No need to minimize it: B.Ichi is obviously a very flawed series and it is no surprise it didn't catch on.
The dialogues are usually poor, the characters are fun but too superficial to really be interesting, the exposition is often forced, and outside of Emine and maybe Nofix, the villains are a joke − I'm not sure it's possible to make a villain more dull and clichéd than Lodigy even by trying. Add to that some weird, out-of-nowhere references (the Rolling Stones? Really?) and you have an awkward mess.
However, it could have given something better, had the author had more experience at the time. The concept of the Clowns with their power and Condition had potential, the universe is deliciously wacky, and some of the action scenes (notably those with Yowhey) are pretty well done. And sadly, the series stopped when it finally seemed to be exploring its universe more deeply − i.e. with Emine entering the stage. The final chapter has a very beautiful and tragic feel to it, giving the impression that the "Gathering of the Masks" could have been a far more interesting arc than the Fear Factory arc.
So strangely, this is the kind of series that I would like the author to take up and restart from stratch, now that he has gotten more skilled after Soul Eater. Sadly, we will probably never know how good B.Ichi could have been…
Manga And yet it had potential…
No need to minimize it: B.Ichi is obviously a very flawed series and it is no surprise it didn't catch on.
The dialogues are usually poor, the characters are fun but too superficial to really be interesting, the exposition is often forced, and outside of Emine and maybe Nofix, the villains are a joke − I'm not sure it's possible to make a villain more dull and clichéd than Lodigy even by trying. Add to that some weird, out-of-nowhere references (the Rolling Stones? Really?) and you have an awkward mess.
However, it could have given something better, had the author had more experience at the time. The concept of the Clowns with their power and Condition had potential, the universe is deliciously wacky, and some of the action scenes (notably those with Yowhey) are pretty well done. And sadly, the series stopped when it finally seemed to be exploring its universe more deeply − i.e. with Emine entering the stage. The final chapter has a very beautiful and tragic feel to it, giving the impression that the "Gathering of the Masks" could have been a far more interesting arc than the Fear Factory arc.
So strangely, this is the kind of series that I would like the author to take up and restart from stratch, now that he has gotten more skilled after Soul Eater. Sadly, we will probably never know how good B.Ichi could have been…