dhiyanah's reviews
496 reviews

'Love Languages' is a graphic novel that follows Sarah Huxley, a Londoner living in Paris trying to find her place within new work and life environments. A chance encounter with the excitable Ping Loh, an au pair from Hong Kong, sets off a sequence of events that leads Sarah out from the isolation bubble she's struggling with and into the sometimes-tense negotiations of newfound love. 
 
Language plays a huge role in this budding romance. The book opens with beautiful watercolor scenes of Paris, a metropolitan city brimming with diverse cultures. Bits of words from many languages float in the air and through crowds. As you stroll, you might just pick up a familiar word or two. The author/artist did a fantastic job at representing the immersion of languages in a way that's visually charming on the page. And this style carries beautifully throughout the main storyline. 
 
As Sarah keeps up with learning two new languages - French and Cantonese - so she can communicate with Ping, she shows us how this is changing her. These scenes were illustrated so beautifully. As Sarah and Ping catch up with each other's spoken languages, they find the space to get to know each other with an emotional intimacy that dazzles on the page. 
 
This was a wholesome, queer-affirming, light-hearted read with beautiful art that utilized careful use of colors and lines. I enjoyed it, especially as a Valentine's read! I would have liked to see more depth with the characters' acceptance of their queerness though, since it came up in a tense situation but fizzled out abruptly. It just felt like the story ended too quickly for me. 
 
But it was a happy ending, which I wholeheartedly appreciated! Recommended for a quick, feel-good read.
 
Thank you to the publisher, IDW Publishing, and NetGalley for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review. 

Not sure if I enjoyed the time traveling component, though I agree it added a new dimension to the series' foundational exploration of the differences between what's perceived as "mankind" and "demonic intelligence."

Within the time of the Demon King, we see demons including the unknown Solitare, working together or as groups under their king's orders. Knowing what we know from Frieren's original timeline, this varies from how demons organically function as solitary creatures. I wonder what originally motivated them to have a king in the first place, and how this contrast will impact the adventurers when Frieren returns to her original time. I wonder also if the actions during this space-time rift will affect any of The Hero's Party's previous efforts.

I guess it was also quite fun to see Himmel and the others, but I felt like we get enough flashbacks of them anyway, that this part wasn't really a highlight for me. I was more curious about what was going on with Fern and Stark during the rift, but this part wasn't covered here. There were some really funny scenes, though, and of course that chillhanger at the end - well, luckily I just got vol. 13!

This volume answers some of the questions I was wondering about in Vol. 10. I don't know if the execution was satisfying - it was expected, but still intriguing.

Especially the part where the demon's desire to coexist with humans is what was causing so much killing in the first place - it's almost as if killing (or causing conflict) is the only form of communication they know. That feels very reminiscent of oppressive, colonial, and militant political regimes that many cultures have and still are fighting to resist.

 

The cozier, light-hearted scenes after the big fight were really fun, but a bit disorienting as it was such a big shift in mood. The cliffhanger ending, though! Could be fun, but could also end up feeling like certain plotlines are being repeated just to fill up space. Onwards to Vol. 12 to find out.

Way more violence and gore in this volume. Very intriguing progression of the story, but not an easy one to digest. I think it can be hard for humans to acknowledge that something that looks like them can't feel or make decisions the way they do - it feels like that's what's being explored here with the demons. Even when humans are shown to be cruel to each other, as with the political corruption shown in Weise, it is ultimately the demon's lack of understanding of human emotions that's deemed as monstrous - which begs the question, what about the evil and corruption that humans do unto others? For some reason, the corruption of human biases seems to take a backseat to the naturally-inclined violence of demons. Demons in this world, unlike the humans, don't owe each other anything - not even kindness. Yet in the years of struggle against violent onslaughts of demonic evil, human evil still prevailed within politics, hierarchical communities, and desperation (

we see this when Macht asks human survivors to kill each other

).

I do wonder if they'll do anything more with Frieren's role in the battle between human and demonic intelligences. She is "the slayer," as the demons call her. And her growing interest in humans is making her more protective and decisive about how she interacts with people. Is this leading to a big boss battle where the outcome is already predicted, or will there be more? Hmm!

Things are picking up for the adventurers, and we get to see a deepening in the contrasts between demonic intelligence within this world and what's considered human (more emotional) intelligence. It's very interesting to see how Frieren, an elf with near-immortal lifespan, finds her place between the realities of humans and demons. Having started out with an apathetic outlook towards human life that would match that of a demon's, she has gained a depth from her desire to learn about people that has made her more strategic in her approach. And more insightful in her relationships. 

With Macht introduced as a demon that has worked with humans before and wants to "coexist," I wonder where they will go with these character developments. Exciting to see!

Aside from very annoying typos and translation awkwardness, the story itself remains compelling and fun to read. The art is so delightful too.

This one was a very warm and cozy volume within the series, focusing more on the relational dynamics and growths of the characters.

Reading these stories in Dec 2024, alongside a real-time genocide, it did not feel like I was reading fiction. I had to remind myself that they were meant to be short stories, but, real or imagined, there was so little hope in them. 

It's in the title, Gaza Writes Back. These are mourning letters, requesting empathy, addressed to the West. This is resistance acting against the erasure of reality, of the terrors lived daily for a people under constant siege and surveillance for a hungry war machine that will never rest. Most importantly, this collection is a chance for the voices of Refaat Alareer and his students to keep living, even here, in this world that has failed them.