016 – The Wizard of Cherry Blossom Street
Evangeline, the star of this chapter, and volume
Volume 3 begins with a note from the author saying that the whole volume is one big story arc and it focuses on another mage… Evangeline. I knew she was someone different when I first saw her, maybe it’s the way these illustrators draw their characters… Anyway this was good chapter, and looks promising too, and Evangeline seems a really powerful mage, easily deflecting Negi’s attacks. What’s even better is that final sentence she says, that this is the power that she expects of a son from ‘that man’. Foreshadowing much? Anyway, a great chapter actually, it began well and it ended well, looking forward to the next couple of chapters that builds upon this story arc.
017 – Her Name is Evangeline
"I want to suck your blood!!!" (she's a vampire in case you haven't noticed)
So we learn that the Thousand Master is Negi’s father, wow, no wonder Negi himself is powerful for a ten year old. Another class member is revealed to be a mage (well, the partner of Evangeline anyway), which was surprising. This was a fairly intense chapter actually, and I found myself going through it at a fast pace as it had captured my interest. Asuna saving the day was pretty much a given, so it was no surprise there, Negi still doesn't have enough experience in magic I guess.
018 – A Visit from a Small Helper, Perhaps!?
One look and you know this thing is going to be a trouble in the future
Not a great chapter when compared to the last one, a weird ermine (that can speak!) pops up and Negi supposedly knows it, which I find is fairly weird and unusual. Some of the dialogue at the cheer up party was funny. I also like how we learn just a tiny bit more about Evangeline, and how her power waxes and wanes with the full moon, interesting to say the least… (I mean, if Negi attacks her now, wouldn't it be a bit easier to win?)
019 – A Man’s Pledge (Maybe)
Nodoka, about to finish the contract by kissing Negi
Focusing on the ermine (whom you know straight away is not a good thing) and Negi finding a partner, it was an okay chapter. As usual, Asuna sees through the ploy and saves Negi from some plot of the ermine, and now it seems that the ermine is here to stay, not too sure if it is a good thing or not (as Asuna says in the chapter, a sucker is born every minute… in this case, the sucker is Negi).
020 – What!? A Contract With Asuna!?
The starting process of the contract with Asuna
As the title suggests, Negi forms the partner contract with Asuna, I guess this was to be expected since they are the two main protagonists (not that I’m complaining, mind you). I was surprised they actually attacked Chachamaru alone, taking advantage and ganging up on her (it’s okay for the ‘bad’ guys to do it but for the good guys as well?). Granted, Negi didn't deliver the finishing blow, but I just thought it was fairly surprising that Negi didn't say no to it straight away.
021 – An Apprenticeship
Body splitting technique...
A boring chapter, this is the one where Negi regains his confidence, but I didn't think it was done in a great way. Nagase shows Negi the way of the ninja (so to speak) and does all these wise things (although the jokes were a bit overused already), and she now knows that Negi is a mage, then again, she is a (real) ninja, so there isn’t much of a problem.
022 – Negi in Ecstasy!!!
Adult Evangeline!! Too bad it's an illusion since she doesn't age and is forever stuck at being 10 years old
Man, the title is so misleading; it really should be titled Negi in a Dream or something. Anyway, Negi goes into Evangeline’s dream, about her encounter with the Thousand Master. It began quite well, but then it kinda broke apart with what happened afterwards… The Thousand Master wasn't what I had expected, and I was surprised to find that Evangeline had feelings for him, totally didn't see that one coming. We got to find out more about Evangeline and Negi’s father, so it was a good chapter in the end.
023 – The Big Game Plan for the Huge Blackout of Academy City
Nice frame this was... looks suitably evil-ish
Finally, the confrontation between Negi and Evangeline starts, and it’s pretty good. I like how evil (well, as evil as you can get in a mange series like this at the current stage of proceedings) Evangeline’s techniques are, they don’t call her the Doll Master for nothing, controlling her classmates to fight Negi. I also like how Evangeline puts on an illusion as her older self, looks quite cool and suitably evil, loved the mood of this chapter.
024 – The Big Game Plan for the Huge Blackout of Academy City
*sound of glass shattering* - "hmmmph! And THAT'S how you do it"
The fight begins… but with Negi mainly running away, good thing it’s because he has a trap waiting for Evangeline and not because he was a coward. It was a bit petty when she broke his trap (a binding field) and Negi started whining, that was a bit pathetic and did not put Negi in a good light. Evangeline is awesome, and Asuna comes to save the day once again, the fight’s not over yet though, carrying on into the next chapter. It was a good chapter.
025 – The Big Game Plan for the Huge Blackout of Academy City
One of the first fight scenes in Negima
This is the final part in the three-chapter arc, Asuna and Negi teams up to fight Evangeline and Chachamaru. The fight was good, and I loved all the magic casting, but they all seemed the same to me, or have similar effects anyway… I liked how Evangeline uses the powers of ice and darkness (suits her ‘evil’ character) and Negi uses wind and light, they’re like the dual opposites. Anyway Negi wins, as expected, but it was coz of Evangeline running out of time and the curse going into effect again, so it was kinda like cheating on Negi’s part. Apparently Evangeline is going to fulfil her promise of attending class and only attacking Negi during the full moon, it would be surprising if she doesn't try anything else, but then again, she is showing some sort of positive feelings towards Negi after he keeps showing her mercy.
Overall
Evangeline (again)
This volume, as the author had mentioned at the start, focuses completely on Evangeline, whom I think is an awesome character, albeit typical of the style used for this kind of character. From the expression, proportions, attacks and appearance, Evangeline takes all of the typical aspects and puts it together, not that it’s a bad thing. I loved chapter 17, and chapter 23, 24 and 25 weren’t bad either, but the rest were so so, and which I could do without, since it didn't add terribly much to the story arc, and they were… unusual. Then there’s the promise that Volume 4 will have Negima show its true quality… interesting.
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Credits: due to it being faster and more efficient I just took these pictures from scans online instead of scanning the tankobons themselves. These were scanned by the group "Mahora" and "Meow"
