I had a good laugh with this one because it's been so long since I've read Ranma 1/2 that I had forgotten that Shampoo and Mousse also turn into animals when splashed with cold water.

This book did a great job of introducing us to Louis Zamperini's life story in a narrative way that made it more relatable and interesting. The description of Japanese war camps during WWII helped show that war tends to bring the ugliest parts of humanity out. However, the unity that there was between Louis and his fellow soldiers also shows that there is solidarity that is built through tough experiences as well. It was also great to see the aftermath of the Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal because despite how crazy it is to think about war criminals getting away with war crimes, it is a common reality. Unfortunately, political interests tend to be placed before Justice in things like that. In addition, I appreciated that the amount of mental health issues a lot of veterans suffered after the war were addressed. With everything so many of them went through it's no wonder. WWII was a very all encompassing war, so I imagine a lot of civilians probably had similar mental health issues since there was so much civilian involvement in that war in particular. Overall, a great biography to pick up about an incredible man.

***SPOILERS AHEAD***



Issue 1: Someone is out just killing heroes apparently, and Harley Quinn seems to have been possessed or gone more bonkers than she already was. I can't believe so many people are dead. We don't get much context in this issue so I hope I understand more of what's going on next issue. It has my attention, that's for sure.


Issue 2: I really appreciate the take this story is taking. We rarely get to see heroes be this imperfect and vulnerable and that is actually what they are being with Sanctuary. Heroes to me have always been more like soldiers than anything else, except with no benefits or government funded help for their mental health issues. Obviously every one of them has issues and we even get a Bruce Wayne that opens up about his trauma from having to deal with so much death around him. I'm looking forward to see who the actually murderer is. Booster Gold and Harley have serious mental health problems, but I don't think that necessarily means they are the ones causing this, at least not on purpose.

Issue 3: The depression that the characters felt while in Sanctuary is palpable. This time it was mostly focused on Wally West, Lagoon Boy, and Booster Gold, but their hearts felt so heavy the whole time. It's still very unclear how much of what we are seeing is an illusion and how much is actually real. I'm looking forward to finding out.

Issue 4: I don't think it's ever sucked more to be Lois Lane. I'm sure she found a way to not reveal too much information that will put the Trinity in jeopardy or anything, but it's still not an ideal position to be in. It's also really interesting to see Batgirl and Harley of all people bonding. Then again they share an abuser, so it's not too much of a stretch. We still don't know how accurate Booster's memory is, so I'm hesitant to trust it for now. I'm still waiting to find out more for next issue, but this series has me on the edge of my seat.

Issue 5: Superman's speech was probably as good as it could have been, and I can feel how upset he is with the whole situation and its fallout. I'm glad he at least has Lois for support. I'm not sure what Harley and Batgirl are planning exactly, but I'm hoping they can work together with Booster Gold and Blue Beetle to figure out exactly what happened. There is something that isn't adding up here because if what Booster is saying about the age of the bodies is true then there is someone else that's trying to cover something up. We'll see where this goes.

Issue 6: We get some more insight into the psyche of Gnarrk, Wally West, and Harley, but I don't feel we got much more information about who is responsible for the massacre. I wish there was more going on this issue, honestly, because it felt like a lot of fluff.

Issue 7: So I think I'm more on board with Batgirl and Harley's plan. Booster and Blue Beetle are actually working with them now, but I'm afraid the rest of the Justice League won't believe them if they tell them what's going on. Hopefully Wally is still alive like they think he is, because things aren't adding up so far.

Issue 8: I want expecting that to go in that direction, but Wally's background in forensics makes sense with being able to cover this up so well. Depending on how issue 9 resolves this, I might like or dislike this run. I can understand Wally having the initial reaction of covering his crime up, but I'm hoping the guilt still eventually get him to fess up.

Issue 9: It seems like Flash is paying the consequences of what he did. I wasn't super clear on whether or not Flash is going to be able to reverse the damage or not. I'm assuming that Flash Forward will be covering that part of the storyline. Overall, I'm pretty satisfied with Heroes in Crisis. I think Wally panicked when he accidentally killed his teammates and feared that if he was caught he would stop being a real hero in the world's eyes. None of what he did was intentional and I think that he'll definitely have to work hard to redeem himself, but what he did was manslaughter at its worst and his true crime was trying to cover up what happened. However, he did end up owning up to it and I'm sure he's going to try and fix it at this point. I'm looking forward to seeing Flash Forward handles the aftermath of all this.

It was clear from the beginning that Khalid was not super happy about having to marry again and it always felt like there was something he knew that Shahrzad did not. I know this is a retelling, but I think despite that the author was able to keep a sense of suspense because we don’t know the exact reason why Khalid is killing all his brides. It was interesting to see how Khalid sort of knew that he was starting to get to know Shahrzad a bit too well and let it continue to happen. The fact that he allowed himself to get to know her so much to the point that he falls in love with her I think is a display of how lonely he is and how spending time with Shahrzad was his way of taking something back from this curse that was put on him. Ava’s father couldn’t have chosen a more vile and unjust punishment for someone like Khalid. He is someone who is compassionate and gentle and obviously wasn’t the direct cause of Ava’s death. I think that’s the most ironic part of the curse. If Khalid were someone who truly didn’t value other’s lives, having to marry and kill a bunch of wives wouldn’t have really been that much of a punishment. He would have just done it without remorse. However, he does care, a bit too much for his own good sometimes. The fact Ava’s father didn’t deduce that about Khalid’s character and decided to punish him is as petty as you can get.

On another note, I usually highly dislike the childhood friends to lovers trope, but I like how it was incorporated here. Tariq truly cares about Shazi and despite not completely understanding everything that is going on behind the scenes, he is willing to accept that Shazi has moved on with Khalid. In addition, despite knowing that she doesn’t correspond his romantic feelings, he is still willing to continue to protect her by the end of book at risk of his own life. Speaking of romantic relationships, I really like Despina and Jalal as a couple. Despina is a stubborn mule and I really want to see the aftermath of Jalal finding out she is pregnant. He is someone who is also proud and really charismatic. He vibrated with charm the minute he appeared in the pages of this book and I love him for it. Jalal also really cares about Khalid’s well being, but at the same time I couldn’t help but laugh every time he gave Khalid romantic advice considering his own reluctance to seriously pursue Despina and confess his feelings to her. I can’t wait to see more of them together because it’s not like she can just ignore that she’s pregnant. Khalid is the one that worries me the most, though. Being unable to sleep is pretty bad, but the fact that the city is being destroyed is the icing on the cake for the problems he has moving forward. Overall, I really loved this book and its characters and I can’t wait until Shazi and Khalid are able to reunite. 

I've always really liked Jalal and Despina and I'm glad this short story let me spend more time with them, but honestly, I still want to spend more time with them. It is completely understandable that Despina is so protective of her child because she knows what it is like to be looked down upon by others and doesn't want the same to happen to her son or daughter. It is a very unfortunate dynamic but the reality of the society she is in. I'm looking forward to Jalal dealing with the news of her pregnancy in the future. It was also really fun to see Jalal and Despina flirt. They have a fun relationship and I wish they'd let themselves be more open with each other about their feelings.

This is a very short story and it just gives us some insight into Khalid's first impression of Shazi. I appreciated the new perspective because it showed that Shazi was interesting to Khalid from the very beginning. It doesn't really serve to do much else, though, so don't go in expecting a plot or anything.

The magic system in this world is super interesting with grimoires being assigned to each person individually from which they draw their magic. The last manga I read involving magic this heavily was Fairy Tail and this has a similar vibe to Fairy Tail but with a very unique magic system. I really enjoyed Yuna and Asta's relationship. Yuna is naturally more talented than Asta when it comes to Asta (considering Asta has no magic). Despite that, Yuna makes it clear that he continues to have a relationship with Asta not because of his talent but because of his respect for Asta's character and diligence. They are rivals, but before anything else they are friends that have mutual respect for one another. 

Asta despite his stubbornness to the point of being an idiot quickly grew on me and I find him to be very endearing. He's obviously understands what it is like to be looked down upon in a world where magic is the norm. That's exactly what makes him be so compassionate and understanding of other people who can't perform high level magic and are looked down upon for it. His compassion is sure to make him an amazing leader in the future. He stands out on his own for being able to nullify magic in a way no one else can even though he can't perform magic himself. I think Yami as the leader of the Black Bulls will be a perfect fit as a mentor for him. I can't wait to see them build a teacher student relationship and see Yami bring out abilities in Asta he didn't even know he had.

The introduction of the other members of the Black Bulls was also great. Noelle so far is my favorite. She puts on an air of superiority but deep down had her own insecurities about her place as an exiled royal and her relationship with her magic. Her and Asta haven't had much contact yet, but from the little we did see, I can see that they are sure to become mutual cheerleaders for each others accomplishments and journeys to reach their goals. Magna is a hot head, but a very funny one that I'm sure will be making me laugh a lot in future volumes. Gauche looks pretty intimidating on the outside, but I'm sure he's super emotional and fluffy on the inside based on his love for his sister. Vanessa is obviously the drunk in the party, but I don't want to see how she is when someone pisses her off. I'd say the most mysterious member is Luck because it's always the cute smiling ones that are the most terrifying. I'm very happy I picked this up and can't wait to continue reading.

It was nice to be able to read the Lullaby arc since it's been so long since I watched it in the anime. Lucy and Happy's ingenuity really got the team out of trouble this time. Natsu is nuts, but also super powerful. I always appreciate the exaggerated expressions Hiro Mashima gives his characters for emphasis on particular emotions, especially when it comes to humor. I had fun with this volume and my memory is a bit fuzzy, so I'm just going to hope the trial Erza is being subjected to isn't too terrible.

This was the first Brandon Sanderson book I’ve read and I’m glad I was not disappointed at all. This is much darker than a lot of the fantasy I’ve read overall, but I also don’t read adult fantasy that often. Sanderson did an amazing job of keeping me on my toes about who to trust and who not to trust. Vin’s distrust of Kelsier and his companions initially was very in character and made her highly relatable for me. She is someone who was never even able to trust her own family, so when she meets these strangers that openly welcome her with kindness, she is hesitant to accept their assistance. I strongly believe that the development of her relationship with Elend was largely helped by the friendships she built with Kelsier and his crew first. I don’t think she would have been as open to her attraction to him or have as much confidence in him being a noble person had she not been shown what true friendship looked like first. The friendships in this book were the best part of the story for me. I was heartbroken when Kelsier died, but I had a feeling that his death was part of a much more elaborate plan when this happened. Turns out I was correct. Once it was revealed that everything had gone according to his plan, it felt like Kelsier was being smug and clever even in his death. 

I have to say that we got a lot more of Kelsier in this book than a lot of other characters which is why he was one of my favorite characters. This is also of course because he is so likeable. However, Elend is a close second. Elend is a bookworm and I love having him be THAT character. He seems to embody everything dictatorships fear about an educated populace. I think Elend is an excellent representation that knowledge is power. He also has a clear understanding of the luxury and frivolity the nobility live among. The fact that he goes out of his way to rebel against his father in every way possible brought me such joy throughout the story. By the end of the book things have become very complicated, but I’m looking forward to seeing his relationship with Vin continue to progress. I’m sure they’ll find a way to put Elend’s noble standing to good use for this rebellion. This series seems to be an excellent introduction to adult fantasy for anyone looking for an easy door in. I’m looking forward to reading the rest of the series.