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cornerofmadness 's review for:
The Ancient Magus' Bride, Vol. 1
by Kore Yamazaki
I had heard good things about this one and they were warranted. The art is outstanding and the storyline intricate and interesting. I will say there could be some uncomfortable topics, all of them surrounding Chise. We meet her in a high end market where she is being sold off because a) it seems in a moment of desperate loneliness she felt so unwanted that she wanted to die and someone overheard (we're not really sure by the end of vol one how she ended enslaved exactly) and b) because she's a sleigh beggy (which we're not really sure what that is either though it gets somewhat explained and it's not the usual definition, i.e. a fae from the Isle of Man).
She is bought for a ridiculous sum by Elias, an antelope-skulled mage. He promptly frees her and takes care of her and tells her that he wants her to be his apprentice in magic which, like alchemy a close-related art, is dying out in this world. He spirits her away to his isolated mansion in England. Chise is so emotionally numb she doesn't even really care. Elias gently prods her back to life and at the end of chapter one the whole idea of being a bride is brought up.
I can see where this would be a problem for some. She's young, 15/16, and essentially a slave. We're not sure yet if this is a joke, for real or if Elias means something entirely different by it. Many people accuse him of having a more paternal relationship with her and laugh at seeing the reclusive mage dotting on her.
One of the reasons Chise is so emotionally withdrawn is her life has been hard. Dad is gone (dead or alive she doesn't know). Mom died in front of her. Her relatives wanted nothing to do with her because she's 'weird,' so she grew up in an orphanage. She's weird because she is a sleigh beggy and one of the things she can do is see the spirit world. However in this case the mangaka is fascinated not by Asian spirit lore but by European so that's interesting. Chise has been tormented all her life by kids who couldn't see the people she was talking to.
However, not everything in Elias's world is safe. There are fae to lead her astray. Priests who want something from him. Other mages jealous of him and it ends with Chise and Elias in trouble when an old rival gets his hands on her.
It's like a lot of other supernatural manga, rather episodic with some plot threads running through. The story with the dragon was sad and touching. I like the characters. I'm not sure yet if Chise can be counted as a 'strong' female character as she is more reactive than proactive but again, emotionally numb. She does seem to grow some. I'm looking forward to more.
She is bought for a ridiculous sum by Elias, an antelope-skulled mage. He promptly frees her and takes care of her and tells her that he wants her to be his apprentice in magic which, like alchemy a close-related art, is dying out in this world. He spirits her away to his isolated mansion in England. Chise is so emotionally numb she doesn't even really care. Elias gently prods her back to life and at the end of chapter one the whole idea of being a bride is brought up.
I can see where this would be a problem for some. She's young, 15/16, and essentially a slave. We're not sure yet if this is a joke, for real or if Elias means something entirely different by it. Many people accuse him of having a more paternal relationship with her and laugh at seeing the reclusive mage dotting on her.
One of the reasons Chise is so emotionally withdrawn is her life has been hard. Dad is gone (dead or alive she doesn't know). Mom died in front of her. Her relatives wanted nothing to do with her because she's 'weird,' so she grew up in an orphanage. She's weird because she is a sleigh beggy and one of the things she can do is see the spirit world. However in this case the mangaka is fascinated not by Asian spirit lore but by European so that's interesting. Chise has been tormented all her life by kids who couldn't see the people she was talking to.
However, not everything in Elias's world is safe. There are fae to lead her astray. Priests who want something from him. Other mages jealous of him and it ends with Chise and Elias in trouble when an old rival gets his hands on her.
It's like a lot of other supernatural manga, rather episodic with some plot threads running through. The story with the dragon was sad and touching. I like the characters. I'm not sure yet if Chise can be counted as a 'strong' female character as she is more reactive than proactive but again, emotionally numb. She does seem to grow some. I'm looking forward to more.