07-Ghost Volume 14

“You need to remember, Teito. If you don’t remember what’s real, how can you live honestly?” Ouka, First Princess of the Barsburg Empire. 

Warning: Spoilers! Lots of ’em!

A splendid masquerade ball is to take place at the imperial palace in Barsburg to celebrate Princess Ouka’s sixteenth birthday. As court tradition demands, she must select a husband from a group of suitors who will reign over the empire at her side. Teito Klein, currently suffering from amnesia and serving as Chief Ayanami’s begleiter, is selected to attend the ball, ostensibly as one of the masked suitors, but really to act as bodyguard to the princess. So why, Ouka wonders when they are introduced, doesn’t Teito remember her? For they have already met – before Teito lost his memory (he was brainwashed by Ayanami and his associates) when he was journeying with Bishop Frau on his quest to find out about his past. Indeed, they have much more in common, as Ouka is host to the Eye of Raphael and Teito is host to the Eye of Mikael, making them capable of acting as living weapons of immense destructive power – on opposing sides.

Other uninvited guests have infiltrated the ball. Teito’s three protectors, Frau, Labrador and Castor, the three bishops who have been watching over him thanks to their supernatural powers as three of the legendary Seven Ghosts, are trying to get Teito away from Ayanami’s clutches. For Ayanami has been grooming Teito for some time, waiting for the moment when he can unlock the mysteries sealed away deep in the boy’s subconscious and inscribed on his body. But when a sinister grinning assassin launches an attack on the princess, Teito is going to need much more than the ability to dance a waltz to protect his precious charge – and to survive the many traps set in place under cover of Ouka’s birthday celebrations.

07-Ghost first appeared in English translation in 2008 from the short-lived but much lamented Go! Comi which brought out the first three volumes before disappearing from the publishing scene. Several years (and an anime TV series) later, Viz Media came to the rescue and we are now up to Volume 14, with only another three to go because – hurray! – this is a manga with a proper conclusion, unlike one of its ongoing stable mates in the monthly Comic Zero-Sum, Loveless. (Poor Loveless is still very slowly meandering onward, having lost much of its original impetus as other projects have taken mangaka Yun Kouga’s time and attention such as Gundam 00 and The Blood High School). Amemiya and Ichihara, perhaps because they work as a team, perhaps because this is their first published series, have persevered, showing considerable improvement in clarity of imagery and story-telling skills. (Comic Zero-Sum also deserves credit for publishing many other excellent fantasy manga, including Amatsuki, Karneval, Are You Alice? and Saiyuki Reload.)

The translation by Satsuki Yamashita is clear and fluent. My only regret is that the Viz editions have not given us the richly-coloured plates (four per volume!) of the originals.

But putting publishing history aside, has 07-Ghost lived up to its early promise? Yukino Ichihara’s action panels can still be confusing to read – and important stuff can still happen between panels. But in that respect she’s not alone among mangaka! It does mean, however, that you, the reader, have to keep your wits about you. Her graphic style is distinctive and attractive – yet still retains that ‘just dashed off’ vagueness that can be both excitingly dynamic and frustratingly vague. There’s also a pleasing sense of mischief in the writing (and especially the chibis) so that moments of chilling terror are offset by playful 4-panel bonus material.

Overall, there’s something genuinely compelling and convincing about the world and the mythology the two mangaka have created. The legend of the Seven Ghosts, created by the Chief of Heaven to track down the death god Verloren after he fell in (forbidden) love with the Chief’s daughter Eve – seven terrifying, death-faced shadow beings that, in spite of their grim outward appearance, can still show compassion. 

Treachery on the grand scale. Byzantine plotting in the imperial capital. Love, friendship, betrayal – and an adorably feisty baby fyulong dragon who just happens to be the reincarnation of Teito’s beloved best friend, Mikage. Because of the way revelations have piled up on revelations in the unravelling of the truth about Teito’s past, I strongly advise starting at the beginning of the series – not halfway through. And with only three volumes to go, I’m hoping that the authors can deliver the satisfying ending this story deserves.

My review of Volume 1:
http://www.animeuknews.net/manga_review/34/07ghost-1

In Summary

07-Ghost  is a complex, page-turning fantasy adventure with sympathetic characters caught in the web of a dark mythology. Catch it now – you won’t have to wait years to discover how it ends!