I usually compile lists of the top 5 or 10 manhwa that I am currently reading, but I have recently realized that each story that I read deserves its own review, as each manhwa has its own story, pacing and characters, and a short summary of the manhwa would do it injustice.
Additionally, I hope that by splitting my reviews into full-length pieces, I can invite more readers to pick up each series and start their own reading journey. Maybe, if I ever have the opportunity to meet any of you, we will be able to discuss more on each manhwa that we have read, and share our reading repertoire between ourselves.
Star-Embracing Swordmaster is set in a fantasy world with knights and dragons, with each region having their own kingdoms and regent. Our story follows a young orphan named Vlad who works in the slums, and who wishes to reach for the starlight that he sees in the distant noble castles.
In a sudden turn of events, Vlad is given the opportunity to join the Northern Kingdom of Vayezid in order to be trained to be a knight. The story continues with Vlad’s journey as he learns what it means to be a knight, as he faces other knights, dragons, and adversaries in the world.
My Review
If you know me, you know I am a sucker for good character development. This manhwa has no shortage of that, mostly of course surrounding our protagonist Vlad, who grows from the backstreet of the slums to a well-renowned Knight of the North.
Though at the beginning of the story Vlad is helped by a nameless voice in his head, the assistance comes in more of a mentoring capacity, and vanishes halfway through. This storytelling device is a fairly common one – for instance, Obi-Wan, Gandalf or Dumbledore – thus, I find no fault in this.
Vlad not only grows as a knight, but also as a person who now has to fit in a bigger society rather than the backwater of his town; yet he never forgets his origin, taking up the name Vlad of Schoarra.
The power system used by the knights, known as “aura”, is unique in its own way. Each knight has an inner world where they draw their aura or power from, and each world is not only represented differently from one knight to another, but also stands for different principles.
In other words, their aura comes from their conviction as a person.The stronger their conviction towards something, the bigger their inner world, which in turns gives them more power. I love this power system, as there is a presence of both external power, which are techniques as well as physical prowess; and internal power, manifested by their convictions as aura. Literal aura farming.
The worldbuilding is also exceptionally well done, as not only there are dragons and other fantasy races, but the power dynamic between the kingdoms is also well thought of. There is the central kingdom and the four point kingdoms, with most of the stories taking place in the Northern Kingdom, but the story expands as Vlad travels throughout the world.
Vlad explores not only every corner of the land, but also gets to know the people in it, as well as the other creatures big and small. The art is absolutely gorgeous in its own right, as both the overworld and the world within the knights are beautifully drawn to encompass what their convictions are, while maintaining a scenic view. The environment is detailed, while each fight scene is full of motion.
However, what I find to be lacking, and what the series can do better, is the side characters, like the other knights, his retainers and the regent of the kingdoms. The story focuses entirely on Vlad and his journey as a knight, to the point that other characters seem to be plot devices that are only there to move Vlad forward.
There is little dynamic between the characters, except for a few minor lines of banter here and there, and even then, it is only between Vlad and others. This is the only glaring weakness of the story so far, as other minor things like Vlad winning almost every fight or his struggles seeming irrelevant are something most writers suffer with when writing a power fantasy.
Conclusion
All in all, it is a distinctive manhwa with a fantasy theme that does not rely on regression, transmigration or any other body transfer of the main character. I do love regression or transmigration manhwa, but something with its own original characters and its own fantasy world is a breath of fresh air amid the many manhwas out there. I give this series an 8 out of 10 pies.
