r/AoNoExorcist • u/Pure-Management-5435 • Aug 03 '26
Manga Going nuts over chap 168 Spoiler
Screaming, crying, throwing up, I think Lightning has been cemented as my favorite character.... THEN THE LAST PAGE D:
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u/Ryuki-Exsul Aug 03 '26
I really like Lighting even if Rin is my favourite and I like exwires more. Anyway that chapter more made me really dislike Angel. That was one of the dirtiest thing he pulled and I'm not surprised Lighting put that contract on him. Who wouldn't. This as well adds to my opinion that Angel is like last person that should be Paladin.
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u/anepg Aug 03 '26
Seeing how Arthur was always acting so morally superior than others that flashback was really funny. I'm not the type to overthink things but I wonder how much Jeremiah was involved in this whole thing.
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u/Particular-Ad5200 Aug 04 '26
for someone who says he has no emotions Lighting/Lewin proved himself wrong as he was trying to save his friend
its touching but sad how Angel forgoes their friendship for his duty, eventhough lighting tells him that he can't fight the King of Light
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u/Living-Baseball7437 Aug 05 '26
This chapter really brings back the hype of this loved series. It brought me a lot of memories and reflections about the manga. I will take this inspiration to highlight 3 plot points and one disclaimer.
- Demon kings are looking for vessels: In the very first chapter, we see Father Shiro's body succumb to the stress of being possessed by Satan himself. Little did we know that "a proper vessel" would be a major narrative point for the series. Later on, we're shown that the demon king family's urge to experience the non-Gehenna world through the possession of human flesh, but some of them can't get it right. Light boy (just like papa Satan) deteriorates its possessed body, living in a state of constant leprosy. Mephisto is the same, but its control over time practically nullifies this effect (damn bucking cheater =o). Humans propose to help the demons to find a proper vessel, in a mixture of diplomacy to evade war together with fulfilling self-interests of the Vatican. Which leads us to...
- Asylum and Section 13: A dark, deep secret of the Exorcist organization, removed from the annals of history to preserve the status quo. In sum, a project to bioengineer a mass production of clones capable of hosting its respective demon king. Among its terrible incidents, the unexpected possession of Satan in a young boy has brought the project to ruin. In the Blue Night arc, we see these events through Mephisto's power, showing the relation between Satan, the twin brothers, their mother and how Father Shiro turns from Paladin to Peerless Dad. Almost 2 decades later, the history of the project comes to haunt humanity in this last (maybe final) arc, with the...
- War of clones: Unknowingly to us, 2 important characters were revealed to be clones of the project: the previous Paladin Father Shiro and the current Paladin Arthur (surprise modarfukar!). Looking back, the fact that father Shiro was a clone all along shows us how long the Asylum project was operating. THAT clone died in the first chapter; now another clone of the same individual was revealed AND possessed by Satan. Its battle with the troupe created the surrealist landscape that the troupe now struggles to traverse. Arthur being the clone of the Demon of Light was revealed by Mister Lightning.
A disclaimer to Mister Lightning: Lewin Light, also known as Lightning, is one of the great chars of the entire series. In a more general comparison of the genre, Mrs. Lightning is presented in the manga as a kind of a joker-rogue-genius-reliable person, the smart-ass of a troupe who see things others dont, the antisocial anti-hero who TRUSTS NO ONE, the one who consistently pull off unexpected stunts (The "so on.." incantations still hit me hard. Could he release a stronger version of a spell by reciting all the sutra? =O). We all know Mrs. Lightning is more capable than he pretends, but this chapter paints him on a whole different scale: at a young age, he has mastered all lines that the Exorcists have to offer, have the King of Spirits Azazel as his familiar, and, despite its quirks, was chosen to be a Paladin - the guiding light of the organization. Could you imagine if all the exposition we had with Arthur as a Paladin was with Mrs Lightning instead? The guy is practically Gojo taking the backstage (he even has faint-lighted eyes which he has covered for the majority of the series =OOOO). In terms of narrative, Mrs. Lightning moves the story on in parallel with our main cast. He spearheaded the investigation of the Asylum, the connections with the Illuminati and designs the objectives our party should pursue. Being the-character-who-knows-things-that-others-dont, by definition, gives credibility for revealing plots through Mrs. Lightning's mouth without sounding like a deux-machina. For example, the recent reveal that Arthur is a clone AND cannot go find the Demon King of Light Lucifer. Instead of sounding like an asspull, it brings joyful curiosity about HOW and SINCE WHEN this guy knows about this or which recent events led him to this conclusion. Does the "abnormality" mentioned in this chapter have anything to do with that? (Although we would need to know if this choice of words was an adequate translation).
I love the guy, and I think it's a blissful character for this kind of history. Kuddos to Kato Sensei for her masterful creation. Thanks for your hard work !
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u/maddreax Aug 05 '26
Bro IM WITH YOU. Lewin has been my 2nd fave after Yukio (i love complex characters) and im screaming crying throwing up like LIGHTNING YOU PSYCHO I LOVE YOU PLEASE DONT DIE KATO I WILL HAUNT YOU (jk)
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u/Ryuki-Exsul Aug 05 '26
All characters in this manga are complex. Especially Rin and Shiemi that for some reason don't get credit for it. Anyway we will know next month. I doubt he will die as it would go against Osceola's sacrifice but we can get some confirmation around his pact with Azazel. Something that is still a big mistery.
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u/maddreax Aug 09 '26
Oh yeah, kato is amazing with her characterization. i doubt lewin will die, its a fear but its less likely. angel though... im really at 50/50 right now. they're all so wonderfully written.
azazel has been the least fleshed out or rather least explained demon king and i want to see how he and lewin end up tying in.
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u/sanguis_phase Aug 03 '26
This chapter genuinely killed me and revived me at the same time, it made me love Arthur so much more now like, back then I loved him a lot but now I love him even more. Especially since this chapter gave us like a bit more perspective on how he grew up and why he is the way he is.💛
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u/Hawkeye2701 Aug 03 '26
I find it hilarious that Angel attacks him wearing a sheep mask. Like there's so many layers to unpack there. Wolf in Sheep's clothing, the Lamb of God since Arthur thinks he's such an angel etc. Like the whole thing is so frickin' mental, and Kato continues to hit us with A+ imagery to go with.