Akatsuki no Yona

I began reading this manga around five years ago. I remember reading the first few chapters, finding myself busy, dropping it, then coming back around to it. I'm so glad I did!

Minor spoilers below!

Story: 10/10

I love the story of Akatsuki no Yona. I have reread this manga so many times, and each time I fall in love over and over. The plot sounds so cliche and it is listed as shoujo. While I don't think that listing is incorrect per se, there are many dark elements within this story. There's violence and tragedy, but there's also hope and willpower. It's extremely enchanting to read.

Art: 9/10

The art is actually stunning. The mangaka can draw everything beautifully and when we get colored pages I absolutely fall in love. My one point off is for the earlier chapters (which you only really notice if you reread the manga), but my god has the mangaka improved!

Character: 10/10

This tale is absolutely character driven. All the characters have their own personality that they add to the party and I cannot help but love all of them! There's also a HUGE amount of character development for all the characters. You watch as they grow and discover new things about themselves and each other. Personally, Yoon is my favorite character, but all of them will situate themselves somewhere in your heart.

Enjoyment: 10/10

It's a fantasy story to get lost in, what else is there to enjoy? But in all seriousness, I have kept up with this manga for so long because I an enjoy it so much. I have favorite chapters and arcs that I can come back to and read whenever I feel like (or reread the whole thing if I have the time)! I usually cannot reread material, but there's something about this manga that draws me back over and over.

Overall: 10/10

Akatsuki no Yona is not your usual shoujo harem, but rather a story about overcoming trials and perseverance. It's dark and gritty at times and heartwarming and silly at others. Its cast of characters are all delightful, the art is stunning, and its story will no doubt hook you.

This manga has stolen my heart. At first, I watched the anime, which only used the first 47 chapters or so of the manga, which I enjoyed thoroughly. However, it has taken me far too long to get to read the manga.

I have read 84 chapters as of now, and all I can say is that I'm highly pleased with it and it's worth the read. The art style is probably the first thing you'll notice and it's beautiful.

The storyline the manga follows is just so enjoyable, it includes so much emotion and thought. The way the whole manga is portrayed is amazing. It's catered well to the era it's set in and uses the characters they introduce well and with a purpose, not like some other mangas which introduce characters just for the sake of it. All the characters have a reason for being there and contribute somewhat to the plot or the development of the main characters.

Overall, I would recommend this manga to anyone who likes a good laugh, a good bit of action and a strong female lead.

I loved this Manga . The story is really interesting . Yona the protagonist is not a weak girl but a really strong character , I loved her character development throughout the series, unlike other series of this genre , shes not a damsel in distress but now is turning into a powerful warrior. The plot is intriguing it keeps you hooked . All the characters have their equal importance and have been developed brilliantly . Hak, her protector and friend has been with her , he loves her but never expressed . It has all the elements. The four dragons have become great allies to her who respect her. I liked the development of each character in this. Soo Won is really a mystery , his character is contradicting to his actions. I will love to read more of this

[Akatsuki no Yona] ... just recently, I watched the anime, it was good, it lit a fire within me, ...I had to seek its manga for more ! it's been a while since I've been this thirsty for a Manga, the more I read, the more I crave !

I like the fact that the anime was true to the manga !
The comedy is quite good =D

I like the character designs and the Anime OST! Especially a certain phrase in the 2nd Anime ending song "Modoranai hibi ni namida koboshite..." It just hit me deep once I heard it ...Right in the Kokoro!

Hak; Thunder Beast, is my fav.
All chars are quite good, in their own way...
Yona, hold on! you go girl!

Overall, it's a very pleasant type of shoujo manga =w= <3

I loved ch.83 Sound of Invisible Tears

[Spoiler]
Zeno gives off a very dark theme to the plot with his regenerative body, it's just not usually seen/expected in a shoujo manga, which increases this manga's uniqueness .....I personally like that one scene of Zeno holding the hand of his wife, for god know how long, till it all turned into skeleton and not flesh...so heartfelt!

This manga took my breath away!

I've spent a whole day just reading this manga and while for the first 70/80 chapters I really loved this manga. The artwork is just beautiful 10/10.
But it's one sin making Hak/Yona romance basically the center point from 130 onward. It should have been a slow romance and rushing into it just ruined the story for me.

Strong character development, each character has it's own personality and role within the story. Yoon (the mother), Kija (goody goody), Blue Dragon (introvert), Green Dragon (rebel, playboy), Hak (sardonic lover boy), Yellow Dragon (positivity) and Yona ( a sheltered princess who comes to understand the reality of her fathers reign and tries to change it for the better).
I love the whole dynamic of Hak/ Yona and Su Won. The backstory of their childhood growing up together. The betrayal and how it effects both of them.

And how each time they add a character we get to see their point of view and love them, how they fit into the little family. I hate how later down the track they add too many characters and it becomes too confusing too follow.

I love the friendship between Hak and Jae ha, the Green Dragon especially especially you can tell he trusts him with his true feelings.
Just the way certain characters interact together is enjoyable. I won't bother reading anymore chapters though.

Gives me the last airbender vibes.
Inverse harem too.

Akatsuki no Yona is the reason why I like so much everything about anime and manga.
So, let’s start talk about Akayona.

When I found the anime adaptation was love at first sight, then I had started to read the manga immediately. At the same time, I was watching the anime. Akayona isn’t a classical shoujo manga which the princess live a beautiful and romantic life to have a happy ending. This is shoujo manga about war, betrayal and power struggle but also it’s about love, overcoming and friendship.

Story: 10/10
Akayona is complex story and I love stories full of details.
I think that is very difficult for an author to be able to keep the level of the story from the beginning until the end (Akayona hasn’t end yet), but Mizuho Kusanagi can do it with mastery.
Another point to considerate about Akatsuki no Yona that I think very important is the way the author managed to unite so many classic elements of Japanese culture like dragons, warriors, kingdoms related with natural elements.
All of this makes reader to immerse is this world.

Art: 10/10
As I said, this story is rich, full of details. The design is very very beautiful and there is even maps in the manga to you understand better the story.

Character: 10/10

I read some complaints about Akayona. Some people have said that Yona doesn’t develop in this story, she is almost a whiner who needs someone's help. At the beginning of the story it's true, but everywhere else you can see how she becomes strong and confident.
Yona demonstrates great value by being humble enough to recognize that she didn't know the reality of her kingdom, and, even with all her weakness, she does not give up on to make it a better place to the people live. Only after that, she intend claim the throne back.
As for the other characters, each one has his personal stories, one more beautiful than another, by the way. And as for the antagonist of the story you fall in love with him at the same time that you want to kill him.

Another very important point in any manga that Mizuho Kusanagi succeeds in mastering again is the fact that all characters are important, there are not too many characters and not less, each has its own role within the plot.

Enjoyment/Overall: 10/10
In order not to prolong, I can say that it is really a story worth reading.
In addition, among the shoujo manga listed in MAL, it is the one with the highest note (8.88), and this story really deserves this position.

I rarely write review, especially for a shoujo manga cos majority of them are lame, but this manga melts my heart so much that I am compelled to write a glowing review on it hoping that this manga may be known by more people.

For once, I am surprised that there is a reverse harem that does not suck and actually has a good story. If you're a fan of romance who's been dissapointed with so many junk out there, then give Akatsuki no Yona is a shot.

The best part about this manga is the character interactions between all of them, it has the right amount of humor, romance, and sadness that make my heart ache when I read it.
I love how the characters are not one dimensional, each have their own motivations behind their actions, and the "bad guy" imho are not the one dimensionally bad guy since things are not completely black and white here, and I personally can empathize with team SooWon more than team Yona.

Compared to a more hard core seinen that I prefer, the story here is quite PG-rated and the events fall together a little too convenient sometimes, but in comparison to all other shojo manga and especially reverse harem that focus on mindless self indulgence romance, this one is on its own league.

Every chapter on the manga moves the story forward and gives more background on the character that makes you care more and more about each one of them.
I binge watched the entire 24 episodes of the anime and continue binge reading the manga right after and cannot wait for more chapters to show up!

This was really good at first. You have the generic shoujo love interest in Hak, but Yona was forced out of her comfy life as a princess and made to wander the country. Picking up archery and swordwork to defend herself only made her better. But what made the story interesting to watch was the antagonist, Soo-Won. The story showed that Yona's father was a bad king. It could've ended there and made Soo-Won bad as well to justify Yona taking him down. Instead, he was shown to be a good king. This was something else that Yona had to struggle with--should she get revenge for her father, the king that made her people suffer, or leave her father's murderer, a good king, to continue to rule and help the people.

So why did I rate this a 5? Because none of these plot points have been followed up on. Everyone Yona faces is an idiot who makes dumb mistakes to make her look good, or they become one of her hanger-ons. I couldn't care less about the romance--Hak is nothing more than a love interest with no goals or ideas outside of Yona worship. The dragons are nothing, really, except for maybe Zeno. There's no interesting struggle, and now it feels like the last few antagonists in Soo-Won and the enemy nation are being torn down to pull Yona up. There's none of that grit and challenge that the early chapters had. These are common problems in battle shonen/shoujo, but I had hope that AnY was better than that. Oh well. I'd rate the story lower if the early arcs weren't so good.

*Mild spoilers ahead*

I actually read the akatsuki no yona manga twice, once before the anime and once after. That's how much i expected from this series. But sad to say, Kusanagi Mizuho didn't fully utilize this manga's potential.


Story
The plot is definitely the strongest point of this manga. Not exactly your typical shoujo story, it's set in a historical korean culture. The first few chapters definitely reel you and set up a very intriguing premise. However, that's where the downfall starts. Now, idk if the mangaka is just confused or its her editors forcing her to be, but she continues to spoil the fun out of this story every way she can. The rushed character arcs in the start just to get on with the story, the romance that really doesn't make you go "kyuuu" and cliched shoujo tactics that you don't wanna see in such a well off story. Nonetheless, there are surprises here and then and it does keep you reading on.

Art
The art isn't really eye catching for the most part. You have a few well drawn pages here and there but it's mostly just fine.

Characters
Personally i love the characters. Not because they're all well written but it's easy to grow attached to them. The protagonist, Yona, could be one of the best female characters of all time.. if it weren't for the mangaka making Yona cry every arc and ruin her "strong" shoujo with forced doki dokis. And then you have Hak, who at some point just gets annoying with his forced romance. Infact, i fear Soo Won is the most thought out character in this manga. I'll still give the characters a 7 for their amusing dialogues and supring tactics time to time.

Overall, it is a good manga to get hooked on. It has its bad points but the strong points do exist, often overshadowing the bad. There are pages you can't read enough, arcs that keep at the edge of your seat and surprising moments that do make you go "woa". But i feel Akatsuki no yona could be so much more if it let go of the notion of being "just a shoujo".

I'll try my best not to give any spoiler

Story 8/10
For someone who doesn't like historical story, honestly giving 8 out of 10 is really good. There is no confusing term or something that confuse me while reading it which happened to me sometimes with other manga. I am glad i picked this story although i have already consider wheter to reat it or not so many times.

Character 10/10
ALL OF THE CHARACTERS ARE INTERESTING. All of them have something to tell, something to convey, something to connect. Each characters have different personalities and it is interesting to see them interacting with each other. By what i mean all is ALL OF THEM. Yes, including water tribe general, general joo doh, general moon duk, general geuntae, even sided character like tetora, or captain gigan (I LOVE HER SO MUCH anyway lol).

Art 10/10
Well, it is good. The drawing can make you actually feel something. The rage, the conflicted expression that connect with the dialog. I just love it.

Enjoyment 10/10
It is to the point that i am obsessing about it lol. when will the next chap is up

Overall 10/10
Believe me, even if you don't like historical manga, try it. It might be your loss if you don't.