The Promised Neverland “Imperial Capital Battle Arc” (Chapters 146 through 159) Manga Review

Major Spoilers are included in this manga review. Please read with caution.

Synopsis: The story began in an orphanage called Grace Field. We meet a twelve-year-old girl named Emma, who guides the reader—using exposition—through the orphanage and her typical day there doing chores, taking tests, and playing games—like tag. There are also over forty kids at this orphanage, all taken care of by a woman known as “Mama”. However, once Emma and another kid named Norman learn the twisted dark truth about the orphanage, they make a hasty plan to escape with their friend Ray.

On June 20, 2020, I started and finished the “Imperial Capital Battle Arc”—the ninth story arc of The Promised Neverland. This arc was emotionally driven by the original three protagonists’—Emma, Ray, and Norman’s—desire for a better future. I really did miss seeing all three of them together. Learning what Norman—and the other enhanced children subjects—had to go through in the experimentations was heartbreaking. There was a lot of payoff happening in this arc.

The action excelled in this arc, giving us clean fight scenes with both demons and humans alike. There was more backstory involving the demon Regent families and their connection to Mujika and Sonju. I had a good time learning about the demon Geelan and his motive behind teaming up with Norman against the Regent families.

Geelan was a demon who was cast out from the Regent families along with the rest of his clan. It was the reason Norman sought them out for a temporary alliance. How this whole arc played out reminded me how intelligent—and ruthless—Norman really was. However, Norman’s kindness will always prevail in the end. The demon hierarchy was also eventually taken down by the end of this arc, leaving only the human antagonists—the Ratri Clan—as the final villains of the manga series.

Overall, this arc prepared us for the kids’ next move: back to the beginning. I’m ready to tackle the tenth story arc—“Return to Grace Field Arc”—and then I can rest in peace with the final arc. My precious time with The Promised Neverland is coming to a satisfying end.