Ribby
01-14-2004, 08:39 PM
Hi y'all! This manga is one I picked up on a Book-Off jaunt during my final days in Japan, and I picked it up just because it happened to be Natsumi Andou's first manga volume to be published. It's a really nice story, and it should be fairly easy to find since it's been out for 5 years now and you can probably find it used. So without further ado:
Title: Tsuiteru ne Hijiri-chan
Rough Translation: Lucky You, Hijiri-chan
Volume: 1 (of 1)
Author: Natsumi Andou
Publisher: Kodansha Comics (from Nakayoshi magazine)
Page Count: 199
Price: 390 yen (paid 100 yen for it at Book Off)
Original Release: 10/6/98
Review Date: 1/14/04
Age Rating: N/A
ISBN: 4-06-178901-5
Catalog Number: KCN 901
Grades
Story: B
Artwork: B+
Presentation: B
Overall: B
Summary
Hijiri Okumura (her first name is the kanji for "holy") is the Weirdness Magnet of shoujo manga--she's able to see things that one normally does not see! Especially one morning when she wakes up to find a strange boy sleeping in her bed next to her and proceeds to throw all of the furniture in her bedroom at him. When Papa comes in to check on his dear daughter...guess what ISN'T there? Later on, when Hijiri goes to school, a brush against depressed friend Hana gives Hijiri a strange feeling and results in Hana becoming happy-happy. As for Hijiri...she starts saying weird and mean things and gets in trouble with the teacher, her friends, and her crush Kazuhiko Tohno-sempai! Eventually, she meets up with the strange boy, that reveals that an ama no jaku (a devil that hides in a temple's guardian diety) has possessed her. It turns out that ten years before, when Hijiri, her sister and a friend were trying to contact the ghost of a fox with a Ouija board of sorts, they were attacked by an evil force and saved by the boy, who turns out to be a fox spirit. The fox boy is named Gin and he swore to protect Hijiri and gave her a ring to call on his services.
The volume is fairly short, with six self-contained stories (although there is a definate beginning and end) which deal with Hijiri and Gin dealing with a classmate (Kusakabe-kun) possessed by the Angel of Death, Gin's "fiance" Rin Kitsunezawa, a snow woman, and an accidentally unleashed curse. Standard paranormal shoujo manga material.
The characters in this series are not that memorable. Hijiri doesn't really have much of a personality besides the fact that she can see strange things. Gin is slowly feeling his way through the human world (it takes two tries to get his school uniform right) and genuinely cares enough about Hijiri to have sworn to protect her (the 10 years later theme, like in Zodiac P.I., is in play here.) Rin is your typical "grab the hero and don't let anyone between us" character that uses her powers to get what she wants. There is a bit of character development, especially for Hijiri in the chapter where Rin is introduced.
Since this was Andou's first major work, you can see some subtle differences when you compare it Zodiac P.I., mostly in the character's eyes. It's interesting to read old and new works and realize how much a manga-ka's style has evolved (for example, read volume 1 and volume 10 of Kodocha.)
I like Natsumi Andou's work enough to have picked this up and I thought it was a good read, even at one volume. I don't think Tokyopop is interested in picking up one-shots but if it does want to delve into more of Natsumi Andou's work, this is a title that is worth picking up.
Title: Tsuiteru ne Hijiri-chan
Rough Translation: Lucky You, Hijiri-chan
Volume: 1 (of 1)
Author: Natsumi Andou
Publisher: Kodansha Comics (from Nakayoshi magazine)
Page Count: 199
Price: 390 yen (paid 100 yen for it at Book Off)
Original Release: 10/6/98
Review Date: 1/14/04
Age Rating: N/A
ISBN: 4-06-178901-5
Catalog Number: KCN 901
Grades
Story: B
Artwork: B+
Presentation: B
Overall: B
Summary
Hijiri Okumura (her first name is the kanji for "holy") is the Weirdness Magnet of shoujo manga--she's able to see things that one normally does not see! Especially one morning when she wakes up to find a strange boy sleeping in her bed next to her and proceeds to throw all of the furniture in her bedroom at him. When Papa comes in to check on his dear daughter...guess what ISN'T there? Later on, when Hijiri goes to school, a brush against depressed friend Hana gives Hijiri a strange feeling and results in Hana becoming happy-happy. As for Hijiri...she starts saying weird and mean things and gets in trouble with the teacher, her friends, and her crush Kazuhiko Tohno-sempai! Eventually, she meets up with the strange boy, that reveals that an ama no jaku (a devil that hides in a temple's guardian diety) has possessed her. It turns out that ten years before, when Hijiri, her sister and a friend were trying to contact the ghost of a fox with a Ouija board of sorts, they were attacked by an evil force and saved by the boy, who turns out to be a fox spirit. The fox boy is named Gin and he swore to protect Hijiri and gave her a ring to call on his services.
The volume is fairly short, with six self-contained stories (although there is a definate beginning and end) which deal with Hijiri and Gin dealing with a classmate (Kusakabe-kun) possessed by the Angel of Death, Gin's "fiance" Rin Kitsunezawa, a snow woman, and an accidentally unleashed curse. Standard paranormal shoujo manga material.
The characters in this series are not that memorable. Hijiri doesn't really have much of a personality besides the fact that she can see strange things. Gin is slowly feeling his way through the human world (it takes two tries to get his school uniform right) and genuinely cares enough about Hijiri to have sworn to protect her (the 10 years later theme, like in Zodiac P.I., is in play here.) Rin is your typical "grab the hero and don't let anyone between us" character that uses her powers to get what she wants. There is a bit of character development, especially for Hijiri in the chapter where Rin is introduced.
Since this was Andou's first major work, you can see some subtle differences when you compare it Zodiac P.I., mostly in the character's eyes. It's interesting to read old and new works and realize how much a manga-ka's style has evolved (for example, read volume 1 and volume 10 of Kodocha.)
I like Natsumi Andou's work enough to have picked this up and I thought it was a good read, even at one volume. I don't think Tokyopop is interested in picking up one-shots but if it does want to delve into more of Natsumi Andou's work, this is a title that is worth picking up.