Title: Akame ga Kill Vol. 13
Author: Takahiro (Story), Tetsuya Tashiro (Art)
Publisher: Yen Press
Language: English
Format: Paperback
Pages: 274
Genre: Sci-Fi, Action
Publication Date: January 30, 2018
The Story
Volume thirteen of Akame ga Kill took us through the preparations for the final battle against the empire. In order to weaken their defenses, Akame was charged with targeting several of their generals. While she carried out her assassinations, Tatsumi stayed behind to recover from the previous battle. Also, he had become a little unstable after his last usage of Incursio. During her assassinations, Akame ran into Wave and engaged him in battle. While his armor, Grand Chariot, does protect him against Akame’s Murasame blade, she began to slowly chip away at the weak spots in Grand Chariot. Realizing he is on the verge of a loss, Wave halts the battle and hears Akame out who asks him to tell Kurome to meet her outside the capital for a one-on-one match.
Wave refuses and runs off, hoping Akame would follow her, but she doesn’t. Kurome rejoins her former team for a special mission, but Akame and Night Raid thwart their efforts. It is here where Akame tells her sister to meet her for their duel. When the two sisters meet, Akame isn’t able to convince her to leave the empire and join her so they end up in a battle to the death…. Until Wave interferes and confesses his love for Kurome. Wave’s words move Kurome to the point where the two of them agree to leave the empire in order to live happily together. Akame and Tatsumi tell them that they will use Yatsufusa’s broken blade as proof that they were killed in order to cover their defection from the empire.
With their departure, there is only one Jaeger remaining: Esdeath.
This was a VERY solid volume of Akame ga Kill story-wise. I like how they didn’t just jump into the final battle, but instead, showed that it was best to weaken the enemy forces before rushing head-first into a dangerous situation. It was a sound strategy and with Wave and Kurome leaving the Jaegers to pursue a peaceful life and the demise of a lot of generals at the hands of Akame, Night Raid looks to have the advantage going into this battle!
Characters
Lots of character development here!
The biggest spotlight was on Wave and Kurome’s relationship. Wave always loved Kurome, but never had the heart to tell her how he felt. Knowing that Kurome could die in her battle with Akame, he knew this would be his one and only chance. His love for her swayed his once iron-clad thoughts of remaining loyal to the empire for everything they had done for him. Wave did make it clear that he would not be joining Night Raid, but rather, he wants to spend the rest of his life with Kurome.
Kurome, on the other hand, was stubborn until the very end. She had no desire to leave the empire due to the brainwashing techniques they used on her during her “training” as an assassin. Even when Wave promised her a better life, she still refused. Wave ended up making the decision for her and Kurome, finally realizing what was happening, decided that she would put her faith in Wave. Kurome also felt peace for the first time and even looked forward to reuniting with Akame so the two of them can go back to just being sisters. It was a really touching moment and while Wave was a bit forceful, it had to be done in order to get through to Kurome.
Tatsumi underwent a bit of growing up. Normally, he would try to stop Akame from going through with the duel with her sister, but Tatsumi insisted on tagging along only to make sure nobody interfered. In other words, he accepted that this was Akame’s responsibility and that it was something necessary that had to be settled between family members. That level of acceptance and respect made Tatsumi really grow as a character!
Final Thoughts
Akame ga Kill just keeps getting better and better as the series nears the end. The history between Akame and Kurome was a nice little troll because this series has been known for giving a character a backstory right before killing them off. Shockingly, it didn’t happen this time and, instead, Kurome and Wave got their happy ending. Not sure if we will see them again, but I’m hoping there is an epilogue where we can check in on their progress together.
Esdeath isn’t to be forgotten about, either. She has been spending her time powering up and learning new techniques… such as manipulating the ice in the air so she can fly! Plus, with a new trump card up her sleeve, this final battle, despite being one vs all, isn’t going to be an easy one. I have a strong feeling that Esdeath is going to kill a couple of the last remaining Night Raid members before all is said and done. Plus, I’m looking forward to the moment where the Minister ends up with a blade straight through his subcutaneous fat!
Only two more volumes to go. I’ll be sad once this series come to an end, but on the flipside, I’m excited to see how it will all end!
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This item was provided for review by Yen Press
