#it's peak 90's shoujo and it's beautiful~

[hotwaterandmilk]

Colour page for the 32nd chapter of Miracle☆Girls. Illustrated by series mangaka, Akimoto Nami and scanned from my personal collection.

[mangamagnet]

Manga Rec #1

Sora wa Akai Kawa no Hotori: Anatolia Story or Red River for short is a shoujo manga by Chie Shinohara

The Sky Is on the Banks of the Red River is about a fifteen-year-old Japanese girl named Yuri Suzuki, who is magically transported to Hattusa, the capital of the Hittite Empire in Anatolia. 

Upon being transported as well as time travelled to Anatolia; Yuri finds out that she was summoned by the Queen of the land Nakia who plans to use Yuri as a human sacrifice. Yuri's blood is the key element needed in placing a curse upon the princes of the land so that they will perish, leaving Nakia's son as the sole heir to the throne. 

This manga is unique, interesting and fun. It’s not afraid to delve into the angst and sorrow of the moment when a situation calls for it, but it’s also got a sense of humour that’s quite charming. 

And I really really grew to love the main character over the course of the series; Yuri’s strength lies in her adaptability, her will, her ingenuity and always always her compassion, making her a heroine that I truly enjoyed. I especially appreciate the clear way in which she grew as a person and a leader over the course of the series, I was very moved at the end of the manga mostly because of this aspect.

The art style is kind of old fashioned in a very shoujo way, sort of like a slightly more modern Rose of Versailles, once you adjust to it it can be really beautiful though. 

And there are adult themes in this manga so watch out for that, there’s a few incidents where antagonists attempt to force themselves on her and she has to fight her way out of the situation for example.

Despite being a historical manga as well as an isekai emerging from right in the middle of the isekai manga boom of the 90′s, (1995 to be exact) where great stuff like From Far Away, Fushigi Yugi, Twelve Kingdoms and Inuyasha popped out - Red River evolved into a manga full of complex plots full of imagination that never failed to excite!

My main problem with isekai (not that I don’t love ‘em of course!) is that they can be boring plot wise once you’ve seen it done before, but with Red River I didn’t have to worry about that because it was so original a take on the concept, and even on the very rare occasions where I suspected what was coming next it was still very well written. To the point where I’d still feel a little surprised at a twist I’d been suspecting for a few chapters - definitely not a rote or formulaic piece of media.

Another thing that makes it remarkable as a story, is the fact that Red River takes place in a fantasised version of the region that would eventually become modern-day Turkey, rather than a totally fictional setting making it interesting in a different way to regular ‘character in another world’ stories. 

This story is set during the reign of King Suppiluliuma I, at a time when the Hittite Empire was near its peak of power, rivaled only by Egypt, which was then ruled by the young Pharaoh Tutankhamen. And Yuri while by no means dumb, has not studied the Hittite Empire enough to know what’s going to happen or how to blend in when she first gets kidnapped there via magic.

So as a result of the setting, many of the people and events in the story are drawn from actual history! Including the Princes of Hattussa like Kail the male lead, who is basically Tawananna Nakia’s nemesis before Yuri is put on the board at the start of the series.

Kail Mursili is a great male lead, at the beginning of the series, he finds Yuri running frantically from Nakia’s guards, and immediately realises the situation, he gives her the gift of understanding and speaking their language by way of a kiss. Kail promises to help her find a way home to Japan, while struggling with his own growing love and desire for her. He’s honourable, clever and loyal to those he cares for and a powerful sorcerer in his own right, he has the ability to control wind and air, and is one of the few who can counter the third Tawananna, Nakia's spells in any way - but most importantly he’s got the makings of a great king who’ll love and care for his people, if only he can live long enough to get there.

Red River is full of adventure and court politics in every page, it’s fantastical and epic and unashamedly romantic. Yuri passes from being an innocent athletic teenage student to a champion of justice, there’s something powerful about watching her transformation as a person. Through luck, her modern knowledge and her own hard work, Yuri wins herself allies and fights along Prince Kail in an era where peace was nothing but a distant dream, wondering all the while if she’ll ever get home to Japan and her family. 

I seriously recommend that anyone who likes shoujo manga even a little give this manga a chance, it’s a great read.