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A review by typewriterdeluxe
Knights of Sidonia, Volume 1 by Tsutomu Nihei
2.0
I like the idea of Knights of Sidonia, but there were some things in Volume 1 that made me uncomfortable and I'm not sure if I'll be continuing the series.
The part that stuck out to me most was how Tsutomu Nihei drew the fight between Nagate and the gauna after it took on the form of Yomono. On the one hand, I'm interested in the idea of a monster that can change its structure after consuming prey. I also like the idea of a mecha vs. humanoid god battle. However, I didn't enjoy the sexualized violence and how the gauna (who looks just like Yomono) is gagged by Nagate's mecha before straddling it (her) and blasting his cannon deep into its (her) mouth.
I wondered if I was reading too much into this, or perhaps misreading the tone of the scene. But after considering Knights of Sidonia Volume 1 as a whole, here are some other moments that the author slips in fanservice or sexualized violence in what seems to be an otherwise pretty serious sci-fi story:
-the depiction of Yomono's skinsuit ripping off when attacked by the gauna
-the depiction of femme trainees responding to having their skinsuit catheters inserted
-the half page dedicated to Izana's crotch being jammed up against Nagate's mouth when Nagate is accidentally knocked into the water
The part that stuck out to me most was how Tsutomu Nihei drew the fight between Nagate and the gauna after it took on the form of Yomono. On the one hand, I'm interested in the idea of a monster that can change its structure after consuming prey. I also like the idea of a mecha vs. humanoid god battle. However, I didn't enjoy the sexualized violence and how the gauna (who looks just like Yomono) is gagged by Nagate's mecha before straddling it (her) and blasting his cannon deep into its (her) mouth.
I wondered if I was reading too much into this, or perhaps misreading the tone of the scene. But after considering Knights of Sidonia Volume 1 as a whole, here are some other moments that the author slips in fanservice or sexualized violence in what seems to be an otherwise pretty serious sci-fi story:
-the depiction of Yomono's skinsuit ripping off when attacked by the gauna
-the depiction of femme trainees responding to having their skinsuit catheters inserted
-the half page dedicated to Izana's crotch being jammed up against Nagate's mouth when Nagate is accidentally knocked into the water