KonoSuba Volume 4 Review

SPOILERS AHEAD!

In Volume 4, we see Kazuma and party (with Wiz) head to Alcanretia, the city of hotsprings! It also happens to be the patron city of the Goddess Aqua and home to the Axis cult.

Yes, those are condoms. But no, that's not what's
important. What's important is how cute they both
look in this picture. Aqua especially is super adorable.
I can't even begin to explain how adorable she looks.
Holy shit is she adorable. Too adorable. So kawaii.
Oh God she's cute.

Firstly, I have to say that I like Aqua a lot. In terms of ranking my favourites of the party, it would be Megumin > Aqua > Darkness. So, considering the story takes place in Alcanretia for the most part, it is very Aqua focused which isn't at all a bad thing for me.

This volume introduces a few more enemy types and the fact that death isn't permanent even when you die twice. Apparently, as long as you don't die a natural death/sickness and your body is still around, you can be revived almost indefinitely. Though this doesn't make dying sound any less despairing. Who died? Who else. Speaking of Kazuma, he also adopts the hobby of inventing items from the real world to sell in this world which becomes a major part of the plot moving forward. Kazuma the Inventor has a better ring to it than Kazuma the Adventurer.

Sadly, that dragon belonged to someone else. Though I
don't think this is the last we've seen of it.

We also get to see how Kazuma isn't just the party leader for show. He may not be capable in direct combat yet (you have to wait for Volume 6 for true badassery) but he is very capable in terms of being their spontaneous strategist. His party members are all very powerful but they lack synergy and Kazuma so happens to be the binding that they need. He quite effectively deals with the different situations leading up to Alcanretia and it's amusing to see how his party simply goes along with his ideas knowing that they'll fail on their own.

Also, Kazuma gets a new sword which Megumin names Chunchunmaru without his permission. Also also, apparently names are irreplaceable. Megumin, how I love you and your naming capabilities. Chomusuke and Chunchunmaru. Adorable.

During the initial introduction to Alcanretia, we get to know two things: Axis cult members are insane extremists with misguided personalities and Aqua really appreciates her followers. They are the sort of people you avoid like the plague. Unless you're Aqua. Then you take care of them like you would your children. Honestly, her love for her followers is admirable.

We get a brief look at a character named Wolbach who seemingly isn't very important but she actually IS very important with regards to Megumin's story in the spin-off novels.

The villain of this volume is Hans. Unlike Vanir, he isn't a passive general of the Demon King army. He is actively seeking to destroy the city and of course, our heroes end up defeating him.

Not without resistance however as Kazuma decides to show the worse of his personality in that he was not willing to fight Hans. He wasn't willing to help Aqua find the villain initially and when it came to the final showdown, all he did was....well, nothing. Kazuma isn't a typical hero but this volume shows just how much of an ass he is. Luckily though, he gets development in future novels, not actually showing as much resistance as he does in this one. Still, he was really quite of an ass in this one.

Speaking of the final fight, I think the best part about it isn't the fight itself (even though Wiz was pretty damn cool). It wasn't how Megumin dealt the explosion or how Darkness shielded her comrades with her body. No, it was how Aqua stuck her hand into the water source which effectively had turned into acid and even with the possibility of death and the immense pain she had to endure, she kept on with the purification because her followers will suffer if she did not. Self-sacrifice wasn't a word I usually associated with Aqua but after this volume, she definitely deserves praise.

We also get to see Aqua and Wiz's relationship improve from being enemies (at least according to Aqua). In fact, as far as I remember, I don't think they've fought anymore. They certainly don't act like friends (mostly because Vanir almost always keeps Wiz busy) but Aqua does not pounce on Wiz anymore and they can be in the same room without Aqua trying to exorcise her. This priest-like behaviour still applies to Vanir though.

Though no one actually believed her throughout the whole volume that she was their patron Goddess, she does finally get that recognition in the epilogue. AND finally, in Volume 8, they're beginning to touch back on that.

Like I said, this was a very Aqua-centric volume. In fact, starting with this volume moving forward, each volume's plot focuses around a specific character. Can you guess who's next?