Metamo Kiss

Written and Drawn by: Sora Omote

English publisher: Tokyopop

The back of volume one reads:
"Kohamaru comes from a peculiar family--each member can switch bodies with his or her soul mate! His parents can switch bodies, and his aunt, oddly enough, can switch with her cat! Now it's Kohamaru's turn...

When Kohamaru literally runs into Nanao, the girl of his dreams, they switch bodies. True love, right? Well, unfortunately, she's in love with someone else. And if that weren't bad enough, the "someone else" turns out to be Kohamaru's twin brother Konatsu...who can reverse their transformation with his own kiss!"

Kohanamaru Taki


Kohanamaru lived with his grandmother until she passed away. At age 14 he leaves the country side, and heads off to Tokyo to live with the rest of his family. At the train station, he runs into Nanao and finds that he can switch bodies with her. After accidentally switching back, he goes home to find out that this is a family trait. His family can switch bodies with the person they are meant to be with. However, Nanao is already in love with someone else....Kohanamaru's twin brother.

Nanao Higashiyama


Nanao is an obnoxiously stubborn girl with a tendency to be a drama queen. She's in love with a boy from her childhood whom she believes is Konatsu, Kohana's twin brother. Her memory of this boy includes watching some fireworks with him on a hill. When she asks Konatsu about this incident he tells her that he doesn't remember much from his childhood, but Nanao refuses to believe that the boy could be anyone else. She's very girly, but she can throw a punch better than most boys. She can be quite scary when she's angry, but she does have a soft side.

Konatsu Taki


Konatsu is Kohanamaru’s twin brother. He is very popular at his school, because of his looks, athletics, and smarts. He is also the boy Nanao has a crush on. Konatsu is the only one in his family who cannot switch, but he is also the only one who can return the partners back to normal when they are unable to do it themselves. It is believed that Konatsu did not inherit the ability because of his twin brother, remaining the reason of Konatsu’s jealousy towards Kohanamaru. Konatsu is a part of a love triangle between Nanao and Kohanamaru, out of jealousy towards his brother for being able to switch, Konatsu tries to steal Nanao away from Kohanamaru, making him Kohanamaru’s rival for Nanao’s affection. Though Konatsu’s personality appears cold and distant, he truly cares for Nanao not just to make Kohanamaru jealous, and he also cares for Kohanamaru a lot as well.

Thoughts/Review:

This gender-bender shojo manga kind of threw me for a loop with the lead character being a boy, but it adds to the plot in an interesting way. Whether Kohana is a girl or a boy, his sincere and honest personality shines through. He is a very sweet character. (n_n) Nanao's reactions are outrageous and very hilarious! (n_n) I love her hairstyle and her expressions. Konatsu comes off as bit of a butt-head in the beginning but his true self eventually shows itself. The fact that Kohana's Aunt can switch bodies with her cat sounded a tad odd to me, but it was actually a cute little tidbit to add to the story and it also helped show how unusual the Taki family is. Kohanamaru's name seems to change a bit and/or it alternates between Kohamaru and Kohanamaru which can be a bit confusing. Overall, it's a cute manga with a semi-bittersweet ending. I only wish they had continued it a little bit longer.

Pixie Pop

Written and Drawn by: Ema Toyama
English publisher: Tokyopop

The back of the volume one reads:
"Mayu, the daughter of a cafe owner, is down-in-the-dumps and unlucky in love...until she meets Pucho, the magical fairy of beverages. Now, whenever Mayu drinks something, she transforms! But there's a catch--milk makes her grow, water makes her invisible, and pork soup turns her into a cute little piglet. But what will help her win the man of her dreams?"

Mayu Kousaka


Mayu is twelve years-old and just starting middle school. She has a mother and a younger brother, and her family owns and runs a café called Clover. Her father, though mentioned, never appears. After drinking the magical seven-color drink, Mayu gains the special ability to transform. She has a long-lasting elementary school crush on Shinya Amamiya, and is unsure if he feels the same way. She is the only one who can see Pucho because of the 7-colored drink. Mayu especially enjoys soda pop, though she is known to like anything with flavor.

Plot:
When Mayu goes to her first day of middle school, she finds that she must sit next to her former elementary school crush, Shinya Amamiya. The memory of when he turned her down on the day of elementary school graduation still plagues Mayu's mind, and she cannot bring herself to speak to him.

When she arrives home she spends a long time in the cafe drowning her misery in soda pop. She begins to reminisce about the first time she met Shinya, when he helped her find her mother. A single teardrop falls into her soda, turning it seven different colors. Figuring it was one of her mother's "experiments", she drinks the strange liquid, and finds it to be disgusting. This is when she sees Pucho, who suddenly appears. As it turns out, Pucho is a magical drink spirit, who had gotten the recipe for the seven-color drink (which is supposed to transform drink fairies into adults). Bitter that Mayu drank it instead of her, Pucho proceeds to terrorize Mayu, who thinks that she's merely dreaming and drinks some cold milk to wake herself up. In all actuality, it turns her into a giant. From that point on, anything Mayu drinks (with the exception of water although it did turn her invisible one time) will cause her to transform. Many times, Mayu has no control over what she does or says during her transformations, and the only way to undo them is with the magic words spoken by Pucho: "Puppuku Pucho!".

The rest of the series centers around Mayu and Pucho's adventures to uncover the colors of the seven-color drink in order to assemble it again, as it is said that the feelings of love create them. Thusly, Pucho vows to make Shinya fall in love with Mayu.

The series is three volumes long and has been rated ages 13+ for romance. Although the story's theme mainly focuses on the romance that ensues between the Mayu and Shinya, Pixie Pop also contains fantasy elements, such as the existence of drink fairies and magical abilities.

Thoughts/Review:

I absolutely adored this series! It's definitely one of my favorite's and I love the storyline! The artwork is very cute and the characters are too. (n_n) The cover art on all three volumes really makes you feel excited about the story. The transformations are hilarious and add a good dose of fun to the "magical girl" mix. Mayu's reactions and Pucho's jokes are SO funny! (n_n) The outfits are very kawaii and I wish I had them for myself! ;p This particular manga is great for first-time readers because it is very easy to relate to and it's length keeps you focused on the story rather than trailing off into a lot of side stories like other longer some other manga. I'd highly recommend it for anyone who loves a good awkward love story.

Kitchen Princess

Written by: Miyuki Kobayashi
Drawn by: Natsumi Andō

The opening page reads:
"My prince left me a silver spoon and disappeared. I will find him and make him the most delicious dessert in the world. That is my dream."

Najika Kazami is the main character of this story, and she has quite the story to tell.

Najika starts out as an orphan living in Hokkaido with a talent for cooking.

She lives in the "Lavender House" orphanage with her caregiver Hagio (referred to as "Hagio-sensei."), as well as the other orphans. The story starts out with Najika tasting a variety of flan and correctly guessing all of the ingredients as well as where they're from. She also has the ability to figure out who made the dish just by tasting it.

Najika lost her parents in an accident at a very young age. Shortly after their deaths, the young girl was saved from drowning in a river by a boy that gave her a delicious flan along with a special spoon. The spoon has a special emblem on it that leads Najika to the prestigious Seika Academy. In the hopes of finding her "flan prince" Najika studies hard and manages to get into the academy and even receives a recommendation from the director.

Upon entering the school Najika is placed into the "special class" wherein all of the students have a special talent of some kind. She is initially rejected by her classmates but makes friends with Sora and Daichi Kitazawa, the Seika director's sons. As her classmates learn of her amazing cooking abilities, she earns their respect, except for Akane Kishida who leads others against her out of jealous over Daichi's attention towards Najika. Almost eternally optimistic and cheerful, Najika is a caring and hard-working individual. She is somewhat naive and easily manipulated by others, however she is also very forgiving, even of Akane who eventually becomes her best friend. Part of her talent is in her prodigious sense of taste: she never forgets a taste and can accurately analyze the components of almost any dish.

The story follows Najika in her quest to find her "flan prince' and to become a pastry chef like her parents once were. It is a manga filled with love, loss, heartache, and hope.

There are ten volumes in total, plus a light novel called Kitchen Princess - Search for the Angel Cake.

Thoughts/Review:

This manga really tugged at my heartstrings. It had the feel of a "magical girl" story, but with a good bit of reality thrown in. The main character is easy to relate to and has such a happy-go-lucky personality that it's hard not to like her. (n_n) The other characters add some fun and drama to the plot with their personalities, as well as their "special talents." There are many secrets and mysteries aside from Najika's mysterious "flan prince" that add suspense and depth to the story and make it that much more exciting. (n_n) The characters are beautifully drawn and and the backgrounds and clothing are wonderfully detailed. Kobayashi-sensei has given us an amazing storyline and Ando-sensei has provided the awesome artwork. I'd definitely recommend it for anyone who is a lover of desserts, especially because the recipes for anything that Najika cooks are included in the back of the manga volumes as a bonus.

If you love desserts, lost loves, and following your dreams then you'll be sure to love...
Kitchen Princess.

Kamikaze Kaito Jeanne

Written and Drawn by: Arina Tanemura
English publisher: CMX Manga

"When demons steal the souls of the living, only Jeanne can break their spell!"

By day, Kusakabe Maron is just an ordinary girl. But by night, she is Kamikaze Kaito Jeanne-the reincarnation of Joan of Arc! Her mission? Hunting down demon-possessed paintings and exorcise the spirits within! With only the help of angel-in-training Finn, she has to learn how to battle evil at the same time she's trying to survive high school!

Plot:
Maron Kusakabe is visited by the angel Finn Fish, who gives her a task. God's power is scattered across the Earth, and if He does not gather enough by the turn of the millennium, He will die. To block Him, The Devil had sent out agents to gather His power, which is the beauty in human hearts, in the form of chess pieces. With Finn's assistance, Maron transforms into the reincarnation of Jeanne D'Arc in order to hunt Demons hidden within works of art. When Maron defeats a Demon, the artwork disappears, and to the outside world it is as if she has stolen it, and she becomes known as a kaitō ("phantom-thief"). Maron's best friend is Miyako, the daughter of a police detective in charge of Jeanne's case.

Kusakabe Maron


Maron is a 16-year-old high school girl and rhythmic gymnast, who can also into the supernatural "Kaito Jeanne". Maron lives in an apartment alone-having been left by her parents, who work separate jobs abroad. She is well-liked at school, especially in chapter 11, when lots of guys from her school offer to escort her home on Valentine’s Day, and request chocolate valentines from her. Even so, Maron is a lonely young woman who hides her feelings behind a warm smile.

Finn Fish


Before the series began, Maron had encountered a tiny female angel named Finn Fish, who gave her a mission from God to seal away demons. These demons attempt to steal the beauty in human hearts, in order to increase The Devil's powers. Maron was given a mystical rosary with a large crucifix, by which she could transform into Kaito Jeanne, the reincarnation of Jeanne D'Arc, who then captures the demons. Jeanne has some different physical features from Maron, and also possesses certain supernatural powers.

With the help of Finn, Maron uses the powers of her transformation in order to detect the demons and seal them away for good. Maron is hesitant at first, but after an awakening she realizes that it is what she must do.

Chiaki Nagoya

Chiaki is a guy student at Maron's school, who can transform into "Kaito Sinbad", Jeanne's rival, who also collects demons' powers. Maron doesn't realize Sinbad is really Chiaki, but he already knows of her double-identity. At the very beginning of the series, Chiaki moves into Maron's and Miyako's building and transfers to their class, in order to get close to Maron, to stop her from collecting the demons. At first, Chiaki is portrayed as a playboy, whom Maron despises. However, as time passes, he falls in love with her, and he's able to gain Maron's trust, and eventually love, by helping her out of tough situations, and helping her regain her courage--both as Chiaki and as Sinbad.

Access Time


Access is the small male dark angel who helps Chiaki detect demons, and who gave Chiaki the power to transform into Kaitō Sinbad. He is in love with Finn Fish, and worked hard to become a full angel so he could be with her.

Miyako Todaiji


Miyako is Maron's classmate and best friend since childhood, who lives across the hall from Maron's apartment. Miyako's father is a police detective and, desiring to follow in his footsteps, Miyako frequently aids in trying to catch Jeanne. Stubborn and with a fierce temper, Miyako notes during the series that even with her Maron is sometimes distant and that it bothers her.

Thoughts/Review:

Tanemura-sensei has always amazed me with her intricate stories and her amazing artwork, but this story in particular holds a special place in my heart. (n_n) This manga has also been adapted into an anime but personally, I prefer the manga. That's because the manga goes into more detail about the character's backstory and tells you more about the angels. The manga is only seven volumes long but the story is so detailed that it keeps you stuck on the edge of your seat in suspense! It'll keep you laughing and crying from cover to cover. You won't believe this surprise twist of an ending! (n_n)