Beastars Vol. 6by Sheena McNeilReviews may contain information that could be considered 'spoilers'. Readers should proceed at their own risk. Publisher
Credits Grade: 8 Legoshi and Haru grow closer in their own way. Juno tries to publically force Legoshi to accept her feelings, and isn't willing to accept no for an answer. Louis' two-month disappearance is explained. Backstory on how Legoshi and Jack became friends.This volume opens with Legoshi and Haru attempting to have sex, but it goes horribly wrong when a twisted version of Haru's prey mentality kicks in. It is extreme and doesn't make any logical sense. If anything, I expected the opposite reaction to happen, especially given her reactions to him in scenes in previous volumes. I am glad to see them continue to try to work through their complex feelings after this. Part of me understands where Juno is coming from and even empathizes with her, but I really don't like her methods. She forces some things on Legoshi that he doesn't want, including her feelings, and she does much of this quite publically. Her perspective on the world and trying to make it a place where carnivores can shine in the light is admirable, and it's easy to see her as charismatic in a very different way than Louis. However, jealousy and being controlling are not pretty -- interestingly, it's only the reader that's aware of this side (though Haru may have an idea of it after her run-in with Juno). Legoshi is too dense and self-deprecating to realize Juno is continuing to push being "mates", even if he wasn't distracted by thoughts of Haru. I like that he's genuinely confused by Juno's anger when his words of support for her vision were sincere, and he has given zero hint of reciprocating her feelings. Right or not, he assumed / expected her to drop the whole thing after he literally walked away from her love confession without a reply (though, he didn't really see it as such to begin with). Also, it's interesting that Juno has effectively replaced Louis in the story. She's taken over leadership of the Drama Club and the potential nomination for Beastar. And she's equally as forceful to Legoshi as Louis was in the beginning, and equally as frustrated in Legoshi not embracing his being a strong predator. Of course, neither Louis (prey) not Juno (predator) seem capable of understanding Legoshi's viewpoint on being a predator in this world. The only one who may have some understanding of that is Jack, Legoshi's best friend (and a Labrador Retriever). The backstory chapter includes an interesting reveal about why some species were CREATED after the last predator / prey war 90 years ago. This puts a whole new light on the world, though it certainly doesn't answer the questions about how this society came to be in general. Plus, we get to see Legoshi as a cute pup -- still antisocial and hating being a wolf (and accepting the reasoning behind creating new species). But, it's paired up against Jack's viewpoint, being bullied for something he has no control over, and wishing he were a wolf instead! Louis shows up randomly at school after two months of no one knowing where he was, and he resigns from the drama club and the school and leaves with no explanation given to anyone. As readers, however, we get to see why he's doing this, and how this turn of events came to be (starting with where things left off with the cliffhanger last volume). It looks like what reads as Louis' desire to BE a predator is one big step closer. And it's the action he does in order to take that step that is truly shocking (within the context of the story -- in real life, it's not shocking for a deer to do this). I am interested to see where this new angle takes things, but it does look like Louis' story has completely separated from the main storyline, at least for now. This volume simmers with energy and emotion. It's more subtle than the in-your-face dark themes and actions of previous volumes, which makes this more enjoyable without letting up on the intensity. Written: May 18, 2020
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