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Customer Review
Reviewed in the United States on January 18, 2008
When I first received a copy of volume 1 from the library (after reading reviews on [...]), I was hesitant to read it, because I thought Ryuku (on cover) looked so disturbing. I flipped through and thought, 'no way will I enjoy this -- he's too creepy and the art is not he typical "anime style" that I am used to.' So I decided to give it 3 chapters -- could not put it down. Was so engrossed I just kept going. Bypassed the library entirely and ordered the first four volumes on amazon.com.
I have been trying for years to get my husband as into anime as I am. I'm an old-school anime/manga fan, and am now absolutely thrilled to pass my love for it onto my kids. Anyway, I told him, "Honey, you HAVE to read this." He looked at it, thought it looked bizarre and started to hand it back to me. "No, you HAVE to read it. Just give it 3 chapters, and I guarantee you'll be hooked." He was. We're now toting the tankoban all over with us...while we're waiting during kids' dance or martial arts lessons. I am a firm believer in: if you love something as a kid (manga, video games, whatever), there's absolutely no reason you should give it up as an adult.
I am amazed at the unique quality of both the story and the illustrations. It is such a thrilling book of cat and mouse and one-upmanship. I have rarely been so engrossed. The Shinigami are a tad disturbing-looking, but they have a friendly sort of quality about them that makes them almost sweet.
I am actually going to pass these books onto my parents and let them read. I've let my father-in-law read "Maus" and he really enjoyed it...so now I think the family is ready for manga. Back in the early 90s, there was so little translated manga/anime out there. Today, there is just a plethora of titles available, and I'm thrilled.
If you have any doubts, or you're curious, give this title a read. It's really stellar.
I have been trying for years to get my husband as into anime as I am. I'm an old-school anime/manga fan, and am now absolutely thrilled to pass my love for it onto my kids. Anyway, I told him, "Honey, you HAVE to read this." He looked at it, thought it looked bizarre and started to hand it back to me. "No, you HAVE to read it. Just give it 3 chapters, and I guarantee you'll be hooked." He was. We're now toting the tankoban all over with us...while we're waiting during kids' dance or martial arts lessons. I am a firm believer in: if you love something as a kid (manga, video games, whatever), there's absolutely no reason you should give it up as an adult.
I am amazed at the unique quality of both the story and the illustrations. It is such a thrilling book of cat and mouse and one-upmanship. I have rarely been so engrossed. The Shinigami are a tad disturbing-looking, but they have a friendly sort of quality about them that makes them almost sweet.
I am actually going to pass these books onto my parents and let them read. I've let my father-in-law read "Maus" and he really enjoyed it...so now I think the family is ready for manga. Back in the early 90s, there was so little translated manga/anime out there. Today, there is just a plethora of titles available, and I'm thrilled.
If you have any doubts, or you're curious, give this title a read. It's really stellar.
