Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #19529 in Books
• Published on: 2008-12-16
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 192 pages

Customer Reviews

Fun in th sun

Apparently Ken Akamatsu has decided to have some fun with the cast of "Negima," right before flinging them into an action-packed magical arc that hasn't yet concluded waaaaayyyyy over in Japan.

And while the twentieth volume of "Negima!" Magister Negi Magi" is mostly fanservicey goofing, beachside fun, Anya's jealousy and some random hijinks from Negi's high-spirited students, it starts growing soberer and more haunting when our many myriad heroes finally get to Wales. The last third is undoubtedly the most brilliant -- and Akamatsu is obviously thrilled to take readers into the Magic World at last.

With only a few days before the trip starts, Negi and his friends decide to have some fun -- they frolic on the beach (cue obligatory shot of Negi going to "marshmallow-hell"), go to a manga/anime convention (where Negi innocent flips through an explicit yaoi manga), and have a sleepover where the assorted girls feud over who gets to sleep next to their dead-to-the-world teacher, and end up tossing him around like a teddy bear ("What happened here?" "I don't know, but I ache all over").

Throughout all of this, Negi's childhood friend Anya is getting a bit jealous of Negi's many new friends and their spectacular powers. He assures her that he hasn't forgotten where he came from, or the people who were petrified in their village -- but that doesn't stop her from attempting a disastrous breast-enhancing spell on herself and Nodoka. Cue a mixture of fanservice and deranged slapstick -- the spell causes them to float away on hot-air boobs.

And when they arrive in Wales, Negi's students get to see firsthand where he's lived and worked, as well as his older sister Nekane. But the wonders of his old home are nothing compared to those of the Magic World, which they are transported to early in the morning (with some stowaways, of course). Unfortunately an old enemy is lurking there...

Ken Akamatsu usually has some flirty, fluffy fun (with plenty of fanservice, to cap off the alliteration) before he starts something really serious in "Negima." Things turn quite serious in the last third of "Negima Volume 20," so every page up until that point, Akamatsu focuses mostly on getting the gags, flirting, jealous catfighting mostly generated by he bombastic Anya ("It's all about the boobs!") and assorted slapstick (Asuna's turn as an "angel") out of his system.

As a result, the first couple thirds of this volume are rather fragmented -- Negi and Co. dart here and there, thither and yon as they deal with assorted stuff they want to do before going on a dangerous quest -- with a few moments of general comedy (poor Asuna gets encased in ice for making Eva bleed). But things take a darker and more bittersweet turn after the gang arrives in Wales, and Negi pays a visit to the vast chamber holding the petrified villagers. It's a nice little reminder of what he's working so hard for.

And Akamatsu outdoes himself with our first glimpse of the Magic World -- a vast shimmering megapolis, which looks like half a child's fantasy (flying passenger wales and floating lights) and half a futuristic city (comlete with domes and railways). Unfortunately, he also ends it on a nail-biting cliffhanger, with the reappearance of an old villain whose identity and goals are still a mystery.

Negi gets to show how much he's grown in this volume -- and not just physically, although he demonstrates that he's done that too. For the first time he seems both happy with his remaining family and friends, even as he reflects on the terrible events of the past and sets out to right them. And though Anya continues to be rather immature and short-fused, Akamatsu shows how she became that way, with a bittersweet scene where she goes to her petrified mother and lovingly dusts her off.

The twentieth volume of "Negima!: Magister Negi Magi" is the hubbub before a storm -- some comedy, fanservice and random hijinks before things get really nasty. Too bad it ends on such a cliffhanger...
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To the magic world
Volume twenty of the `Negima!' manga sees Negi and his friends enjoying a last trip to the beach before they set off on their trip to the Magical World. There fun is interrupted though when Negi's childhood friend Anya turns up wanting to drag Negi back to Wales whether he likes it or not.

This is another very good volume of `Negima!' which is mostly geared towards the more fun and humorous aspects of the series before the more serious Magic World arc. This volume also allows us to get another glimpse at how much the various characters have improved in the time they have been training. It is also good to see Negi returning home, however briefly, in this volume and has a few rather sweet scenes there before Negi and Ala Alba (White Wing) head off to the magic world where more than one surprise awaits them.