A mystery wrapped in an enigma, smothered in secret sauce that tastes like innuendo.
Creative Staff
Story: HaccaWorks*
Art: nanao
Translation/Adaptation: Jocelyn Allen
What They Say
Sheltered Yue, born and raised in a Shinto shrine, is forbidden from leaving the shrine grounds he and a number of other curious residents call home. One day, Yue breaks the rules and wanders down the mountain and into a winter festival. As he takes in the sights and sounds of the human gathering, all the people making merry appear in a uniform guise to Yue’s eyes–that of black bestial shadows…until he crosses paths with two human boys, Tsubaki and Akiyoshi. Intrigued by their unique, individual appearances, Yue is eager to make friends with them. However, upon his return home, the shrine goddess informs him that he may pursue these friendships…but only in preparation for the “meal”–for which he must select one of his two new friends as the main course!
The world of ayakashi–spirits and creatures from Japanese folklore–comes to life in this modern dark fantasy manga adaptation of the hit otome visual novel from HaccaWorks*!
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
Continuing an interesting trend of manga licensing, Ayakashi is based on a PC and PSP light novel of the same name. Why visual novel adaptations have become such a hot commodity for licensing is a bit beyond me, but Yen certainly is grabbing a ton of them.
Of the Red, the Light, and the Ayakashi starts off as a mystery. We are given almost no background on the world these characters live in and how it works. At first glance it’s not all that different than our own, but once you look deeper things get strange. We’re introduced to Yue, a young man with a fox mask who is so sheltered he has never been outside the grounds of the shrine in which he lives. It’s clear from the start that Yue is not human. He has the slit-pupils like that of an animal and has a hard time telling humans apart. (They all look a bit like generic, shadowy fox people to him.) Two young men stand out to him, and he feels an immediate connection. Yue is then commanded by the priestess of his shrine to choose which one of the two boys will be his ‘meal.’
Is it innuendo, or is it something more sinister? Possibly both. As the volume weaves onward it becomes clear that there are sinister forces at work in the town. Other fanged strangers wander the streets and the students at the local high school speak of people being spirited away. The two boys that Yue tries to make friends with take note of Yue’s strange ways and the talking fox perched on his shoulder, but seem jaded. Akiyoshi’s father seems to be aware of the town’s ways, trying to shield his son from harm. What exactly is the nature of this town that the trains pass by as if it was a ghost town?
Yue, despite his unnerving nature, is very likable. He’s polite and well meaning, in contrast to his new friends. The two from which he’s supposed to choose are oddballs. Akiyoshi stalks Tsubaki like it’s his job. Akiyoshi is never seen without his headphones on. Yet Yue is oblivious to their cold shoulder and reaches out to them. The shrine denizens are friendly enough to Yue, and all seem concerned about him, but are they monsters in human clothing?
Artist nanao’s style reminds me of Yuki Midorikawa’s Natsume’s Book of Friends. It’s not just the subject matter skewing my perception, they both share a light, sketchy look to the characters, except nanao’s art has more detail and a wider range of character designs. Our lead Yue is lanky and sinewy and gives off a feral vibe which suits his character. Tsubaki sometimes looks too much like Yue, both having pale hair in a similar cut. It’s not the loveliest manga around by a quick glance at the visual novel artwork tells me it’s an upgrade.
The presentation for this volume is similar to other Yen Press titles, with the familiar trim size and opening pages in color. The volume does feel a bit thin with the page count only hitting 160 pages.
In Summary
Of the Red, the Light, and the Ayakashi is yet another tale of Japanese spirits interacting with humans. A mysterious young man who may be a monster, the boys you may end up as lunch, and a town which may be locked in purgatory and the humans living precariously within. Delicate artwork gives this tale an otherworldly feel that brings to mind Natsume’s Book of Friends if the protagonist was reversed. There’s a darkness creeping through this pages, unsettling and intriguing. This first volume is short on answers, and a bit short on page count for the price, but my interest is peaked to see where this ghost story goes.
Content Grade: B
Art Grade: B
Packaging Grade: B +
Text/Translation Grade: A
Age Rating: 13+
Released By: Yen Press
Release Date: December 15th, 2015
MSRP: $13.00
