Title: Queen’s Quality Vol. 5
Author: Kyousuke Motomi
Publisher: Viz Media
Language: English
Format: Paperback
Pages: 192
Genre: Sci-Fi, Romance
Publication Date: September 4, 2018
The Story
Volume five of Queen’s Quality picks up in the middle of the battle with Ataru after his malice has consumed him within his mind vault. Fumi realizes what she must do in order to win this battle: Kill and merge with The Black Queen. Fumi enters his own mind and is greeted by The White Queen who warns her about The Black Queen. Fumi tells The White Queen that she understands what must be done to which The White Queen acknowledges her determination. The White Queen also lets her know that killing The Black Queen is just a step to becoming The True Queen as part of The True Queen’s power resides within her as well.
Knowing this, Fumi confronts and gains control of The Black Queen. From here, Fumi battles Ataru’s malice but it isn’t easy as The White Queen is severely limiting her power. Kyutaro steps in and aids Fumi which allows her to beat Ataru’s malice. She then pierces Ataru which treats us to his entire backstory. With Ataru defeated, the Silver Sea Snake shows up and tries to take Fumi with her but Kyutaro holds her off until Koichi and Mutsumi show up and even the odds. With the Silver Sea Snake defeated, Mutsumi cleans the rest of Ataru’s mind vault and the battle is officially over.
Back in reality, Fumi was out for an entire day. The Gendo clan now has Ataru in their captivity and look to question him once his mind gets sorted out. Fumi pays a visit to Kyutaro who is having a bit of a nightmare. Afterward, they plan a celebration for their safe return but before it starts, Fumi, as The Black Queen, pays one last visit to Kyutaro. She says that she will become one with Fumi and disappear soon so she was merely there to say her farewell to him. With that, our volume comes to an end.
This was a solid ending to the story that left things unresolved but we can say (at least with some certainty) that Ataru has been dealt with but there are still more bug handlers out there. I also like how the author put a note in the book stating that this was the end of this story arc and that a brand-new story arc will begin in the next volume. Even though notes like that aren’t really needed, I liked the personal touch it added to the volume.
Characters
Two big developments occurred in this volume with Fumi and Ataru.
First, Fumi is now the Dark Gray Queen… at least that’s what The White Queen refers to her as which makes sense. Fumi has the power of The Black Queen under her control and with The White Queen still untamed, it makes sense to call her Dark Gray. When Fumi said that she was going to kill The Black Queen, I didn’t really expect it to be with a hug and some good old-fashioned love. I thought it was a bit cheesy but then again, this is a Shojo series and not a Shonen series to it fits the theme. Still, whether it was under the influence of The Black Queen or not, we finally got Fumi’s true thoughts on Kyutaro as she silently admitted that she loved him. Of course, Fumi, as The Black Queen, openly admitted it but that was a safe confessional because Kyutaro knew it was The Black Queen speaking and not Fumi… but The Queen is also a reflection of the vessel so I wonder if Kyutaro realized it?
Ataru, on the other hand, received some MAJOR backstory here. We discover that he was different as a child. His parents abandoned him and he grew up in an “orphanage.” I use that term loosely because it was mainly just a place to experiment on children. The friend that was with Ataru awoke her powers as a queen but Ataru, through their experiments, gained the power of a Bug Handler. His friend became the Black Queen and it was heavily implied that her name was Fumi… which would explain why he said he knew Fumi before Kyutaro did; however, that wasn’t the case. The bugs shrouded Ataru’s thoughts simply because Fumi possessed the Black Queen inside of her. The true name of Ataru’s friend was Rumi and was someone completely different.
Seeing how Ataru became a Bug Handler raises more questions. Dr. Hijime was the one at the orphanage conducting the experiments one has to wonder where he is and why he’s doing what he’s doing. Once The Gendo Clan questions Ataru, I’m sure he’ll share that information with them giving us a glimpse into what the next story arc could be!
Final Thoughts
A really solid volume of Queen’s Quality! I enjoyed this story arc and it seems that Fumi received a bit of a power-up but she still has a way to go before becoming the True Queen. Ataru’s backstory, honestly, wasn’t anything all that special. I’ve seen this kind of backstory before and it’s the kind that gets tossed around way too much. Experiments and the people who are born of them is a story that seems to cost a dime for a dozen these days. There’s only so much you can do with a backstory like that before it just becomes a boring excuse. I mean… it works and it fits the story but I just wish it was something a little more unique.
That would be my only complaint from this story arc. Otherwise, everything else has been pretty good. The question of not if, but when Fumi will take possession of The White Queen has yet to be answered but I feel as if it will probably happen in the next story arc with the kind of pacing we’re receiving right now. Time will tell but volume six will begin something new so I can’t wait to see what is in store for us next!
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This item was provided for review by Viz Media
