Mah Otakuzone Review (not even out in The Star yet)
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Kinokuniya
Yozakura Quartet
Story: Yasuda Suzuhito
Publisher: Viz Publications; 192 pages
(ISBN: 978-0-345-50149-3)
For teens
Hime is definately not your averange girl. Mayor of her town for 8 years, she's still just 16 years old. And Sakurashin Machi is not your averange town either. Surrounding the town are the Nanagou (literally seven mystic pillars), and it has become a melting pot for both humans and youkai that live side by side in the town. The nanagou also causes several problems, as once in a while a surge of power from these can lead to a berserk entity, and thus it's up to Hime to protect her town.
Helping her with this task is the Hiizumi Seikatsu Soudan Jimusho (Hiizumi's Everyday-life Consultation Office), which do odds on jobs on just about anything people aske them, and usually their usual customer is Hime. The staffs consist of Kotoha, a kodama that can create anything she wants with just words. Ao, a catgirl youkai that can read minds, and Hiizumi Akina, the owner, childhood friend of Hime, and an odinary 18 year old human being
The first volume is quite ordinary, with the storyline is mainly focused on the introduction of the characters. Even the mangaka himself agreed in the omake section at the end of the manga. As I have read the Japanese version of volume 2 and 3, I can say that the action really do start in those volumes. But again you need to read the first volume to get a feeling of the story, and I also love the how the each character have different quirks and behavior. Hime for example is a happy go lucky girl, but when it comes to her town, she is very serious in keeping the citizens safe and happy. Ao, the youkai with cat ears, can read minds, and early in the book she questions her right to do this. She doesn't want to use her abilities, even when it will benefit the town. Grappling with this moral dilemma gave her character an added dimension and made her more than just a mindless super hero. Although the best power should be Kotoha's as she can conjure up anything she wants, but she needs to utter it perfectly. Akina is the most mysterious of the bunch, as he seems an ordinary teenage boy, and well liked by all the staffs (especially Ao who lives in his office and usually pampered by him like a cat). But there seems more than meets the eye to his character.
The art is quite good, and keeping in line with the happy go lucky flow of the storyline some scenes have the character exaggerated just enough to make it funnier. While there is youkai and fighting in the manga, it's still mainly of a comedic and slice of life genre. Add the quirky characters and you have a fun manga to read.
Rating 3.5
Yozakura Quartet
Story: Yasuda Suzuhito
Publisher: Viz Publications; 192 pages
(ISBN: 978-0-345-50149-3)
For teens
Hime is definately not your averange girl. Mayor of her town for 8 years, she's still just 16 years old. And Sakurashin Machi is not your averange town either. Surrounding the town are the Nanagou (literally seven mystic pillars), and it has become a melting pot for both humans and youkai that live side by side in the town. The nanagou also causes several problems, as once in a while a surge of power from these can lead to a berserk entity, and thus it's up to Hime to protect her town.
Helping her with this task is the Hiizumi Seikatsu Soudan Jimusho (Hiizumi's Everyday-life Consultation Office), which do odds on jobs on just about anything people aske them, and usually their usual customer is Hime. The staffs consist of Kotoha, a kodama that can create anything she wants with just words. Ao, a catgirl youkai that can read minds, and Hiizumi Akina, the owner, childhood friend of Hime, and an odinary 18 year old human being
The first volume is quite ordinary, with the storyline is mainly focused on the introduction of the characters. Even the mangaka himself agreed in the omake section at the end of the manga. As I have read the Japanese version of volume 2 and 3, I can say that the action really do start in those volumes. But again you need to read the first volume to get a feeling of the story, and I also love the how the each character have different quirks and behavior. Hime for example is a happy go lucky girl, but when it comes to her town, she is very serious in keeping the citizens safe and happy. Ao, the youkai with cat ears, can read minds, and early in the book she questions her right to do this. She doesn't want to use her abilities, even when it will benefit the town. Grappling with this moral dilemma gave her character an added dimension and made her more than just a mindless super hero. Although the best power should be Kotoha's as she can conjure up anything she wants, but she needs to utter it perfectly. Akina is the most mysterious of the bunch, as he seems an ordinary teenage boy, and well liked by all the staffs (especially Ao who lives in his office and usually pampered by him like a cat). But there seems more than meets the eye to his character.
The art is quite good, and keeping in line with the happy go lucky flow of the storyline some scenes have the character exaggerated just enough to make it funnier. While there is youkai and fighting in the manga, it's still mainly of a comedic and slice of life genre. Add the quirky characters and you have a fun manga to read.
Rating 3.5
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This post has been edited by linkinstreet: Mar 26 2008, 07:18 AM