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Today’s manga is Ultra Maniac from Viz and Shojo Beat. Another shojo manga? That’s what I get for manga shopping with my girlfriend. Nah, it’s probably just self medication for an overload of fan service with barely dressed women.

Ultra Maniac

Ayu Tateishi is the most popular girl in school. All the younger girls look up to her and treat her like a hero. Who can blame them? She’s smart, nice and a star tennis player. She’s very grown up for her age. maybe a bit too grown up. She’s so concerned with her image that she won’t even read Harry Potter because it’s a kids book.

Her ability to maintain her cool image will be put to the test when she meets Nina Sakura. Nina decides to share a secret with Ayu. Nina is a witch, and she plans to use her magic to help Ayu. Nina isn’t very good at being a witch though. She doesn’t plan her spells very well, so they tend to cause more trouble than they prevent.

Story

It’s a shojo story, so most of the spells Nina uses are supposed to help Ayu get the boy she has a crush on, Tetsushi Kaji. It’s also a comedy so the spells never work out quite right. More accurately, Nina doesn’t plan well enough. She just uses a spell without thinking about all the consequences. That’s bad for Ayu, but great for us. The comedic outcome of her plans are well done.

Comedy isn’t the only thing well done in Ultra Maniac. The story line has some nice twists and turns. The end of the book should have been predictable. No spoilers, don’t worry. I just wanted to say that I didn’t see it coming, even though I felt that I should have once I read it. That’s pretty rare for me, and it’s a good indication that the story is well crafted.

Art

The art is your basic shojo art, and it’s good. The character design helps the story. Ayu and Tetsushi look cool. Nina looks like a sweet but ditzy girl. The design fits the characters. I also like the way character expressions are used. The exaggerated ones are used just enough to give the comedic effect without being overdone.

Is it worth it?

If you don’t like shojo manga at all, then don’t bother. Ultra Maniac is pretty girly, with fashion pinups separating chapters. If that sort of thing doesn’t bother you, I’d say check it out. I enjoyed it. It’s a very well done story with some pretty funny moments.

Manga, Reviews, Shojo, Comedy, Magic, Ultra Maniac, Ultra Maniac Volume 1, Harry Potter