The granddaughter of the moon princess must come to terms with her destiny as the wielder of Chizakura, the Blood Cherry Blossom Sword!
Creative Staff
Story/Art: Arina Tanemura
What They Say
Sakura is the granddaughter of a mysterious moon princess who slew demons with her Blood Cherry Blossom sword. All her life Sakura has been forbidden to look at the full moon without knowing why. Then one night, unhappy over her impending marriage, Sakura gazes up at the moon, only to see a demon attacking her…
Princess Sakura has been engaged to Prince Oura since birth. Aoba, an emissary from the court, has come to accompany her move to the capital for her upcoming nuptials. Taking a dislike to Aoba and wanting to escape a life arranged by others, Sakura runs away – and finds her true destiny has caught up to her.
Technical
The cover illustration, which takes up the front and back, gives a pretty good idea of the artwork you’re in store for. It depicts Princess Sakura in courtly garb surrounded by sakura flowers. What it doesn’t show is the magical girl aspect of this series. The majority of scenes have Heian era settings with Sakura and Oura in period clothes, but there are also action scenes with Sakura battling it out in short skirts against various sharp-toothed monsters. Tanemura-sensei’s artwork is consistently detailed, cute, and flowery although some pages do get crowded with panels.
As it’s a Shojo Beat title, you can expect Viz’s standard production quality: sturdy binding and cover, clean printing, excellent dialogue lettering and sound effect overlays. It includes embedded author’s notes, three pages of information about Tanemura-sensei, and a summary of the legend of Princess Kaguya.
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
The legend of Princess Kaguya, the maiden from the moon, is one of Japan’s best-known stories and provides the basis for this manga. Tanemura-sensei, however, gives the story a twist. Not only does Princess Kaguya possess a beauty that enchants the Emperor, she battles man-eating demons with the mystical moon sword Chizakura.
The story centers on Sakura, the 14-year-old granddaughter of Kaguya. Klutzy and a free spirit, she’s betrothed to the Emperor’s son, Prince Oura. The match is hailed as advantageous for both parties, but she’s certain she hates him though they’ve never met. Upon receiving the summons to go to the capital for their wedding, she’s frantic to get out of it. It sounds like the setup for a romantic comedy except for one thing: Sakura has always been warned by the old priestess Byakuya never to look at the full moon. And of course, that’s exactly what happens when Sakura tries to sneak out of the wedding. The moment she looks, fantastical monsters called Youko storm into the picture, and the story takes on a distinctly magical girl flavor as Sakura transforms into a sword-wielding demon slayer, complete with wardrobe change into a frilly outfit (according to the mangaka’s notes, they’re clothes from the moon).
At this point, the plot gets convoluted. The relationship between Sakura and the Youko isn’t a standard heroine versus evil monsters one. While she is the sole individual who can summon her grandmother’s sword and destroy Youko, there is a strong possibility of her becoming a Youko herself. Apparently, Youko are the end result when moon criminals who are banished to the Earth eat humans and go mad. (By the way, this does have basis in versions of the Kaguya fable where Kaguya was sent to Earth to do penance for some sin.). As one with moon blood in her veins, Sakura’s mother suffered that fate, and because Sakura has the potential to follow in her footsteps, the Prince, fearing for his country, immediately turns against Sakura.
Which begs the question: if the Emperor knew about this from the start, why did he allow Sakura’s betrothal to his son in the first place? Indeed, why was Sakura allowed to live at all? In addition, the very existence of Chizakura is odd. If the Earth is viewed by moon people as a kind of prison colony, what would be the point of Princess Kaguya coming to destroy Youko?
These questions and more kept me from enjoying the story, but if you can ignore them, you can expect a tale centered around a girl trying to prove her loyalties to skeptics even as she discovers her hitherto unknown heritage.
In Summary
At first glance this might appear to be a period romance, but it’s actually a magical girl series, complete with wardrobe transformation, enchanted weapon, cute sidekick, and sagely advisor. Parts of the plot are weak, but if you like klutzy, cheerful heroines and flowery shojo artwork, this may be up your alley.
Content Grade: C+
Art Grade: B+
Packaging Grade: B+
Text/Translation Grade: A-
Age Rating: 13+
Released By: Viz Media
Release Date: April 5th, 2011
MSRP: 9.99
