Favorites Which arcs are your favourite, least favourite? Why?

[@Aylinn]

My would be the Fugitive arc (everything between the first chapter and moment where Yona and Hak meat the priest.)
+ Su-won was not shown as an evil dude who eats babies for breakfast (This was the thing that interested me the most and the thing that played the most important part in my decision to continue with the story.)
+ fairly good characterization for Yona and well-done presentation of the relationship between the main characters.

The Awa arc
+ the main character achieving something thanks to gained skills. (To be sure, Yona learnt archery way too quickly, but I count it is as a plus that Yona needed to put some effort in learning before being able to do something, because generally I expect less from a shoujo manga. From a generic shoujo I would expect that the heroine would kill a bad guy even if it were the first time in her life when she had a bow in her hands. I appreciated that this story was at least trying to look convincing)

The Fire Tribe arc
+ simple, but sensible on general level political intrigue.
+ best evil character in the whole story. I mean Li-Hazara. Maybe he was not deep or anything, but his being a power hungry guy who is scheming how to gain more power and how to dupe others makes sense in the context of this story. In other words he is convincing.

My least favourite arc

Xing arc
- bad character development for Yona (getting out of troubles thanks to a string of lucky coincidences, everyone being oh so amazed how great and badass she is, despite the fact that they are supposed to be far more skilled warriors and far more knowledgable, diplomatic success coming out of nowhere or rather from lucky coincidences.)
- the lamest bad character in this manga that saved Yona from the trouble of convincing Kouren to seek peace with Su-won and the trouble of facing consequences of her words that only exacerbated Kouren’s hatred towards Su-won and as a result the situation.

Not to be to negative I have been thinking what I found good about Xing arc and I come to conclusion that it was Hak.
+ The occasional bits of characterization thrown at him made me like him a little better. They are not enough to save this arc, as there are too few of them, but still.

 

[Brandish μ]

I think you've made a pretty good list there. After thinking about this (many times before) I come back to the Fire Tribe Arc as my favourite. The intro to the story is strong, I agree. And definitely agree on Xing Arc...

I'll add another - I did enjoy Sei Arc a lot. Not so much for it's story purposes or how well written it was (I mean, they took out how many with how little? lol), more from enjoyment purposed contained in a small arc. Hak and Soo-Won saving Lily is among favourite parts in the manga so far; a contrasting moment to their first reunion in chapter 91.

 

[@Aylinn]

I'll add another - I did enjoy Sei Arc a lot. Not so much for it's story purposes or how well written it was (I mean, they took out how many with how little? lol), more from enjoyment purposed contained in a small arc. Hak and Soo-Won saving Lily is among favourite parts in the manga so far; a contrasting moment to their first reunion in chapter 91.

I agree that the rescue of Lily done by Su-won and Hak was really good. I like it a lot as well.

I didn’t add the arc because I think it has some really noticeable minuses like the forts built in the middle of nowhere or taking the forts with little soldiers as you said, but the interactions between the main characters and the climax were certainly the saving graces of this arc.

 

[Aniela]

I enjoyed both the Fire Tribe and the Water Tribe arcs a lot. The Fugitive too, for exactly the reasons you listed... I suppose the Water Tribe would be my favorite though, since I found the investigation-for-drugs plot pretty compelling, and I like Lily who was introduced then. Also, of course, Su-won - Yona meeting and cooperation, and even more so, the brief moment of Hak's rage at the end. I don't particularly like Hak, but the confrontation still kept me on my toes.

 

[@Aylinn]

I enjoyed both the Fire Tribe and the Water Tribe arcs a lot. The Fugitive too, for exactly the reasons you listed... I suppose the Water Tribe would be my favorite though, since I found the investigation-for-drugs plot pretty compelling, and I like Lily who was introduced then. Also, of course, Su-won - Yona meeting and cooperation, and even more so, the brief moment of Hak's rage at the end. I don't particularly like Hak, but the confrontation still kept me on my toes.

I liked the Water Tribe arc for the same reasons. I also thought whether to choose the Awa arc or the Water Tribe arc. Definitely one of the better arcs when it comes to characters and the development of their relations.

Yeah, Hak’s relationship with Su-won is what is what I find most interesting about Hak.

 

[lindananahayashida]

tbh.. my favourite arc would be xiing arc.. lol! xD ill note my points now..

bad points:
1.tao.. she is a bad written character over all.. only there to praise yona n point out good things about her to the reader n people in the story.. except for getting yona involved into a new adventure for thr stories sake.. she has done nothing good..

2.yotaka.. didnt do anything meaningful except giving han-dae some unneeded development n wasting pages.. except for the kouren n yotaka moments n the talk with soo won.. nothing was good about him at all..

3.vold was a wasted potential..

4.everything working out for main characters.. n just like always.. them reaching to the problem first.. i dont have problem with it.. at least show soo won doing other stuffs as well.. n thus he reached there later.. but it seems like rven with all the network.. he reaches later..

now.. about the points that i liked..

1.mizari.. i personally think.. his last words will be one of my top 3 favourite moments of all time from this manga.. he was an interesting character.. n i loved him.. tbh.. he is one of my favourite.. n is ranked above yona n hak..

2.soo won n kouren.. the scene between those two were really amazing.. n for some reason.. i came to ship them.. xD its just they are very similar.. both struggled.. had to dirty their hands.. knows reality.. tho soo won seems more mature.. he actually isnt.. both soo won n kourens development was very nice..

3.min-soo and soo wons development.. it was very nice.. their thoughts n talks were very deep.. n im happy that he is alive.. even tho i dont like him much..

 

[SamuelDean]

tbh.. my favourite arc would be xiing arc.. lol! xD ill note my points now..

bad points:
1.tao.. she is a bad written character over all.. only there to praise yona n point out good things about her to the reader n people in the story.. except for getting yona involved into a new adventure for thr stories sake.. she has done nothing good..

2.yotaka.. didnt do anything meaningful except giving han-dae some unneeded development n wasting pages.. except for the kouren n yotaka moments n the talk with soo won.. nothing was good about him at all..

3.vold was a wasted potential..

4.everything working out for main characters.. n just like always.. them reaching to the problem first.. i dont have problem with it.. at least show soo won doing other stuffs as well.. n thus he reached there later.. but it seems like rven with all the network.. he reaches later..

now.. about the points that i liked..

1.mizari.. i personally think.. his last words will be one of my top 3 favourite moments of all time from this manga.. he was an interesting character.. n i loved him.. tbh.. he is one of my favourite.. n is ranked above yona n hak..

2.soo won n kouren.. the scene between those two were really amazing.. n for some reason.. i came to ship them.. xD its just they are very similar.. both struggled.. had to dirty their hands.. knows reality.. tho soo won seems more mature.. he actually isnt.. both soo won n kourens development was very nice..

3.min-soo and soo wons development.. it was very nice.. their thoughts n talks were very deep.. n im happy that he is alive.. even tho i dont like him much..

To be fair Soo Won had a whole army with him, so it is unlikely that they could move as quick as Yona who rode on a horse at the end.

My favorite Arcs are:

Zeno s Arc/his story

The Water Tribe Arc/ The Fire Tribe Arc.

The Sei Arc

 

[Mini_kinkin]

1) I would say all the arcs where that are leading up to and where Yona finds the dragons are my fave, so basically first 30 chapters or so. We also see her transform from helpless princess to someone competent.

2) Water tribe- The arc where Soo-Won and Hak met again and Soo-Won pretended to be a body guard for Lili - the drama between Yona, Hak and Soo-Won was intense in this one.

3) Zeno's story - no matter how many times I read this I get so emo

4) their childhood story chapters- not really arcs, but their chibi versions always make me melt

5) Any and all rare chapters that have Yona and Hak moments so that I can fangirl

Lol anyway, my bf and I have opposite personalities and I made him read AnY....and as predicted he absolutely loves Soo-Won lol. But even his fave are the childhood chapters and he wished there were more of those. He also weirdly wants to see more of Ao because Ao is cute :P.

 

[lindananahayashida]

To be fair Soo Won had a whole army with him, so it is unlikely that they could move as quick as Yona who rode on a horse at the end.

My favorite Arcs are:

Zeno s Arc/his story

The Water Tribe Arc/ The Fire Tribe Arc.

The Sei Arc

no thats not what i meant.. what i was pointing out was..

in every arc.. yona reaching the problems first then soo won.. like nadai leader.. kumiji.. xiing problems.. etc. its just repeating the same pattern every arc..

it would be nice to show soo won doing some other things as well.. n some to reaching the problems before yona n co.

personally.. i liked the theme of zeno arc.. but things were repeating.. and childish.. tho id put it on my top 3..

1.xiing
2.zeno
3.fire tribe

 

[SamuelDean]

no thats not what i meant.. what i was pointing out was..

in every arc.. yona reaching the problems first then soo won.. like nadai leader.. kumiji.. xiing problems.. etc. its just repeating the same pattern every arc..

it would be nice to show soo won doing some other things as well.. n some to reaching the problems before yona n co.

personally.. i liked the theme of zeno arc.. but things were repeating.. and childish.. tho id put it on my top 3..

1.xiing
2.zeno
3.fire tribe

Soo Won did other things as well...he was responsible that the Water Tribe got rid of Nadai entirely, since there weren t done with the battle against South Kai s merchants.

 

[lindananahayashida]

Soo Won did other things as well...he was responsible that the Water Tribe got rid of Nadai entirely, since there weren t done with the battle against South Kai s merchants.

no thats not what i was saying either.. my point is.. he vouldve been shown attending matters thats completely separate from yona n co. for now it seems like he isnt doing anything else than what we have seen..

it wouldve been nice if author san portrayed it in a way that made it seem like.. won reached the problem yona was handling later because he was busy doing other stuffs..

nadai thingy started with yona n co. as well

 

[Aniela]

There's been the Earth Tribe Arc, and in the anime it was mentioned that Su-won (and Keishuk) were dealing with corrupted officials in Hiryuu Castle shortly after the coronation. But overall, I would definitely like to see more of Su-won without cutting back to Yona immediately.

 

[SamuelDean]

no thats not what i was saying either.. my point is.. he vouldve been shown attending matters thats completely separate from yona n co. for now it seems like he isnt doing anything else than what we have seen..

it wouldve been nice if author san portrayed it in a way that made it seem like.. won reached the problem yona was handling later because he was busy doing other stuffs..

nadai thingy started with yona n co. as well

Actually I don t understand your problem with that . Yona is the heroine, so of course the focus is on her. I would like to see more of Soo Won as well, but I don t think that he just sits around and waits until Yona stumbles over the next stone.
It s just that they aims happen to be the same.
By the way...Soo Won acted first in the Fire Tribe arc and won Geuntae s trust, so that he could use the Earth Tribes army in the coup against him. That was directly after Awa. So here you can see that he acted first, if you want to see it.

Also he informed himself through Ogi about the Wind Tribe and Xing, when Yona and Hak still had their fateful night togehter.

There's been the Earth Trivlbe Arc, and in anime it was mentioned that Su-won (and Keishuk) were dealing with corrupted officials in Hiryuu Castle shortly after the coronation. But overall, I would definitely like to see more of Su-won without cutting back to Yona immediately.

Yeah...that is a good example.

 

[lindananahayashida]

Actually I don t understand your problem with that . Yona is the heroine, so of course the focus is on her. I would like to see more of Soo Won as well, but I don t think that he just sits around and waits until Yona stumbles over the next stone.
It s just that they aims happen to be the same.
By the way...Soo Won acted first in the Fire Tribe arc and won Geuntae s trust, so that he could use the Earth Tribes army in the coup against him. That was directly after Awa. So here you can see that he acted first, if you want to see it.

Also he informed himself through Ogi about the Wind Tribe and Xing, when Yona and Hak still had their fateful night togehter.

Yeah...that is a good example.

yes.. thats what i was talking about.. soo won doing other things in earth tribe.. but after that.. he seems to be only reaching problems yona handling..

didnt yona n co. faught 2k soldiers beforw we went to soo won scenes in fire tribe arc?

besides.. if the author doesn't want soo won to be just a typical antagonist (which is clear) then he needs to have some screentime from his side as well.. which doesn't include the main groups.. so that we get to understand his side more clearly.. kind of like how we are saw won in earth tribe.. it doesn't have to be as elaborate as that time.. but just one or two page where it tells he is doing something else is enough..

 

[SamuelDean]

yes.. thats what i was talking about.. soo won doing other things in earth tribe.. but after that.. he seems to be only reaching problems yona handling..

didnt yona n co. faught 2k soldiers beforw we went to soo won scenes in fire tribe arc?

Soo Won goes to Geuntae s estate directly after Awa, and here Yona was still in the town.

Interesting. We must have a different perception of the situation. What situation has Yona handled entirely on her own (+ HHB)? I don t remember any.

Water Tribe Arc...Soo Won has contributed more or less the major plan how to solve the problem. Neither of the HHB had a clue what to do.
And he got rid or still tries to get rid of the organisations.

Sei Arc...Here they fought together ( Even the rescue of Lily was a result they achieved together.)

Xing Arc...It would have been so nice, if Yona had contributed more...but there was only one lucky incident after another and she was forced to go meet Soo Won since the Dragon Warriors were held captive by Kouren ( I wonder why the mangaka went that way...Wouldn t it have been better to get rid of the Dragon Warriors in another way, so that Yona can shine?)

I mean even the plan wasn t entirely Yona s to go meet Soo Won, since Tao came up with that sooner.

In the end without Gobi there had not been a treaty between Xing and Kouka. If you think that Yona handled everything on her own...I don t share that impression, since there were a little too many coincidences here.

That s why I say we must have a different impression of the series.

 

[lindananahayashida]

Soo Won goes to Geuntae s estate directly after Awa, and here Yona was still in the town.

Interesting. We must have a different perception of the situation. What situation has Yona handled entirely on her own (+ HHB)? I don t remember any.

Water Tribe Arc...Soo Won has contributed more or less the major plan how to solve the problem. Neither of the HHB had a clue what to do.
And he got rid or still tries to get rid of the organisations.

Sei Arc...Here they fought together ( Even the rescue of Lily was a result they achieved together.)

Xing Arc...It would have been so nice, if Yona had contributed more...but there was only one lucky incident after another and she was forced to go meet Soo Won since the Dragon Warriors were held captive by Kouren ( I wonder why the mangaka went that way...Wouldn t it have been better to get rid of the Dragon Warriors in another way, so that Yona can shine?)

I mean even the plan wasn t entirely Yona s to go meet Soo Won, since Tao came up with that sooner.

In the end without Gobi there had not been a treaty between Xing and Kouka. If you think that Yona handled everything on her own...I don t share that impression, since there were a little too many coincidences here.

That s why I say we must have a different impression of the series.

i think you misread what i said.. sorry if couldn't make you understand what i said properly lol! maybe i shouldve worded it differently.. but whatever.. xD lol

 

[SamuelDean]

yes.. thats what i was talking about.. soo won doing other things in earth tribe.. but after that.. he seems to be only reaching problems yona handling..

didnt yona n co. faught 2k soldiers beforw we went to soo won scenes in fire tribe arc?

besides.. if the author doesn't want soo won to be just a typical antagonist (which is clear) then he needs to have some screentime from his side as well.. which doesn't include the main groups.. so that we get to understand his side more clearly.. kind of like how we are saw won in earth tribe.. it doesn't have to be as elaborate as that time.. but just one or two page where it tells he is doing something else is enough..

If you could say how I should understand it then?

 

[lindananahayashida]

If you could say how I should understand it then?

very well.. ill try again xD

1.the thing is i didnt say yona solved any problem by herself or her team..

my point is.. soo won going after problems yona facing.. id like a vice versa.. kinda like.. soo won handling a problem(a problem introduced fro soo wons side).. n then yona n co. reaches to lend a hand.. which kinda worked against fire tribe.. but it seemed like the outcome of the battle was already decided.. i wouldve liked it.. if after those awesome plans.. hazara countered it & then yona n co. vhanged the battle flow then went away..

you are right about xiing arc.. i wouldve liked the dragons to be put in real trouble.. not like they are just sitting there n could get free at anytime.. n yona saved them.. wouldve shown that even without the dragons help.. yona can do something she decides.. n i also agree about the coincidents..

but my problem is soo won not introducing an event.. n all the new events introduced by yonas side n soo won jumps in to permanently handle it.. thats also not really the problem.. problem is.. we dont see soo won doing something else.. n understand that well thats probably the reason why he reached later..

so far.. kumiji is the only event that yona solved by herself (with her team).. but i dont have any problems with tat point at all.. so it makes little sense to bring it here whether yona could solve it alone or not..

since soo won is not a typical villain.. id like it if won introduced a problem.. n struggled to complete it n thus yona n co. helped him out because they stumbled upon that problem as well on the way.. this would force won to think about yona n would also feel natural..

unlike you know.. jumping in front of kings army n negotiating.. which seemed like went too well for yona.. that she didnt get caught.. specially when she brought xiing kingdoms soldier along with her.. you know.. tae won got criticized for sheltering yotaka.. but no one even brought that thing up in yonas case.. fact of the matter is.. when yona said algira was xiing kingdoms soldier..aka taos assistant.. she shouldve been caught immediately.. even with all that lily said..

btw.. i dont understand why use made marked those lines with bold? o.O was that suppose to mean something??

 

[SamuelDean]

very well.. ill try again xD

1.the thing is i didnt say yona solved any problem by herself or her team..

my point is.. soo won going after problems yona facing.. id like a vice versa.. kinda like.. soo won handling a problem(a problem introduced fro soo wons side).. n then yona n co. reaches to lend a hand.. which kinda worked against fire tribe.. but it seemed like the outcome of the battle was already decided.. i wouldve liked it.. if after those awesome plans.. hazara countered it & then yona n co. vhanged the battle flow then went away..

We must have another perception of the series. It s not that somebody owns a problem..I would even say that Yona is meddling in Soo Won s affairs and not vice versa, since he is the king of the country and it is his responsibility to maintain the country and care for its wellbeing.
Yona chose to help or interfere, but she has no responsibility to do that.
That is the difference.

you are right about xiing arc.. i wouldve liked the dragons to be put in real trouble.. not like they are just sitting there n could get free at anytime.. n yona saved them.. wouldve shown that even without the dragons help.. yona can do something she decides.. n i also agree about the coincidents..

but my problem is soo won not introducing an event.. n all the new events introduced by yonas side n soo won jumps in to permanently handle it.. thats also not really the problem.. problem is.. we dont see soo won doing something else.. n understand that well thats probably the reason why he reached later..

I think that it due to the fact that since Yona is the main character the focus of the story is on her and not Soo Won. When we learn of Soo Won s actions Yona has already acted in most cases, but just because we learn what the antagonist did in the meantime it doesn t mean he did nothing before. Maybe you wish that we can see how Soo Won plans and what exact measures he took step by step, since I admit that this is shrouded in mystery, however that is mostly due to the fact that the mangaka might be afraid that the readers wouldn t be satisfied to see so much of Soo Won. Unfortunately he is not the protagonist.

Besides the mangaka wishes that his story and actions sometimes stay a mystery. It s not what I wish, but what could one do?

so far.. kumiji is the only event that yona solved by herself (with her team).. but i dont have any problems with tat point at all.. so it makes little sense to bring it here whether yona could solve it alone or not..

since soo won is not a typical villain.. id like it if won introduced a problem.. n struggled to complete it n thus yona n co. helped him out because they stumbled upon that problem as well on the way.. this would force won to think about yona n would also feel natural..

But didn t that happen in the Fire Tribe arc, where he took measures way before Yona even noticed that Li Hazara and Soo Jin wished to take over the throne of Kouka? He was already standing with his army there and has informed Geuntae,which means Soo Won must have taken action way before, since he presented a plan to disturb the troops of Soo Jin and Li Hazara.
Or do you mean that he should contact Yona in order to get her help?

unlike you know.. jumping in front of kings army n negotiating.. which seemed like went too well for yona.. that she didnt get caught.. specially when she brought xiing kingdoms soldier along with her.. you know.. tae won got criticized for sheltering yotaka.. but no one even brought that thing up in yonas case.. fact of the matter is.. when yona said algira was xiing kingdoms soldier..aka taos assistant.. she shouldve been caught immediately.. even with all that lily said..

Well the whole thing was a headache...but I think that it might could be explained that Yona said she was the messenger of Xing, so it would make sense that a person of Xing follows her, so that this country could be sure she fulfills her role.
But yes I admit...somebody could interpret it as treason and if Soo Won had been clever, he could have used it with a lie that Yona had aligned herself with the enemy Xing. I think people would have been a little confused and maybe Lily s words wouldn t have been taken so seriously.

btw.. i dont understand why use made marked those lines with bold? o.O was that suppose to mean something??

I hope that the sentences you write do mean something. I marked that sentence since I understood it in that way, that Yona was taking care of the situation and Soo Won just pushed himself into the situation, even if I see it the other way around. I explained it in the first part above.

 

[lindananahayashida]

We must have another perception of the series. It s not that somebody owns a problem..I would even say that Yona is meddling in Soo Won s affairs and not vice versa, since he is the king of the country and it is his responsibility to maintain the country and care for its wellbeing.
Yona chose to help or interfere, but she has no responsibility to do that.
That is the difference.


I think that it due to the fact that since Yona is the main character the focus of the story is on her and not Soo Won. When we learn of Soo Won s actions Yona has already acted in most cases, but just because we learn what the antagonist did in the meantime it doesn t mean he did nothing before. Maybe you wish that we can see how Soo Won plans and what exact measures he took step by step, since I admit that this is shrouded in mystery, however that is mostly due to the fact that the mangaka might be afraid that the readers wouldn t be satisfied to see so much of Soo Won. Unfortunately he is not the protagonist.

Besides the mangaka wishes that his story and actions sometimes stay a mystery. It s not what I wish, but what could one do?





But didn t that happen in the Fire Tribe arc, where he took measures way before Yona even noticed that Li Hazara and Soo Jin wished to take over the throne of Kouka? He was already standing with his army there and has informed Geuntae,which means Soo Won must have taken action way before, since he presented a plan to disturb the troops of Soo Jin and Li Hazara.
Or do you mean that he should contact Yona in order to get her help?


Well the whole thing was a headache...but I think that it might could be explained that Yona said she was the messenger of Xing, so it would make sense that a person of Xing follows her, so that this country could be sure she fulfills her role.
But yes I admit...somebody could interpret it as treason and if Soo Won had been clever, he could have used it with a lie that Yona had aligned herself with the enemy Xing. I think people would have been a little confused and maybe Lily s words wouldn t have been taken so seriously.


I hope that the sentences you write do mean something. I marked that sentence since I understood it in that way, that Yona was taking care of the situation and Soo Won just pushed himself into the situation, even if I see it the other way around. I explained it in the first part above.

while you did clear things for me here n there.. i dont believe one has to be king to have responsibility towards their country.. besides yona is still a princess.. so ofcource she has a right to serve her country.. at that time.. law wasnt as hard as this modern world..

i understand soo won being antagonist.. n author wanting to keep mysteries around him.. the problem is.. the pattern is repetitive.. a change in beween 2/3 arcs would be nice tbh.. thats what im saying..

n i understand he wasnt sitting around just because we didnt see what he was doing.. but id like a simple one page thingy that explains won went to there there.. or there to do this that n that..

i dont think a simple one page wouod hurt much even to the fans.. as its a monthly manga anyway..

about fire tribe.. i dont remember everything clearly.. but i believe even that problem was introduced by yona n co. n later we switched to the battle field n found out soo won..

n no.. i dont mean soo won contact yona.. i mean.. from a readers PoV.. a problem introduced from soo won.. n yona n co. joining that event/arc after.. would be nice..

i guess im just not that good at explaining things.. lol!