MANGA REVIEW | "Mashle: Magic and Muscles" - Volume Sixteen
He’s back! After spending the last few volumes in a state between life & death, Mash Burnedead has made his triumphant return. In Volume Sixteen of Mashle: Magic and Muscles, our favorite cream puff-eating hero goes mano a mano against Doom, who has put a hurting on his friends. Thankfully, even though he’s gotten stronger, Mash is still the best good boy we—
DAYUM, MASH!!!!!
One of the things Mash has learned throughout his comatose time is how to control his muscles better. Although his training made him incredibly strong, Mash has never quite figured out how to use his muscles to his fullest potential. But now that he has, what sort of new power and skills will Mash unleash upon Doom? Oooh boy, where do we begin?
To be able to punch Doom through multiple walls with a single swing of the arm is a sight to behold. So much so, that it leaves Finn, Lance, and the rest completely speechless. Mash pummels through Doom, with every stronger feat forcing the enemy to unlock another level of power. And when he finally reaches 100, Doom dishes out clones that aren’t mere mirror images; they’ve also have his full power.
So what’s the hero of Mashle: Magic and Muscles do here? Well I’m not one to spoil, but let’s just say he takes a cue from Issac Newton and the guy who invented Whack-A-Mole to deal with these massive foes. It takes Doom by surprise, to the point where the strongest magic user in the world must make a stunning confession. No matter the spell, it can’t defeat a good ole elbow to the abdomen!
The victory is short-lived, as our main baddie arrives: Innocent Zero. Mash stands toe-to-toe with the man who claims to be the true immortal wizard. Naturally, Mash grows weary of these talks about living forever and ultimate power, and lets his fists respond to Innocent Zero’s threats. However, even with Mash’s impressive skills, Innocent Zero just doesn’t have the heart to give up. So he does the next-best-thing, and…it’s pretty damn gruesome.
It should be noted that Hajime Komoto’s art style reaches insane levels of beauty and detail in these fights. From the way punches and kicks are framed to how the area crumbles with every powerful attack, these fights are presented with such vivid badassery in each frame of the manga. Perhaps it’s why it feels jarring when Komoto switches between greatly detailed Mash to chibi-blobbed Mash without warning. Of course, that’s part of the brilliant humor of this series, which stops an epic fight dead just so we can get an effective joke told.
We’re coming down to the wire for Mashle: Magic and Muscles. Although the end is near, Volume Sixteen shows that there’s plenty more bombastic fights and out-of-nowhere punchlines left in Komoto’s tank. Will Mash overcome this latest misstep, or has the magic-less human hit a wall of his own here? Well… knowing our good boy, he’s got a few more tricks (and cream puffs) up his sleeve.
FINAL GRADE:
Promotional consideration provided by Chantelle Sturt of VIZ Media.
