By Yuki Midorikawa. Released in Japan as “Natsume Yuujinchou” by Hakusensha, serialization ongoing in the magazine LaLa. Released in North America by Viz.

I noted with surprise that I hadn’t actually reviewed this series since Volume 1 came out a year ago. I have been keeping up with it, and it’s quite a good title. It’s an especially welcome change of pace from Shojo Beat’s line, which tends to focus on the romance aspects of shoujo. And while this volume of Natsume may introduce its first main female character, romance is still not an issue here. Instead, we continue to look at the world of yokai, and what it means to be one in the modern world of humanity.

As always, there’s a very special love-hate relationship between the yokai we meet and the humans they’ve found themselves intertwined with. The first chapter deals with the immortality that the blood of a mermaid can give, and how it can be a horrific thing once you realize, years later, what life is meant to be like. THe best part of this chapter is likely the mermaid herself, who manages to be quite nasty throughout, but still maintains a sort of nobility towards the end.

The 2-part story in the middle introduces the girl I mentioned earlier, Taki. Much to my detriment, she’s wearing a peaked cap, which immediately makes her sexy. (OK, not really – this manga doesn’t do sexy that well – but girls in delinquent outfits are hot.) Despite her outfit, however, she’s very quiet – and we soon find out why, as Natsume gets caught up in her effort to destroy a yokai who has promised to eat the first 13 people whose names she says out loud. He being the first, of course. Natsume has gotten much better at this protagonist thing, but he still tends to be emotionally passive, and as an action hero he’s fairly miserable. So there’s a sense of genuine danger to the proceedings that works very well. It’s also good to see a 2nd student he can talk about things with, even though she can only see yokai in special circumstances.

The last main story is about Natsume’s relationship with his aunt and uncle, and their relationship with Reiko, his grandmother who started the whole story rolling with her own spiritual powers. It’s meant to show exactly why Natsume is so bad at letting people in, and that it’s not always just a matter of trust and caring – people who get closer to him ARE in more danger. However, there are also rewards. Reiko clearly judged that the risks were too great. Will Natsume do the same thing? (Also, for all that I said Natsume wasn’t an action hero, he does really well here in trapping a demon trying to destroy his relatives.)

There’s also a final mini-chapter that ran in LaLa DX (the first four volumes were in DX; starting with this volume the series moved to LaLa proper, but like many shoujo series it returns for ‘half-chapters’ every few months or so), which features Natsume’s friend Tanuma, and his ambiguous relationship with our hero. Like Taki, who can only see yokai when they move into the circle she draws, Tanuma can sort of see yokai – but not very well, and only as shadows. He’s somewhat envious of Natsume, but as the chapter shows, seeing yokai has its own huge pile of disadvantages as well. I also note this chapter reads like an apology to the yaoi fans who make up a large percentage of Natsume’s audience. “Sorry about the girl on the cover and in the main storyline – here’s some guy friendship for you!”

Technically there’s an element of horror to this series – but it’s a very peaceful sort of horror, and the whole thing feels like it takes place in a world of gauze. Not that that’s a bad thing – Natsume’s Book of Friends has created a very evocative world, and people who aren’t reading it due to the lack of romantic interplay are missing out on some excellent stuff.

By Yuki Midorikawa. Released in Japan as “Natsume Yuujinchou” by Hakusensha, serialization ongoing in the magazine LaLa. Released in North America by Viz.

I tend to follow Hakusensha’s serializations more than other publishers, mostly due to my obsession with many of their authors. Seeing the huge popularity of Viz’s releases of Vampire Knight and Ouran High School Host Club, I knew that they (and others) would be scouring LaLa looking for the next big hit.

This one was it, surprisingly. Or perhaps not that surprisingly. Japan loves its yokai. Ghost and spirit folklore pervade Japanese culture and Japanese manga, from GeGeGe No Kitarou to Yu Yu Hakusho to xxxHOLIC. And though the series may theoretically star its title character, so far it’s all about the yokai.

In fact, its star may be one of the weaker aspects. Natsume is not exactly a passive hero. We certainly see him doing a lot, and his desire to give the names in the Book Of Friends back to their original owners is both noble and mature of him. And we get a sense that he feels alone and apart from everyone. But those same qualities make him seem a very insular character. I hope that future volumes devote themselves more to bringing him out of his shell. And an outgoing side character would help, too – the only other potential semi-regular we meet is just as quiet and insular.

The manga itself is a very refreshing change for the Shojo Beat line from Viz, as it’s not focused on a typical girl meets boy romance. In fact, the author has said in the side notes that she wrote this title to be able to write a ghost story, not a romance story. This allows us to focus on the yokai themselves and their struggles. Natsume’s grandmother, Reiko, has trapped them to a certain extent, and you feel bad for them even as you worry, as many of them are attempting to kill Natsume.

The plot seems episodic, which makes sense for a series where the goal is to find each ‘name’ in the book. Each chapter brings a new yokai with issues. Helping him along on each mission is Nyanko, a yokai who usually takes the form of a ‘lucky cat’ statue. He’s an amusing combination of mascot, mentor, and jerkass. My favorites this volume were the temple spirit whose one lone worshipper is passing away, and the swallow yokai who has fallen in love with a human.

The manga can be very heart-breaking, but manages to balance the line between sympathetic and mawkish very nicely. The end of the last chapter here will probably bring a tear to your eye.

It’s a refreshing change of pace manga, especially in a Shojo Beat sense. I look forward to future volumes, and seeing if Natsume can get more characterization so that he properly shares the title with his Book Of Friends.