I have never reviewed any manga or anime, so this is just a first experience. Im a Brazilian user in Myanimelist, so, sorry for any english mistakes.


How far can the gore go?

In my searches for manga, one interested me a lot: Children. This cover image and synopsis interested me instantly, since horror would be the main focus of the story. Until then, I had never tried such a genre in a manga, where suspense and plot work differently from animes. It was in this reading that I thought: “Does the work deserve all this criticism? ”. And my conclusion was: “Yes, it does, but on the positive side”.

Anyway, this review may contain considerable spoilers, so be aware of it.

As I have never reviewed here before, I believe that verbalizing is better than taking everything to the technical level.
I liked the story. The opposition to which Tooru (protagonist) was subjected marked the work right away. A lot of psychopathic children killing adults, while Tooru finds a way to escape and at the same time save children's minds, manipulated by parental traumas.
And the returning characters represented that consistently and fairly. I admit that, although it is the weakest factor in the manga, it has remained reasonable throughout the development of history.
The final part (volume 2), in my opinion, was weaker than the rest. While the first volume focuses on setting the daycare center with the protagonist, this second one already tries to complete the plot, without seeming too fast, which is a pity, as it still felt. Since Mirai's death, I imagined that a tragedy would happen, but I never thought it would involve a couple of people who already knew the darker details of the nursery, and yet, who wanted to destroy the place out of pure vengeance. I found such an objective empty of them. I couldn't feel anything about the subsequent deaths because what was in focus now was not the most adult pair, but the resolution of a massacre, practically thrown at the reader. What is saved here is the construction that history needed to build right in the opening chapters. If that was badly done too, Children would surely be a horrible and unfounded manga.

In conclusion, the manga is not the best thing I have ever experienced, but it was not a complete disappointment. There were bloody and fun moments at the same time, which attracted me. Of course, it is not possible to save the accelerated ending, nor the final objectives (however logical they may seem). I believe that if the secondary characters would take better advantage and evolve them during the work with the protagonists, the work would be much better (more chapters would already solve the problem).

Story: 6/10 - Good at the beginning, but partially lost at the end, with the objectives. It is the famous “without feelings” or “emptiness” that is fundamentally part of the work.

Art: 6/10 - Average, nothing big.

Characters: 5/10 - Weak. Some are disposable and others are not very interesting.

Score: 5/10 - The end sacrificed part of the story, but it pays off as quick entertainment (for those who sympathize with blood and psychological).