.hack//xxxx by Megane Kikuya & Hiroshi Matsuyama

Title: .hack//xxxx
Mangaka: Megane Kikuya (Manga) & Hiroshi Matsuyama (Original Story)
Age Group: Teens
# of Pages: Approx. 200
# of Volumes: 2
My Rating: 2/5

The World is a virtual online game where you can put on a headset and experience the fantasy adventure with other members through the network!

In .hack//Legend of the Twilight, high school students Shugo and Rena received the two legendary avatars named Kite and BlackRose. After a series of adventures, they are on a new and dangerous one in .hack//xxxx!

Kite finds out his close friend became unconscious after saving him from a monster that attacked them in The World. Before the creature appeared, a mysterious female by the name of Aura gave his friend a bracelet. After the attack, the bracelet was bound to Kite once Orca became a "Lost One"! Kite is determined to find out what had happened with the help of BlackRose and Mistral.

After Kite uses the bracelet a few times as a weapon, the System Administrator comes by for a visit. He says that the bracelet is an illegal program and that activating it was ruining the game through viruses, data corruption, and much more. Kite is shocked because he never knew how much damage he was inflicting to The World. If he continues to use the bracelet, what will become of the game and how does it link to the real world?

I was never a .hack// fan. I remember reading .hack//Legend of the Twilight and it stopped at three volumes. At that time, I never even knew the series was even finished! I kept looking around for the fourth volume and it took me awhile to realized that it had ended. It was left at such a terrible point in the story that I lost interest in it completely. I only picked this one up because it was in the library and I tend to grab most mangas I have not yet read. The art is very nice but the storyline itself was something that did not hold my attention. It took me a few days to read it in fact. I kept putting it down after a few pages because I got bored every once in awhile. Most of the time, I finish my mangas in one go. That tells you have much this one is not worth your money.