Here’s the truth:
UDDUP had an awesome start. I mean, blind dude using a katana and having an amazing skill set? I don’t know about you, but that got me hooked right away.
Side characters were also pretty thought out, with interesting stories and personalities to back them up. To be able to implement side characters as interesting as the main ones is a feat that should not be ignored. A job well done from the author.
So where do my issues with UDDUP start? Around chapter 113 until let’s say….150, you know, the whole Jesus and Aegis part. Although I liked both Aegis and Jesus, I couldn’t help but think that the stories concerning these characters was a filler. I deeply hate fillers with all the passion I can muster when it comes to freaking manga. Fillers are just empty shit stuck on a piece of drawing board, they don’t contribute/progress the original story and are mainly used to milk more time. That’s exactly what I felt when reading that arc, the author milking more time and trying to convince UDDUP readers to read the manga concerning the characters mentioned above. By other words, cheap promo.
No, my issue wasn’t me being unable to understand the background of Jesus/Aegis. Some parts of their background where explained in a sufficient way that made me at least get a pretty clear picture of what has happened. My issue was solely that they just popped up out of nowhere and not contributing to the story. Nothing else.
Another issue:
Why THE HELL did officer Genda die? He was a very strong character with A LOT of promise. Dying like that out of nowhere was just pure wtf????? Incredibly disappointed.
Luckily, UDDUP started to become great again after the J/A arc. Story made more sense, character growth (not only Mamoru, but the others too) started taking place and the author manages to make you more interested in the world of Hijikata Mamoru.
Overall, a great manga with some flaws.I'm giving it a 9 because of the beginning and other strong elements, however, I would rather say it's an 8,5 in execution.
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