By Mick Takeuchi

Go Comi, vol. 1

This is a fun and strange little manga by the author of Her Majesty’s Dog.  In this story, Miharu is a girl with a strange ring, a gift from her dead mother.  Her father has abandoned her to deal with his business debts, held by the Yakuza.  The story begins by a strange black clad man asking Miharu about her ring, which he tells her is the reason for all of her bad luck.  He wants her to give him the ring, which is very valuable.  She denies the possibility that it is bad luck, goes home, and is promptly confronted by graffiti and the creepy old Yakuza boss’s sexual harassment.  Ewww.

There’s a fun argument with the Yakuza boss that results with Miharu swallowing the ring to save it.  Which is quite the flavor of the manga right there. 

The socially awkward black-clad man is an alchemist with a ring of his own that allows him to turn into a gorgeous, blond sleazy lovey-dovey weirdo who can throw a punch, fight a fight, and act courageous–for exactly three minutes.

It’s no surprise to say that Miharu and the angel-guy deal with the Yakuza boss and free her and that they end up working together to solve alchemy-related jewel problems.  My favorite thing about this series is Miharu:

She’s great.  Unpredictable, capable of taking care of herself, and fun.  The plots aren’t always the greatest, but they’re interesting and the art is cheerful and beautiful.  In one story, just when I suspected the villain to be possessed by a rock, it turned out his jewel was in fact plastic.  When I suspected the doll was–  Well.  But I wouldn’t want to spoil it.  If you enjoy episodic fantasy-horror magic stories with a romantic subplot, this one is worth checking out.