Book Blog Mod. 13: Miki Falls: Summer (manga of my choice)
Crilley, M. (2007). Miki Falls: Summer. New York: HarperCollins.
The Miki Falls series involves the adventures of the titular Miki when she runs into the new boy, Hiro, in her small hometown. What starts as curiosity, increased by his rebuffs, turns into a friendship that embroils her in a world where love is a tangible substance, and in constantly dwindling supply, and people are in charge of making sure love has a safe place to grow.
In Summer, which is volume two of the series, Miki accompanies Hiro on his rounds monitoring the love between couples, and searching out new couples who might be recipients of love taken from couples who aren't working out. She discovers that among Hiro's subjects are one of Miki's own friends, whose relationship with her boyfriend isn't working out. Miki pleads with Hiro to intervene, only to be told that these things are forbidden. She tries to meddle herself, with disastrous results, and also deal with her increasing affections for Hiro, who as a Deliverer is forbidden to love a human being.
This is the sort of genre I'm rarely interested in: soap opera-y romance. However, Crilley's winning me over, due in part to his original story and his relate-able characters. The idea of love being a non-renewable resource, however problematic that makes the role of the Deliverers (who take dying love away and give it to others), is at least a new premise; I kept reading partly to see what Crilley would do with the concept. In the first volume, it's only introduced, so not much, but I'm interested in seeing what he does with it in the future.
Also, in a genre where character conflict is usually as manufactured and petty as repeated misunderstandings, Miki and Hiro's disagreements are understandable and true to life. Miki is driven to intervene, despite warnings, out of honest, human concern for her friend. Of course, it doesn't work out, and it ends with her friends growing angry with her, but she takes responsibility for her actions, however sadly.
Also, these characters apologize, something I wish more romance and comic book characters did. For instance, when Hiro later admits that he knew she would meddle, and let her discover it on her own, he admits it was a cruel thing to do, and that he probably should've explained more, rather than just leave her to bungling it up, but he apologizes for it, and their friendship grows deeper as they learn more about each other and get over it.
There are design burps. Mark Crilley relies too much on text, rather than his illustrations, and he's overly enamored with close-up shots of emotion and fading effects. That said, his soft gray tones are appropriate for the book, and his appropriate use of Japanese language and culture makes this Japanese minor happy. His fantasy ideas are intriguing and original, and his characters are sympathetic and likable. It has flaws, but I like it.
That seems to be the conclusions of VOYA and School Library Journal too. (Bowker's Books In Print, where would I be without you? Probably pouring through newspapers, likely...) Amy Fiske (VOYA) recommends it for "fans of teen romantic fiction who would not normally read graphic novels," and also applauds it's originality, for "what initially appears to be a typical tale of a girl blindly pursuing an unavailable boy develops into an intriguing, complex story." She also notes the text-heaviness, but doesn't seem bothered by it. Alanna Abbot of School Library Journal, on the other hand, seems to like how Crilley does his frames, saying it "enhances his storytelling." She also mentions the good pace the stories keep up, saying that "readers will be eager to find out how Miki's romance progresses-and how she meets the fate foreshadowed in the first volume."
This book, despite its issues, should also be popular with teens. It's worth putting on the shelf; it's better than most teen romances.
The Miki Falls series involves the adventures of the titular Miki when she runs into the new boy, Hiro, in her small hometown. What starts as curiosity, increased by his rebuffs, turns into a friendship that embroils her in a world where love is a tangible substance, and in constantly dwindling supply, and people are in charge of making sure love has a safe place to grow.
In Summer, which is volume two of the series, Miki accompanies Hiro on his rounds monitoring the love between couples, and searching out new couples who might be recipients of love taken from couples who aren't working out. She discovers that among Hiro's subjects are one of Miki's own friends, whose relationship with her boyfriend isn't working out. Miki pleads with Hiro to intervene, only to be told that these things are forbidden. She tries to meddle herself, with disastrous results, and also deal with her increasing affections for Hiro, who as a Deliverer is forbidden to love a human being.
This is the sort of genre I'm rarely interested in: soap opera-y romance. However, Crilley's winning me over, due in part to his original story and his relate-able characters. The idea of love being a non-renewable resource, however problematic that makes the role of the Deliverers (who take dying love away and give it to others), is at least a new premise; I kept reading partly to see what Crilley would do with the concept. In the first volume, it's only introduced, so not much, but I'm interested in seeing what he does with it in the future.
Also, in a genre where character conflict is usually as manufactured and petty as repeated misunderstandings, Miki and Hiro's disagreements are understandable and true to life. Miki is driven to intervene, despite warnings, out of honest, human concern for her friend. Of course, it doesn't work out, and it ends with her friends growing angry with her, but she takes responsibility for her actions, however sadly.
Also, these characters apologize, something I wish more romance and comic book characters did. For instance, when Hiro later admits that he knew she would meddle, and let her discover it on her own, he admits it was a cruel thing to do, and that he probably should've explained more, rather than just leave her to bungling it up, but he apologizes for it, and their friendship grows deeper as they learn more about each other and get over it.
There are design burps. Mark Crilley relies too much on text, rather than his illustrations, and he's overly enamored with close-up shots of emotion and fading effects. That said, his soft gray tones are appropriate for the book, and his appropriate use of Japanese language and culture makes this Japanese minor happy. His fantasy ideas are intriguing and original, and his characters are sympathetic and likable. It has flaws, but I like it.
That seems to be the conclusions of VOYA and School Library Journal too. (Bowker's Books In Print, where would I be without you? Probably pouring through newspapers, likely...) Amy Fiske (VOYA) recommends it for "fans of teen romantic fiction who would not normally read graphic novels," and also applauds it's originality, for "what initially appears to be a typical tale of a girl blindly pursuing an unavailable boy develops into an intriguing, complex story." She also notes the text-heaviness, but doesn't seem bothered by it. Alanna Abbot of School Library Journal, on the other hand, seems to like how Crilley does his frames, saying it "enhances his storytelling." She also mentions the good pace the stories keep up, saying that "readers will be eager to find out how Miki's romance progresses-and how she meets the fate foreshadowed in the first volume."
This book, despite its issues, should also be popular with teens. It's worth putting on the shelf; it's better than most teen romances.