THE PROMISED NEVERLAND has again increased the danger and risk undertaken by its protagonists. Things were different when it came to Luce, Nous, Nouma, and even Byron. They allowed themselves to be lured into fairly straightforward traps, and by a combination of luck, skill, and strategy were each overcome in desperate combat. Fitting ends considering how exceedingly powerful demons are when contrasted against their human counterparts. Paired up against children, the difference is even more excruciatingly obvious, and both Kaiu Shirai and Posuka Demizu aim to capitalize on this by allowing a more intellectual story to unfold.
In India there is a traditional saying which states that learning leads to intelligence/understanding and intelligence is strength. Shirai and Demizu have seemingly engraved this saying upon their hearts as they write THE PROMISED NEVERLAND, a story in which staggeringly smart children bring down demons from our worst nightmares. Never before has it been so clear that the monstrous entities of Goldy Pond are more than human in terms of their physicality as has been detailed in this last chapter. To observe Archduke Lewis rip apart a building with only his bare hands is nothing but awe-inspiring to behold, and Demizu's artistry captures the moment perfectly in her drawing and paneling. When we consider that he achieved this feat of strength after having chased Emma and Pepe, been electrocuted, and having been momentarily stunned by a flash grenade, the sheer demonic qualities of his physicality have never been more obvious. Faced against such a formidable foe there are many people who might be inclined to give up, but it is the persistence of children which truly takes the spotlight here. Shirai has cleverly taken what might be construed as an irritating personality trait and turned it into a boon for overcoming adversity. The taking of this near innate human trait is then made more powerful by the intellectual aptitudes displayed by the series central protagonists. Even though Norman and Ray are considered to be superior in terms of intellectual capital, Emma's ability to compete with them through sheer persistence is a master weapon particular to her personality. In bringing these weapons to bare against Lewis, Shirai draws inspiration from Sun Tzu's ART OF WAR with knowledge serving as a keystone for his combat. The inability of the Goldy Pond Resistance largely stems from their lack of information. In the ART OF WAR Tzu states that knowing nothing about oneself or the enemy is sure to result in certain defeat in every battle waged. Knowing about your own capability is stressed as the first and most crucial step in overcoming any adversary. Both of these paradigms are manifested in this escape from Goldy Pond as a lack of relevant information effectively incapacitates both sides of the conflict. Based on these parameters, it should be fairly obvious that Lewis - despite all of his obvious strengths - is still lacking in information while Emma's companions are more knowledgeable about Lewis than before. Even assuming that Lewis is able to account for the arrival of the unnamed man in shelter B06-32 given their past history, Ray and Adam are significant factors whose capabilities yet remain hidden. As we are all acutely aware, Ray is bound to leverage his proficiency in strategy to powerful effect in the coming chapters. Adam is, as of yet, a complete enigma and how he will factor into Lewis' defeat may yet prove to be a powerful tool for Shirai's plot shaping purposes. THE PROMISED NEVERLAND is not like any shonen manga that I have had the pleasure of reading, and the intelligence with which Kaiu Shirai and Posuka Demizu craft their plot is deeply insightful. From the writing to the artistry, there is a keen attention to detail and mastery that suffuses every aspect of the literature. These combined with the idea of children as capable individuals professes an ideology that makes young people out to be more than the future. In fact it makes these children out to be the present, with each child capable of striving towards a better tomorrow. There is nothing but excitement to be had and anticipated in the coming chapters of THE PROMISED NEVERLAND. Written By: ALAN "VIENNA" SINGH
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The time has come at long last to face down their demons, and make their escape. Emma and the members of the Goldy Pond Resistance have been working towards this final showdown against Archduke Lewis for eight years. Tensions run high as the casualties mount on both sides of the conflict. Can the children overcome the difference in physical capability through their use of strategy, or will the demons come out on top?
Yes, yes they can defeat the Poachers and escape from Goldy Pond. At this stage events have developed into the cut-and-paste paradigms of old, and it is at this point that we separate strong writers from the weak. Anyone that has ever read a children's story ever knows that the kids always come out victorious. Regardless of how heavily the odds are stacked against them, something inevitably allows them to achieve their goals. There isn't anything wrong with this practice, per se, but it does create a window of inevitability in an otherwise unseen plot direction. How Kaiu Shirai and Posuka Demizu depict the route to this conclusion is the lauded "x factor" that can make or break their position as exceptional writer and artist. Off the bat, there are several possibilities that can be quickly rooted out. Oliver, Gillian, Lucas, Zack, and Sandy's group have taken significant damage and can't run off to help Emma. Given that Shirai has spent little to no time talking about the other members of the Resistance, it can be safely assumed that they won't have a large role to play in the coming events. This leaves Nigel, Pepe, Adam, Violet, Ray, and the man from shelter B06-32 as the only available hands to take on Lewis. While seven people fighting one demon can certainly seem like favourable odds, demons of Lewis' caliber are not without their own capabilities. Having actively fought and killed humans for centuries the Poachers are a cut above traditional demons because of their inability to let go of their more primordial thought processes. Characters like Lewis continue to live for the hunt even when the war is long over. His desire to die in combat against humans is an offshoot of this personality trait, and his conversation with Emma serves to clearly personify his ideologies. In a similar capacity, in trying to convince Lewis to simply let the children go, Emma's character begins to delineate a a growing complexity heretofore unseen. Emma has largely spent her time taking care of her adopted siblings while Norman and Ray were considered to be more strongly intellectual. After having left Grace Field House, however, her role as a mother figure has become much more profound as she takes on greater responsibilities. With their lives now constantly under threat, there is a budding desire to avoid violence unless absolutely necessary. The accumulation of these separate strands of thought are manifested in Emma's desire to cease conflict with Lewis despite his many atrocious actions. It comes as no surprise that both characters are unable to see eye-to-eye on the subject and are thus at an impasse. Fighting a demon that can catch bullets, move faster than the eye can track, and whose experience in the field of combat measures longer than the lifespan of the average human is sure to be a Herculean task. Fortunately, Emma and Ray are significantly more smart than the average human despite their young age. The two genius' level intellects are also not nearly as alone as Lewis. The man from shelter B06-32 is an exceptional marksman - capable of hiding his very presence from others - and Nigel, Pepe, and Violet are skilled in avoiding direct conflict with Poachers. Through the combination of their skill sets Shirai has created spectrum of credibility upon which to build the protagonists victory. As the conflict now comes to a head, readers should go forward with these questions: Adam appears to be repeating Norman's identification number, and Emma now believes that he may yet be alive. Does this mean they go to save Norman or maintain their plan to return to the shelter at B06-32? Now that the mysterious man from the shelter and Lucas will soon be reunited, will the children follow their instruction as they are grown ups? How long will it be before the more intelligent demons notice that Archduke Lewis and company are dead? With so many members of the Goldy Pond Resistance injured, will they be able to escape before demon reinforcements or wild demons arrive to pick them off? How Kaiu Shirai and Posuka Demizu answer these questions may yet mark them as masters of their craft ushering in a new era of shonen manga. Alternatively, they might just fall flat and end this conflict in a haphazard manner. Given their track record so far, it is difficult to believe that they might struggle to come up with something exceptional, but life is nothing if not unpredictable. THE PROMISED NEVERLAND, however, continues to look promising as we head towards the conclusion of the Goldy Pond conflict. Written By: ALAN "VIENNA" SINGH At the best of times, it is difficult to avoid talking about THE PROMISED NEVERLAND without harping on the similarities pulled from GRIMM'S FAIRY TALES and A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS. First and foremost, Kaiu Shirai and Posuka Demizu's work is about the children. Where many North Americans are taught to treasure the innocence of children, and that young people should be sheltered from the harsh realities of our everyday lives, there is much to be gained from sharing in these hard truths. Life is not always cotton candy, sunshine, rainbows, and happy days. There are moments of acute tragedy, loss, and pain that mark the average human life. As opposed to shielding young people, teaching them how to cope with these adverse situations appears - at least to me personally - to be much more intuitive than the inverse. It is in this same vein that CH.86 - Battle Power - speaks to the triumphs of children when faced with tough decisions and life threatening odds.
Readers have been clamoring for Ray's return to the main storyline. Following Emma's abduction in CH.64 - What If I Were ... - both Ray and the unnamed man from the shelter at B06-32 had been conspicuously absent as events continued to unfold. Were they looking for a way in? Was the man from B06-32 attempting to convince Ray to abandon Emma? These are unknowns that surround their reemergence amidst the conflict between the Goldy Pond Resistance and the Poachers. Nevertheless, both are quick to pick up on Violet's predicament and enact a plan to finally defeat Nous. Again, Shirai ties his characters to their cerebral capabilities in highlighting Emma and her companions. The brain is a key characteristic of any human being, and helps to make a person who they are on a personal level. Throughout THE PROMISED NEVERLAND, there is an intense focus on the brain as a necessity for survival among humans and means of communion with their deceased in the way of demons. Invariably, every interaction between the children and their demon pursuers is a clash of the minds. Even though there are physical interactions that mark exciting interstices for the story, the actions taken by each character are resultant of their cognitive thought processes. In this same vein, Lewis' conversation with Emma is a telling one. There are clear indicators in his speech pattern, and mindset that mark him as decidedly intellectual. His demon physiology allows him to freely overpower his enemies, but he derives a greater pleasure from psychological combat. This mindset has been evidenced by his earlier bet against Lucas - a tactic that is now mirrored by Emma - and his deep-seated desire to relive actual hunts. In truth, the current capabilities of the Goldy Pond Resistance were largely enabled because of his position as an apex predator and his personal fancy for excitement in an otherwise droll lifestyle. While it is still difficult to fully comprehend the emotional qualities of Shirai's demons, their intelligence has become terrifyingly evident over the course of our time at Goldy Pond. Grace Field House showed demons capable of human speech. Following their escape from the orphanage, demons in the wilderness were shown to be either exceedingly animalistic or decidedly human despite their physiology. Now, in Goldy Pond, demons are revealed to be far more intelligent, and militarized in their combat capabilities than had been postulated earlier on in the series. This knowledge marks a higher potential for malevolence, violence, and cruelty than previously indicated by demons like Sonju and Musica. Though it might also be possible for demons to display high levels of empathy as well, characters like Musica appear to be outliers - both literally and figuratively - when compared to the vast majority of demons seen so far seen. Ever since the initiation of the Goldy Pond Resistance's strategy to bring down the Poachers, Kaiu Shirai and Posuka Demizu have been churning awe inspiring chapters with each week. Now at last, the conclusion of this most recent chapters sees the start of the end as Emma faces down Lewis in a final fight for survival. Distressingly, the majority of the Resistance members have been injured, and while Lewis may no longer have any backup it is clear that his combat abilities are more than adequate to take on our young heroine. With Nigel rushing to her aid, and Ray back in the picture, there is a small glimmer of hope still visible to us. How these final events in Goldy Pond pan out are sure to excite, and shock readers as we go forward in THE PROMISED NEVERLAND. Written By: ALAN "VIENNA" SINGH |
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