Beastars Vol 16 Review

I’m getting behind in my reviews. Here I am, finally posting my review of volume sixteen of Beastars, and volume seventeen is already out! It’s about time I get caught up, so let’s dive into this review!

Synopsis:

Legoshi wakes up is the hospital having survived a brutal attack at the hands of notorious mixed-species criminal, Melon. Thanks to the visions he saw of his mother while on the verge of death, he’s eager to get out there and recapture his foe! Unfortunately, it isn’t long before his efforts to track down the elusive criminal lands him in a life-threatening situation, yet again.

Meanwhile, Juno is stepping up her romantic pursuit of Louis, but she’s shaken by an unexpected revelation – Louis already has a fiancée!

Review:

There are quite a few interesting developments to discuss in this volume.

For starters, Juno and Louis have been meeting up on a regular basis since sharing that kiss at graduation, though Juno is frustrated by the lack of progress in their relationship. Despite her eagerness, Louis is unwilling to date her, partially because he is unnerved at the prospect of being romantically involved with a carnivore, but mostly because he has actually been engaged to another deer this whole time!

We only see a brief glimpse of Louis’ fiancée in this volume, but it’s clear that their engagement is entirely a matter of convenience. They’re both the children of CEO’s of major conglomerates and pure-blood red deer – meaning their marriage would be financially beneficial for their families AND ensure that their heirs would be of pure stock. Louis seems to have accepted that it is his duty to go through with the marriage, but it’s clear that he doesn’t have any real feelings for his prospective bride. As a Louis/Juno shipper, I can’t say I’m thrilled by this sudden roadblock to their relationship, but I can’t deny that it provides some juicy drama to their love story. I can’t see Juno sitting idly by and letting the guy she wants slip away, so I’m sure it’s only a matter of time before she makes a move and tries to break up this engagement.

Meanwhile, Legoshi’s search for Melon is going poorly, mostly because he still seems to feel sorry for him. In one of my previous reviews, I mentioned that I was confused by Legoshi’s decision to let Melon go after he and Yahya had managed to capture him. It had seemed bizarre to me that Melon was so easily able to get Legoshi to release him, I’d even wondered if Melon had some kind of hypnotism ability. Well, at this point in the story it seems clear that that isn’t the case. The real explanation is that Legoshi just felt bad for Melon, both because of how he saw his own mother suffer due to her mixed parentage, and because he knows that any children he and Haru might have in the future will also likely face discrimination as mixed-species children. I guess this makes a certain amount of sense… except that Melon is a known murderer! I know that Legoshi is a kind and sincere person, but this level of naivete is just plain frustrating.

Do you get it now, Legoshi?!

The most exciting development in this volume of Beastars, however, is the introduction of a new dangerous element to the story. A pure-species supremacy group is apparently active in the city, and their schemes have caught the attention of Gosha. Is it time for everyone’s favourite grandpa to get back into action and kick some butt? I guess I’ll have to read the next volume to find out. I’m really looking forward to seeing where this will go, and hopeful that Gosha will have a bigger role in the story going forward.

Beastars continues to keep me on my toes with constant new developments and enticing cliff hangers. Once again I’ve been left eager to start reading the next volume.

Final Score: 8 out of 10

For more information on this manga, visit Viz Media’s website.

What did you think of this volume? Be sure to let me know in the comments.

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If you’re interested in reading more of my thoughts on the Beastars manga, be sure to check out my reviews of the other volumes in the series.

• Beastars Vol 1 Review
• Beastars Vol 2 Review
• Beastars Vol 3 Review
• Beastars Vol 4 Review
• Beastars Vol 5 Review
• Beastars Vol 6 Review
• Beastars Vol 7 Review
• Beastars Vol 8 Review
• Beastars Vol 9 Review
• Beastars Vol 10 Review
• Beastars Vol 11 Review
• Beastars Vol 12 Review
• Beastars Vol 13 Review
• Beastars Vol 14 Review
• Beastars Vol 15 Review
• Beastars Vol 16 Review
• Beastars Vol 17 Review

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