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REVIEW: A Certain Magical Index Novel 1


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jr240483



Joined: 24 Dec 2005
Posts: 4367
Location: New York City,New York,USA
PostPosted: Fri Dec 26, 2014 12:47 pm Reply with quote
too bad its not the manga version cause to be frank there are people that would rather read the manga version instead of the light novel version. that is proven considering the manga versions for both highschool dxd and sword art online are more popular here than their light novel counterparts.

not to mention that it would feel really awkward that toaru no majustu index got no manga release , but toaru no kagaku railgun does.
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kazziyan



Joined: 26 Nov 2012
Posts: 391
PostPosted: Fri Dec 26, 2014 12:58 pm Reply with quote
jr0904 wrote:
too bad its not the manga version cause to be frank there are people that would rather read the manga version instead of the light novel version. that is proven considering the manga versions for both highschool dxd and sword art online are more popular here than their light novel counterparts.

not to mention that it would feel really awkward that toaru no majustu index got no manga release , but toaru no kagaku railgun does.


The manga isn't necessarily better though. That is definitely true in Index's case. Good that they brought the original source material first, since this is the format that should be read for Index.

Manga is coming out in May anyway.
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Hameyadea



Joined: 23 Jun 2014
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PostPosted: Fri Dec 26, 2014 1:24 pm Reply with quote
jr0904 wrote:
too bad its not the manga version cause to be frank there are people that would rather read the manga version instead of the light novel version. that is proven considering the manga versions for both highschool dxd and sword art online are more popular here than their light novel counterparts.


I think it's a bit more complicated than that. Yes, there are manga adaptations that improve on the source material (for example, as you mentioned, Toaru Majutsu no Index), but there are manga adaptations that most people think they're not as good as the source material (I've seen a lot of posts about how the manga version of Madan no O to Vanadis isn't very good at fleshing out the story or give a battle scene a thrilling feel that like in the LN)
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SilverTalon01



Joined: 02 Apr 2012
Posts: 2401
PostPosted: Fri Dec 26, 2014 3:05 pm Reply with quote
Railgun getting its manga brought over already isn't a fair comparison. The manga for that is the original source. It isn't an adaption.

As for the Index manga, I thought it was pretty mediocre. I don't see a point with the anime and novels both being in english. And really, while I do like watching the anime, the novels are really the only way to go because so much information gets lost otherwise.

Quote:
It further points out that Level 0 youths are actually the majority of the 2.3 million students in Academy City (60%, in fact), something which the anime series implies to the contrary.


I don't remember the anime implying the majority weren't level 0. I just remember it saying the majority of the city were espers which includes level 0s.

It definitely takes several volumes for the writing and the art to pick up. Haimura's more recent illustrations are really good.
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Kougeru



Joined: 13 May 2008
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PostPosted: Fri Dec 26, 2014 3:10 pm Reply with quote
I see no issue with Stiyl 's age. At first I was like "LOL he's 14?!?" but then I remembered that in my real life I've met dozens of kids that were 13-16 that looked older than I do (20+). It happens and should not considered a negative.
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Ali07



Joined: 01 Jun 2014
Posts: 3333
Location: Victoria, Australia
PostPosted: Fri Dec 26, 2014 5:28 pm Reply with quote
The only thing stopped me right now from starting to collect this novel series...is the release schedule. Loved the anime, but I can't bring myself to buy the books until they get to a point where something that hasn't been animated will be covered.

I think I may be waiting a few years. Laughing
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SilverTalon01



Joined: 02 Apr 2012
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PostPosted: Fri Dec 26, 2014 6:15 pm Reply with quote
Ali07 wrote:
The only thing stopped me right now from starting to collect this novel series...is the release schedule. Loved the anime, but I can't bring myself to buy the books until they get to a point where something that hasn't been animated will be covered.

I think I may be waiting a few years. Laughing


Thats up to you, but the anime leaves out a huge amount of stuff. Season 1 I think was a little better at it because of the pacing, but season 2 left out a lot of information.
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OH&S



Joined: 15 Jul 2013
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PostPosted: Fri Dec 26, 2014 7:41 pm Reply with quote
That was a spot on review, Theron. I'm surprised that the grades you gave it are overall higher than SAO and AW.

Theron wrote:
(In fact, the way various scenes are staged and described, the writing gives the impression that Kamachi may have specifically had an eventual anime adaptation in mind when writing it.)


To my knowledge, this is a more recent phenomena. Apparently there are LN authors nowadays that write their stories in such a way that it is easy to adapt into an anime.The best example of such a novel/anime is No Game No Life.

Theron wrote:
On the downside, the novel also points out the ages of both Styl and Kanzaki, and especially Styl's does not make sense; he is certainly portrayed as being much older than that, and references to him and Kanzaki having done things once a year on what seems to be multiple previous occasions do not add up.


I'll quote the Index wiki regarding the design for Stiyl that should at least offer a backstory to the whole age - height gaff:

Quote:
...A common theme that Kiyotaka Haimura went for Stiyl and Kaori is that ever since their introduction in Volume 1, the gap between age and appearance in the magic side characters has been much greater than in the science side characters. When he read the first draft of Volume 1, he came with the impression that it was the story of children rebelling against the reasoning of adults. Stating that:"...I thought Kamijou would have seen Stiyl and Kanzaki as adults that used reasonings and principles that a child would refuse to accept." Haimura believed that the Index novels would go on for so long, as such he went with the designs that did not match their age, and by volume 7 Haimura began regretting his decision.


Its pretty amusing that the author seems to play along with it.

Theron wrote:
None of these illustrations are above mediocre in quality and all are distinctly improved upon by the anime.


Haimura's earliest illustrations really haven't aged well over these 10+ years. Luckily the illustrations get much better as the series progresses such that he is always at the top of the Kono LN ga Sugoi! Artist polls. Especially his character art.

Theron wrote:
Evaluated as a standalone read, the novel's greatest strength is how it defines and describes an intriguing (if also illogical) setting, one where the development of psychic powers is the norm rather than the exception. Adding a complex magical system which exists side-by-side but still outside the knowledge of most allows for even greater diversity and to see how the two might interact. Touma, as a protagonist who must endure the disadvantages of his power but can also put it to indispensable use in the right situations, also impresses, and the storytelling does do an effective job of keeping him from seeming overpowered, as the same ability which can break any supernatural offense or defense also prevents him from using or being benefited by them, too.


Probably the most important paragraph in the entire review. This is indeed the charm of the series that keeps me coming back for more.
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Via_01



Joined: 24 Aug 2014
Posts: 551
PostPosted: Fri Dec 26, 2014 10:06 pm Reply with quote
Regarding Styl's age, I always thought he looked older because: 1) he is really tall, even by England's standard (and japanese people are relatively small in comparison) and 2) because of his upbringing on the magic side, which forced him to mature far more quickly than the average 14-years-old.

Of course, as OH&S said, the author also didn't take into account that the series would be this popular, and thus just played around with his age and appearance. I suppose this is why in the anime they make no direct mention to his age, leading us all to believe that he's supposed to be an older guy.

Good review. This volume isn't too strong, but it's 10 years old and the author was just starting, so I suppose we can at least give him that. I will say though that his last few novels have impressed me though. I hope we get to see the New Testament novels translated in the future.
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Ali07



Joined: 01 Jun 2014
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PostPosted: Sat Dec 27, 2014 12:52 am Reply with quote
SilverTalon01 wrote:
Ali07 wrote:
The only thing stopped me right now from starting to collect this novel series...is the release schedule. Loved the anime, but I can't bring myself to buy the books until they get to a point where something that hasn't been animated will be covered.

I think I may be waiting a few years. Laughing


Thats up to you, but the anime leaves out a huge amount of stuff. Season 1 I think was a little better at it because of the pacing, but season 2 left out a lot of information.

Oh, I'm not talking about skipping through volumes to just read what hasn't been touched by the anime. Would still get everything, eventually. But, I'm not really wanting to read over stuff that I've mostly seen without something new to follow it up quickly.

I'd just rather spend time reading things that are new (or new to me) instead of reading novels that are the source material of an anime I've seen, even if there is more detail or events that weren't covered. This is made even less attractive with the release schedule for these LNs.

I don't know exactly up to where the anime got to in the LN series, but I'm thinking it'll be late-2016 or 2017 before uncovered ground is tread upon?
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OH&S



Joined: 15 Jul 2013
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PostPosted: Sat Dec 27, 2014 1:15 am Reply with quote
Ali07 wrote:

Oh, I'm not talking about skipping through volumes to just read what hasn't been touched by the anime. Would still get everything, eventually. But, I'm not really wanting to read over stuff that I've mostly seen without something new to follow it up quickly.

I'd just rather spend time reading things that are new (or new to me) instead of reading novels that are the source material of an anime I've seen, even if there is more detail or events that weren't covered. This is made even less attractive with the release schedule for these LNs.

I don't know exactly up to where the anime got to in the LN series, but I'm thinking it'll be late-2016 or 2017 before uncovered ground is tread upon?


Buying in bulk then? Well the rate the novels are being released is 4 per year (which is pretty much what you'd call a rapid release schedule compared to SAO and AW).

The Anime covered up till Volume SS which is basically Volume 13.5.

You may end up waiting until mid 2018 at this pace. Sad
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ScruffyKiwi



Joined: 25 Oct 2010
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Location: New Zealand
PostPosted: Sat Dec 27, 2014 4:38 am Reply with quote
Via_01 wrote:
Regarding Styl's age, I always thought he looked older because: 1) he is really tall, even by England's standard (and japanese people are relatively small in comparison) and 2) because of his upbringing on the magic side, which forced him to mature far more quickly than the average 14-years-old.


The problem with Styl's age is not his looks .. it is his previous continual involvement in spoiler[Index's memory reset which happens once a year. It is suggested that he has gone through at least 2 cycles which means that he would have started getting involved with this as a preteen which simply is not credible.]
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OH&S



Joined: 15 Jul 2013
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Location: Sydney, Australia
PostPosted: Sat Dec 27, 2014 5:47 am Reply with quote
ScruffyKiwi wrote:
Via_01 wrote:
Regarding Styl's age, I always thought he looked older because: 1) he is really tall, even by England's standard (and japanese people are relatively small in comparison) and 2) because of his upbringing on the magic side, which forced him to mature far more quickly than the average 14-years-old.


The problem with Styl's age is not his looks .. it is his previous continual involvement in spoiler[Index's memory reset which happens once a year. It is suggested that he has gone through at least 2 cycles which means that he would have started getting involved with this as a preteen which simply is not credible.]


Stiyl would have been around 12 - 13 years old when he (along with Kanzaki) was the previous caretaker of Index. After he spends a year with her, Index's memory is reset. Then he and Kanzaki watch over her from afar for another year leading to the events in this novel.

If that seems too young, one only needs to take a look at the main cast of Railgun:

Misaka Mikoto; Age 14; #3 Level 5
Shirai Kuroko; Age 12 - 13; Level 4 Teleporter in Judgement
Uiharu Kazari; Age 12 - 13; #1 Genius Hacker in Academy City

Basically, his age is credible enough given the context of the universe he is in where people with a young age can do some rather incredible things.
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jr240483



Joined: 24 Dec 2005
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Location: New York City,New York,USA
PostPosted: Sat Dec 27, 2014 7:47 am Reply with quote
Kougeru wrote:
I see no issue with Stiyl 's age. At first I was like "LOL he's 14?!?" but then I remembered that in my real life I've met dozens of kids that were 13-16 that looked older than I do (20+). It happens and should not considered a negative.


and not to mentioned that style smokes and kanzaki have some serious cleavage to be a teenager. sure there is shoukou (mental out) and fukuyousei, but there is no way she's a teenager.same with style.

we can understand komoe since we all know that dwarfism disability exists, but their ages definitely wont make sense at all.


kazziyan wrote:


The manga isn't necessarily better though. That is definitely true in Index's case.


True, however its as i said, there are times that people will choose the manga version or anime version over a light novel or visual novel source material. one proof of that is highschool dxd and SAO. some people have prefered their manga versions over the LN. of course there are LNs like Sekai no Senaki (Crest of the Stars ) & Moribito that are far better, but mainly prefer the anime since it does the storyline well. especially for moribito's case.

and there are times where people will prefer the manga and anime versions over the original source materials if its ero based and one base of my case is some of type moon's series especially FSN. we all know that their visual novels is ero and most fans hate it ,which is why instead they would prefer their alternate anime and manga version.hell most of the popular harem anime series original source material came from ero novels or games.

so while looking at the original source material is definitely better off, there may not be a choice for some series and to be frank it's better that way that there is an anime and manga version for index and railgun. could they have been a lot more faithful towards the souce materials.absolutely. but considering on how popular they are now, its a mood point. hopefully if it does well enough , it might consider the author and JC Staff to consider a season 3 for Index & Railgun.
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Key
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Joined: 03 Nov 2003
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Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley)
PostPosted: Sat Dec 27, 2014 11:37 am Reply with quote
jr0904 wrote:
and there are times where people will prefer the manga and anime versions over the original source materials if its ero based and one base of my case is some of type moon's series especially FSN. we all know that their visual novels is ero and most fans hate it ,which is why instead they would prefer their alternate anime and manga version.

Categorically false. I have talked to a lot of F/SN fans who adore the original VN. In fact, based on my experience the ones that hate it are not only a minority but also a small one.
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