Obligatory neon ghosts plug; www.kickstarter.com/projects/wraithmarked/neon-ghosts-a-witchs-sin

@kurathchibicrystalkitty5146

Жыл бұрын

Hey, Daniel. I read Breach of Peace and Rebel's Creed yesterday. They're great, with compelling characters, top-notch tension and pacing, and good prose. It's just...the violence, the gore, the body horror. It's too much for me. I want to put them on my shelves and point them out to people, but I can't. I'm sorry. I'll still buy Neon Ghosts, at least. Also, I want to highly, highly recommend the Claymore manga to you, all 27 volumes. [Not the anime--it messes up some characterization, removes some important foreshadowing, and stops halfway through the story]. It's a horror fantasy with epic half-monster ladies fighting monsters, and I think you'd really like it. It helped me through some difficult times, too.

@MrGalRoz

Жыл бұрын

hi Daniel, i know you not big into Anime and mostly Manga, but i highly recommend you give Mob Psycho 100 a try, it's from the same author of One Punch man, but the Manga is very rough as he is not a good artist, but Mob psycho 100 is one of the best written Anime/Manga out there in terms of character writing. the Anime is very well animated despite the very simplistic artstyle. Totaly Not Mark has also reviewed it not long ago(he also chose the Anime) and loved it a lot.

@Glokta4

Жыл бұрын

So excited, I'm looking forward to a good quality book.

@finchharper4647

Жыл бұрын

Manga: MushiShi and Loveless ❤❤❤ Image Comics: Love Sick and Monstress. BEE WARNED LOVE SICK IS GRAPHIC AND FEATURES CANNIBALISM!

@thac0twenty377

Жыл бұрын

wb. hope you're feeling better man

I love "This is How You Lose The Time War." I was so concerned you were going to call it disappointing.

@Kamakiri711

Жыл бұрын

Right? It's been sitting in my reading list for ages and my heart skipped a beat when I saw the thumbnail.

@adoragrayskull

Жыл бұрын

ME TOO I clicked it so fast

@tropicaltuna

Жыл бұрын

Because that's unfortunately how the video title makes it look.

@bookdmb

Жыл бұрын

It’s awkwardly overwritten. Not bad exactly, in a small press/lit journal kind of way, but a bit sophomoric and thin on substance. (imo)

@melodykim5865

Жыл бұрын

@@bookdmb great point! i still mostly like the book but this is a very apt criticism.

One thing I feel the need to point out is that Onepunchman is primarely a gag manga. So while it does discuss some more serious things its primary goal is to make you laugh

@greath7513

Жыл бұрын

And enjoy the AMAZING art.

@atharvadeshpande4749

Жыл бұрын

@@greath7513 Murata Yusuke the Goat. Also try his Manga Eyeshield 21, it's a rugby Manga and the art is Godly. That man draws the Human Body like angels have cum on the page.

@Pajarocaro

Жыл бұрын

@@greath7513 That depends on which version of the manga your reading.

@thapediselepe8893

Жыл бұрын

*parody manga

@vroomzoom4206

Жыл бұрын

It's literally not. It's a parody. Jfc get it right.

Your experience of BLAME! mirrored my own 😆 It's a journey through a dystopian world, where you aren't spoon-fed anything. Trying to interpret the world, the character motivations, and plot points is both frustrating and refreshing in a way I haven't experienced with many other stories. The amount of information you're given, and the world of BLAME! itself, are so desolate they're kinda of beautiful in a way.... maybe that sounds too pretentious. Glad you enjoyed it :)

I'm glad to hear that you're excited to read Monster vol 2! It's such a consistently high quality manga and I know you'll be suprised by the twists and turns that happen!

@vroomzoom4206

Жыл бұрын

I'm watching the anime and it's such a mind fuck.

@turtleanton6539

Жыл бұрын

For sure

@mariuslackenbucher6696

Жыл бұрын

Monster is the one Manga that would be perfect for a Live Action adaptation - I love it alot, and as a native German speaker I can tell you that the bits of German that are thrown in here and there make sense 😅 often it's just some stupid google translation but I have been very surprised by the attention to detail even to some signs in the background.

@denislavdimitrov273

Жыл бұрын

@@mariuslackenbucher6696 I finished watching Monster several days ago, was I the only one to whom it appeared weird that all people in Czechia spoke German, like there were absolutely no language barriers😂

@carlosdanielcalderonmontoy3723

Жыл бұрын

An absolute masterpiece!

Omg I had no idea Time War was getting a second life. I'm so happy for them! What a fantastic epistolary novel, with truly exceptional character voice!! 🐦

@LucasSampaioMaia

Жыл бұрын

Dude, some articles covering the tweet story are hilarous

@rei02862

Жыл бұрын

​@@LucasSampaioMaia especially the one titled "Bigolas Dickolas is more powerful than the Pulitzer Prize" that one killed me

@wastedinspiration

Жыл бұрын

Loved this book so much. Fans owe a debt if gratitude to that Meme Lord

@brenndasouzaa

Жыл бұрын

Me neither! One of my top 5 favorite

@aquaabouttogetfunky

Жыл бұрын

Gotta thank good old Bigolas Dickolas

Naoki Urasawa has incredible character arcs in all his manga. Hope you enjoy Monster!

@xx99Username99xx

Жыл бұрын

I really enjoy what I've seen from Urasawa. So far I've just watched Monster and read 20th Century Boys, but loved them both (even if 20CB kinda felt like it had a few chances to end and just kept going lol) and I'm currently following his very cute Asadora! about a girl pilot dealing with a mysterious kaiju. Loving the art and characters in that one; his facial expressions are so good. I plan on reading his Pluto series soon. I think it's some sort of gritty detective thriller spinoff of Astro Boy or something.

@McGunpla

Жыл бұрын

@@xx99Username99xx Pluto is a retelling of The Greatest Robot on Earth, one of the more famous Astro Boy stories, and it’s absolutely fantastic. I’d also highly recommend Billy Bat and Asadora

@xx99Username99xx

Жыл бұрын

@@McGunpla I forgot about Billy Bat. That was supposed to be on my TBR too. I picked up Asadora after the guy from Comic Tropes recommended it and it's a lot of fun.

One punch man gets deeper later on, but if you're interested in something similar but with more character, i suggest mob psycho 100. It's by the same author as well.

@connorhale341

Жыл бұрын

I absolutely love the characters and growth in Mob Psycho 100. Had me in tears of joy like almost no story ever has. (I've seen the anime, but haven't read the manga. Is it pretty faithful?)

@ulfgarion

Жыл бұрын

There is a lot of character work in One Punch Man too, it's just more spread, because overall story is much longer.

@yuvrajganguly

Жыл бұрын

One Punch Man is really a great story also; Especially for it's Character work. The writing of Saitama, Garou and Genos are really really great... If you delve into the themes and messages. But yeah, I prefer Mob Psycho 100, whose Character work I believe was superior, it had one of the best endings in all of animanga and yeah, it's definitely among my top 5.

I can summarize almost every Urasawa's manga with "Imagine the most surreal, cartoonish, and abstract plot an author could write and then insert real people to experience it as the characters"

@tetri90

Жыл бұрын

"What if the cute children manga about cartoony robot super heroes had actually been a detective noir story about PTSD riddled war veterans ?"

I think one of the draws of one punch man is that it is also a comment on some of the shounen tropes. Saitama is a shounen Protagonist *after* his journey. Someone who constantly surpassed his Limits, and then suddenly there is nothing more to overcome. After years of that being his purpose. Also, in every shounen, as soon as the Protagonist arrives the fight is *functionally* over. It May still be 3 Volumens long but it is a foregone conclusion who will win. And so the Author made that literal. As soon as the Protagonist Shows up the fight is over. Thats just my 2cents though

@akeemalleyne5890

Жыл бұрын

OPM is a seinen tho...

The description of Blame's plot honestly killed me.

@CorprealFale

Жыл бұрын

The cut to the people who've not read it made me laugh. As I've read it ages ago and mostly remember the confusion. So I mostly got it! Then I got taken out!

This is and always will be my favorite part of this channel. The book reviews/discussions/breakdown are amazing

Daniel casually going on 4 hour walks is exactly the subtle lore detail I needed today

What I love most about One Punch Man and the sister story Mob Psycho 100 is how One gives these characters the most god-like ability and asks, "how would a normal person deal with this? If everything is so easy, what would truly challenge them yet never lose sight of their humanity." And in both I think he does a phenomenal job of expressing that your talents alone don't define you, it's what you do for others that does. Moreso in Mob, since OPM has his frustrations with always being beaten in video games but still the same theme is there.

Max Gladstone actually wrote two of my favorite books of all time: Last Exit and Empress of Forever. One is a Urban Fantasy Horror Book and one is a Space Opera but both are full of weird and out there ideas that are explored really well. And both books still are very entertaining while exploring those ideas.

Dude, glad you're finally reading Monster. It's an amazing series and has been my favorite ever since college when I found out about it. I've gone through the manga and anime 5 or 6 times now, so if you need someone to bounce points or ideas off of, I'm down.

Thanks for posting! Hope all is better in the world of Daniel!

Yas! I’m so glad you seem to be enjoying Monster! I can’t wait to see your thoughts once you finish the series.

I'm not too far into the series yet but 20th Century Boys by the same mangaka as Monster is also really good! and has those scifi elements alongside mystery/thriller. I recommend!!

One question made constantly in Monster is "what decides if something is good or bad", because as a doctor he did good i saving the child, but should he have done that knowing what the child became? But as a doctor... he should save lives, but is every life worth saving? The way he deals with it is quite interesting

Really love these longer book review videos! I hope you keep them up!

Really like these wrap-ups! Great format and love the amount of content covered. Thanks for the morning chonker

"This is how you lose the time war" was one of the most weird and interesting reads of the last year for me. Glad you liked it.

Wow thank you for so perfectly articulating my experience with Untethered Sky. After finishing I had a tough time piecing together why I didn’t love it, but all of your reasons really clicked in to help me understand my issues with it. Also ditto on Witch King! I DNF’ed it after just a few chapters because I was worried I would have the exact kind of experience you ended up having.

Hey, thanks so much for being honest and continuing to do reviews! That's why I got into your channel originally, and I'm really happy to see you're still doing them :)

Daniel if I'd known you were gonna screenshot my Twitter profile and put it in your video I would've changed my cover photo to something less "16 year old Udy's obsessions" and more "this guy is smart and sophisticated" 😅 anyway, great video!

One Punch Man gets really good! It’s mostly satirical but it starts to develop its own themes and genuine story that I love so much. Especially after volume 7 I think

@vroomzoom4206

Жыл бұрын

OPM is a parody. The Boys is satirical.

@lifeisliterary

Жыл бұрын

@@vroomzoom4206 Oh, thanks for the correction!

@TheOnlyWay2Go.

Жыл бұрын

@@vroomzoom4206 it’s not like those things are mutually exclusive- it can be both

I first watched the anime back in 2011 or so but I've heard Monster's adaptation from the manga is basically panel for panel accurate -- I have read that first volume, though. It's my favorite psychological and political thriller of all time and from any medium. It's incredible. The stuff at the hospital early on is a little cheesy but it gets so good.

I had the same experience reading Untethered. I was so excited to read new work from Fonda Lee, but it was missing the magic for me. I really appreciate your point that being a novella doesn’t mean it can’t be packed with a riveting story and stakes.

@FantasyTenshi

Жыл бұрын

I agree. I was also looking forward to badass roc flying.

Did not watch the vid yet but no way is he disappointed in Monster

@katelynholmes9504

Жыл бұрын

What makes Monster special? Just curious, I haven't read it

@bilalmohamed5055

Жыл бұрын

@@katelynholmes9504 its just really good and the characters are all superb

@gogozeppeli9267

Жыл бұрын

@@katelynholmes9504 a masterpiece! The best villain ! A masterful thriller! Urasawa is a 🐐

@leakypeach6250

Жыл бұрын

@@katelynholmes9504 So, if you want an answer that's not so hyperbolic, it's just your typical psychological thriller mystery conspiracy story done really really well. The characters are all pretty great, the plot is constantly keeping you hooked, and the villain's presence and influence is constantly felt even when he's not been on page for an entire arc. It's not for everyone. I've known people who've come away disappointed. Like, everything, it won't be everyone's cup of tea.

@deboozombie23

Жыл бұрын

@@katelynholmes9504 Special is kinda hard to answer - the villain is written pretty well, the story explores themes considering psychology, education, philosophy and imho takes no shortcuts - it's fleshed out without being tedious. Naoki Urasawa is a pretty good writer and artist overall.

Thanks for taking your time to do reviews!! I love them

Yay, you're doing book reviews again. :) I missed them.

Okay, I did not understand a singular thing you said about "Blame" ... but you got it onto my TBR so ... 👍 Also, YAY!!! I'm so happy that you picked up "Monster"! There are nine volumes in total (of the editions you showed here) so a medium-ish length series as a whole. But so worth it. I love this story so much even when I have no idea what the frick it's doing 🤣 Looking forward to your thoughts on it.

Would love to see you continue Monster. It’s an incredible story

Thanks for the reviews Daniel!

Blame! is an experience. Strange but something that has remained in my undefined manga top 5 now for long enough time to make me feel old. Never really attempted to explain it much more than that to anyone. Kudos to you for trying!

I have to confess I felt a sudden sadness when I saw This is how to lose the time war there next to disappointed, but then you actually really liked it and I was then feeling that idiotic kind of pride one gets when people discover those things "we always said were great". Really nice hearing your experience with the audiobook, I also heard it and also went into it knowing nothing of what to expect of its development. The way these short books with strong concepts and emotions make us feel reminds me of those small games like Journey work. They just work. You just feel, empathise, get what happens and need nothing more.

Even after watching your videos for years I still get so impressed with the amount you read. Great video 🧡

How You Lose the Time War is on my TBR, so I'll have to move it up now. Thank you for the insight on all of these books!

I really like this format of reviewing books with a haul instead of one or two per video and in the case of manga if you like one you can make it a series like you did with Berserk and One piece or it can be dropped. Only thing I would like to see more is if you made the book reviews as in-depth as the manga reviews I would like to hear what specific scenes you like or were disappointed by. GREAT WORK DANIEL!

Ohhh glad to hear that you started reading Monster, looking forward for future videos on your thoughts concerning it. Grew up reading Urasawa Naoki's manga, he's got an handle on decpicting people from all walks of life and creed amongs his peers. He's also quite the muscian too, even whipping up a theme song for a Manga Documentary series called "ManBen" "漫勉", where he interviews a different manga author each episode and delve into each author's means and ways into their craft. Tsutomu Nihei the author of Blame! is definetly a special breed of a manga author in the industry. Where authors like Oda would craft an intricate world with lore to boot, Nihei takes on world buidling in a different approach. Reading one of his works will only show a sliver of the general "Universe" he's constructed, you start to piece together through lines of time line he was created as you delve deeper into his catalouge of works. Definelty one of the more creative scifi authors to come out of Japan recently.

Monster 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥, its more of a psychological study of humans than a Thriller

@1beriforever

Жыл бұрын

That's exactly what a psychological thriller is...

@muhammedshibin621

Жыл бұрын

@@1beriforever nope, most of the psychological thrillers i read and watched are more of the psychological problems faced by the protagonist and antagonist. In this, we see a wide range of people's mind.

@muhammedshibin621

Жыл бұрын

Anyway, its a psychological thriller indeed but explored more than the genre is supposed to.

So glad you liked this is how you lose the time war, it was one of my favorite reads last year and I got scared when I saw the thumbnail. Here’s to an even better reading month for May! I’m trying to do Book Unbound’s Mashed Potato May which means I’m finally reading Dune!

Time war sounds amazing! As always you are an inspiration to me as I go about building my own channel. Great to see you.

Seeing your Vol. of Saga on your shelf reminded me, i need to finish Vol. 1 still haha

Oh Time War, yes I just finished listening to it again today after it went viral at the weekend - it's my favourite book. The audio narration is just perfect too. My partner bought the audiobook for me for Christmas two or three years ago, and I did the same thing where I started listening while doing some cleaning but ended up sitting down and not moving until it ended. So great to see it getting the hype it deserves :D

"This Is How You Lose The Time War"... recommended by Bigolas Dickolas Wolfwood and a Disheveled Goblin! :D

yeeeeeessss so thrilled for you covering monster. truly one of the great

I listened to This is How You Lose the Time War and was just...enthralled. I was absorbed in the story and was definitely emotional at the end. It has stuck with me for months and I think about it at least once a week.

I really like these many-in-one book reviews. Keep up the good work!

Can't wait to hear your final thoughts on Monster! One of my favorite series

As a new viewer and reader of berserk who's watched his reviews over the first 4 volumes(I'm on deluxe 5) it's super cool to see danial have the brand tattood

you talking about apathy as a concept for storytelling almost makes me interested to see what you'd think about Zaregoto, a mystery novel series with an IMMENSELY apathetic (and very unreliable) protagonist. I could see you completely hating it or finding it really good fun and I think either way I'd be very interested in seeing you review it. Vol. 2 is one of my favourite reading experiences ive had

Yay I’m so glad you loved This is How You Lose the Time War 💙❤️ got nervous when I saw the title of the video haha The way you described it makes me want to reread the story!

I read time war soon after it first came out a couple years back(doctor who nerd, so go figure), and before it really blew up. And i genuinely say there bewildered by the sheer genius on display by the authors. Both me and my brother sort of always have it as our most favorite novella, and i don't suspect it's gonna change anytime soon

I've been meaning to read This Is How You Lose The Time War for a while now, then I saw that tweet before it blew up because I get Trigun stuff on my twitter feed and didn't think much of it. Then the tweet went crazy and became incredibly entertaining to see play out, plus the book went on sale so I finally got it. Also, I'm very happy to see Monster here! I understand comparing it to a soap opera, but to me I've always felt it had the dramatics of some classic literature (like Les Miserables and The Picture of Dorian Gray)

I have Untethered Sky on my TBR, and for some reason .. I was also gonna go into it expecting some bird riding too, so thank you for tempering my expectations there. 😅 🙃 🙂🙂

Yo, whenyou started with mangas i wrote to you to consider reading Blame!, and monster too, but i tought it would take so much more time for you to give it a chance, being well known but most of the time not mentioned, i'm happy and interested in your toughts about it!

@Leonzannanera

Жыл бұрын

From what you said i can tell you will enjoy if and when you will get a second read of it, like most people. There are actually a lot of answers in it, like one of the most cool things when you discover it, at one point there is a silicon humanoid that is just observing this big and round hole in the megastructure and gets to talk a bit with Killy, he explains it was a deposit for the materials used to construct the megastructure and says how big it is, and if you search it corresponds to the circonference of mars if i recall it right

"Monstair" is more a detective noir, but as the cases are being solved Johan Liebert presents philisophical arguments against humanity and our morality. Can't wait to hear your thoughts on this series, it's one of my favorites!

Loved the Goblin Shuffle at the start. Damn, I was really hoping Witch King would be better received. I’ll definitely have to check it out to see if it works out better for my experience.

I avoided this video for a couple days because I was so worried based on the video title that you were going to rain on the parade of This Is How You Lose The Time War, and I’m so glad that was not the case! Great book, great thoughts from you as always.

I'm so damned giddy that Time War is finally getting the recognition it deserves. Such a cool story and so sweet

Love the long form book reviews. I really enjoyed it and I found new books to pick up.

So glad you enjoyed Monster and honestly, that's pretty much how I tried explaining Blame to someone once.

hope youre feeling better boss

BLAME! and the other Tsutomu Nihei works from that time just feel like such a different experience from any other that I cannot help but love them

Can't wait for you to read Sabriel! Especially if you love necromancy

I just moved to an apartment thats a few hundred feet from my local library and now my hold list is even longer, thanks! And of course I have to do my due diligence and request a review of Liveship Traders 3 and The Tawny Man trilogy. Sure I've already read them but I love Hobbs work so much I gotta hear your opinions.

also really glad you've gotten round to reading monster now !

Wtf man are you just never gonna revisit Vinland Saga??

Tsutomu Nihei's graviton beam emitter is my favorite weapon type in all fiction. From Blame! to Knights of Sidonia, it just makes me all tingly when it makes an appearance.

Congratulations on Neon Ghosts!!

I *almost* bought This Is How You Lose the Time War as an audiobook just the other day, but I hesitated. Will definitely check it out!

its strange and exciting seeing your bookshelf becoming more diverse with more manga and what not

RIDE THE BIRDS!!!! It is now a solang for me on KZread moment of 2023 Even though I never read the book but I am intrigued.

Thought I was going to find some catharsis in hating Time War. But I'm glad you enjoyed it!

I'd definitely read Noise! (The blame prequel) it doesnt answer everything but adds a little bit of context to the world itself. It doesnt tie all lose ends and there is still a lot of open endedness.

You've introduced me to so many great books and have added a bunch of new ones to my TBR that I otherwise wouldn't have heard of, and I'm excited to pick up these books. Even though you had criticisms, necromancy is one of my favorite types of magic so I'm excited to pick up Witch King and will keep your thoughts in mind! Also, the cover of Neon Gods is fantastic and I'm looking forward to picking it up. I enjoyed your novellas and love your KZread content so I'm happy about your upcoming novel! I hope you have a great weekend 💚

Glad to hear you enjoyed blame, i read it back when i was 11 and Ive delved into its enigmatic nature

Monster is the second manga that make me cry for a character after One Piece. I really liked it despite its flaws and it’s… controversial ending.

monster is SO good, really hope you get to reading more soon!

Do you have any solid tips for being able to concentrate while reading these? I don’t have ADD, but my mind constantly wanders and loses track of what’s going on while reading fantasy novels

Hope you review more of Monster it's mind-blowing

I see chopachu Also glad you enjoyed the time war! I read it a few months ago and absolutely adored it

DANIEL I would absolutely be thrilled if you read The Spear Cuts Through Water by Simon Jimenez. It’s truly one of the most creatively written fantasies I’ve ever read and it’s criminally underrated!

So excited that you are starting OPM but I honestly highly recommend the author’s other work which is Mob Psycho. I think he plays a lot more with morality in that one and there is so much to dive into because the character is in the opposition situation where he feels so much that works against him

@caprikiwi5600

Жыл бұрын

Yeah I like opm but I'd put it as like a 7/10 while mob psycho is in my top 5 anime of all time.

@yuvrajganguly

Жыл бұрын

Mob Psycho 100 anime I think is actually superior. I mean, don't get me wrong, the manga is also really good; but while the manga artwork is somewhat lacking when compared with OPM, the Animation, music and pacing of the anime most definitely hits it out of the park. I truly believe Mob Psycho 100 is among the 5 best manga adaptations of all time alongside the likes of Oldboiy, JoJo's, Demon Slayer and Kaguya-Sama; and one of my personal favourites.

You should read nausicaa of the valley of the wind for the next monthly reviews.

I went to a Fonda Lee panel in Boulder, and if I remember correctly she said she wrote 2/3rds of it a while back and ended up doing the Green Bone Saga as it got opitioned by the publisher and then she came back to it and rewrote the start and completed it after finshing Jade Legacy.

I saw the Nausicaa manga in the shelf. Has Daniel reviewed that or talked about it yet? I didn’t see any videos pop up searching for it

Found Time War in a bookstore near me and was interested, but decided to hold off because non-linear time stories are so often a mess of causality and temporal mechanics. While I like what you said, could you please speak out on this issue, if it's not too big of a spoiler?

I felt the same with Untethered Sky. It dragged for the first half, but then got better and better. My favorite scifi of the year thus was was Cold People. Aliens. Humanity sent to antarctica.

I love these videos so much 🤌🏼

We need a full video on Monster and Blame!

Glade to see you enjoyed Monster ! If you're interested in seeing more of Urasawa's work I could not be recommending more to try Pluto, it's a remake of AstroBoy as a dark psychological thriller and it works really well.

I just finished Untethered Sky and I really liked it! I’m a sucker for animal companions (I’m also rewatching Avatar: The Last Airbender right now). I’m waiting on my pre-order of Witch King and I’m still pretty excited, I’m interested to see if I have the same opinion as you once I read it. I also read This is How You Lose the Time War earlier this year and liked it, but I didn’t love it as much as most people. I think some of the sci-fi elements were a bit too abstract for my taste.

Your challenge with explaining Blame is perfect. I never try to explain it I just say read it, you will get no answers but enjoy it.

Hey Daniel, if you like smart but well written characters I suggest Larry Correias GrimNoir chronicles is incredible fantasy, and if you like thrillers I suggest Lee Childs Jack Reacher series.

Book recommendation: "Lord of the mysteries" by Cuttlefish that loves diving

@yaksh2953

Жыл бұрын

I think he might like the story especially the magic system and the world itself, but I don't know about the translated prose. As a habitual translated webnovel reader, it does not bother me one bit. I would even argue that it is better than most tranlsated WNs in that regard. I am skeptical because I have seen some folks in r/progressionfantasy - seems to contain mostly western readers - say that they couldn't get into it because of the clunky prose.

The fun of BLAME! is filling in the story between what the author tells you. My reading of it is that humanity was able to make a system that continued beyond itself. They created builders and security entities with tasks that must be fullfilled, even when the humans that built them are gone. The "people" that we see in the story aren't humans so much as descendants of humans living in the mega structure that's been made by the builders. Kille is on this tron esque quest to find "a user" to restore order, but they are all gone. But that doesn't change his task, his purpose in life. The tasks in the mega structure go one regardless of the vacancy left by their creators. The scales in this story are mind blowing too. I remember reading somewhere that the distances quoted in the manga are interplanetary distances and that the structure has expanded to fill up the solar system itself. Speculating about that kind of stuff is what makes it so enjoyable to me.

Would highly recommend Max Gladstone, especially for his books _The Craft Sequence._ If you've ever wanted to read more books about superhuman beings that's where you go. The premise is basically wizards vs gods, but the wizards are also lawyers and the gods are also corporations.