By Rumiko Takahashi
VIZ, 200 pp.
Rating: Older Teen (16+)

Rumiko Takahashi is undoubtedly one the most influential manga artists to date. Her works, including Ranma ½ and InuYasha, have been instrumental in bringing the art form to the American shores and have been key players in retaining that same popularity that keeps readers coming back for more. Her most recent work, RIN-NE, was one of the main titles launched on VIZ’s Shonen Sunday website, and helped draw readers to a legal way of experiencing manga in an online format. Not only that, but the RIN-NE chapters were released simultaneously in Japan and America, creating a unanimous feeling for readers all over the world. Since then, VIZ has collected the first eight chapters into one volume so far and plans to continue publishing it not only online but for readers who enjoy a physical reading experience.

The story of RIN-NE revolves around Sakura Mamiya, a girl who, through a fateful incident with a ghostly woman and a wheel of reincarnation, is able to see and communicate with the spirits of the dead. Trying to live a normal life, she avoids most of the spirits until one day she notices a boy in her class, Rinne Rokudo. Rinne can not only see and communicate with spirits, but also has the option not to be seen by human eyes. It turns out that Rinne is an Exorcist of sorts, spending his days (for some mysterious reason) helping ghosts find peace so they don’t plague the living with their dying wishes.

The more I read into this story, the more I liked it. I have the two Rumic Theater books. In those early works (as well as Ranma ½ and InuYasha), Takahashi does some really interesting stories based on ghosts and spirits. To see her take on a full-length ghost story feels like it’s been due for quite some time. While I liked the initial plot idea, I didn’t think that her characters were as fleshed out as usual, which was a bit of a disappointment. Rinne puts on this cold and calculating demeanor and acts very apprehensive towards Mamiya and those around him, seeking their aid only if it will aid him in someway. It feels like a front he is putting up—I really don’t think he has bad intentions. Sakura is also questionable. She is obviously aiding Rinne in helping these ghosts to understand her ability more but aside from that, I don’t see the point of her intentions. It seems like if she really wants to know more about her abilities, she would’ve used them some way after she discovered them in the first place. I haven’t read the other online chapters (I didn’t want to have a bias when I reviewed this), so hopefully there will be more in-depth explanation and romance later on. But for the first book, I was left a bit shaken. Maybe Takahashi is trying to create a more platonic couple?

The art is fantastic as always; Takahashi is like a fine wine, only getting better at her craft as time passes. I still really enjoyed her ever-apparent mix of Japanese folklore in her artwork, especially with the Wheel of Incarnation. Not only that, but in a recent interview, Takahashi revealed that she doesn’t plan her chapters: she writes them as she goes, not planning anything in advance. I am actually really drawn to this notion because it really shows that she has reached a level of mastery in her craft.

All in all, this is definitely something that I am going to give more of a chance and I think you should also. It certainly has a lot of great elements of older Takahashi series (Maison Ikkoku, Ranma ½ ) with a nice mix of humor and action, without a large cast of characters. But who knows? Maybe they’ll show up later on…

Volume one of RIN-NE is available now.

Review copy provided by the publisher.