My thoughts and criticisms on Vol 333 and Mandela Catalogue as a whole, coming from a fan
Warning for spoilers for Vol 333
In a visual and artistic sense, 333 blew the other volumes out of the water. I think Alex’s greatest strength is in his artwork, photomanips and specifically the designs for the alternates. I like the buildup and editing choices. Having it be what it is gave immersion that the other volumes did not have. I like that 333 is ambitious, especially with CGI being used. I did not even notice that it was CGI and thought it was prosthetics. It was done very well. There are several creepy moments like the phone calls and the alternate coming from the shadows which I loved.
However, I think it falls short from a writing standpoint. I don’t think giving further backstory and exposition for Adam, Cesar and Mark was necessary. In my opinion, the Mark/Cesar arc was short, sweet and already had a good conclusion. I think giving more background to Mark’s encounter was unnecessary and it didn’t serve any purpose to the plot or the character development. It was already implied that Cesar had killed Mark. The “arc” with Mark and Cesar already had a good climax and end (e.g. Cesar is an alternate and kills Mark). In my mind, it did not need any further development than that. Why should it matter that Cesar’s fingerprints were on the doorknob? I did like the sequence with the alternate talking with the distortion. It was creepy, short and sweet. In my opinion, Mandela Catalogue is at it’s scariest when the horrors are left vague. Not being able to see, or having a small glimpse of the entities, is when I felt the most scared.
I do worry that these decisions were made for fanservice purposes, and it does make me worry that the plot will be driven by fanservice. I do love Mark and Cesar as characters but having this didn’t contribute anything to the plot or character development. While there’s nothing wrong with wanting more fleshed out characters, to me it feels redundant and useless to state what we already knew. Going back and filling in the blanks adds nothing to the characters.
Adam’s parents. I did not like the introduction of his parents. I don’t think them being included matters much at all. I liked the part with the phone call between Adam’s dad and the police. I think it was eerie and well done. The most powerful parts of 333, for me, were when the monster was not seen (or vaguely seen) or only described. While I loved the ambitious use of physical effects, the ending shot with the unknown alternate being fully visible ruined it for me. It would’ve worked better with darkness.
However, in my opinion the biggest flaw with 333 is that it has a sort of pattern that started in Vol. 2. I am worried that Mandela Catalogue will be stuck in a loop of introducing new characters, killing them off, adding backstory after they have died, rinse and repeat. This would not be as bad if (in my interpretation) it seems to be influenced by fanservice and how much the fanbase likes certain characters (e.g. Mark and Cesar). There is nothing wrong with this on its surface. There is nothing wrong with loving your fanbase and giving them some callbacks (ie “Uh oh! Bad choice Thatcher!” and “There can only be one of us”). It does become an issue, to me, when it’s prioritized over developing the plot as a whole.
I think Mandela Catalogue’s biggest weakness is that there is no overarching plot and it feels like several characters’ stories stitched together. It feels incohesive like it does not know what to do with the characters and the setup as a whole. I am not comparing it to other ARGs but from a plot and character standpoint, this feels a little stale. If this cycle continues with further volumes, I think it would make the series worse overall. What will the end goal of the series be? What will be the climax? Will these characters be linked together at some point? We have established that the alternate invasion has been going on since (at least) the 80s. It is established that there is (possibly) a coverup of the existence of alternates by the police and the government to prevent mass hysteria. From there, it does not look like the overall plot has progressed past that. There is Satan, but his presence in the main plot is kind of scattered. He just kind of exists and doesn’t influence the main cast (unless you count him talking to Adam in Vol 2).
What would I do to improve Mandela Catalogue? I would move away from developing the characters. If anything, I would save development for smaller episodes between the big volumes. Alex’s writing works best when the story is kept short and sweet-- and that's why I think Vol. 1 is more well recieved compared to the others. As a writer, I can see why he would want to try bigger and more ambitious things with the series. There is no shame in trying new formats and artistic choices. However, I do not think that 20-30 minutes episodes are his strong point. That is why Vol 1 is the strongest link Mandela Catalogue has and why it’s loved so much.
Is all of this to say that Vol 333 is bad? No. I think the series has room to improve and there is nothing wrong with saying that. I worry for the future of the series if it’s writing leans on fanservice moreso than progressing the plot. I do not want the series to be focused on characters who are already dead. I do not want new characters to be introduced just to get this same treatment. I think it would benefit overall if it moves the story forward rather than going back and giving backfill to characters. If this does not happen, and the cycle of introducing and killing off new characters continues, I can’t see myself enjoying it anymore.
While Alex’s artistic talent is a great positive in the series, it cannot carry Mandela Catalogue if the writing quality becomes repetitive and redundant. I am not criticising 333 out of hate but because of love. I love the series and all I want is for it to grow into something better.
I think a problem is that Alex as a creator does not seem to be confident in his work. I can tell from his tweets that he is conflicted with his skill, his vision for the series and what the fans want. It would explain why each volume is different. In a way, it comes across like Alex was blindsided by Mandela Catalogue’s overnight success and it put much more pressure on him as a creator. I can see that MC likely started as a small project for fun and blew up overnight. I doubt that Alex expected this kind of reception from the start. Reading how he talks about the series makes it seem like he is conflicted between the fanbases’ reception and his artistic vision for what he wants MC to be. As an artist, I can understand being in that position, especially when a small project you made for fun suddenly has a million fans. It would make any artist feel like the world is watching them. I feel he has some fear for making content that is too divisive for the fans. I feel he has fear over letting his one shot at success slip away. Which is understandable.
However, I do not think he should let the fanbase guide the plot. I fear that if this sort of pressure continues, he could be burned out or overwhelmed trying to please everyone.
