Manga Review: Call Me Princess by Tomoko Taniguchi
When Makoto Takenouchi was a little girl, she served as flower girl at her sister’s wedding. Shin and Shoko get along very well, and Shin has become Makoto’s ideal for a husband. Someone who will support her, and be kind, and call her “Princess.” One day at school, a boy named Ryu saves her from a fall. He turns out to be Shin’s little brother!
It seems that shortly before the wedding, Shin and Ryu’s parents had a particularly acrimonious divorce. The mother got sole custody of Ryu, but their relationship was strained at best, and she’s now passed away. Shin’s job is taking him to Hawaii, and their father is not interested in being a parent, so it’s been decided that Ryu will bunk with Makoto’s parents until he finishes high school.
Living together is bumpy at first; Ryu is often out late and comes home bandaged up; he’s not used to anyone caring where he is or what he’s doing, and he hangs out with a rough-looking crowd. He can also be quite rude, and Makoto finds him far from as pleasant as his brother.
But as this is a romance story, Makoto soon sees other, better sides of Ryu’s nature. He’s not nearly the “bad boy” he at first seems. They start getting closer, which upsets Makoto’s childhood friend Ko Takayama, who’d just kind of assumed Makoto would eventually come around, and her best friend Maki, who has a crush on Yo but knows he’s been pining for Makoto.
This shoujo romance manga is complete in one volume. This makes it just long enough to have some complications, while not overstaying its welcome. The characters are decent, and don’t overdo it with the drama.
Tomoko Taniguchi’s art is very “shoujo”, light and airy. It does have the effect though of making all the characters seem even younger than they actually are. (Even the “scary guys” Ryu hangs out with are doe-eyed and gentle-looking.) I should note that the CPM Manga edition has the art “flipped” to read left-to-right as was often the case early in the manga importation market. This becomes apparent when Ryu is injured on his left side according to the dialogue, but his right side according to the art.
Content note: Child neglect and emotional abuse, this volume is suitable for junior high students on up.
I think this story is best suited for those who like their girls’ romance comics on the pure-hearted side.
