Muscles are Better Than Magic! (Volume 1) - Muscles > Magic

Muscles are Better Than Magic Volume 1 Cover

Yuri lived in the Forest of Death for more than ten years, making his body so strong that it nullifies magic. One day, he meets an elf girl called Filia who inspires him to leave his home and seek adventure!

Muscles are Better Than Magic! (Volume 1) – Muscles > Magic

What happened?

Yuri found Filia lost in the forest. That didn’t say much for her, being that she was an elf. Of course, Yuri didn’t know the way out either as he had been there for more than ten years training his body to near perfection. After hearing Filia’s goal to go out and see the world, he is inspired to come with her. They fight their way out of the aptly named Forest of Death and soon find a city. They decide to stick together and look to join the guild to earn some money.

The guild is stunned to see the quality of the monster pieces that they have to sell and are even more surprised to learn that Yuri was living in the Forest of Death. However, one rowdy group of adventurers try to take Filia away despite her lack of interest. When Yuri steps in, they unleash a torrent of magical energy but it doesn’t even tickle him. Then, as they attack over and over, Yuri steps into the attacks to protect the guild building.

Regardless, when the Knight Order arrive, they attempt to arrest Yuri for using magic in the city, but Yuri can’t use magic. When he protests, the commander decided to give him a chance to prove it. He will fire off an attack and if Yuri survives, he was telling the truth. Secretly, the commander hopes to make an example of Yuri, but his ultimate attack is nothing compared to Yuri’s muscles. Happy that Yuri didn’t use magic, the Knight Order leaves, allowing Yuri and Filia to get on with adventuring.

Muscles are Better Than Magic Volume 1 Yuri go hard or go home

What did you think?

This book was almost as ridiculous as the title makes it sound, and I mean that as a compliment. It was hilarious. Yuri and Filia make such a great team, especially as she can read minds and regularly gives us a glimpse into what Yuri is thinking. It’s often about his muscles. Thanks to his bizarre training plan, Yuri has developed his muscles to the point of becoming an overpowered god and it’s fantastic. It’s not clever or particularly original, but I loved it.

I think it works because of Yuri and Filia’s characters. I love how overly excited and clueless Yuri is and yet he keeps on getting stronger. I love how Filia is sarcastic and constantly teases Yuri. Of course, they also like one another and it’s a relationship built on mutual respect, which allows for the comedy to flow. We also get a lot of hilarious reactions to just how powerful Yuri is. There are only four volumes in this series and I will be sure to read them all.