MANGA REVIEW | "Call of the Night" - Volume Seventeen
Even the deepest friendships have to come to an end sometime. It could be caused a big fight, or — worse — death. In Call of the Night, the tension between best buds Ko and Mahiro has played a major role in the recent arc. With Mahiru set to become a vampire by Kiku, there was no telling what the future of these two friends will be like. Sadly, Volume Seventeen answers that question in a way that’s both heartfelt and heartbreaking.
With the aid of Akira, both Ko and Mahiru patch things up, with Ko offering Mahiru a souvenir of their Hokkaido trip. But Mahiru makes a solid point about how attached objects will be a vampire’s weakness, and decides to wait until he turns to accept the gift. From there, Mahiru goes off with Kiku, as Mahiru is set to become a vampire to help Kiku move onto the other side. However, as the flashbacks show, Mahiru may have another plan in mind for what happens after he turns.
It’s here where Call of the Night takes a tear-inducing turn. We learn about Mahiru’s brother, whose death is the source of his mother’s nonstop grief. That sadness took over her so much, that it caused a major rift in her family. Mahiru then reveals that there was someone who helped him get through that grief and loneliness, someone he hoped he could return the favor to. As Kiku turns Mahiru while dawn breaks, Mahiru makes a shocking decision.
The moment leaves Ko shook, and as he, Nazuna, Akira, and the rest of the gang head home, he finds himself isolated. A lone letter from Mahiru explains his situation, but it nonetheless does nothing to make that emptiness go away. Not even Nazuna can get him out of this funk, which puts a wedge in their relationship. Fortunately, a little night sushi with Detective Anko is the right thing needed to perk up Ko.
However, that top-tier sushi comes with a price. A packet of blood, one that has close ties to Anko, resides in a lone fridge. It’s Ko’s first time drinking human blood, and it fills him with plenty of emotions and memories. But the most important one brings the closure Anko has needed for the longest time, one that finally closes the book on a major part of the detective’s life.
But what of Nazuna during all of this? Well there was a promise made between her and Haruka made in Hokkaido, and they have a night out filled with karaoke and gaming. It’s through this night where she starts to feel something new. Is it love, or is it something else? Whatever it is, it’s an emotion that’s a little different from what she feels when she’s around Ko.
That is, until she comes face-to-face with Ko after his first taste of blood. And she’s seems…smitten? It’s a look on her face that hasn’t been seen on her face in a long time. But we’ll have to wait until the next time around. For now, Volume Seventeen of Call of the Night finds a bountiful of loose ends tied, as well as some life chapters ending with either tears or sighs of relief. It sets in stone what will happen next for Ko and Nazuna, as a cool breeze comes off the half-vampire that gives the night-walker a new kind of chill.
FINAL GRADE:
Promotional consideration provided by Chantelle Sturt of VIZ Media.
