Maybe third time lucky for Kawaguchi-sensei…
Otr of the Flame
(Yuki Kawaguchi)
May 2025 to January 2026
34 Chapters
What I Liked
- Eturpiko was cool. Her fighting style was unique and in theme with the world of the story
- I liked the interactions between Eturpiko and Hugin
- I like themed powers so being linked to the spirits was fun
Where I Think Things Went Wrong
- It felt like power-ups weren’t very structured. The training arc was super quick and after that it felt like it was power-ups due to feelings.
- I don’t think Otr’s fights were very interesting. I don’t recall any stand out moments at all
- Maybe having non-combatants (Otr and merchant boy) become warriors so quickly didn’t feel very believable
- The bad guys were kinda one note. It made the sudden team-up at the end very unsatisfying. Couldn’t they at least hinted at the Ice Kingdom’s history and struggles with the noble warrior Otr fought near the beginning (Suruld?)
- Otr’s personality was a bit bland.
- Poor abandoned sibling. I feel like there’s a trend of series failing when the sibling is relegated to the background haha.
Conclusion
I feel like Icehead Gill was not that long ago and that got canned too. Is the WSJ readership maybe a bit anti-viking? Otr wasn’t bad but it also wasn’t really that interesting. I think it could have introduced some royalty politics, with Eturpiko being the 3rd (?) in line. But that’s probably just my preference 😆
Categories: Simulpub Review
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