*The* Valentine manga and manhwa recommendations: Black Bird, Hapi Mari, Koukou Debut and Ugly Duckling Become Swan

Happy Valentine's Day! We recommend Black Bird by Sakurakoji Kanoko, Hapi Mari by Enjouji Maki, Koukou Debut by Kawahara Kazune and Ugly Duckling Become Swan by Hwang MiRee as our ultimate Valentine 2011 picks.

With the exception of one, these recommendations are not for the faint-hearted nor younger teens. You have been warned.

Black Bird by Sakurakoji Kanoko: What if your childhood sweetheart were a Tengu?
Review/recommendation by Lina-chan
Rating: 9.5/10

Black Bird © Sakurakoji Kanoko/Shogakukan
[Serialized in Betsucomi]
Published in North America by VIZ Media

Quick Summary
Impian Misao Harada ada dua, memiliki kehidupan SMU yang normal dan pacar. Terlihat simpel ya? Itu kalau kamu tidak memiliki 'bakat' melihat roh gentayangan ataupun siluman jahat seperti Misao. Lebih parahnya lagi, siluman-siluman itu juga berniat mencelakakan dirinya.

Menjelang usianya yang ke-16, Misao memperoleh kejutan. Kyo Usui, teman masa kecilnya, datang dan menjadi tetangganya kembali. Di saat Misao diserang oleh siluman yang mengambil rupa manusia, Kyo muncul dan menyelamatkan Misao. Yang membuat Misao menjadi lebih shock, ternyata Kyo adalah ketua klan siluman Tengu.

Tanpa basa-basi, Kyo pun menjelaskan bahwa ia berniat menjadikan Misao sebagai pengantinnya. Dengan demikian, Misao akan selalu terlindungi dari gangguan para siluman. Tawaran yang menggiurkan namun juga membuatnya jengkel karena bagi Misao, Kyo adalah cowok pervert LOLZ. Bagaimana ya kelanjutan kisah mereka berdua?

Thoughts and Impressions
I won't spoil too much. The artwork and the story are beautiful yet romantic. I love every detail in this manga that won 54th Shogakukan Manga Award for shoujo manga.

VIZ Media, who publishes Black Bird in North America, rates this manga as T+ for Older teen. It is not (yet?) licensed for Indonesian release.

Hapi Mari by Enjouji Maki: Marriage of convenience leads to...
Review/recommendation by baka-girl
Rating: 8.3/10

Hapi Mari~Happy Marriage © Enjouji Maki/Shogakukan
[Serialized in Petit Comic]
Licensed for Indonesia by Level Comics

Summary
Takanashi Chiwa never dreamt that she would marry Mamiya Hokuto at the age of 22. She never even knew him before! What makes her suddenly decide to marry the president of a high-profile corporation? Well, actually our Chiwa here doesn't even give a damn about men at first, having formerly part-timed as a hostess and having a father who can't be depended on. Her experience with men makes her lose all hope in them, that is, until she meets Hokuto, the president of the company she works for.

In short, Chiwa must marry Hokuto to clean up all her debts. At first, she's reluctant to do so. But after getting to know Hokuto for the good man he is (inside and outside xD), she decides to get along with him. Does their marriage without love (at first) go smoothly? Of course not! They'll face lots of problems, that you can only know by reading Hapi Mari yourself! :p

Hapi Mari is an ongoing josei manga by Enjouji Maki, first serialized in Petit Comic starting 2009. So far, there's five volumes out in Japan. I was introduced to this title via scanlations; Aerandria has already released 14 chapters so far. If you're wondering about the Indonesian release, Level Comics has already licensed it (read about it here). We just need to wait patiently, and make sure to buy the licensed version when it comes out =D

How about the artwork and the story? For the artwork, check out these previews from Aerandria's scans: chapter 1, page 18; chapter 2, page 33; and chapter 3 page 34. I think it's pretty good. Not my favorite artwork but still acceptable. For the story, you don't need to worry. Enjouji Maki is already an expert at making josei manga, so even though the story is rather typical, it's still interesting to read. I love how the story progresses, the relation between Chiwa and Hokuto and the comedy in between!

Hapi Mari wallpaper for bonus :D

Koukou Debut by Kawahara Kazune: Mission Not-so impossible
Review/recommendation by Kia
Rating: 8.5/10

Koukou Debut © Kawahara Kazune/Shueisha
[First serialized in Betsuma]
Published in North America by VIZ Media as High School Debut

Summary
Tacky clothes, heavy make-up and wobbly pose on high heels equal epic failure from getting picked up for a date. But can a teenage girl's clumsiness turn into love like every girl's wish?

Haruna Nagashima is a former middle school softball jock who simply wants a high school life filled with love and joy, just like in shoujo manga. As she enters high school, she leaves behind her club days and without the basic knowledge of how to act like proper lady, attempts to chase her teenage dream by getting "picked up" by guys at the park. Of course, she always feels disappointed whenever she is left unnoticed. Every time.

One day, she spots a guy who sparks her interest but due to her inexperience with high heels, she has to leave early after leaving an odd impression on him. Just when she thought that was her first and last encounter, fate speaks. The guy she had met is none other than the school's hottie, Komiyama Yoh, Haruna's senior at her school. Without further thought, Haruna rushes to ask him to be her love coach. Confused, Yoh refuses her request. But after seeing a different side of her, Yoh eventually agrees, but it's on one condition: Haruna should not fall in love with him. But as times flies by, Haruna can't seem to put up with Yoh's condition? Does she manage to reach her goal?

Let's leave the summary at that, shall we? Koukou Debut is a manga by Kawahara Kazune, serialised in Betsuma (Shueisha) from 2003 to 2008. It is easily one of my favourite slice-of-life shoujo manga. It has the right amount of drama, comedy and fluffiness! Haruna, Yoh, their friends and rivals will definitely keep you entertained to the very end! The series deserves an 8.5/10.

Where can I read this manga? Since it hasn't been licensed in Indonesia yet, you have the VIZ Media English High School Debut option (13 volumes released). Though I have read this a few times already, I'm still impatiently waiting for it to get licensed here. I need your voice, well, comments, if you also agree with me :D

STILL can't get enough of the manga? There is two-chapter sequel to the series titled Enren Debut. And to celebrate the release of the live-action movie, Kawahara-sensei prepared a 44-paged one-shot which can be found in Betsuma magazine this month! Last but not least, Koukou Debut has been adapted into drama CD and light novels, aside from the recent live-action film adaptation. This time might be the perfect time to read this series before the movie leaks in April (well, in Japan anyway).

Here's an added bonus for ya: a Koukou Debut wallpaper.

Ugly Duckling Become Swan by Hwang MiRee: Nightmare Fuel Faerie Tale
Review/recommendation by huamulan03
Rating: 9/10

[NOTICE]
We DO NOT endorse violence against women. If you try the rec below, please remember that it's fiction and not meant to spill over into real life.

[Ugly Duckling Become Swan] © Hwang MiRee/Samyang
Published in Indonesia by Gramedia/m&c!

The Lowdown
Fat girl Go Mio suffers bullying on all fronts — from her family (her parents and older sibs refuse to acknowledge their blood ties to her), her school mates (who make fun of the corpulent kid), and most of all, from Kim DoJin, the tyrant of the school who treats her no better than a pig, literally. Such shabby treatment prompts Mio into observing "Forget about turning into a beautiful swan; an ugly duckling will forever remain ugly."

But a surprise awaits Mio. Because of her great grandfather (whom she accidentally rescued from oblivion) and his fairy godmother magic, Mio turns into the beautiful girl of every guy's dream. She even nabs a modeling contract because of her new looks. The only caveat: she can't ever get rained on nor kissed as either would negate the makeover magic. Forever.

Thoughts and impressions
M-kay, am prolly going to get flak on all fronts for recommending this soonjung manhwa from Hwang MiRee (New Sexy Simpleton, Legend of Nereid), especially when I say with whom I ship Mio. But after first resisting this series (it's pricey; each volume costs nearly IDR 20,000), I found I couldn't. Put. It. Down.

Yes, this dark faerie tale IS that compelling. In the watching an oncoming collision sense, despite the optimism connoted in its title. Forget about Mio's crush on "angelic" idol Eunho, the only guy to ever treat Mio as a human being. The real draw of this series is Mio's revenge-driven relationship with Kim DoJin who, in one egregious instance, actually stubs his cigarette on Real!(Ugly) Mio's neck (cringe).

Now, I'm not condoning what a*sehole Kim DoJin does to Mio (I mean, how could I?), but this veritable nightmare fuel does play to the maligned female impulse to redeem bad boys. (Yes, I ship the S/M couple DoJin x Mio.) I admit I'm not immune to wanting Mio to tame DoJin. I want DoJin to fall desperately in love with Mio—the real Ugly Ducking Mio and not Swan Mio—and regret and atone for ever abusing her. I don't know how that will happen, or even if DoJin can be redeemed after all his Mio abuse, but I'm in for the long (and expensive) haul. (m&c! has yet to finish publishing Ugly Duckling Become Swan; there are 13 volumes and the latest volume 7 only came out last 9 February).

So if you're wanting a Valentine read that's not at all sweet and steeped in darkness (and still unfinished in Indonesia), try out Ugly Duckling Become Swan. A guiltier angsty pleasure, you can't find.

Reviews by Lina-chan, baka-girl, Kia and huamulan03 (Some rights reserved)

disclaimer

Cover images used here are © their respective intellectual rights holders. No infringement intended.

other invaluable resources

Amazon.com · Aerandria · 7net Shopping

Technorati tags

manga · shoujo · manhwa · soonjung · review · Black Bird · Sakurakoji Kanoko · Hapi Mari · Enjouji Maki · Koukou Debut · Kawahara Kazune · Ugly Duckling Become Swan · Hwang MiRee · Betsucomi · Petit Comic · Shogakukan · Betsuma · Shueisha · Samyang · m&c! · VIZ Media

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