Recently re-read the entire series after years of not catching up, and honestly, it really wasn't as good as I remembered it the first time around.
The main character Baam's obsession with antagonist Rachel is not romantic but cringe-worthy.
Every character harps on how special Baam is but ... I am not seeing it this time around. He just appears muted, quiet, non-hostile, and somewhat naive.
The weird subtle harem forming around Baam is a bad attempt at comic relief.
Too many mysteries hundreds of chapters later continue to affect the plot without further attempts at an explanation, which just morphs from being a source of excitement/curiosity to annoyance.
** Season 1 ** had fairly mediocre art, but I enjoyed the scheming. Honestly, despite the bad art, Season 1 was the strongest and tightest story-wise. I loved Kuhn's plotting schemes. I also enjoyed the drama of betrayals. The mysteries still felt fresh and relevant.
** Season 2 ** started off really interesting. We had another cast of compelling characters. But I noticed the plot losing steam a few arcs into the season. I was bored enough to just skip multiple chapters during the last game of the workshop battle arc. I think the story suffered from a rushed, busy reunion arc with no pause to celebrate characters coming back together as a team. There was no emotional fulfillment. It was instead just action after action after action. By the time we got to Hell train arc the story was meandering along and bogged down by uninteresting side characters. Rachel's scheming was the centerpiece of the last major arc of this season, and it just wasn't very compelling. ** She is a boring antagonist, and her continued survival in a so-called cut throat environment makes no sense. This woman should be dead already. **
** Season 3 ** just seems like a lot less plotting and a lot more flashy explosions. Which was not what originally drew me in. Too many new characters and none dealt with well.
Now years after I initially started the series, I'm finally fully dropping this series. Will not ever be re-reading or checking this series again. The pacing is irredeemable, storytelling has been tossed out the window, compelling characters are forgotten and squandered.