Review: Hayate the Combat Butler, vol. 2
originally written for and posted on Comicsnob.com [Dec ’06 – May ’08]
Hayate the Combat Butler, Vol. 2
Published by: Viz Media
Writer & Artist: Kenjiro Hata
192 (182) pages.
Original Language: Japanese
Orientation: Right to left
Vintage: 2005. US edition February 2007.
English Adaptation: Mark Giambruno
Translation: Yuki Yoshioka & Cindy H. Yamauchi
Touch-up Art & Lettering: Freeman Wong
Design: Yukiko Whitley
Editor: Kit Fox
Publisher’s Rating: Older teens, ages 16+ (strong language, realistic and fantasy violence, and crude humor)
Previously Reviewed: Vol. 1
Rating: Upgraded, 2 out of 5
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Premise: Hayate, the Combat Butler. Through a series of misunderstandings, a young man down on his luck gets a break (we won’t call it a lucky break, yet) and goes to work as a Butler-slash-bodyguard.
Synopsis:
Hayate Ayasaki is 16. He works as a butler. His employer is Nagi Sanzenin, one very rich little girl. Though despite the size of the mansion and all of Nagi’s wealth, there are only 2 other staff: Maria the maid and Klaus, the head butler.
Hayate hasn’t been employed long: the first book, you know, 180-some pages, nine chapters, all that? That just covered how he got hired, and then his first day at work.
And the day isn’t over yet: We wade into the second volume with the return of the killer nursing robot, #8, who demands a rematch with Hayate and Tama (the talking 300 lb. tiger). Actually, this serves as a fair re-introduction of the characters while providing a neat little action sequence along with a punchline.
After the appetizer, we get to the meat of the book, a sequence of episodes each of which introduces a new character or two, and explains their relationship to the young Miss Nagi. She has a few friends her own age, all of whom happen to also be filthy rich (makes sense) and it turns out she’s not the only member of the Sanzenin as might be assumed; she has a grandfather (who lives at the “main” house, which looks likes a small principality) and numerous, more distant relatives. As the closest blood relation, Nagi is the currently the only heir, but Grandpa is a bit eccentric. I sense a major plot point coming… which I won’t spoil for you.
Aside from the disposition of the inheritance, which is put to one side for the remainder of the book, episodic hijinks continue in much the same ways as volume one, but with Hayate’s situation more settled (though he still owes 150 million yen) he seems to be in a better position to handle it. The last chapter begins ramping it up again as a lead in for volume 3, with a new character and a reveal on the last page [cue dramatic “dum, dum, DUM”] that isn’t all that much of a surprise but is as close to a cliffhanger as we’ll get.
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Review:
More combat and more housework for our Hayate, along with slower pacing and an opportunity to explore character as opposed to merely being as zany as possible, makes volume two a vast improvement over volume one.
Still only giving it 2 marks, but really: big improvement, I’m impressed.
Most of my complaints about the first volume have been addressed, so I suspect someone at Shogakukan is exerting a little more editorial pressure. Or who knows? Maybe it just took writer/artist Hata a little longer to find the right groove, or it’s just an illusion caused by how the individual installments were pulled together into the tankoban.
The art is adequate but not exceptional, and works just fine for a light comedy. The story, likewise, is adequate but not exceptional and aside from the so-wacky-it-must-be-manga premise, is much like any other action-comedy. It’s a quick read, nothing substantial but just fine as an afternoon snack.
