Irie Aki

Oh, manga, how you vex me! Why do you have so many titles that simultaneous delight and skeeve me out?

Take this book, a wonderfully illustrated and humorous tale set in an interesting world of sorceresses and shapeshifters. Our heroine is a fourth grader named Ran who bursts through life at full throttle. But part of that involves transforming into an 18-year-old version of herself that still has her nine-year-old brain and innocence. Throw in fan service art and a bunch of grown males show more trying to get with her and the daddy in me is sickened and angered.

I'm going to keep reading for now, but I don't know if I'll be able to stick it out. show less

One last final battle! Again! But wait, what's going to happen next volume then?

Regardless, there was much excitement this time around, and it'd be a wonderful fantasy manga, if only it didn't keep trying to ennoble the pedophile who is the adult romantic lead opposite the elementary school title character. It's like Nabokov and Humbert Humbert, or the Academy and Roman Polanski or Woody Allen. Icky. It seems like the sleaze in this series has finally been sidelined, but I fear his nasty show more self will intrude again for the final volume . . . which I have on hand from the library and will be reading tomorrow. show less

It's amazing how one character can wreck a series. The first half of this book was a great deal of fun -- even despite the fan service -- while Ran simply hung out at her elementary school and home with her classmates and teacher. But then stupid, awful, creepy, lecherous Otaru Mikado shows up and the fun comes to a screeching halt. Sure, he drove some dramatic developments leading to the book's big cliffhanger, but here's hoping he doesn't make it through the coming confrontations or is at show more least sidelined for longer periods. show less

Still has beautiful art.
Still has an interesting fantasy world with great supporting characters.
Still has an energetic and engaging nine-year-old protagonist.
But still uncomfortably sexualizes her when she transforms periodically into an 18-year-old body with fan service art and a lecherous adult suitor who while at least unaware of her mental age is a #metoo nightmare.

Thank goodness for her fourth grade classmate who regrets his previous bullying and is trying to befriend her.