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Book Review: Assassination Classroom, Vol 13 Review

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Assassination Classroom, Vol 13       

Author: Yusei Matsui

Publisher: Viz Media

American release date: December 6, 2016

Format/Genre/Length: Paperback/Action Adventure Manga//200 pages

Overall Personal Rating: ★★★★★

Reviewer: Julie Lynn Hayes

Still holding the students of Class 3E hostage, the Grim Reaper watches as Karasuma comes to the rescue, seemingly undeterred by the traps the Reaper has laid. So then he unleashes what he believes to be his ultimate weapon – Irina! But she is also being used as bait, and he explodes the ceiling on both of them. Irina is pinned under the rubble, but Karasuma fails to be ensnared. Still in contact with Koro Sensei and the students, he explains what happened and intends to move on, but they plead for him to help Irina, explaining how she is still young herself and the product of her upbringing. He should be understanding and forgive her.

The Grim Reaper turns his attention back to his hostages and is shocked and dismayed to find they’ve escaped!  But how? Frustrated, he detonates the collars around their necks. Turnabout being fair play, now Irina is being used as bait… for the Grim Reaper. When he takes it, Karasuma is ready, and now the two of them are going to face off! Will it be to the death?

Koro Sensei decides to play career counselor to his students, asking them what they plan to do for a vocation – assuming they assassinate him, of course. If they don’t, then no one has a future, do they? The students make some surprising choices, including Nagisa, who feels he should become a professional assassin!

Nagisa’s classmates and teacher are unaware of his horrific home life with his controlling mother. She decides she wants him out of Class 3E, for his own good, no matter what it takes. Not only is she abusive, but she has treated him like a girl for years, wishing she’d had a daughter instead of a son. She decides she will talk to Nagisa’s home room teacher and get him transferred to the main building, despite Nagisa’s efforts to dissuade her from going there. What can they do? Unfortunately, Karasuma is unavailable, and Irina is a poor choice, as they discover. That only leads Koro Sensei, which is cause for great concern, despite his attempts to disguise himself as Karasuma. During the interview, it quickly becomes apparent how unstable Nagisa’s mother really is. Just when it seems that maybe everything will turn out all right after they return home, his mother drugs him and takes him to the classroom in the dead of night, demanding her son burn it down with his own two hands! This can’t end well, can it?

It’s time for the School Festival! Class A is determined to get revenge on Class E, and everyone is stoked to find out how the two rivals will fare against one another.  Koro Sensei’s students feel they are at a disadvantage, being isolated on the mountain as they are. Who will want to trudge up there for cheap eats? But Koro Sensei shows them how to turn disadvantages to advantages!

This volume of the series sees the students deal with the Grim Reaper once and for all… hopefully.  They are able to utilize the skills they’ve learned from Koro Sensei so far and learn some more. We learn a lot about Irina’s backstory and what has made her what she is. It’s easy to forget she’s not much more than a child herself, one who’s had to grow up in a harsh environment and make difficult choices. Karasuma is beginning to change as well. Perhaps he’s not as hard as he appears to be. Nagisa’s mother is just nuts. What he has to deal with is horrible. I wonder if he becomes an assassin, will she be his first target?

I love the ingenuity of Koro Sensei and the class as they brainstorm how to do well in the upcoming festival, which continues into the next volume. This was a lot of fun, looking forward to seeing what they are able to do, and hopefully outsell Class A, even if they cheat (which of course they will)

Book Review: Assassination Classroom, Vol 11 by Yusei Matsui

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Assassination Classroom, Vol 11     

Author: Yusei Matsui

Publisher: Viz Media

American release date:  August 2, 2016

Format/Genre/Length: Paperback/Action Adventure Manga/208 pages

Overall Personal Rating: ★★★★★

Reviewer: Julie Lynn Hayes

One of the members of Class 3E has a name he really doesn’t care for. His parents were both police officers and very enthusiastic ones at that. When he was born, in their excitement they named him Justice Kimura.  He prefers to be called Masayoshi. Inspired by Kimura’s story, Koro Sensei proposes that they come up with code names for one another, the way the assassins they dealt with on the tropical island did, and then use them for the entire day. Ready, set, go!

Isogai has been nicknamed “Mr. Handsome”, and everyone loves him, including the customers at the café where he works outside of school hours. The members of his class turn a blind eye to what he is doing, because it’s actually against school rules. But Isogai’s family is very poor and rely on him to bolster their income. The truth is that he was demoted to Class 3E, not because of his grades, but because he was working. When Asano and some of his cronies discover Isogai’s secret, they threaten to out him. But Asano would rather make a wager. Sports Day is coming up. Class 3E has to beat Class A in the pole pull-down or Isogai’s secret will be revealed! But does Asano, like his corrupt father, ever play fair? Can Class 3E defeat the enormously strong ringers that Asano has brought in for the occasion?

Taking advantage of the parkour training they have received, Okajima proposes a shorter route to school utilizing jumping across the tops of buildings. Some of his classmates are skeptical, as Karasuma told them to only use that training on the mountain. But some are enthusiastic and go at it with a will. Until things go suddenly wrong and someone gets hurt. Now they have to pay the price for what they have done.

I really liked the pole pull-down story, watching the students strategize on how to win without relying on brute strength. It kind of reminded me of an episode of Alice in Borderland I saw recently, where the players were up against the King of Hearts, and had to accumulate more points than the opponents but it wasn’t as simple as it sounded and strategy was key. Also, the story with the old man on the bicycle ended up being very heartwarming. We saw Koro Sensei get truly angry with his students for the first time. Even Kamasura was disgusted at their careless behavior.

Looking forward to the next volume!

Book Review: Assassination Classroom, Vol 10 by Yusei Matsui

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Assassination Classroom, Vol 10       

Author: Yusei Matsui

Publisher: Viz Media

American release date:  June 7, 2016

Format/Genre/Length: Paperback/Action Adventure Manga/192 pages

Overall Personal Rating: ★★★★★

Reviewer: Julie Lynn Hayes

A nationwide surplus of eggs leads to a brilliant idea by Kayano! Rather than throw the eggs away, she will buy them and make a giant flan, which is a weakness of Koro Sensei. She will rig a bomb to be hidden at the bottom with hidden anti-sensei bbs. She enlists the aid of the others and they all brainstorm their way through the problems of creating such a large eggy dish. Koro Sensei will be pleased with the custardy offering and will never suspect Kayano, as she has always taken a back seat in assassination attempts. But now is her time to shine!

Karasuma plans to teach Class 3E advanced assassination techniques this semester, including explosives and parkour, or free running. Koro Sensei notices the parkour training and has an idea for a game – Cops and Robbers. They can have a 3D game of tag using the entire mountain! Per his idea, he and Karasuma will plays the cops to the students’ robbers. If they can’t catch all of the robbers within the hour, the students win. As a handicap, Koro Sensei will play the part of the jailer and stay in one position on the field. Hewon’t make his own move until the last minute. Sounds like a good game! But will Koro Sensei prove to be his own worst enemy?

Someone is stealing lingerie in Kunugigaoka City, and a description of the thief sounds suspiciously like Koro Sensei! His students are disappointed in him and he is mortified. The only way to prove his innocence is to capture the actual thief!

Itona and Shiro have returned, and Shiro is determined to use Itona to assassinate Koro Sensei – even at the price of his own life! Shiro abandons his student and now time is not on their side as they have to remove Itona’s tentacles, or face the consequences!

Itona has come up with a great idea for how to kill Koro Sensei – a high tech little tank. His ex-mentor is warned not to involve the students in his assassination attempts any more, and he reveals that there is a worse monster than Itona in that class.

The students are growing and developing at such a rate! And so creative! Who would have thought of using flan as a weapon? I’m glad we’re rid of Shiro, at least for the foreseeable future, and that Itona has calmed down a great deal, to more tolerable levels.  Looking forward to the next volume!

Book Review: Assassination Classroom, Vol 9 by Yusei Matsui

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Assassination Classroom, Vol 9     

Author: Yusei Matsui

Publisher: Viz Media

American release date:  April 5, 2016

Format/Genre/Length: Paperback/Action Adventure Manga/192 pages

Overall Personal Rating: ★★★★★

Reviewer: Julie Lynn Hayes

The showdown has begun – Nagisa vs the Final Boss! Turns out the boss is none other than their former teacher, Takaoka, the one Nagisa bested before. Looks like he has a grudge against his former students! Or maybe it’s just the ten million dollars at stake for killing Koro Sensei… or both.  Nagisa is angry enough to kill the man, but will cooler heads prevail? Terasaka reminds him that it’s still murder and not worth it, to just beat him up without killing him. Nagisa bested him once before, can he do it again?

Once the situation is resolved, everyone returns to their hotel and sleeps like the dead! Afterward, Koro Sensei has an idea for the perfect way to wrap up their assassination vacation through a test of courage. But his true purpose is to play matchmaker! His plans don’t exactly come to fruition, as his students aren’t that easily played, but there is one possibility for a love match, and the students are glad to assist their teacher in his matchmaking efforts.

Back to school! Time is running out before the possible end of the world. The powers that be determine that the bounty on killing the creature should be increased for a group, since the students almost succeeded in killing him over the break. The reward is now set at 300 million! However the new semester also starts with a startling new development, as one member of Class 3E defects and returns to Class A – for all the wrong reasons! Oh dear, can they bring him back into the fold before he inflicts irreversible damage?

I really enjoyed the assassination vacation arc, it was a lot of fun, and we got to see the class develop and grow in many ways. The way the final situation was handled was wonderful. Nagisa has a great future ahead of him if he wishes to become a spy or a professional assassin! The matchmaking story was cute, and I liked the unexpected twist. Also, the defecting of one student was a challenge, trying to figure out his motivation. Love this series so much, looking forward to the next volume!

Book Review: Assassination Classroom, Vol 8 by Yusei Matsui

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Assassination Classroom, Vol 8     

Author: Yusei Matsui

Publisher: Viz Media

American release date:  February 2, 2016

Format/Genre/Length: Paperback/Action Adventure Manga/192 pages

Overall Personal Rating: ★★★★★

Reviewer: Julie Lynn Hayes

What began as a well-earned vacation, and a chance to assassinate Koro Sensei, has turned into a nightmare when half the class is poisoned by person or persons unknown, and the only way to obtain the antidote that will save them is by handing over Koro Sensei! And as if that wasn’t bad enough, thanks to the class’s vigorous assassination attempt, their teacher is locked in his ultimate defense mode and unable to help them! But Class 3E is nothing if not resourceful, and they refuse to give up. Instead of simply handing him off at the designated meeting place, they are going to break in and get that antidote, eliminating anyone who gets in their way!

The students scale a steep cliff at the rear of the resort hotel, which has been left unguarded due to its inaccessibility. But they don’t know the training these kids have received, and that climb is no problem for them! Poor Karasuma is saddled with Irina, who is weighing him down! But she proves her value when they enter the hotel and have to figure out how to cross the open lobby! Deploying her considerable skills, she draws attention to herself, and the students are able to slip by.

But that is only the first floor. They have to get up to the tenth floor, and it’s not likely each floor will be as easy to conquer. These are professionals, after all. But that doesn’t stop the resourceful students of 3E, so off they go!

I really enjoyed reading this arc, watching the students display not just the skills they’ve learned so far but employing their own talents, oftentimes thinking outside the box. Karasuma is incapacitated early on, so they can’t rely on him, although they do carry him along with them. On each floor, a different student gets the opportunity to shine. I especially love the way the girls utilized Nagisa, although he was not too fond of the idea himself. But by the end of the volume, he has a difficult choice to make. Have to wait for the next volume to find out what he chooses to do!  And just want to say that the gun-eating gangster is gross lol

Great volume, looking forward to the next one!

Book Review: Spy x Family, Vol 10 by Tatsuya Endo

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Spy x Family, Vol 9     

Author: Tatsuya Endo

Publisher: Viz Media

American release date: March 21, 2023

Format/Genre/Length: Paperback/Manga/Action & Adventure/192 pages

Overall Personal Rating: ★★★★★

Reviewer: Julie Lynn Hayes

Back to the cruise… Yor is fighting (undercover, of course) spies who are threatening to blow up the ship and kidnap the woman and child she is protecting. Loyd overhears that there is a bomb, but what to do with Anya? Anya supplies the solution herself, able to overhear her father’s dilemma, suggesting she go to the childcare area to play. But of course she has no intention of staying there, not when her family is in imminent danger!

The situation comes to a successful conclusion, with Loyd and Yor blissfully unaware of the part the other has played. But as Loyd goes to get Anya, he is worried that in doing his job, he’s abandoned his family again. Wait… since when does he actually consider Yor and Anya his family? Things are getting complicated.

Back at school after the break is over, Anya thinks to impress her schoolmates with her tale of having been on a huge ocean liner, but they don’t seem to care very much (they’re rich, you know, so used to such things), so she embellishes the truth a bit, including the arrival of pirates as well as the octopeople (total lies, of course). Back at home, she confesses to her family about what happened and doesn’t exactly get a lot of sympathy for having lied. Yor’s brother shows up, delighted to see his sister, though still not a fan of Loyd. He also denounces those who lie, which Anya finds hypocritical on all their parts, considering the secrets they all keep and the lies they tell on a regular basis.

Loyd is determined to retrain Bond, but Franky wants to know why does he have to be the one to play suspect? Loyd takes Bond for a walk, determined to break him of some of his bad habits, unaware that the dog can see the future. When they come upon a dangerous situation, they learn how to work together.

Taking inspiration from her beloved TV romances, Anya’s friend Becky is determined to come out in the open with her love for Loyd, so they can be together. Anya is appalled at first, when she realizes Becky’s intentions… until she begins to see that the idea could have some merit. But what would happen to Mama then?

Nightfall approaches Loyd, saying she needs to find someone who can forge a document. Loyd knows just the person! He sets up a meeting for her with Franky, who takes her undercover with him.

Mistress Donna Schlag of the Disciplinary Committee has decided to make an unexpected appearance at the school…and she’s determined to give out as many tonitrus bolts as she can! Oh dear, will Anya survive this? And what about Desmond, aka Sy-on boy?

I enjoyed the cruise arc, but it’s back to business and the main plot of the Strix Operation. It seems like Anya gets closer and closer to revealing her true nature, which in turn would probably lead to everyone’s secrets being revealed.  I know the series is based on no one knowing about one another, other than Anya, but I believe at some point this will change, and they will all begin to function knowingly with one another. I think that will just take everything to a whole new level, and I, for one, am all for it!

I love this series, so much, and look forward to it being around for a long time! Another great volume, looking forward to the next one, which should come out in October.

Book Review: Assassination Classroom, Vol 6 by Yusei Matsui

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Assassination Classroom, Vol 6   

Author: Yusei Matsui

Publisher: Viz Media

American release date:  October 6, 2015

Format/Genre/Length: Paperback/Action Adventure Manga/192 pages

Overall Personal Rating: ★★★★★

Reviewer: Julie Lynn Hayes

Now that his class has learned that one of Koro Sensei’s weaknesses is water, they decide to come up with an assassination plan utilizing that knowledge! While pretending to play around in the new pool he created for them, they’ll throw him into the water. Once he is underneath and helpless, a hidden student will take advantage of his helplessness and stab him. Meg Kataoka is perfect for the job, being a top swimmer, and she is more than up for the challenge! When Meg reveals the reason why, with her good grades, she fell down to Class E, because of a supposed friend, her true friends and Koro Sensei decide to help her break the one-sided co-dependency.

When the pool is unexpectedly trashed, some of the students look toward Terasaka and his friends as the culprits, largely because of his horrible attitude toward school in general and Class 3E in particular. Itona and his assassin/mentor take advantage of Terasaka’s feelings to recruit him for some work for them, namely to help assassinate Koro Sensei. But when their actions endanger the other students and not just Koro Sensei, can Terasaka really go along with the program?

The time has arrived for the Final Exams! As extra incentive, those students who receive first place in a subject in their grade will be allowed to shoot off one of Koro Sensei’s tentacles. Karasuma and Irina warn Principal Asano not to interfere with the tests, and he claims he would never do such a thing. Asano does tell his very intelligent son, who is top of his class, that he expects Class A to defeat Class E. His son says he is sure he can do it, and makes a bet that when he does, his father has to tell him the secret he is hiding about Class E (which would be about Koro Sensei, who is unknown to most of the school, as well as the world). The principal agrees. Than young Asano and his cohorts make their own private bet with Class E, with special stakes.

By now, this class of would-be assassins is beginning to be conflicted. While on the one hand, they are seriously studying to assassinate their teacher and save the world, on the other hand, they like him quite a bit. When the time comes, will they actually be able to follow through? In this volume, we see more of Terasaka, who has been hovering on the edge of the class. But now he is faced with a do or die decision and will hopefully grow in the process. The final exams are going to be real nail-biters, especially given the track records of the other students and their principal. Is it possible there will be no monkey wrenches thrown into the works to sabotage them? Only time will tell.

Good volume, look forward to the next one!

Book Review: Assassination Classroom, Vol 5 by Yusei Matsui

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Assassination Classroom, Vol 5     

Author: Yusei Matsui

Publisher: Viz Media

American release date:  August 4, 2015

Format/Genre/Length: Paperback/Action Adventure Manga/192 pages

Overall Personal Rating: ★★★★★

Reviewer: Julie Lynn Hayes

In the mandatory exhibition matches, the girls of Class 3E have unfortunately lost their basketball game. But they are delighted to discover that the boys are doing well in their baseball game. However, a monkey wrench has been thrown into the works in the form of Principal Asano, who will do whatever it takes to assure his class prevails. Are the boys of 3E up to the challenge?

Despite the fact that Karasuma has intensified his training of the would-be assassins, his lack of immediate results has brought him under scrutiny and the Ministry of Defense has assigned someone else to assist him. His methods are different from Karasuma’s. To make matters worse, Karasuma has been told that Takaoka is now in charge of training the students while Karasuma’s job is to find assassins. Despite his initial kindly appearance, Takaoka’s methods are a terrifying mix of love and fear. He plans to push the students to their limits and doesn’t care about their grades at all, which upsets them greatly. When Karasuma objects, Takaoka offers him a deal – Karasuma can pick one student to attack him with a knife.  If this student succeeds in striking him once, Takaoka will concede that Karasuma is the better teacher and he will leave. However, if the student fails, Karasuma loses the right to criticize Takaoka forever. Karasuma accepts the challenge, and after some deliberation selects the quiet, gentle Nagisa. Does Nagisa have what it takes to bring down this loud-mouth one-time soldier?

Summers are brutal, but the students of Class 3E don’t even have AC in their ramshackle class building. And they can’t use the school pool because it’s located in the main school building, where they aren’t allowed to go. So Koro Sensei does the next best thing – he creates their own pool on top of their mountain. And the students observe that water is a weakness of Koro Sensei. More opportunities for assassination!

I loved the baseball game and seeing the brats on the other team get their comeuppance, and especially Principal Asano, who I can’t stand. I think we are watching Karasuma grow, both as a person and as an instructor, which after all is the goal of writing, to see your characters change and develop. We also see a side of Nagisa you wouldn’t have believed existed before now. Another great volume, looking forward to more!

Book Review: Assassination Classroom, Vol 4 by Yusei Matsui

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Assassination Classroom, Vol 4     

Author: Yusei Matsui

Publisher: Viz Media

American release date:  June 2, 2015

Format/Genre/Length: Paperback/Action Adventure Manga/192 pages

Overall Personal Rating: ★★★★★

Reviewer: Julie Lynn Hayes

Ms Vitch has been pronounced lacking by her mentor and considered not fit to continue the assassination assignment. A compromise is reached in which both she and the mentor will attempt to “assassinate” Kurasama. If Irina wins, she can continue to teach there. The battle is on! If she resorts to begging, will she be able to persuade Kurasama to let her “kill” him?

Koro Sensei has plans to see an action movie in Hawaii because the film is being released in the States first and he doesn’t want to wait to see it. Nagisa and Karma beg him to take them along, even if that means traveling at Mach 20 along with him! Will they make an assassination attempt or simply enjoy the outing?

The arrival of the second transfer student is now imminent. This student is preceded by a mysterious white guardian, who introduces himself first and then brings in Itona…who announces that he is Koro Sensei’s brother. What? To say that he is odd would be an understatement, and he instantly earns the ire of his fellow classmates. So Itona and Koro Sensei decide to have a showdown, right there in the classroom…but there have to be rules, naturally. Perhaps the class will learn something by watching these brothers interact.

Since he was sent to Class 3E, Sugino hasn’t been allowed to play on the baseball team, which he misses greatly, since he loves the game. A school sports tournament is being held, but naturally the Class 3E team can’t play. But they’re required to play in the exhibition matches afterward. The boys have to play the Varsity Baseball Team, while the girls have to play the Varsity Basketball Team. Maybe, with Koro Sensei’s help, they can show the rest of the school what they’re really made of. Things are going pretty well for the boys, to the dismay of the Varsity team, when Principal Asano throws a monkey wrench into the works.

I guess you can teach an old dog new tricks. By which I mean Ms. Vitch. She’s come a long way from the woman she was when she first entered Class 3E. She’s proving to be more than a pretty face, and is actually beginning to enjoy her teaching as much as being an assassin.

Itona is very irritating, and I’m glad he left,  but I know we’ll see him again. My favorite part of this volume was the baseball game, because I love to see the students turn the tables on their snobbish schoolmates whenever possible, whether in athletics or academics. Can’t wait to see what the principal does. Hopefully whatever it is, Koro Sensei can overcome it. Another great volume!

Book Review: Assassination Classroom, Vol 3 by Yusei Matsui

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Assassination Classroom, Vol 3    

Author: Yusei Matsui

Publisher: Viz Media

American release date:  April 7, 2015

Format/Genre/Length: Paperback/Action Adventure Manga/192 pages

Overall Personal Rating: ★★★★★

Reviewer: Julie Lynn Hayes

 

While on a class trip to Kyoto, Kayano and Kanzaki have been kidnapped by lowlife thugs! Never fear! The class is up to the challenge, thanks to the handy dandy travel guide provided for them by their astute teacher, Koro Sensei.

Unknown to all but a few, a professional assassin has been set on the trail of Koro Sensei, with the assistance of his class, of course. They are in the perfect position to know his every move, since they are choreographing everything. But will this assassin take out their assigned target and claim the prize for himself? Or will Koro Sensei actually teach him something about assassination and life?

Karasuma receives information that upon their return to the school, there will be two new assassins sent to them, one at a time. He’s warned that the first student may look a little “different”. The other students aren’t sure what to expect, but on their arrival at the classroom, they see no one. Not until they notice the large object in the corner. Turns out this is a virtual assassin whose name is “Autonomous Intelligence Fixed Artillery”. She has the face of a young girl and is very polite. But once class starts, she is all business as she attempts to assassinate Koro Sensei. But the problem is that she spends the entire day doing that and disrupting classes. The students of 3E aren’t about to put up with those kinds of shenanigans.

Maehara is a ladies’ man, and the girls all seem to like the handsome student. But when one of them is caught with him, she turns the tables and makes it all Maehara’s fault for being in Class 3E and thus off-limits to her.  Some of the guys beat on Maehara, because they know they can get away with anything. Principal Asano sees them and doesn’t even attempt to help Maehara, but is that really surprising? However, Maehara’s class aren’t about to take this insult to their friend lying down.

Irina receives a surprise visit from the one who recommended her for this job, Lovro. He is seriously disappointed in her and wants to remove her from the assignment. At Koro Sensei’s suggestion, he agrees to give her a chance to prove herself – they will both target Karasuma. The first one to take him out wins. If Irina loses, she has to go.

Already, we can see that the Class 3E is growing and maturing in ways beyond simple assassination.  Watching them rescue their classmates and teach the bullies a lesson was awesome, as was the situation with Maehara. I also hate Asano more every time I see him. I just love this manga so much! Can’t wait for the next volume to see who can assassinate Karasume first lol