(L) UQ Holder (Ken Akamatsu's new series)

[Tenzen12]

Wow, Touta shows talent and people says he is overpowered Gary Stue, he get beaten in single moment and other people says he is useless...

I guess there is no way to please everyone, is there?

PS: Freeter this is just general rant, nothing personal.

[Freeter]

None taken, but I skimmed these last two chapters after dropping off for a while and I see Touta getting OHKO'd. If I'm supposed to like this guy, Akamatsu's doing a poor job of conveying it.

Karen, on the other hand, is far more interesting and is practically carrying the series now that everyone got sick of the Kuromaru trap jokes. Akamatsu should have just dropped the Negima connections and made this its own universe with her as the focus.

[Tenzen12]

I never was fan of Negima not even of Eva, but personaly I found best when Yukihime was around, she and Touta had good dynamics as they both counterbalanced each other.

Neither Kuromaru nor Karin (at least not yet) can replace her in that metter and Touta waste lot of potencial he has as character.
So for me Touta+Yukihime=∞ >> Karen, but Touta<<Karen

And of course Yukihime >>>>> Eva.

[Somethindarker]

Originally Posted by Freeter

None taken, but I skimmed these last two chapters after dropping off for a while and I see Touta getting OHKO'd. If I'm supposed to like this guy, Akamatsu's doing a poor job of conveying it.

Karen, on the other hand, is far more interesting and is practically carrying the series now that everyone got sick of the Kuromaru trap jokes. Akamatsu should have just dropped the Negima connections and made this its own universe with her as the focus.

Really? Cuz I find her passable at best, the only cool thing about her is the ability she has, she's just the token hero worshiping dyke character. Personally the most interesting dynamic in the show is Touta, Yuki and Kuro, though the author isn't known for writing especially deep characters. Most of the gang I like especially that one dude who was trapped underground for 2 years and the one mediator guy.

[chaosprophet]

Poor Karin, everyone getting her name wrong.

[AstroNerdBoy]

Originally Posted by TnAdct1

Tell that to Ayaka (if her Pactio chapter is any indication).

Hmmmm...I'd forgotten that.

Originally Posted by Endscape

You don't need magic for a Pactio, Kotaro did a pactio with Natsumi, remember?

I do now, and I also remember how ticked off I was because of it. ^_^;;;

Originally Posted by chaosprophet

A pactio needs for the Magistra to have a lot of magic, specially for an actual artifact to appear. There doesn't seems to be any need for the Ministra to have magic potential though. We don't know whether Touta truly have really low magic capabilities, it's sealed in some way, or if he is like Takamichi that can't conjure magic but still have magic energy. In the later case he may be able to become a Magister if his magic reserves are high (possible considering his ancestors).

Well, I don't want to see Touta of Smeg getting any pactiones. ^_^;;;;

Originally Posted by Seitsuki

Hell, Negi did a Pactio with Chachamaru. Rules? What rules?

Yeah, but Negi was the Magister with MASSIVE magical powers. Plus, since Chachazero apparently had a full pactio with Eva, then I always believed Chachazero could get one.

Originally Posted by Freeter

Touta the ever useless MC. Why couldn't Karin be the star of this again?

Yeah!

Originally Posted by Tenzen12

Wow, Touta shows talent and people says he is overpowered Gary Stue, he get beaten in single moment and other people says he is useless...

I guess there is no way to please everyone, is there?

Negi had tallent. Touta just does it because, "I'm Touta!"

Originally Posted by Freeter

Karen, on the other hand, is far more interesting and is practically carrying the series now that everyone got sick of the Kuromaru trap jokes. Akamatsu should have just dropped the Negima connections and made this its own universe with her as the focus.

I agree that Karin is far more interesting, as is Kuroumaru. I don't mind the Negima connection though.

Anyway, the next chapter is a battle chapter, but I'm looking forward to it.

[Tenzen12]

Originally Posted by AstroNerdBoy

Negi had tallent. Touta just does it because, "I'm Touta!"

Negi had lot of talents, too much if you ask me. And either my memory fail me (which is possible) or he never get pawned by random midboss in metter of seconds as result...

Touta might not be allround genius, but at least he has more natural growth.

[Somethindarker]

The Shounen in this manga is strong. Jesus I'm drop it and come back in a couple of years.

[quigonkenny]

Originally Posted by AstroNerdBoy

I do now, and I also remember how ticked off I was because of it. ^_^;;;

I don't see why. Kouta did have magic. Certainly not Western magic like Negi or Eva or Konoka, but we never really saw anything to tell us outright that Eastern magic couldn't power a Pactio.

Originally Posted by AstroNerdBoy

Yeah, but Negi was the Magister with MASSIVE magical powers. Plus, since Chachazero apparently had a full pactio with Eva, then I always believed Chachazero could get one.

Chachazero having a pactio with Eva was a theory I personally put forward myself a few times (though I doubt I was the first to suggest it) but was never actually proven, if I remember correctly. The fact that Negi (who at that point might have been more powerful than Eva) was barely able to pactio with Chachamaru (who was miles more "human" than 'Zero ever was), suggests that 'Zero having a pactio with Eva was unlikely. 'Zero's knife "artifact" was the best evidence that she did have a pactio, but it also might have just been something Eva cooked up for her at some point, maybe after a final failed pactio attempt.

[Endscape]

Originally Posted by quigonkenny

I don't see why. Kouta did have magic. Certainly not Western magic like Negi or Eva or Konoka, but we never really saw anything to tell us outright that Eastern magic couldn't power a Pactio.

Kotaro had 'ki', which is a different thing from mana.

Chachazero having a pactio with Eva was a theory I personally put forward myself a few times (though I doubt I was the first to suggest it) but was never actually proven, if I remember correctly. The fact that Negi (who at that point might have been more powerful than Eva) was barely able to pactio with Chachamaru (who was miles more "human" than 'Zero ever was), suggests that 'Zero having a pactio with Eva was unlikely. 'Zero's knife "artifact" was the best evidence that she did have a pactio, but it also might have just been something Eva cooked up for her at some point, maybe after a final failed pactio attempt.

Chachazero had a 'Doll Contract' with Eva. We never got the details on that, other than it doesn't require a soul like the pactio does.

[quigonkenny]

Originally Posted by Endscape

Kotaro had 'ki', which is a different thing from mana.

Then apparently pactios work with ki then. No other explanation.

Anyway, the only difference between ki and mana in the Negiverse is where it comes from, isn't it?

[chaosprophet]

Originally Posted by quigonkenny

Anyway, the only difference between ki and mana in the Negiverse is where it comes from, isn't it?

There is differences in use. People can't use ki for magic spells for instance. Nor use magic energy to do a shinmeiryuu skil, etc.

Originally Posted by quigonkenny

Then apparently pactios work with ki then. No other explanation.

You are correct. I had forgotten but Akamatsu did answer that on the Nazenani Negima! from Volume 28. As translated by Vetus:

Kotarou isn’t a mage, but can he do a Pactio?
Both Mana-users and Qi-users can take the role of Master in a Pactio. If the Master has neither great Mana nor Qi, then the contract will be in effect, but an Artifact will not be available.

So yeah, on our whole discussion, Kouta at least has a lot of Ki so he could become a master in a pactio.

[SoloPanda]

Originally Posted by chaosprophet

There is differences in use. People can't use ki for magic spells for instance. Nor use magic energy to do a shinmeiryuu skil, etc.


You are correct. I had forgotten but Akamatsu did answer that on the Nazenani Negima! from Volume 28. As translated by Vetus:


So yeah, on our whole discussion, Kouta at least has a lot of Ki so he could become a master in a pactio.

Didn't the magic energy from negi's pactio with Setsuna boost her Shinmeiryuu skills quite a bit?

[Superbia]

Originally Posted by SoloPanda

Didn't the magic energy from negi's pactio with Setsuna boost her Shinmeiryuu skills quite a bit?

The artifact she got added to her techniques and combat ablility, but when Negi started training with Evangeline and she had him use the pactios at full power, she told Setsuna to supress her ki since it would interfere with the magic Negi was sending into her. That means she probably didn't get a big boost of power from the contract.

[SoloPanda]

Originally Posted by Superbia

The artifact she got added to her techniques and combat ablility, but when Negi started training with Evangeline and she had him use the pactios at full power, she told Setsuna to supress her ki since it would interfere with the magic Negi was sending into her. That means she probably didn't get a big boost of power from the contract.

That would make sense, I mean until very late in the manga she was quite a bit stronger than negi.

[Requiem-x]

Chapter 19 is out, and at least the worst case scenario was avoided.

Spoiler for Spoiler:

Touta didn't wake up instantly with the same dumb smile as always. This might actually be the first big obstacle he needs to face.

Also, Kuromaru goes Zoro on the hunters, but Kaito is too much of a badass even for that.

[Krono]

Chapter 19 does an excellent job of illustrating what I said before. Being shounen main characters already meant they were effectively immortal. All making them actually immortal did was increase the number of unpleasant things that could be done to them.

[OverMaster]

Spoiler for Chapter 19:

Oh, lookie, the 'feminine' character is soundly beaten down as he/she thinks on his/her feminine side, and then the narration tell us only THE MALE lead can save him/her now.

If he has to save Karin too because of some bull reason I'm going to weep for the future of females in this manga.

[Requiem-x]

Originally Posted by OverMaster

Spoiler for Chapter 19:

Oh, lookie, the 'feminine' character is soundly beaten down as he/she thinks on his/her feminine side, and then the narration tell us only THE MALE lead can save him/her now.

If he has to save Karin too because of some bull reason I'm going to weep for the future of females in this manga.

It's less about him being a male and more about him being the main character.

And Karin needs no saving, psycho dude is just buying time for the other two.

[MCAL]

Damn! That was intense!