Review: MABURAHO

Well, for once I'm reviewing a harem manga where I understand precisely what the girls see in the lead.

It's a terrible reason, but I can comprehend it.

MABURAHO, based on the light novel series by Toshihiko Tsukiji and character designs by Eiji Komatsu, with art by Miki Miyashita.  First published in 2003 and first published in North America in 2005.

PLOT:

In a world where magic is real and where the number of spells one can cast determines everything from your social status to your lifespan, Kazuki Shikimori is an anomaly.  He only has the ability to cast seven after using one as a child to make it snow in the summer for a mystery girl.  He also comes from a long line of powerful witches and wizards, meaning that any child he could potentially father would have immense power.  That's why three girls from some of the oldest and most prestigious magic families have their eyes set on Kazuki.  It's a three-way battle between the clingy and temperamental Yuna, the stoic Rin, and the bombshell Kuriko for the rights to Kazuki and his killer DNA, and all of them are determined to win by any means possible.

Review: FOUR-EYED PRINCE

I don't know if it's reassuring or not that Kodansha has always been peddling shojo manga about taming Asshole-kuns to Americans, even when they were Del Ray Manga.

FOUR-EYED PRINCE (Megane Oji), by Wataru Mizukami.  First published in 2007 and first published in North America in 2009.

PLOT:

Sachiko thought it was bad enough when her confession to the stoic class prince Akihiro was rejected.  Then she had to move in with her long-absent mother after her grandmother had to go to a nursing home, and during that time her mother married Akihiro's father.  Now her crush is her step-brother and the two of them have to find a way to live together harmoniously.  That's no small challenge considering that Sachiko's crush is still going strong in spite of Akihiro's regular attempts to needle her, embarass her, and deny any connection to her as much as humanly possible.

Review: YOU LIKE ME, NOT MY DAUGHTER?!

 It's time for another round of Bad Romance Month, where I look at some of the weirdest romances in manga.  We're starting off with an age-gap story, albeit one with a MILF-y twist.

YOU LIKE ME, NOT MY DAUGHTER?! (Musume Janakute, Mama ga Suki Nano?!), based on the light novels by Kota Nozomi and character designs by Giuniu, with art by Tesshin Azuma.  First published in 2020 and first published in North America in 2022.

PLOT:

For the last 10 years, Ayako Katsuragi has been happy serving as adoptive mother to her orphaned niece Miu.  The only thing that makes her happier is seeing how well Miu gets along with their college-aged neighbor Takumi, who is always hanging around.  She presumes that someday the two of them will get married...at least, until Takumi confesses that he's always loved Ayako and wants to marry her.  Takumi is completely serious, but Ayako's unsure if she's ready for romance at all at this point (much less dating a much younger man).