Print Review: Fushigi Yugi Genbu Kaiden

Review Fushigi Yugi Genbu KaidenWritten by WarpshadowRating very good

Back in the day there was a very popular Shojo series called Fushigi Yugi. Whether you remember it or not there is more of it and this new addition to the franchise and it is good.

Takiko Okuda has moved to Morioka from Tokyo. She has problems with her father as he is often away from home even though her mother has become ill. The final straw broke when her mother died and her father simply kept working on his latest project, a translation of the universe of the four gods. In a fit of rage Takiko grabbed the book and intended to burn it. What happened though was that she was enveloped in a silver light and transported to the world inside the book. Does she have what it takes to be the priestess of Genbu?

After several years Creator Yuu Watase has finally returned to the work that made her famous to create a side story that easily equals the quality of the original work. This manga is especially strong in it's two main characters Takiko and Uruki who are an assertive female lead and a male lead (well sometimes) who is driven and complex. It also succeeds at being it's own story without being hemmed in by previously existing canon requiring prior knowledge of Fushigi Yugi. Overall the quality of Fughigi Yugi Genbu Kaiden is of high quality from the artwork to the plot. This is a manga that combines the elements of more traditional shojo with Asian fantasy adventure to create a story that I believe will have a wide range of fans if one is willing to give this series a try.