Read or Die Manga Volume 1

Writing this review is kinda weird. I could have sworn that I already wrote it. I just can’t find it anywhere. I was going to review Read or Die volume 2. I went to check a couple of things in the first one and here I am.
Story
Yumiko Readman loves books. Her love goes beyond that of a normal bibliophile. Yumiko loves them so much that the books love her back. Because of this love Yumiko has developed special abilities with paper. These abilities have earned her the name “The Paper”. Yumiko Readman is a paper master.
Working as an agent of the Library of England she travels the world taking on special operations.
In this volume Yumiko gets a chance to meet one of her favorite authors, high school prodigy Nenene Sumiregawa. Things don’t go quite as she expected.
My Opinion
I wanted to read Read or Die after getting hooked on the anime, Read or Die: The TV. It’s about three other paper masters and an older Nenene Sumiregawa. I then saw the OVA featuring Yumiko. Basically I watched ‘em backwards. In spite of that I fell in love with the anime. So I had to check out the manga.
The manga really lived up to all the expectations I had. The art and writing work beautifully together. The personalities of the characters are expressed very well.
I was concerned that the action sequences in the manga wouldn’t be as good as the anime version. Yumiko’s abilities as a paper master allow her to do amazing things with paper. From deadly projectiles to stopping bullets. I thought that might be tough to pull off. I had nothing to worry about. The action is awesome.
Is it worth it?
The first volume of the Read or Die manga is definitely worth buying. It’s great. Cool characters, awesome action and a love of books. I highly recommend this manga.
Manga, Reviews, Comedy, Action, Read or Die, R.O.D., Yomiko Readman, Paper Master, Nenene Sumiregawa, Hideyuki Kurata, Shutaro Yamada, Viz Media

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