This is a whole new level of demon slayer, or we should say, witch slayer. I was really taken in with the graphic, so brutal when the murders took place. Even though the arts in black and white format but the illustrator delivered the story very well through sequential arts. You won't get lost in the middle of the story because of how neat the sequential arts are. The dialogues are adequately assorted, minimalistic, which is good as it doesn't interrupt the visuality of the arts. I'm looking forward to reading the second volume of this manga since the ending in book one has a cliffhanger.

I received this review copy via NetGalley.

The Witch and the Beast is a fantasy manga featuring one very angry, and another very composed witch hunter. This is a fairy-tale inspired work and as I am a total fan of fairy-tale reinterpretation I was impatient to dig in.

As we crack the manga, we are welcomed by a few coloured pictures that sets the mood up nicely for the rest of the volume. The illustrations are rich with immense detail, particularly in the foods, I found. They are also extremely gruesome in some parts, so sensitive people be warned. The character design for the two main characters was oddly nondescript, I thought, their eyes are great, but the rest of them stays very mundane until they start performing magic. Maybe that was the whole point? I don’t know, but I thought the secondary characters had more personality and details in their features, which seemed strange to me. The action often erases the details so as to let readers focus on the movement, and maybe that is why the illustrator chose to have simpler designs for his main protagonists.

As for the story, this is really an introduction to our heroes. There is in fact very little characters involved and we concentrate on getting to know Guideau and Ashaf. We get a quick glimpse into why they hate witches when they are sent to retrieve, perhaps kill or at the very least interrogate the beloved saviour of a town, yes a witch who amazingly looks after the wellbeing of people. But the real story starts with serial ritualistic murders piling up quickly, and we are left on a cliff-hanger as all the questions start rising in our head.

With mangas it’s very hard to have an opinion on the first volume. They usually take time building their world before getting into the real story. I have been very surprised by the depth of some, despite their lightness in the beginning. I do not know if the answers are going to satisfy me and the buddying characters are going to develop fully yet, but I do know I want to continue this series to find out! I like the world and the mystery is promising to be nicely convoluted, I’m in.

This was ok. I had a bit of a hard time getting into the story because we do start out with very little context but I did eventually find my groove with the story. Some story elements were a bit confusing and the pacing was a bit different. It does take a bit to really get into and I would advise going in with an open view on storytelling. The story itself was ok but nothing I would necessarily write home about but that could just be me. I'd be interested to see if the following volumes increase my interest in the story but I could definitely take one or leave one. I quite liked the art of this manga but that can only take a story so far.

Thank you to Kodansha Comics for a digital copy via NetGalley of ‘The Witch and the Beast Vol 1’ by Kousuke Satake in exchange for an honest review.

Publisher: “Guideau: a feral girl with long fangs and the eyes of a beast. Ashaf: a soft-spoken man with delicate features and a coffin strapped to his back. This ominous pair appears one day in a town that's in thrall to a witch, who has convinced the townsfolk she's their hero. But Ashaf and Guideau know better. They have scores to settle, and they won't hesitate to remove anyone in their way...”

The premise of this manga appealed to me as I love anything to do with witches. Unfortunately, it just didn’t work for me. While I liked the imagery and energy of the artwork, I felt little connection to its characters and storyline with a result that I just felt confused.

So just not my cup of tea.

Not going to lie, I'm not 100% sure how I feel about this book.

In terms of the plot and writing of the story, there's a lot left out and you're basically holding on for your dear life as you're dragged at breakneck pace through this story. There's a lot of repetition about one specific thing regarding the witches, but I felt like that was easily remembered since it was the first page of the story. I would have liked to have learned more about the two main characters, what they're doing, the society they work with, and what's going on in the world. All of those topics were touched upon in this volume, but it felt more like a trailer for a movie or tv series instead of building a solid first installment into a series.

That being said, I'm intrigued enough to continue, but if the story continues to hop around and not explain stuff, I will be putting it down.

The Witch and the Beast is the dark story about two associates that are looking for a witch, and in the meantime they also solve other issues that have to do with magic.
This volume is an introduction, so there are many subplots left unexplained. I found it intriguing as a first volume, it takes you inside this magical world from the beginning.
The artwork is detailed and detailed, which makes the story much kore enjoyable.
I can’t wait to read the upcoming volumes.
If you enjoy supernatural manga, you will adore this one!

The Witch and the Beast is the dark and complex story of two associates from a magic organization that travel the world solving magical disturbances while looking for a specific witch.
There are many threads in the overarching story, but none are actually explained beyond the basics needed for the cases in this volume. It's incredibly complex and presents many a mystery that I would have loved to get more information on.
I'm guessing this is one of those series where you definitely need to read more than just the first volume to really get into and then it changes how you view the first volume as you realize that you did, in fact, get more information than you had realized. But just reading the first volume left me feeling a bit 'Meh' on it.
Artwise, it is compelling, detailed, and stylish to the point of making stop caring about the story and enjoying the art.
All in all, it's a strong foundation for subsequent volumes but I don't think it can stand by itself.

Happy thanks to NetGalley and Kodansha Comics for the read!

The Witch and the Beast brings us a dark tale of a pair of magical agents who travel and solve magical problems – Guideau, who has been cursed by a witch into a suppressed form, and is itching to find the witch who did it, and Ashaf, her partner who is a mage, and both of them belonging to an organization that involves in magical matters. The first story brings them to a city which reveres its resident witch, and has a history with her grandmother, who was considered evil; the current witch has gained their good opinion over centuries, and they trust her, but the two of them, Guideau, especially, find her shady. The next story is about serial murders with a witchy twist.

I like the way the world of magic is folded into the regular world – it is obvious that centuries ago, witches were persecuted, but now mages and magical folk are part of the workforce, like the mage in the police in the serial killer story. It is not clear what Guideau is, but it is hinted that she is bound to her human-like form by the witch and she may have been much more powerful in her unbound form. What that will entail and why it was done would be an interesting mystery that will hopefully unravel soon. Even if that plot is a long game right now, the cases themselves can be quite engaging for the story now. It also has quite good artwork, and the designs and angles are awe-inspiring; it sort of reminds me of Tokyo Ghoul’s style in weaponry. The tone of the story is also very dark fantasy, which is all sorts of appealing to me!

The first thing that got me about the manga was the cover and the idea that it could be a retelling (that something like that was).
For be the first series, it starts off really well and makes me think that the following will be just as good.
I want to emphasize that the author keeps us trapped at all times and adds the plus of being black and white the illustrations making the story have another depth.
If you are looking for a manga that has blood, witches and darkness, do not hesitateto read it. You will have a pleasant surprise

I found this a bit of a difficult read. The art is good, if a little busy and hard to follow at times, great for those that enjoy a more gritty manga. I did however, struggle to become invested in the plot. I didn't completely understand what was going on. Why do we hate these character's? Why should we root for you?

The dynamic of the two main characters is what rallied through for me and gave me enough curiosity to finish.

I do believe this will evolve into a great series, for those that are willing to put the effort in.

This reminded me of other supernatural action manga I enjoyed when I was younger, such as Hellsing. It has a little of Hellblazer in the mix as well. The art style is a bit hard to follow for me, which is par for the course with detailed action manga. The art gets too busy for me to parse actions, but that is a flaw in the reader, since it's a prominent feature of the genre. I would recommend this to fans of Hellblazer or Supernatural.

I’ve heard many people discredit comics, graphic novels, and manga, saying that they are not a true literary medium; that they are subpar and childish, undeserving of recognition.

Nothing could be further from the truth. Just like with traditional writing, there are some bad, and there are some good, and The Witch and the Beast: Volume 1 is, in my opinion, most definitely a quality work of fiction.

In the manga, Kousuke Satake has created an intriguing world where magic exists side by side with more modern amenities, at one point showcasing a standoff between the main characters, both of whom possess supernatural abilities, and police officers armed with guns. This merging feels very natural, not at all clunky or overcrowded despite the appearance of a monster several stories tall rampaging through city streets within the first twenty-five pages. Everything feels as though it belongs together, and nothing seems as though it’s out of place.

The composition of the panels are very well done, evoking all the proper emotions in their individual windows of action, from sorrow to rage to helplessness. This visual medium also manages to convey the grandiose nature of many scenes that may have simply fallen flat if described in the written.

In terms of story, it is truly an amazing narrative, filled with well crafted dialogue, that naturally changes tone from humorous to severe to simply laid back. This is most evident in the delightful rapport between the two main characters.

Ashaf and Guideau are partners in the Order of Magical Resonance, working “by magic, for magic, and of magic”, and they are hilariously diametrically opposed. Ashaf is calm and collected, a true gentleman mage with an ever present cigarette clenched in his lips, whereas Guideau is brash and violent, with a temper that seems impossibly endless for her petite form. Together, they are a formidable team, dispatched to deal with witches and other disturbances of a magical nature.

That is, when they’re not busy arguing and Guideau isn't threatening to kill Ashaf or giving into her apocalyptic temper.

We also meet some intriguing secondary characters, such as Haines, a police force mage forced to deal with a witch serial killer without any real backup. She soon finds herself roped into a high stakes race against time alongside Ashaf and Guideau, with their lives and the lives of many others on the line.

A very pleasing aspect of the manga is the presence of strong, well rounded women, particularly Guideau and Haines. They are strong in their own rights; Guideau is a physical powerhouse with zero tolerance for other people’s trivial issues, while Haines shoulders the responsibility of her entire department in the hunt for the killer witch. Yet in their strength, there are the subtle flaws that make them human; Guideau has given in to her burning desire for revenge and her desperate need to lift the witch’s curse that plagues her, and Haines must deal with the emotional burden of so many people dead on her watch, including some who were close to her.

Ashaf provides a very good foil to both Guideau and Haines. He acts as a balance to Guideau’s violent nature, keeping her power in check when needed, while also supporting her when it is called for. He is also a pillar of support for Haines, genuinely showing concern for her wellbeing, but he isn’t afraid to press her for information when necessary.

For fans of magic, monsters, and powerful female characters, The Witch and the Beast: Volume 1 is an adventure that has definite appeal as well as promising a high stakes, pulse pounding, immaculately constructed story and delivering on that promise.

I LOVED the drawing style and the supernatural creatures. Going into this story I was expecting more of a Beauty and the Beast but was pleasantly surprised by something completely different. Overall, I enjoyed the storyline but had a hard time following at a few points.

There were parts where I got a bit confused and had to reread panels a few times, especially during the action scenes.

Recommend for fans of supernatural related manga and comics.

Thank you to the publishers for giving me a free copy in exchange for an honest review!

This manga was so different from anything that I've read and I really loved it. I especially loved how you were just thrown into the story without knowing much! I had no clue about what the whole witch thing was and in the beginning when they go into the shop if they've seen a witch made no sense to me and I was very confused, however everything gets explained as they go and that makes it very fun to read.
The story is very cool! I'd never heard of something like this before and I thought it was very unique!
The art is also as before the same as usual, it does have some of its own characteristics in it which makes it a bit more unique and extra.

Overall I really enjoyed this one and would definitely recommend it :D

As a newbie to manga, I really enjoyed this storyline. It kept my attention and was beautifully illustrated.

First time reading this author.

I’ll not delve into the story and characters in detail here in my review because spoilers.

Feels like an action movie, hits the ground running. Atmosphere-wise reminds me of The Ancient Magus' Bride by Kore Yamazaki.

Scenes and panels don’t flow smoothly here and I get confused by what’s going on in the story. I re-read the panels frequently to grasp which character is talking. Action scenes are a little messy as well and it’s not easy to discern what’s happening until you observe carefully.

150 pages in and I get the feeling that to know the story, you’ve got to sit your whole way through this book. Which frankly, feels like the deep end of a pool. Nothing is really explained, situations flesh out as it goes along through dialogue and all, quickly becoming a blur while reading it.

Perhaps this fast-paced fantasy isn’t my cup of tea but I’d recommend it to anyone looking for an edgy manga series.

2 stars.

I was kindly given a copy of this by the publishers and netgalley in exchange of an honest review.

What can I say? I did enjoy it, but it was a lot darker and creepier than I expected actually. There’s quite a lot of gore and horror aspects to the manga which don’t sit will with me. But the art is beautiful and the characters are interesting.

If you like spooky gore filled things you’ll love this. For me it reminded me a lot of madoka with all the dark stuff. I won’t be continuing the series I think.

ARC Copy...oh doodle...that was one of the most violent yet promising starts to a manga series I have ever read to the point, I was undecided on the rating. Other yes there is a lot more blood and fowl language compared to other fantasy manga series...promising world building around the bad witch hunts and the magical "police" force.

Quick, full of action, w/ pretty art, and really fun. I want more!!!

The Witch and the Beast is about Ashaf and Guideau, a duo hunting witches and dealing with other magical creatures and issues. Ashaf works for the Order of Magical Resonance, and Guideau is currently working with him to get rid of a witch curse and get her revenge. It's very basic and simple - hunt bad guys, fight bad guys, kill bad guys. But it's also fun and with only two chapters in I was already invested in each of the main characters and their relationship.

The art is very nice and I love all the details in the scenarios, and the facial expressions are also quite nice. The story felt kinda superficial, but since it is only the first volume I couldn't expect them to just give everything away about the world or the characters - it was good to introduce the concept of the world and the job they do, as well as getting me hooked for more.

Ashaf and Guideau have opposite personalities and most of the fun while reading was seeing their interactions, bickering, and Ashaf feeding Guideau. I want to see more of them!!!

tw for gore and blood!

It’s Halloween and I’m ready for something scary! The Witch and the Beast 1 does have a witch, more than 1 beast, & a weirdo who carries a coffin on his back like a backpack. However, it unfortunately failed horribly with the scary heebie jeebies. The first witch we meet, Ione, is the town hero thanks to her vanquishing of all the beasts. The second witch is a serial killer. Neither are truly scary.

Even though this sounds like a horror tale, The Witch and the Beast 1 is actually about not stereotyping people based on the groups they belong to. It was okay but not what I thought it would be. 3 stars.

Thanks to Kodansha Comics and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review.