I mean, there have been some bright spots over the last year. My Patreon continues to (slowly) grow, I finally got to do a panels at both Sakuracon and Otakon, and have met plenty of new folks.
And then...well...the virus happened, and with that went any plans for anime cons this year, any hopes of getting a new job, and even a lot of the focus I had for all the various other projects I was working on, and that's not even getting into how it's affecting the wider world.
That just means that it's all the more important that I deliver my usual merry month of reviews in celebration. Once again, we're going to be devoting this month to shojo manga. After all, we could all use a bit of joy, love, beauty and excessive amounts of floating sparkles in our lives, even if it's only experienced vicariously.
So let's not delay things further. Let's kick off this year's Merry Month of Shojo with a series that just missed out on last year's Holiday Reviews.
SNOW WHITE WITH THE RED HAIR (Akagami no Shirayukihime), by Sorata Akiduki. First published in 2006, and first published in North America in 2019.
PLOT:
Shirayuki is a humble healer whose bright red hair makes her a target for men who see her as a beautiful novelty. While running away from a pompous prince who wishes to possess her, Shirayuki ends up befriending another runaway royal named Zen. After helping to dispose of her unwanted suitor, Zen offers Shirayuki the opportunity to not only pursue further study, but the chance for all sorts of new adventure.
STORY:
I know this series was a coveted title for American readers for sometime, especially once it got an anime adaptation in 2015. Having read it, I can see why licensors might have held back on this series for so long. It's an excellent series, but it's very different from your typical schoolroom romance.
Despite its fairy-tale name, Snow White has a very casual, down-to-earth tone. Nowhere is this more obvious than with the relationship between Shirayuki and Zen. While it's obvious that these two are being set up as a couple in the long term, Akiduki is more than content to take her time with them and let them develop a true rapport first. Their circle of friends and allies seems to grow with every chapter, but everything comes back to reaffirming and deepening the bond between these two. Shojo manga puts so much emphasis on love at first sight, so it's quite refreshing that Snow White puts so much emphasis on boy-girl friendships.
With that being said, I'm a little concerned at how often this first volume keeps trying to turn Shirayuki into a damsel in distress. She ends up a hostage more than once, and while she's not completely helpless in these situations it all tends to end the same way: Zen saving the day through action or through his royal connections. Luckily, Zen isn't the sort of character to lord such a thing over Shirayuki or insist that she's not capable of protecting herself, but it seems to contradict the manga's claims of how capable and no-nonsense Shirayuki is meant to be. Hopefully Akiduki will let Shirayuki enjoy some adventures in later volumes that don't require a rescue.
ART:
Akiduki's art isn't quite as cute as its contemporaries, but it's a good fit for the more serious tone of the story. While the characters' faces aren't much to talk about, she clearly put care into their costume. They're not overly ostentatious or ridiculous and do a good job at selling the (admittedly vague) fantasy setting. Her panelling is also quite direct with very little of the flashy screentones you might expect. If there's any downside, it's that this release would benefit from more color art beyond the covers. After all, Shirayuki's red hair is a reoccurring plot point that it seems a shame to not show it off more often.
PRESENTATION:
This volume also includes a short story, "Colorful Seasons of August." According to the notes, this was apparently only the second story Akiduki had ever published and her inexperience is frankly obvious. It's a pleasant enough tale of two kids connecting at the seashore during the summer, but seasoned shojo fans have likely seen dozens of variations on this story that were done better. It's also a testament to just how much Akiduki's art had advanced in the three years between this short story and Snow White's debut. The characters in this story are a lot more bobble-headed and angular, and everything is that much more stiff.
RATING:
Snow White With the Red Hair is a pleasant diversion with a lot of potential, but it needs to let its titular heroine lead the way a lot more before it will truly begin to shine.
This series is published by Viz. This series is ongoing in Japan with 21 volumes available. 6 volumes are currently available and are currently in print.
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