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Description
From Tokypop: Meet Dinah, a disturbed young girl who has been sent to the small town of Bizenghast to live with her aunt following the tragic death of her parents. She is thought by her aunt to have some sort of mental illness, as Dinah believes the house to be haunted. Only Dinah is aware of the restless spirits, which only feeds the doctor's and her aunt's suspicions about Dinah's well-being. The house was a mental hospital, then a school for juvenile delinquents. The ghosts know Dinah can see them and they won't leave her alone. A recluse, she sneaks out with her only friend, Vincent, and together they discover a lost graveyard. There they find a sunken mausoleum, where Dinah reads from a stone engraving. This act binds her to a contract requiring Dinah to release spirits stuck somewhere between an unhappy life and a peaceful afterlife. If she refuses, she will face an eternity of hell. So Dinah begins her quest of "cleaning" the vaults, crypts, and graves of lost souls, all the while struggling with the haunts at home and suspicions of her growing mental illness.
You should never judge an amazing storyline based on the art...sure the art may look a bit strange, but it fits the aura and it glows with beauty on every page whilst flowing with the storyline. This manga actually made me shed some tears the characters are strong and clever, Dinah is not annoying and Vincent is pretty cool and loyal to his friend. I can't wait until this whole manga is finished! The story is very exciting and I'm glad that I picked this up
This manga had an excellent premise. The art was beautiful (in sections in which the author cared) and the psychological and gothic intrigue was tastefully done (at first). The first volume had a lot of promise but it started to wither out as the series continued, however. What I really liked about the first volume was the romantic imagery - the clothing, environments, and people. Nonetheless, this is a manga I would read again. For anybody wanting to try out an OEL manga, this is a good recommendation.
I've been a Bizenghast fan since Tokyopop released volume two back in 2006. It was very reminiscent of Japanese artists like Kaori Yuki and Mitsukazu Mihara (two of my favorites), only with the added bonuses of no objectionable content AND some really amusing comedic scenes. Now, six years later, after just reading the eighth and final volume yesterday (a volume which was a very long time coming and may never have seen the light of day without rightstuf stepping in to rescue it), I can not recommend this series enough. It had one of the most satisfying endings I've ever encountered in a manga, and usually I'm very hard to please in the endings department. I've even updated my previous score of '8' to '9' after seeing how concisely every last strand got tied up, and usually I'm a very critical scorer. For those who might not have the ability to buy the book online right now, I'll offer some insight into the final volume.
Spoiler (mouse over to view)
I think anyone who's read Nikolai (the oneshot in the Rising Stars of Manga contest that M. Alice LeGrow used to pitch Bizenghast) suspected that somehow, someway Vincent would come back and the story would have a Dinah X Vincent ending. I figured it would play out like Nikolai, where she is still alive and well, and he remains by her side as a tangible spirit. Others suspected that Dinah would simply empty out the vaults and her "big reward" would be Vincent coming back to life. But I have to give Miss LeGrow some serious props, because neither of those theories ended up being what actually happens, but it still has an amazing Dinah X Vincent ending that is even better and cooler than either of those ideas, but I won't ruin it by saying exactly what happens. That my friends, is well worth the wait.
It is one of my favourite mangas! I love the beautifully drawn gothic art and the plot.
Art is stunning but I feel some panels are little rushed compared to others where she really puts detail in. I love how it's all gothic and dark and as mentioned before it fits wel into the theme and aura. Especially the clothes
Plot was interesting and original compared to other mangas but don't expect to much as my expectations were slightly failed as I continued to read but I found it intresting again when
Spoiler (mouse over to view)
Edrear was introduced and especially when Vincent died.
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The characters were good. Vincent was this loyal friend and as the story continued Dinah grew stronger until
Spoiler (mouse over to view)
Vincent died
then she got all depressed and it grew to the point where it annoyed me. Edrear was your typical gentleman and Edaniel was your quirky and funny character.
Overall I personally love this manga! I reccomend to people who want to read shoujo mangas that have nothing to do with love and blushing girls!
This series started with an incredible bang! of great artwork. But at closer inspection, many of the panels are very poorly and hastily drawn; though certain images and pictures remain beautiful, they decrease as the series goes on. The plot offers up great promise which has yet to yield anything very interesting. The series often feels rushed and unemotional, without any feeling of the mysteries in the series being unraveled or the plot becoming any deeper or more psychological. Too many ends without enough connection. LeGrow needs to get her act together quickly for Bizenghast to establish itself as anything but mediocre. Compared to many gothic shoujo, this one really falls short.
I have no idea why this got so many bad votes -- this is an amazing manga. The art is downright beautiful, and the attention to detail is amazing. It's definitely on the gothic side, and there are definitely psychological elements, as well as "wtf, that girl has a birdcage for her ribcage" moments. I suppose the fact that the slow storyline has something to do with it, but over the four volumes that are out (in the US), there is definitely an underlying plot.
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the characters are strong and clever, Dinah is not annoying and Vincent is pretty cool and loyal to his friend. 
