Episode 107 - The Bugle Call: Song of War by Mozuku Sora and Higoro Toumori

**Mat** (0:14)
Hello, everyone, and welcome to Manga Tak, the weekly podcast where we read and reflect on the finest stories of volumes your money can buy so you can find your next favorite manga. As always, I'm your host, Mat, and this week I'm joined once again by the king of Mangagram, it's a Manga King. Hey, Sonny, how's it going?

**Sam** (0:29)
Hello, everyone. What up, y'all? It's Son Manga King. Great to be here.

**Mat** (0:32)
Good to have you back, my friend. We've been talking about doing this podcast for a while, but time zone differences mean that we are literally burning the candle at both ends. I'm up super early. You're up super late, but we're here. We finally made it work.

**Sam** (0:46)
We're here to talk about manga because we love it. That's what it's all about, right?

**Mat** (0:50)
Exactly. That is what we're here for.
I had seen you post this book, and it had been one that I had picked up as a potential pod read, but I'd just let sit on the shelf for the while because I was like, well, I'll read it and get my reflections for the pod. But then honestly, it's taken us so long to be able to arrange this thanks to schedules and time zones that I may as well have just read it back in June, and got a feel for it. We're of course talking about The Bugle's. Oh, I'm going to do this the entire podcast. The Bugle Call, Song of War. My brain is just like, it should be The Bugle's Call. I'm like, no, it is The Bugle Call. How did you find out about this book, mate?

**Sam** (1:28)
Well, it's funny story. Well, this book, I've heard about it through Instagram, seen it from friends, but never picked it up and didn't really dive too much into like what the story was or what it's about. But I thought the covers look very pretty. And then one of my friends for Secret Santa, Bookmark sent me Bugle Call Vol. 1 as a Secret Santa gift. And so that kind of propelled me to say, okay, I have to dive in and read what this is about. And I'm glad I did because it was a fun story. And I think it's interesting to talk about the elements that I like, as well as some elements that I think might just seem generic to a lot of folks.

**Mat** (2:00)
So yeah, honestly, I kind of had a judge a book by a cover thing on this too. I ended up picking it up after seeing people posting it on Reddit, which is sometimes what I do. I lurk on Manga Collector on Reddit, and I was seeing that people were posting this book. I was like, oh, that's a really bright, interesting cover. I wonder what that's about. And bought it sight unseen, flicked through, I was like, ah, this is some of that gritty dark fantasy. Yes, yes, yes. And then I put it back on a shelf. And it wasn't until we started talking about doing this podcast, as I mentioned, that I finally dusted it off and read through it. I see what you mean about the generic things. I'll talk about my own feelings to that. I do think there's some really cool, interesting new stuff here as well, so it kind of balances out. But it's an interesting book for sure. And I've seen a lot of people really love it. I know it's getting to the point now where it's starting to wrap up in Japan. But I'm kind of curious. I want to know what you think from us talking off mic before this. I know we're going to have slightly different opinions, which always makes for a spicy episode, but we'll see how it goes. Alright, let me do the quick introduction and we can just jump into it.
So beginning this publication in Shuisha's Jump Square magazine back in June 2022, The Bugle Call Song of War is a shounen dark fantasy written by Mozuku Sora and illustrated by Higoro Toumori about a young boy called Luca and his struggles to put down the weapon and embrace an honest life. Except Luca isn't wielding a sword but a bugle. Yes, this 14 year old boy is responsible for issuing battle orders via bugle to a mercenary company, a life that he hates, but is forced into by his adopted father Gerhard. That is until one day when everything changes. After a battle in which the group is defeated by a single woman with superhuman strength, Luca discovers that he is a branch hex, a unique individual with the ability beyond human comprehension. In Luca's case, it's his ability to use music to show others via beams of light battle orders but also convey information to them by song. The leader of the branch hex is a mysterious figure known as The Pontiff, who asks Luca to help him defeat another group called The Garland in order to give up a life of battle and earn the freedom to devote his life to music. A deal he accepts, but at what cost? With this book being currently 30 volumes in Japan on its way into the final battle, The Bugle Call seems to have enjoyed a positive run but perhaps hasn't managed yet to set the world on fire the way the Seinen works that inspired it did. So we're here today to ask, should you answer The Bugle Call? Is this one to rush into battle for or should you retreat at the sight of it? Can a Shounen title offer the same gritty depths of a Seinen title without the blood and gore? And more importantly, does this first volume make us want to follow Luca into the field for another adventure? So I will throw the floor open to you, my friend, how do you feel about this book? Like what is your main takeaway? Are you up on it? Are you down on it?