Manga Mondays #142: Vampire Knight vol. 16 by Matsuri Hino

Manga Mondays Meme

I've been doing Manga Mondays every week since I started my blog 2 and a half years ago. It's always been a personal feature, but now I'm going to try turning it into a meme. There are quite a few people who do Manga Mondays. I don't claim by any means that I owned or created the idea of Manga Mondays - it's an obvious choice given the alliteration. I think a meme would be a good way for everyone to publicize their own Manga Mondays and get a little more publicity.

The linky will be below my review.

Vampire Knight vol. 16 by Matsuri Hino

Summary

Cross Academy is attended by two groups of students: the Day Class and the Night Class. At twilight, when the students of the Day Class return to their dorm, they cross paths with the Night Class on their way to school. Yuki Cross and Zero Kiryu are the Guardians of the school, protecting the Day Class from the Academy's dark secret: the Night Class is full of vampires!

The Night Class is back in session, but Yuki finds herself quickly becoming second fiddle to Sara Shirabuki. With Kaname gone, Yuki is now desperate for blood, so Zero offers her his own. Will she break her promise to Kaname and drink from Zero? (courtesy of Goodreads)

Review

*Warning: Potential spoilers. My manga reviews tend to be more of a summary than a review. I find it hard to review manga in the same way I do regular books.

Vampire Knight can increasingly be summarized with one word: confusing. The plot is confusing - who is good or bad; what's going on? The characters are confusing - who is who - it's hard to tell people apart. And yet, I keep reading and mostly enjoying this series.


I like that Yuki is coming back to be the strong girl that she started out the series as. She lost her way when Kaname first changed her back into a vampire and revealed her history. We saw Yuki's strength really emerge in Volume 15. It's more subtle in this volume, but Yuki seems increasingly sure of herself, even when she's not sure of Kaname or exactly what's going on around her.

But really Yuki took a back seat in this volume. Much of the volume is about Headmaster Cross going after Kaname himself. Headmaster Cross is a fascinating contradiction. He's a vampire hunter but a man devoted to peace. He came across as silly at the beginning of the series but is increasingly serious. He went from being Yuki's virtual father to being a near stranger and is now becoming involved in her life again.

The other main plot arc is the blood pills that Sara's company developed. Yuki suspects that something is wrong with them and she's right. They make vampires who take them forget their dedication to peace and cooperation. Sara's trying to make slaves, either people who will serve her directly or indirectly by creating chaos. Sara has gained a lot of power at the school in a short period of time, but people are beginning to catch on to her.

The major development in Volume 16 is not so much a development as a question. What is Kaname doing? Of course, we've been wondering that for a long time, but after a few volumes where he seems to be pure evil, there's a hint of doubt. Yuki realizes that Kaname did not commit a few murdered which were attributed to him. That's not to say he didn't commit others, but it opens a door to see some layers to whatever he's doing. I'm sure curious. And that's what keeps me coming back no matter how odd this series is.

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