Witches, Dragons, Punks!!!
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| Seen here are the protagonists' Ninny Spangcole(front), Noel Niihashi(back) |
High Flying Adventure!
What if the world we
lived in held a secret that could only be seen by a select few? This is the question
that Kubo Tite answers in his new short series called Burn the Witch. Known in
the manga and anime community for creating the hit series Bleach, Kubo returns
in full force to tell the tale of London that is constantly under the vigilance of
Dragons.
The adventure takes
place in the present-day alternate take on London where we meet the eclectic the cast of characters for this tale. We are introduced to both Noel Niihashi
and Balgo Parks, Noel is a tall young woman who gives off a cold aura of
apathy, but is actually very tender to animals and is an unashamed Japanophile.
Balgo Parks is an old friend of Noel who over the years has become quite taken
with her romantically though he goes about it as well as any 17 year old would
do and always tries to take a peek at her when he gets the chance, but is
always thwarted by Noel as she is not afraid to beat the pulp out of him.
(Yeah, good for you Noel!) Balgo is also known for being overly protective of
his dog Osushi and for hanging out with his best friend Selby who is the one
that keeps him grounded from time to time. Now after meeting these two, Noel walks
into a telephone booth and is transported straight down to what is known as
Reverse London.
Now it should be
mentioned that there are two distinct versions of London: Front London where normal humans live unaware
of the existence of magic and dragons, that are only seen by those who live in
Reverse London. Reverse London is where those who are able to see the dragons,
live and work to ensure the safety of both worlds. Here exists the agency known
as Wing Bind, an organization that handles any and all Dragon related
phenomena. For fans of Bleach, Wing Bind is later revealed to be the western
branch of the Soul Society from the world of Bleach.
It’s here where we
meet the rest of the main cast, Ninny Spangcole, Noel’s senior partner, and local idol singer. Ninny is loudmouthed, rude, and constantly aiming to be
seen as the strongest witch in all of Reverse London. And last but not least, Billy
Banx, Jr. who is the girls chief and is in charge of distributing missions
for the girls to take.
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| Billy Banx Jr. |
Now, the real meat
of the story centers mostly around the Dragons and how they handle the
situations, but first we need to better understand what the dragons are in this
world.
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| Seen here is an example of one of the varied types of dragons. The image belongs to Shonen Jump. |
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Dragons: a term used in this world for any aberration that the
citizens of Front London can’t control. They vary in size and shape, but the majority are mostly harmless. They are
seen as natural resources and others are even farmed as sources of meat.
·
Then
of course comes how to manage the dragons, when it comes to Dragon
Management, ordinary citizens must not interact with them. Only those who
pass the test may interact with them, those being the witches and wizards of
Wing Bind. Those who violate the rule are given a 100-year prison sentence or
execution. The dragons that come in contact with them for an extended period of
time will absorb any and all negative emotions form them and turn into what is
known as a Dark Dragon, beings intent on harming people.
Now that the
explanation is out of the way, we can catch up with the cast and what they’ve
been up to during the mission. As Noel and Ninny are dispatched to a rather
tranquil setting to pluck grapes from the nostrils of a giant dragon. (That is
something that actually happens and it is both charming and hilarious seeing
the huge gentle beast walk along the plains as the witches are climbing up its
neck bickering all the way). Balgo is left to daydream about Noel and talks
about it with his best friend for years Selby. However, when he takes him to the telephone box that disappeared with Noel, he seems disappointed to see it just
being a normal box. The young man’s dog, Osushi suddenly erupts in a black
liquid spurting from it’s back. Here the girls receive a change of assignment
by the chief and are sent to the location. When they arrive, they see that the
dog is flat as a sheet of paper and see the Dark Dragon that was disguising
itself as the dog, known as a disguiser type dragon, they inhabit corpses of
living beings and live among the humans.
A battle ensues
and as Ninny discovers another disguiser Balgo is shocked to see that it is none
other than his lifelong friend Selby, Who died when he was seven when he pushed
his friend out of the way of a speeding vehicle, the boy died, and the dragon
lived on as a friend. When suffering an injury defending the witches, the
young man gains the sight of the Dragon Clad which allows him to see the hidden
world and makes him technically part dragon as well. The chapter ends with the
destruction of one Dark Dragon as Osushi the dog is calmed down and granted the
opportunity to live alongside his owner.
This short special
chapter was released in Shonen Jump and is available to read for free on their
site and app. The author manages to capture lightning in a bottle with this
short introduction to a wonderful world with interesting and complicated
creatures that only retaliate when the surrounding humans are acting or
thinking negatively. The art style is evocative of his early work with attitude
jumping at the reader in every panel, the characters are drawn with such love
that one cannot help but love them at first glance. The creature design is
phenomenal and adds a different layer to make each beast feel unique, the
surroundings also look like a true world that is lived in, not just bland backdrops.
Overall this is a must-read for fantasy buffs or if you are a fan of the authors' previous works, this
is also a must-read for the ending panels alone, with the slight nod to Bleach’s
universe. The series has gone on to become a limited short series in Shonen
Jump and has been animated into a three-episode special.
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