This is, hands down, one of the worst manga I have ever read.

You can barely tell what's going on in any of the panels. The characters are the furthest you can get from interesting, and the setting is too abstract for how generic its conflict is. Did I also mention that it's extremely wordy? I'm shocked at how much exposition there is... constantly explaining plot elements that will never be expanded upon anyway...

I'm dropping this manga with only two volumes left, and it's not out of laziness--it's because the story ends at a mere five volumes, which means if it's still bad by three, it won't get any better. I would say that's a shame, but honestly there is nothing original or interesting about this manga, so it was only a waste of time anyway.

I didn't go into this thing expecting anything great, but I was curious as to why the score was so low. I now know why, and I wish I had heeded that advice before spending my money on it. Of the manga I collect and read, I've only ever regretted buying three series. Even the ones I didn't end up liking, or wanting to continue, I'm glad I gave a chance. That's because I have a love of storytelling and art, which manga often ties together beautifully. With that perspective, even the bad stuff teaches me something. I learn from it because I'm a writer and artist myself.

But holy moly, Samurai 8: The Tale of Hachimaru only taught me to be wiser with my money. I will go into tomorrow remembering only my regret, and not the setting, characters, or any component of the story. What an utter failure.