When we last left off Though You May Burn To Ash, Yuki (Ryouma) was in dire straits. With one yen left in her account, and Meganeko and Yamada’s teamwork, it seemed like luck wasn’t in her favor. Which is why Yuki went to a last resort — bet it all on a 1-in-1,296 chance with Yamada. If the dice didn’t go her way, then the guessing wouldn’t also go in Yuki’s way either. Would Yamada take such a lopsided offer and NOT believe Yuki was actually bluffing her way out of this?
Oh yeah, you bet Yamada did. She totally did to end her scheme with Meganeko with that moment.
Though You May Burn to Ash was hard to judge because I couldn’t tell if it was attempting to be serious or hammy. Though You May Burn to Ash volume 2 confirmed it’s gonna be a dumb, hilariously toxic survival story. The logic for almost everything that happens is so incredibly stupid. What adds to that is the drawings of the characters. They don’t really evoke a sense of despair, but instead it looks so hammed up.
But with that, explaining anything about this series will require spoiling almost everything that’s going on. So at least for now, any review of this manga moving forward will contain spoilers. I might not spoil everything, but there will be enough of them that will either make you believe this is the dumbest schlock out there or the most insane read you’ll have in your hands.
So, in that sense, maybe this series accomplished what it wanted.
But before I get into the spoilers, just one thing: I can only hope these games drastically improve. In reading and seeing all of the manipulation and unnecessary drama, I think of Though You May Burn to Ash as a lower level of Kakegurui. Kakegurui’s logic with its games is probably questionable as well, but it’s at least fun. This manga’s games are not all that fun. That’s probably because of the killing (will touch on later), but the actual reasoning feels like it makes me dumber. Too much talking, rules being made up, manipulation, etc., is a big turn off.
Anyways…on with the spoilers!
So, as mentioned, Yamada fell for Yuki’s bait. The reason Yamada fell for it was because she never suspected Yuki would assume that Yamada and Meganeko would be plotting a plan to end her. She also never suspected Yuki and Reina would team up, so that was a mistake for someone who didn’t exactly exude confidence. However, this only stands out because of how Oniyazu draws these faces, how they react, and how they say it. It’s all just too goofy, and I can only turn the page just to see precisely that.
Everything is, fortunately or unfortunately, telegraphed. You think Yamada’s gonna accept getting killed off by Meganeko because she decided to fall for Yuki’s bluff? Nah, she’s gonna get Meganeko killed instead! So much for taking responsibility for your actions. But with each panel highlighting Yamada’s villainous face and Meganeko’s incessant sobbing, it was obvious Yamada was going to die. For a survival game, some sense of mystery would help. But there was little of that. That said, just this alone was a set up by the angel, Kroel.
What was that set up? By merely changing the appearance and outlawing the use of real names (or they die), you get the perfect despairing moment. So yeah, Yamada is set to die, and thanks to Kroel, gets tortured. But Yamada survives!…well, not really. When you’re not even recognizable and mentally tortured, I’d say that’s not surviving. Then the big trick has been revealed, and it makes perfect sense, considering ALL the backstory this series has been using — Yamada calls out Meganeko’s real name as she’s dying…
…And, as a “reward” for surviving the brazen bull, Kroel reveals “Yamada” was actually a man named Haruaki…who was married and wanted to save his relationship with Akari, who we know as “Meganeko”. Both worked together likely because they did in spirit know each other, but they never really did know who each other were in this game. That in turn factored into their real life as their relationship went south for a number of reasons, and it ends in a similar fashion because Kroel is awful.
This, however, reveals the true nature of this game: Yuki, as Ryouma, knew the both of them in real life. It was only in passing. Now the reason they were changed and had to come up with different names is because this game is taking place in their city, and only a special few were chosen for this game — those people knew each other in real life, and now they’re dead, with only the winner living with a bunch of money.
That just adds to the drama, especially since that also means Ryouma’s playing this game without really thinking about the consequences. That’s because he’s playing it for his sister, Yukina.
But his sister’s…his sister’s right there–oh nooooooo–
This just leads to many questions. Did Yukina decide to accept this to save her brother or something? What state was she in when she accepted Kroel’s terms and why? And Kroel clearly knew about this, so in a way, was this planned? Did she show some favoritism? While the two moved on to the next round, Kroel met up with another angel, Shiroel, and chides her as she became partial to Ryouma’s backstory, but is she setting up for some dark ending between Ryouma and Yukina?
If the artwork or story made more sense this would actually be a great twist. Ryouma is literally risking it all to save his sister, but he has no idea she’s already dead. If he even wins it all, will he survive only to discover his sister’s dead? Will he personally kill her himself? Yeah, all that effort for what right?
However, while the predictions are many, it’s hard to know what’s going to happen now since the two learned they were playing a preliminary round. They basically advanced to the real thing, which involves 12 other people, and they all know each other, in a small way or a big way. But who? Why? And how the heck did they die? All of these questions which may or may not be answered. But I can at least say it might be an entertaining ride.
“Might” is very key, because this feels like a B-grade horror movie that’s not really terrifying. In fact, based on how this is set up, I kinda wonder if this is gonna go into how The Hunger Games ended. Though whether any of the characters defy the angels is…yeah, good luck with that.
I do know that if none of the over-the-top drawings serve to let you know that this is a turn your brain off or else manga, then all of it’s gonna read horribly. Also, the torture scenes are graphic. Graphically b-tier yes, but still graphic. If you did click the torture link, then you can kinda guess how that all went with Yamada. How exactly can this be topped? I guess I’ll find out, but I’m also just wondering if Though You May Burn To Ash can get any stupider than it already is.
…I guess that means it’s hooked me…in a way.