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Shinan says … An eternal formula

SMA Editorial Dept. SMA Editorial Dept. 23/09/2020 4 min read
Record of Ragnarok was born from a single question…

“What if humanity battled the gods?”

In an effort to give humanity a fighting chance against their ordained destruction, our protagonist, the Valkyrie Brunhild proposes a duel between humanity’s strongest and the very gods themselves.  With a seemingly endless list of characters from global history and myth fighting it out, the formula of the manga is simple. But for this simple formula to work we need a protagonist, the mighty Brunhild to kick off the story and hold together the core thread of the narrative.  Though she seldom appears in the manga, our fearless Valkyrie is ever present to ensure progress towards the overall goal is running smoothly in the background. 

Record of Ragnarok shows us that sometimes simple works best

The core formula and driving force of the concept is devilishly simple: x1 Human vs x1 God and repeat the formula until the end-point.  This simple formula can be found in other manga series, including “Dragon Ball” and “Sailor Moon”, sports manga such as “The Prince of Tennis” and many more, all of them with their own approach.  In the examples above, the pairing of characters is uncertain as the enemy is decided as the story develops. This might be for a simple reason, those manga’s have original characters that MEAN NOTHING to the reader.

Lu bu vs Thor, “Record of Ragnarok” by Ajichika sensei

However “Record of Ragnarok ” is the opposite, having characters that are commonly KNOWN with backstories and motives.  The characters are shown on the first chapter along with the pairing for each fight. This helps to catch the reader attention as well making them invested on both sides of story, who is really bad and who is good? 

 Ragnarok’s original points, characters and their own personal motives this formula doesn’t feel old.

So as we are constantly thrilled and entertained by the immediate battles, we, the reader will always keep in mind… “what will be the ultimate fate for humanity?”… “who will be the last standing?”… and what is” Brunhild’s real motive?”. These are the vital questions peppered throughout this simple formula that will ensure we keep turning that page…   

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