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Title: Vampire Knight
Author: Matsuri Hino (Captive Hearts)
Publisher: Viz Media
Volume: Volume 10, $9.99
Vintage: 2009 in Japan (the series began in 2005); should be out here, from Viz, on June 1
Genre: Shojo, romance, drama.  It’s got vampires in it, so it gets bloody occasionally.  Mostly it’s romance, with a large helping of drama on the side.

The story so far:  I have no idea.

Nah, just kidding.  Though I did have to go back and reread the previous three volumes because I couldn’t remember what was going on  (I suggest doing the same, to refresh yourself for this story arc that is now wrapping up).  Things got really crazy and out of control, but they finally start calming down again in this volume.  At Cross Academy, vampires and humans share a campus and a school.  The humans go to school during the day, and the vampires at night, converging together in the early evening when the classes switch over.  Adopted children of the headmaster Yuki Cross and Zero Kiryu guard the human students from the vampires, and protect the vampires’ secret.  Headmaster Cross works alongside pureblood vampire Kaname Kuran (who is basically royalty among vampires) to create a world where humans and vampires can coexist.  Zero is a descendant of a prestigious vampire hunter family, but his parents were killed by another pureblood.  A pureblood who bit Zero, who slowly turns into a vampire, the very thing he hates the most.  A love triangle quickly forms between Yuki, who is in love with Kaname, and Zero, who is in love with Yuki.  Kaname is protective of Yuki, but it is clear he is secretly planning something that involves both her and Zero.  As the pieces fall into place, the shit hits the fan when Rido Kuran, whom Kaname had destroyed (but not permanently killed) a decade ago, is resurrected and comes back to get his revenge against Kaname and destroy the peace he is trying to create.  The school and all its students are in danger as Rido’s vampire army descends upon the campus, with only a handful of vampires loyal to Kaname standing between them.

I did my best to keep that summary spoiler free (for anyone unfamiliar with the series), but it will be difficult to avoid them as I talk about volume 10.  So you’ve been warned.

With Rido defeated, Zero faces off with Yuki and undergoes a complicated inner struggle.  He loves her, but hates what she is, and hates how the purebloods have destroyed his family and everything he has ever held dear.  But ultimately, as Zero is a vampire hunter, Yuki is now his enemy.  Kaname returns from destroying the senate (volume 9) and comes to take Yuki away.  Vampire society will be in chaos for a while, and the delicate balance of Cross Academy has been destroyed, so Yuki must be taken somewhere safe.  And, in one of the biggest twists since we learned about Yuki’s past, the true nature of the Hunter Society is revealed.  There are some scattered flashbacks in this volume.  Zero reminisces about meeting Yuki for the first time, and the times when she took care of him.  Headmaster Cross remembers the conversation that led him down the path to create his school for humans and vampires.  Through the eyes of Akatsuki Kain we watch Ruka Souen fall in love with Kaname, and resolve to be his friend.

Two bonus stories at the end show the love between Yuki’s parents Juri and Haruka, and relate how Headmaster Cross convinced Zero to attend a school with vampires.  Tucked at the back is a series of short comics that were made to promote the drama CDs that were made for the series.

The big showdown at the Academy is over, but the real trouble is just beginning.  The vampires are not pleased that Kaname simply wiped out the entire Senate.  Yuki, who had been hidden away from vampire society for her entire life, is still in danger, even with Rido gone.  Action is not Hino’s strong point, but things should be going back to a more natural story now.  I’m not really pleased with where Hino has taken some things (I thought the incest angle was really unnecessary), but as Kaname’s game is not over, there should be plenty more intrigue still to come.  Now that Yuki is awake, there will be all new problems to deal with.  There’s still corruption in the vampire world to clear out, and now the corrupt Hunter Society has to be rebuilt as well.

Hino’s art continues to impress and improve.  She’s getting better at expressing the emotions of her characters, and her talent for drawing wispy hair gets to go wild now that Yuki’s hair is longer.  The comedy that colored the earlier volumes has been pushed aside now that the story has taken such a serious turn, so it’s nice to see some flashbacks and bonus stories that lighten the mood up again.  Hino is really good at writing silly, ridiculous stories, but apart from her lack of experience drawing action scenes, she seems to be doing well with a more serious tone.  It’s a completely different story, now, and the characters are changing and asserting themselves.

The anime, by the way, which is fairly close to the manga (the first season at least; I haven’t seen any of the second season yet), can now be seen streaming at Vizanime.com.

Kris
kristin@comicattack.net
@girlg33k_Kris

Review copy provided by Viz Media.