AEGIS is an underrated masterpiece. It tells us the story of two friends and their fight for survival after being captured by an organization who uses them as soldiers. Children forced to kill for survival, will a friendship resist such a bloody violent world? While both had to become strong, one of them still kept his emotions for several years, while the other turned off all his emotions for being able to kill and not hesitate. I must say i was on the verge of tears several times, this is a very well developed shounen. Many parts are confusing, so this needs to be read slowly, although i read it the fast as i could because i was curious. Small spoilers will follow.

Art- The art might seem weird but its rather unique and i ended up falling in love with the art, character designs.

Character- Well this is where this manhwa excels. The two main protagonists are shown since their childhood till their adolescence. And the most amazing thing is the complexity around their relationship. They´re friends, like two brothers, both of them united because of the love they both felt for a woman. At first i liked Jino, but when the past of Izare was revealed i had tears on my eyes. Izare is the type of cold ruthless killer that you look and say "omg, he is so cool, but so evil" at first sight. At second sight you´ll be with your jaw open to see why he is like that. and plus, this contains the popular " Best friends turning into enemies". Which makes you feel so depressed, because you know its just wrong. After all the pain, and intense suffering both had, after all they did to survive, its just too much to see destiny putting them against each other.

Enjoyment- I did not have expectations when i started this. I was bored, needed something to read and picked this randomly, but im so glad i did it, because this is truly interesting.

Overall- a 9. Why? Because it deserves it. for those who enjoy Requiem of the phantom anime vibes, try this, you wont be disappointed.

Just one thing to warn all those readers who haven't started reading this yet. Yes, it's good. But! It also jumps around a whole lot. 8+ volumes in and we still don't have the whole story of their background. Now, that's fine and all, it's a highly intriguing way of unfolding the story, no problems there. HOWEVER... when there have been no updates whatsoever since January 2009 (more than a year and a half now) and there's all these holes in the story that haven't been filled in yet... I don't know about you, but the feeling of having been left hanging sure isn't a nice one for me. And the way the plot jumps around, it's not even like there's the minor closure you get at the end of an arc in manhwa told the more traditional way.
So tl;dr: Don't read this. Yet. Wait for it to be finished, or at least until it starts going again.

FYI, in the first 5 volumes there is no shounen ai, just the friendship between two boys, and the promise one makes towards the other. Therefore, no romantic involvement unless you're yaoi crazy.

I'm glad I read the reviews beforehand as they REALLY helped in reading this manga. I do not agree with Jino being a crybaby though, because he is not. His character is much better developed than the crybabies that annoy the hell out of me enough to destroy an amazing manga. This is a must read even if you don't like sci-fi, which I'm not too fond of. I was originally attracted by the art on the cover against my better judgement (at the time), and I am glad I've read it. The characters are amazing, and so is the art. The plot is confusing as hell ONLY if you don't read the reviews first. I was prepared for the constant shift in time and the time lags and the historical background. This manga skips like none other I've seen before and I'm SO glad I knew that beforehand and was prepared. Otherwise, the manga would have been too confusing to read. This is most surely a MUST READ.

Regarding the dichotomy between Jino and Izare, I'm glad it exists because this is what makes the manga truly awesome. Usually what you find is that when one character sacrifices himself/herself for another, the weaker one is crappy or whiny or just unable to handle life by him/herself. This manga is awesome in the point that this does not appear. Jino is not a crybaby or just a character you want to shoot just to get him out of the manga. He is developed into a full fledged character just as strong as Izare. I've never read a manga where both characters are equally as strong, and I am very glad I picked this one up. Ultimately, it's really cool: Izare sacraficing himself for Jino (so you're in that emotional rollercoaster), and Jino not knowing about it... therefore his actions (a different emotional rollercoaster). This is just too sweet. I'm really happy I read this.

It only goes to show the difference in opinion and that reviews should not be taken to heart. I've read so much crap yaoi and shounen ai that the good ones come across every blue moon. For those who think Jino is a crybaby, I have a list of characters you'll want to shoot... that's why I see Jino so fully developed.

... Last updated on December 29th, 2009, 11:47pm

I think Jino is very annoying brat and he thinks only for himself... even he don't knows sacrifices which Izare accomplishes for him...He is very egoist and hypocrite.
Instead I like very Izare who lives his life to protect jino and become a murderer for this task...even he kill their sister in order to protect Jino who continues to tear Izare's heart into pieces... T_T

The dialogue is all over the place and so is the plot. I could see that the writer was trying to go for layers of complexity but it was all so jumbled, that I wonder what the point was.

Such a pity though as it all could've been very interesting had it been more well-written.

... Last updated on February 4th, 2009, 11:30pm

Yeah, I have to say, our hero is a bit of a wimp. I have yet to see him do anything heroic. In fact, after 8 volumes, he's done nothing but look out for himself while other people protect him. I think Izare, our tragic hero is awesome though - murderer he may be, but you do get the sense that he lives for one person. In many ways, this is a dark story and agree that I can only see them both dying in the end. Despite the "annoying" main character and the confusing sequence of story telling, I found the art to be awesome and the quirks to be humorous. I'd wait for it ALL to be out before reading it though, since it's very confusing and u may get lost in subsequent chapters if the details aren't fresh with the slow release of chapters.

... Last updated on December 19th, 2009, 10:52am

this is a realy great manga. i've only read vol.1and 2. i also have 5 and 6 but i havent read them yet. i got them cuz it was my only chance in geting them its been getting to me
but serously read it its great

... Last updated on July 10th, 2008, 2:09pm

I've only seen like a chapter and 6 pages from a preview(NETCOMICS), but it seems really good. The summary makes me feel like buying the manga. ;-; WHY DON'T I HAVE A PAYPAL. T_T