I like how Manga Elden Ring handles Rennala
Transparent Elden Ring: Rad to Erdtree muzzled manga, we see Nikiichi Tobita’s original take on the adventure and characters, along with a good portion of episode 4 involves Aseo’s interactions with Rennala, the Queen of the Full Moon. As expected, she’s not exactly what we can remember from the game. However, much of this plot takes directly from what we know about her and plays with those expectations, while also acknowledging her role in the title.
Editor’s note: There will be spoilers about Rennala throughout Old ring manga and games below.
Before we meet Rennala properly in Old ring manga, we first see Aseo reunited with Ranni the Witch at Raya Lucaria Academy. After some backstory by Ranni and Rennala, as well as her trying to turn him into a Carian Knight again, she tasks him with meeting her mother in the Great Library and stealing her Great Rune for her own safety. She also mentioned that she chose Aseo for this because she knew he wouldn’t actually kill her mother.
From there, we actually get to see Aseo meet Rennala in Old ring The manga and interaction do not disappoint. It begins with her fully accepting her role as a mother and interacting with the Great Rune sealed in the Amber Egg. She is not evil at all. She’s just… an overworked mother pulled in too many directions by her Sweetings children. So much so that she needs to do her Comet Azur to get the kids to stop playing with books.
Initially, she seems dismissive of Aseo, but when he reveals who he is, she and Carian Knight Moongrum actually see him as a threat. So much so that Moongrum had to stand up as the “boss” to fight for the situation. He still maintains his role as guardian of the Great Library, just like in the game. Except like Godrick fight, it didn’t go as expected. Sweetings is still a problem, acting as a distraction and making it seem like she might be doing a Twirling Retreat to once again distract them.
But I especially respect the way Old ring Manga makes everything more interesting reality at the end of the encounter with Rennala. Spoilers aside, Moongrum returns from his defeat to explain his purpose for using the Great Rune. It was a tragic moment and I felt there was an opportunity to sympathize with someone who had previously seemed superior and a great threat. To think that even a humorous manga can make readers understand someone better is quite a feat.
That said, I also especially loved how Aseo ultimately decided to deal with Rennala and the task Ranni gave him in battle. Old ring comic. After consulting with Melina and Moongrum, this retelling decided to seemingly handle the encounter like we might in the game. As a refresher, this is an optional fight. So we can see how that plays out in Aseo’s story. It allows us to see the more thoughtful side of things and appreciate the lore we’ve gathered based on our insights into Rennala here.
Depiction of Rennala, Queen of the Full Moon in Old Ring: Road to Erdtree The manga draws out of the game in many good ways. It fits with what we know about her lore. It gives her “Sweets”. Her attacks are referenced. So is her nature as a boss in the game. It’s all done skillfully, like most of this humorous manga.
Volume 4 of Old Ring: Road to Erdtree currently available and Yen Bao will release episode 5 on January 21, 2025.
