Save Me! Lollipop - Mamotte! Lollipop

Written and Drawn by: Michiyo Kikuta
Published by: Kodansha

The story revolves around Nina Yamada, a junior high student who accidentally swallows the Crystal Pearl thinking it was candy. The pearl is the goal of a magic exam where the students must retrieve it to pass and become professional wizards. But since Nina has swallowed the pearl, she is now the target. Fortunately for Nina, two of the examinees(Zero & Ichii) decide to protect her from the other students while they work on a potion to extract the pearl from Nina.

Nina Yamada


Nina is a seventh grade girl who dreams about finding a strong, kind, and cool boy who'll protect her from danger. Basically, her own "knight in shining armor". Nina has an aggressive character, though she is also a caring, child-like, sweet teenager most of the time. She doesn't take insults very well.

Zero & Ichii


Zero and Ichii are two wizards who have partnered up in order to take the magic exam to become professional wizards. Zero is the same age as Nina. Zero has aqua blue hair and has a very rude and cocky personality, often shown clashing with Nina. He owns little tolerance and is highly rebellious towards those who get in his in way. Zero is a particularly an impatient person and has an extremely short temper.

Ichii is 2 years older than Nina and Zero. He is also depicted as a kind and gentle-natured boy. He is also exceedingly polite and mature, thus making him a gentleman. He had a rough past, but opened up more ever since the day that he met Zero.

This manga has also been made into an anime which can be watched online via Hulu.

Thoughts/Review:

This manga is perfect for first-time readers, it's a great introduction for young girl's looking to get into the manga stream. It has an easy-to-follow storyline and the characters have pretty common personality types. Reactions included. The artwork is darling and I love how this story has the "magical girl" feel to it, without the main female character actually having magical abilities. It's a nice little twist on a classic plot line. It also has the feel of a princess story without all the hooha of a fairytale, it features a modern time period and believable complications. This manga is short and sweet, but also gives the characters a good bit of background. Which also helps in making the story more heartfelt and emotional.

Overall, it's a nice 7 volume long manga with a nice twist on an old story and some new characters mixed in with the old. If you like "magical girl" themed stories, then be sure to give Mamotte! Lollipop a try!

On a side note:

This particular manga also has a sequel called Modotte! Mamotte! Lollipop; which roughly translates into "Come Back! Protect me! Lollipop." This story continues where the other left off and follows Nina, Zero, and Ichii on their final adventure.

I don't want to give too much away, but I will say that the boys end up returning to the human world and are once again reunited with Nina. They're a bit older now, it being about a year later and the emotions fly when Zero and Nina are-...

;D

I'll stop there, but the plot is still quite consistent with that of the first manga.
Modotte! Mamotte! Lollipop is not yet available for purchase in the US, I will go against my better judgement and tell you that it is available to read online through MangaFox.

Please note that by posting this link I am not in anyway condoning the use of online manga-viewing sites over reading the actual books. I, myself am an avid supporter of the Japanese to English publishers and prefer purchasing the manga when it is available in-store. It is my belief that if we purchase our manga from local bookstores and publishers and show our support to them by doing so that they will in-turn continue to publish and manufacture English manga for our enjoyment here in the US. So please, support our bookstores and manga publishing companies so that we may enjoy our manga together for many years to come!

(n_n)
<3

Mistress Fortune

Written and Drawn by: Arina Tanemura
English publisher: Viz Media

"Fourteen-year-old Kisaki Tachikawa has psychic powers. She works for PSI, a secret government agency that fights aliens. She's in love with her partner Giniro, but PSI won't allow operatives to get involved. Just when Kisaki thinks she may be getting closer to Giniro, she finds out she's going to be transferred to California!"

The story follows Kisaki and Giniro as they work together to fight off aliens(known as Ebe, pronounced "ee-bah") and learn to control their powers. Kisaki is referred to as "Fortune Tiara," whereas Giniro is called "Fortune Quartz." Together they're known as "Mistress Fortune," hence the name of the manga.

This one-shot romantic adventure features a lot of different levels of comedy, from the perverted Giniro and his love of Kisaki's E-cup breasts, (How does that girl manage to fly around with those things?! O_o) to Kiaski's hysterical reactions and freakouts.

Mistress Fortune also features a two-sided color page in the front of the volume which is great piece for any Tanemura-loving manga collectors.
Here is an example of one side of the page:



Beautiful, isn't it?
Her artwork never disappoints.

Thoughts/Review:

I personally loved this manga, but I feel like it should have been extended. The story has a great feel to it, along with all the usual aspects I've grown to expect from Tanemura's manga. An original storyline, beautiful artwork, unique characters, and hilarious moments of comedy. But for me, it was sort of like taking a bite of your friend's Krispy Kreme doughnut. You start off by taking a small bite and then just when you're all "Mmm...SO good!" they take it away from you and you're left craving more. Overall, it was still a great manga and I still recommend it to anyone who loves magical-girl stories with a twist. But if you're a fan of Tanemura-sensei like I am, you won't be disappointed either way. And that's why I say...

Mistress Fortune is a must-have for any self-respecting Tanemura fan.
It's one of her best short stories yet!

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.