the Strikers anime, Vivio is a composite of all the people who influenced her during the J.S. Incident. Her barrier jacket takes its cues from Nanoha (the jacket), Fate (the bodysuit), Subaru (the leg plates), Ginga (the midriff), and even some influence from the Numbers.

She also fights the same way. She uses Subaru's Divine Buster and mid-combat binds that are Fate and Nanoha's specialties. The leap to attack from above was a staple of Nanoha versus Fate, who used it on each other all the time. Obviously being a practicioner of Strike Arts, she borrows the most from Subaru and Nove. The only thing that Vivio lacks from Einhart's evaluation is that she is far too straight-forward. The jump-to-Divine Buster almost caught her, but Einhart easily deflected Vivio's other attacks, and her 'Cyclonic Wave' will probably hit Vivio hard because Vivio is going to end up running straight into it.

The other matchup I'm most interested in is Nanoha versus Teana. Teana mentioned that if she really wanted to, Nanoha could destroy the entire team in a single attack. But the one thing that hurts Nanoha is that she uses a lot of charge time. Her attacks are overwhelmingly devastating, but they take some time to gather/generate the energy she needs. Teana has a distinct advantage there, because as we saw in Strikers, Teana specializes in the "sharpness" of her shots. She is weak in terms of overall magical power, but she can manipulate the energy she uses better than anyone else in the franchise. Teana only has to hit Nanoha's charging attacks and all the energy will blow up right in Nanoha's face (as Teana did to Wendi in StrikerS). Between Nanoha's utility powers and harrassment shots and Teana's illusions and "sharp" shots, it should be a very thrilling fight.

Fate and Erio is just speed versus speed as far as I'm concerned, and Lutecia and Caro is a repeat of their face off in StrikerS. Same goes for Subaru and Nove, they are more or less clones...

[Kraco]

I still maintain this whole battle would be more interesting if the captains had decided to use more evil, or efficient and intelligent, tactics. Placing the equal positions against each other only makes sense if they started the whole thing face to face and thus there was no choice in order to avoid an early annihilation. Otherwise the art of war would speak against it. With some diversions it should have been possible to knock some weaker members of the opposing team out early in unequal fights.

But maybe it's like Ryll said in irc: The team that wins the early equal fights stands a much better chance to win the whole battle. So, if you trust your luck (or skills, bleh) in the beginning, you can reasonably expect to win the whole thing.

Then again, I suppose winning the battle isn't really the main priority but getting some hands-on experience. The older folks of course already have plenty of that from the real deal but that's all the more reason to allow the kids to fight honourably.

Anyway, it was interesting to see Einhart isn't totally oblivious to magic, even if she can't use it like somebody raised by Nanoha and Fate.

[Ryllharu]

Anyway, it was interesting to see Einhart isn't totally oblivious to magic, even if she can't use it like somebody raised by Nanoha and Fate.I'm less certain of that. We didn't see the her Kaiser Arts ability activate. It was a counter to Vivio's 'Sonic Shooter' (iridescent balls of energy, similar to Fate in the first anime). The 'Cyclonic Wave' could be a magical attack similar to the Subaru Divine Buster, or it could be a physical strike that doesn't use magic.

Without seeing it, I'm not ready to say we've seen her use magic.

[Buffalobiian]

Fate and Erio is just speed versus speed as far as I'm concerned,


....

but ... Sonic Form Fate..:o


I wholeheartedly agree with you that Teena vs Nanoha is the most interesting of all the matchups.

[Kraco]

I'm less certain of that. We didn't see the her Kaiser Arts ability activate. It was a counter to Vivio's 'Sonic Shooter' (iridescent balls of energy, similar to Fate in the first anime). The 'Cyclonic Wave' could be a magical attack similar to the Subaru Divine Buster, or it could be a physical strike that doesn't use magic.

Without seeing it, I'm not ready to say we've seen her use magic.

I chose my words somewhat poorly. I didn't mean she's completely unable to use magic, just that she's probably not going to be relying on it as much as Nanoha and Fate use it all the time or how much Vivio likely is going to be using it having been raised by those two, even if she's also deeply vested with strike arts as well.

And furthermore, I mean projectile magic, binds and such, not empowering her punches and kicks with it, which is more or less given, I'd reckon.

[Buffalobiian]

Chapters 13 - 16 available from Mangafox (http://www.mangafox.com/manga/mahou_shoujo_lyrical_nanoha_vivid/?no_warning=1#listing)

edit: changed "chap 17" to "16". Sorry to disappoint.

[Kraco]

When it rains, it pours, eh? The series was dead for a long time, then that Payapaya Scans group appeared out of nowhere promising to scanlate Vivid and released chapter 16 to get it started. Yet now Mangafox got all the missing chapters from an Anonymous source?

[Buffalobiian]

OMG.. Sonic Form!!! I never thought I'd get to see that again ~<3<3

(edit: and the battle-damaged version?! /nosebleed)

http://img195.imageshack.us/img195/958/53404521.jpg

Interestingly, Fate sported her non-twintail hairstyle in all depictions of Sonic Form.


I have to say that only a draw could have been a "satisfying" ending in order to not take sides and anger any one particular character fanbase, but they managed it rather well by including those tactics. At least it wasn't a completely boring even duke-out.

Even after all this time, I can still not imagine Einhart being any colour other than pink.

[Kraco]

I think I'll wait for that new group, at least for a while. Mangafox's greatest strength seems to be abysmal image quality. I'm no purist but even I have some standards.

[Buffalobiian]

I think I'll wait for that new group, at least for a while. Mangafox's greatest strength seems to be abysmal image quality. I'm no purist but even I have some standards.

Is this opinion made from prior experience, or made after sampling the latest chapters posted above?

Just wanting to see where your quality standard lay. I personally thought the image quality didn't hinder my enjoyment at all, and I don't read enough to know whether it's bad or not.

[Kraco]

Well, as it is, I have read very little manga online so my above evaluation was very hasty and based solely on the chapter 13. The other streamed manga I've read is from Mangastream (Soul Eater) and it's a lot better than this dismayingly small, dirty, and compression artefact filled Vivid. Although to be fair it could be totally the uploader's fault and Mangafox could be innocent. No clue.

Hmm... Now that I had a look at chapter 12 on my HD, I have to admit it's certainly not fully chapter 13's own fault. But nevertheless, the lack of quality does annoy me.

[Kraco]

A new group, ViVid Translations (http://vividtrans.wordpress.com/2010/11/16/magical-girl-lyrical-nanoha-vivid-chapter-17-released/), scanlated chapter 17 and promises to release also 13-15. And keep translating in the future.

[Buffalobiian]

Haha, Einhart's reaction to Hayate was the most apt. From her attire, I thought the line "You're on holiday" was referring to her.

[Kraco]

That scene was certainly the best of this chapter. Poor Einhart never knows what to expect from all the goofy but absurdly strong magical girls (and one boy) forming Vivio's extended family.

[Ryllharu]

I finally managed to get all caught up, but one thing still nags me from the conclusion of the first group combat round.

When did Teana learn (or even have the capacity for) Starlight Breaker? I had thought from StrikerS that Teana was highly skilled at refining and manipulating her mana, but had a low capacity, and suffered greatly from stamina issues. While it's true that Starlight Breaker pulls in residual magical energies, it still puts an immense strain on its caster.

I'm glad that Einhart is getting a device like Vivio's, but if it is a true Belkan one, I wonder if it will be as smart as Reinforce and Agito, who are both Unison Devices themselves. It's especially fitting that the Haou is getting a device handcrafted by the Queen of the Night Sky.

As for Vivio, I really hope she starts learning a few advanced techniques like Einhart has in her arsenal. Her special skill right now happens to be Counter, which from the mock-battle, entails taking a hard hit from her opponent before hitting them with a simple counter. She needs more special skills, Einhart is starting to steal the series! Subaru/Nove need to teach her more slick moves in addition to their version of the Divine Buster.

[Kraco]

It could be true that Einhart is starting to steal the series but on the other hand, at least Vivio is very much her own girl these days. Einhart seems to have lost much of what she would have otherwise been, being so obsessed with (overwritten by) Haou's desires and memories. So, even if Vivio isn't as strong as she otherwise could have been, I deem her much luckier regardless, as she's still plenty strong and moreover has had the opportunity to develop as she wanted under Nanoha. She's Vivio Takamachi much more than Einhart is Einhart Stratos.

[Ryllharu]

Chapter 19 (http://vividtrans.wordpress.com/2011/02/09/release-chapter-19-asteon/) is out now from Vivid Translations.

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

Did Shante actually slash Vivio, or did Vivio and Kris visualize the outcome and avoid the blow before Shante even followed through? That wasn't very clear from their conversation afterward, not to mention the lack of blood on Vivio's clothes.

It seems that Vivio was already aware of her weaknesses when it comes to close combat. She knows that she can't hold up to mages with real weapon-style devices when she is only barefisted. Shante and Deed mentioned that she no longer has her armor, but Kris has thus far managed a quite decent facsimile of the armor. Vivio may like Strike Arts the best, but she has quite a number of skills in her disposal that another close combat only mage like Einhart doesn't. Vivio is a lot more like Lio (fire/lightning combo skills). Deed and Shante are probably right about where Vivio should be on a field since she can't take enough damage to be a Forward like Nove, Subaru or Einhart.

I wonder what kind of "full potential" Vivio and Kris could be achieving. Was this statement in part because Shante only knows of Vivio's Strike Arts? It seems Nove is going to have her focus on her counters, where Vivio's buster attacks would be very effective. She's like Subaru, but doesn't need to use cartridges. Perhaps Vivio will end up like an Excellion-style Nanoha with some Fate skills mixed in based around Nove/Subaru attacks.

As for Einhart...I smiled at the device that matches Vivio's in terms of styling, but I was sort of expecting something more traditional like Lio and Corona were expecting. The look on Nove and Cinque's faces was priceless.

[Buffalobiian]

Did Shante actually slash Vivio, or did Vivio and Kris visualize the outcome and avoid the blow before Shante even followed through? That wasn't very clear from their conversation afterward, not to mention the lack of blood on Vivio's clothes.

That's my take on it after giving it some thought. Shante said Vivio saw it or something. (I was shocked after seeing that slash scene too). I guess this plays back to that whole "parallel processing" thing, whatever that means. Besides not being able to take much damage anymore after losing her armour, I think what Shante was getting at was that Vivio by nature has the processing ability akin to a "sixth sense". While her brain can keep up with all this, her body couldn't though, which would also explain why "it's not suited to defence and offence" despite its obvious advantage.

Rear Guard and Wing stand back from the battle a bit, where Vivio would be able to digest the entire battle and provide the most apt support or move when needed.

Still, parallel processing? That doesn't really give us much to work with until they expand on it more.


I wonder what kind of "full potential" Vivio and Kris could be achieving. Was this statement in part because Shante only knows of Vivio's Strike Arts? It seems Nove is going to have her focus on her counters, where Vivio's buster attacks would be very effective.

Counters make sense from all this "parallel processing" idea. I thought Nove was trying to polish up Vivio's technique so she could counter properly after she sees through an attack.

And Chapter 19.5 (http://www.mangafox.com/manga/mahou_shoujo_lyrical_nanoha_vivid/v02/c019.5/) is also out. Man, and to think I even hated Vita at one point...

[Ryllharu]

I think what Shante was getting at was that Vivio by nature has the processing ability akin to a "sixth sense". While her brain can keep up with all this, her body couldn't though, which would also explain why "it's not suited to defence and offence" despite its obvious advantage.
...
Counters make sense from all this "parallel processing" idea. I thought Nove was trying to polish up Vivio's technique so she could counter properly after she sees through an attack.
This reasoning makes perfect sense. I agree with it fully.

They've been hyping up the strength of Vivio's countering ability, and her magic attacks are very fast (almost instant Divine Buster). If that is the way Kris is meant to be used, providing a pre-cog effect for Vivio, then it could put her on an equal level with the rivals.

Vivio is aware of some of her weaknesses, Nove understands the strength of her counters, Deed and Shante are aware of her device's true strengths. It isn't in Shante's best interest to share that, but it sure is in Deed's.

[Kraco]

With how goofy Hayate was made in this particular manga, I wasn't overly surprised Einhart's device was also a stuffed animal. Can't say it wouldn't have disappointed me, though. She will probably have it reshaped in a few years...

Parallel processing seems like a skill you'd need most when fighting multiple opponents or an opponent very different from yourself (to try to formulate suitable responses to unknown attacks/defenses). Vivio should have major potential is magic, despite the fact she wants to stick to martial arts at the moment, so it should serve her well. Although in a sports match having some martial arts skills is likely extremely important if only to buy time.