I agree. There is also Kai Empire. People might have forgotten it, but this country is still divided and there are still many nobles who wish to conquer Kouka. Wasn´t that the reason Soo Won conquered Sei and Xing? It is a little like stopping in front of the finish line!
I agree with you. Sensei please give us back our cunning king because yona desperately need a good antagonist right now. Whats the point of 100+ chapters if the final boss already give up without fighting. Lame.
Well these two statements pretty much sum up what I most have an issue with in the series.
This is going to be a bit long..
I am more of a character-driven reader than a plot-driven reader. But damn do I love a good plot with plenty of layers to piece apart. However at the end of the day, if I was given a story to follow that either had engaging characters but a lackluster plot, or a story with a captivating plot but stale characters, I would choose the former. Because at the end of the day, I cannot read a good story if I do not like any of the characters. It certainly is hard to find a story that has both.
But this is why I still read Akayona. I love the characters and their dynamics with each other. The complexity and psychology of the main characters is on a level I rarely see.
That being said, my main problem with the story is lack of global conflict and suspense. The world building and premise called for something big, but instead the only real suspense we get is small time between groups of characters and such. That’s good too, but if you set up a story with kingdoms, prophecies, gods, and legends, you are kind of positioned to expect quite the world-changing ride.
Soo-won is set up as a tragic and relatable antagonist. If not an antagonist then an antihero. He knows the country is threatened and sets out to quell those threats, while Yona and team, while not actively trying to save the land, help out along the way and we know ultimately they would help save the country even if not asked.
So the plot moves through these threats and our heroes tackle them along the way. A lot of these conflicts were well set-up and even foreshadowed and realistic (like the Nadai incident and foreshadowing in Awa)......but slowly a pattern begins to rise. To simply put it, our heroes win too easily. Soo-won eliminates these threats he intended to, but it’s more like nipping things in the bud. Stamping a fire down while it’s still a spark. Soo-won and his generals were enough to totally outmaneuver and overpower Soo-jin’s betrayal and Hazara’s intrusion...so Yona coming along with her godly powerful beings to help squash him further in the mud was totally overkill.
It kept happening. Look at the Sei forts. Just the generals alone were formidable, but then with Yona’s crew they demolished a whole army with just a few individuals. Kouka wasn’t even using its actual army at that time either.
The Xing arc was literally introduced with a Xing princess surrendering and asking to be their vassal state. Because even the stubborn Kouren acknowledged Kouka could totally kick their asses.
Kuelbo’s arc had potential, but soon you realize he just had too much bravado and not enough brains. I lost hope in him when he became suddenly more interested in the relationship between two teenagers than other ambitions
The dragons’ purpose of existing here is put to question too. Yes we know the dragon gods made them not out of any love for the people and their safety but for their former-dragon bro, Hiryuu. Still with the premise, you have protagonists with supernatural powers. Normally you would expect to have antagonists with supernatural powers to justify needing them in the first place. So far with all the evidence we have, those four are the only beings in the lands with superpowers. Unlike in the founding of the country, Kouka kingdom is already a powerful kingdom, so having godly beings is overkill and a little unfair for the other countries. Lol
Actually a central plot point I think is having them exist like this is a problem in itself. People go crazy over them and they suffer because of it. I do appreciate the complexity of this situation....but I keep waiting for something so formidable to arise, preferable supernatural, to show they are needed in the first place. But it looks like that’s where this is headed: the end of them. I don’t mind this plot point but the suspense for the fate of the country just isn’t there. (I love the dragons to death but this is a major issue)
I love our characters looking badass and powerful, but it wouldn’t hurt to give them a few losses would it? That’s what we need in order to feel actual suspense for the fate of Kouka Kingdom. When will they face an actual overwhelming threat where the odds are against them, and they must prevail anyway?? I would love to see that. Maybe we don’t need supernatural foes, but just a REALLY clever and cunning politician that could set clever traps for the powerhouses Hak and the dragons, and give Soo-won a run for his money on the chess board? All the antagonists have just been so...pathetic in the face of our heroes.
I’ll hold the hope that Kusanagi has something really good planned for this -a major source of conflict, though because so far it’s looking like Soo-won has lost his potential for that too.
I hope Kai really does have some powerful faction left over, because we ran out of neighboring countries and they’ve all proven not even a challenge for Kouka Kingdom.
I think next chapters we will find out that hak actually not only a good fighter, but also a good ruler and together with yona they will rule the kingdom and everyone will comment that they're the greatest ruler to ever rule kouka EVER.
And unlike soo won, they don't have to dirty their hand with the blood of previous king, because soo won will suddenly isolate himself to die on a secluded mountain somewhere to regret his sin lol. So yona and hak will remain pure until the end and of course their judgement is always right.
Perhaps Soo-won is thinking Yona, Hak and the dragons is proof he is not needed, and maybe even his betrayal a waste. And he will just fade away into nothing without any climax to his conflict within the trio (it was what we were waiting for the whole time after all) with the only ‘climax’ will be them realizing how pitiable and tragic he really was... -.-
Yeah I never minded Hak being King in fact I thought it a possibility since chapter 1 and the prophecy, but the build-up for it has not been very good. I mean it barely started in the previous arc and now it looks like his new resolution could lead to it. But she should have started early if she wanted show he is king material.
It would help if Yona and Hak didn’t come off as flawless perfection to the masses. I love these characters but I want them to face rejection, mistakes, and ultimately overcome them and improve themselves. But no, they are already amazing and the only change will be that they will get even more amazing.
