No one had better get in Miyuki’s way … especially when it means protecting her brother!
Creative Staff:
Art: Yu Mori
Original Story: Tsutomu Sato
Character Design: Kana Ushida
Translation: Andrew Prowse
What They Say:
Miyuki’s concerns about the attack on Tatsuya leads Honoka and the girls to start investigating the matter themselves. But in rooting out the assailant, it seems they’ve discovered just the tip of the iceberg. Miyuki’s intuition tells her something is wrong, but is her affection for her brother clouding her judgement?!
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
(Story involves anime episodes 3-5, from Tatsuya’s intervention with the kendo club to the first involvements of Blanche.)
As Tatsuya is completing his patrol, The Girls’ Detective Club spot him chasing down a suspect and see what they assume is cast jamming. However, without any physical evidence they cannot prove that was how the captain of the kendo club who attacked him. Without any choice, they decide to ask Miyuki if they can get more information about the club captains’ personalities, under the pretense of allowing them to narrow down their choices as to which club they should join. Unfortunately, that information is private, so their friend has to turn them down, but does tell them that they can look up general information on the school’s database if aren’t looking for anything too specific. But with this line of questioning, it arouses the sister’s suspicions and makes her wonder if something is happening with her brother.
Once Tatsuya returns and gives his report about the kendo club incident, everyone is stunned when he asks the Student Council members if they have heard of an organization called Blanche. After they confirm that certain groups are after the pupils of the school to give them a tactical advantage, Miyuki becomes even more concerned. She knows that her brother is trying to protect her from the mechanizations of this group and the Yotsuba family, but in turn, neither has the power to save themselves; they must still follow Aunt Maya’s orders for their own safety, no matter how painful it may be to Tatsuya follow such uncaring dictates. But this platitude still does not settle the main question: why was Blanche after him? Her only option now is to follow Kinoe Tsukasa, the person he was chasing and see if he leads her to the answers she seeks. The big problem is that she isn’t the only student chasing him down and this is one pupil who knows how to take care of himself.
In Summary:
As this manga unravels, you cannot help but have the urge to re-watch the main anime to see how everything fills out with the details disclosed in these books, and this volume is no exception. Every time Miyuki becomes overly paranoid about her brother’s dealings with someone dangerous, or more importantly in her mind, a member of the opposite sex, you cannot but giggle to see her concerns become overblown. But of course, this part of her endearing personality is what makes her such a joy to watch with each example of her confusion; it is this hidden side which was diluted in the animation that makes these books such a pleasure to read. Although they did touch on their hyper developed sibling love, this reflection makes Miyuki seem at times, more like a jealous mate instead of the implied sister/brother relationship from the anime. Being able to read this version from the sister’s point of view employes not only a different aspect of the story, but also gives us a better depth into the overall nuances of the narration.
While we may laugh at the antics of Miyuki and the Club, the explanation of Blanche’s agenda from the anime gives this volume a wider growth within the series proper. To be able to see that they are not an ordinary terrorist organization but do have an eye on other avenues expands their audacity and the possible terror which they are capable of doing. The display from the show only touched on their brutality and to be able to see this development and the ramification which it has in the narration makes them all the more frightening. But it would probably be too much to ask for a merging of these two story lines into one anime, but one can always wish!
The Honor Student at Magic High School is developing into a great spin off from the original property. To be able to see everything from Miyuki’s view evolves the story into something less serious from the animation, but at the same time, it also allows us to expand the plot into a more enveloping narrative. The two becoming one allows Sato-sensei be bring more information into an established world without distorting it by starting over again. Let us hope that this success will give us another success like the original and in turn, another anime?
Content Grade: A+
Art Grade: A+
Packaging Grade: A+
Text/Translation Grade: A
Age Rating: 13+
Released By: Yen Press
Release Date: June 28th, 2016
MSRP: $13.00
