Train+Train Vol.#02

By: Jarred Pine
Review Date: Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Release Date: Sunday, April 01, 2007



Creative Talent
Writer/Artist:Hideyuki Kurata / Tomomasa Takuma
Translated by:Christine Schilling
Adapted by:Christine Schilling

What They Say
Reiichi and Arena's temporary linkage aboard the Special Train is nowhere near over when the two make their first stop on the route: the decadent and dangerous Sasuta Shima. While working fast to complete the test assigned for them there, old faces show up to put the two away for good! They must face a match of wit and luck and in the end, see if they are both willing and ready to continue their journey on the Special Train.

The Review
Suddenly the Special Train doesn't seem so special.

What I enjoyed most about the first volume of Train + Train was the potential for a shounen buddy adventure romp that with the unique frontier meets futuristic fantasy setting. And it had trains. However, the second volume ditches the freshness of its setting to deliver bland adventures that hardly scratches that potential.

The first class for the students of Special Train is to turn 10,000 Golds into one million in 24 hours while the train is stopped at their first destination. So how do the tethered opposites, Arena and Reiichi, figure to strike it rich quick? They hit up an underground casino finds them in the middle of a game of chance with their own lives on the line. Now, here is a story that features a giant train that is a virtual traveling megalopolis, complete with an array of different characters and races from other planets. The world seems to be a mixture of western frontier and spacefaring sci-fi, fantasy, and the best adventure we could come up with for first period is a weak, throw reason into the wind and let fate decide gambling story? It definitely left me feeling a bit disappointed.

We also learn a bit more about Arena's past, which turns out to be another shounen staple where the protagonist makes a promise to get stronger to take on their hero. And when Reiichi is presented with a chance to get off the train, his decision to remain is based off the simple shounen Rival Resolution, "I'll join you to watch you fall!" Train + Train still has its moments of enjoyment, but there is not much to grab onto at the moment.