Everyone makes the innocent mistake of renting what they think is a riveting drama about a pizza delivery man, only to find out--gasp--the pizza premise is actually a thin veil for what is actually a porno tape. At least, that's the excuse mothers and spouses tend to hear. But Innocent Bird by Hirotaka Kisaragi proves porn can even deceive viewers who think they know what they're getting into. For a yaoi manga about the forbidden relationship between an angel and a devil, there's disappointingly little in the way of ironic sex.
Karasu is a shuffling, trenchoat-wearing angel, part of a heavenly bureaucracy dedicated to keeping demons off the earthy plain. Karasu is eventually charged with capturing Shiragasagi, a supposedly reformed demon who escaped hell and wishes to live on earth as a priest in a poor neighbourhood. Karasu is at first intrigued by the turncoat devil, and then he's quickly smitten. Risking God's wrath, he defends Shiragasagi against the angelic and demonic agents that hunt him down.
Karashu and Shiragasagi have gooey moments, but never really get it on. A chaste yaoi manga probably isn't the biggest sin committed on paper, but it's not as if Innocent Bird offers an original, well-told story to supplement its lack of sexy. Chain-smoking bureaucratic angels are not a new creature, and they're especially interesting anymore. Neither are their endless debates with devils about what really defines God's love.
Lucifer is an even bigger disappointment; the Lord of the Flies is a one-dimensional wine-slinging bishounen who feeds his harem of whores to dragons. He's become ever so bored with the loss of his favourite "toy," the runaway Shiragasagi.
As expected, there are lingering questions of what's truly good versus what's truly evil. In one sub-plot, a low-level demon kills and possesses a boy who summons him. He risks severe punishment by staying on Earth to see off "his" deathly ill mother, whom he inherits a deep affection for. But Innocent Bird blows through its few memorable moments and Karashu and Shiragasagi are quickly back to cooking breakfast for one another.
Innocent Bird does have one redeeming factor, a short one-shot story near the back of the manga called "My Sweet Darling." Two brothers, Souta and Shuuji, are abandoned by their mother. After five years of fending for themselves, they're visited by their lost mother's stepson, Kyoto, who quickly seeks out a domestic niche for himself. Shuuji, unwilling to accept any reminder of his mother, rejects his "brother", but eventually he's forced to choose between his pride and family ties. There's no immediate sexual themes in My Sweet Darling, but unlike Innocent Bird, it's a very cute, simply-told story about friendship and bonds. In fact, it's almost worth picking up Innocent Bird just for its second billing.
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