The Meisters of Soul Eater all use different weapons (scythe, sickle-and-chain, guns), but this volume is all about swords. In fact, only one chapter here is not titled “[Something] Sword”. But no matter if it’s a demon, holy, or uncanny sword, the heroes all face pressure from tough — or annoying — living Weapons.
Soul Eater: The Perfect Edition volume 2 doesn’t always transition between these arcs smoothly, but the narrative becomes clearer with the introduction of Kishin, powerful beings who reap the souls of good people instead of evil ones on Lord Death’s list. (I thought maybe Square Enix would replace “Kishin” with another word/phrase, like how Funimation uses “afreet”.) Maka and Soul face off against Crona, a passive, somewhat waifish youth who is pushed around by Ragnarok, the sword, and Medusa, a Witch. Maka and Soul quickly find themselves outmatched, and Stein and Maka’s dad bust in to save them after Soul is badly hurt. Later, before Tsubaki takes the stage as she faces off against her brother who is also a Weapon, there’s a comedic episode where Kid and Black Star search for the sword Excalibur — and even worse, find Excalibur.
That chapter’s lighthearted tone is at odds with the seriousness of Soul’s condition and the Witch Medusa, whose incredible power stops Stein from delivering the final blow to Crona and causes even fellow witches to bow down to her. She’s also snuck into DWMA as the school nurse, so as she plots, she gets an up-close view of the goings-on. This includes monitoring Soul, whose battle with Crona has left him susceptible to turn into a Kishin. I checked, and the Excalibur chapter kicked off volume 3 in the original release, but here it’s in the middle. Just as readers’ excitement continues to climb as Medusa skulks around the school, this filler-like episode brings it down like a rock.
That’s not to say it’s the only humorous part of the manga. Soul Eater continues to push comedy throughout, whether it’s Crona seeing stars after a hit, Maka’s dad panicking as a conversation with his daughter turns even more awkward, or Blair giving the guys a peep show. Some readers will see all of this as a part of Soul Eater‘s charm, but for me, a lot of this is annoying. Black Star’s boasting at least provides a lot of emotional support for Tsubaki as she tries to stop her older brother from going down a dark path, but he’s still a little…much, to be polite. Fortunately, the battles, particularly Stein and Death Scythe’s matchup with Crona and Ragnarok, are much more impressive. Medusa’s magic, including firing arrows and releasing snakes, is also a delight in this uniquely designed city with a human-faced sun and moon.
Speaking of Crona, while I mentioned earlier The Perfect Edition continues Yen Press’ use of Kishin, one thing that isn’t carried over is referring to Crona as a him. When I first read Soul Eater, I assumed Crona was female because of the dress, but Yen Press (and Funimation) called Crona he/him. Here, the dialogue has been altered to use they/them, matching the neutral language used in Japan. The loss of honorifics may be disappointing, but that is a welcome change.
Anyway, despite the odd chapter flow and forced comedy, Soul Eater: The Perfect Edition volume 2 is a better example of how the series rose to fame versus the first omnibus thanks to the bonds between Meister and Weapon and some cutthroat action scenes.