Married by Volume 1
Creative Staff
Story: Maybe
Art: Maybe
Translation: Andrew Cunningham
What they say
Satou and his best friend, Hime, have been together for as long as he can remember. So when she tells him she’s going back to her home world to get married, his first thought is to follow her and crash her wedding. All goes according to plan, and with a kiss from Hime herself, Satou becomes the new groom! But unbeknownst to Satou, the man who marries Hime is destined to be a hero of immense power and save the world! Is Satou up for the challenge, or is this just too much responsibility for one high schooler to handle?!
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
From the manga artist who made Dusk Maiden of Amnesia comes a harem fantasy romance series that’s… actually kinda like if Lord of the Rings had a love child with a series like To Love Ru.
The story begins with a flashback/dream sequence where a young girl and an old guy appears before a young boy in a flash of light. In exchange for not revealing what he saw to anyone, the girl offers to be his friend. Fast forward ten years and the girl, a gorgeous blonde who goes by the name Hime, has become the most important person in Satou’s life… beating out his father who is never home and his mother who we know nothing about. I find it odd that there are no parents in this, but Japan is a country where the work ethic is crazy and parents are always away at work, so this is not unusual to find in this setting. In either event, Satou is debating with himself: Should he confess his love to Hime or not?
This is an age-old debate in all forms of media, whether it’s from the east or the west. The “I want to tell him or her how I feel, but I don’t want to destroy what we have now” is a trope that’s always worked because it mirrors real life so well. There are a lot of people who’ve felt this way. I think Satou’s struggle decide whether or not to tell Hime he loves her is something that all of us have felt at some point. Despite that, he does decide to confess his feelings. Go him. However, just as he is ready to confess, Hime tells him that she’s going back home and won’t be returning.
Naturally, Satou decides to follow her.
If there is one thing I can say I like about Satou, it is that he’s not the dense harem protagonist that most harem protagonists are. While he seems reluctant to ruin his relationship with Hime (her real name is Krystal, for those who are curious), he displays a remarkable sense of awareness that’s very refreshing, and if I had to say, his awareness of his own feelings, desires, and honest love for Hime is part of what makes this such a compelling and enjoyable series.
On top of the main protagonist being just plain better than most dense, oblivious, unlucky everyman types, there is also Hime, aka Princess Krystal. I like her. She seems almost like a normal girl at first, but then you learn she’s a princess. While she claims to have married Satou because she didn’t want to marry someone she doesn’t know, the fact that she profoundly apologizes to him over and over lets us know that her feelings for Satou are genuine. She is a nice and likable character. While this makes her seem somewhat flawless, I don’t think that is a bad thing. Besides, watching these two try and work around their fledgling romance is adorable.
Another part of what makes this story so great is the amazing artwork.
I don’t think Maybe is actually the artist’s name, but regardless, his artwork is utterly astounding. The first thing most people will probably notice is that his artwork is sexy. Really sexy. From a purely aesthetic standpoint, the art stands out as being both well-done and erotic without over-emphasizing that eroticism when it’s not necessary. Weighty lines do an excellent job of defining certain features of the characters when needed. The use of varying shading techniques can give certain scenes a heavy gravitas that lends itself well to the more serious situations our characters find themselves in.
While the characters and artwork are both extraordinary, the story, while not special, is quite charming. It has a very unique take on the isekai genre. First of all, the protagonist didn’t get hit by a car, sent there by god, or fall asleep and wake up in this new world. He chose to go there. He followed Hime when she was going back of his own volition, which gives the character a leg up on other protagonists of this genre.
The second part of what makes this so great is how fast-paced it is. We’re not given much time to rest on our laurels before the first villain appears. The creature, a monster from the abyss, attacks Satou as he follows Hime to what looks like a wedding procession. We actually learn that Hime was slated to be married to a prince from another country in this world. Anyway, the first monster appears, and we soon learn that this world is in danger, and now Satou is the only one who can save the world from danger because Hime chose to marry him, thus making this slightly unwitting protagonist the Ring King.
Being the Ring King grants Satou a unique ability. He can enhance weapons he holds with some kind of magical power that was made specifically for the purpose of defeating monsters of the abyss. While the idea might not be original, I do believe it’s an interesting method of combining the main plot of this story with romance. By marrying the woman he loves, he’s become the sole hope for this world’s survival. What’s more, the stronger his bond with Krystal is, the more powerful his abilities as the Ring King becomes.
In Summary
The story itself isn’t anything special. A young man meets a young girl, learns that she is the princess of another world, travels to that other world in order to remain with her, and then becomes her husband. If you’ve seen anime or read manga, you’ve seen similar things done before. What I believe makes this series better than average aside from the stunning art and characters is how this story cuts through the bull crap. Most stories with similar themes tend to have the main characters dance around each other. A manga or anime can literally spend its entire series with these two constantly dancing around their mutual love for each other without getting together until the very end. It’s obnoxious. This manga doesn’t do that. It takes us straight into the meat of the story and the romance without making the two main characters dance around for sixteen volumes.
Content Grade: A+
Art Grade: A+
Packaging Grade: A
Text/Translation Grade: A
Age Rating: 16+
Released By: Yen Press
Release Date: March 6, 2018
MSRP: $15.00
