Mono Volume 2 review
As the anime adaption of mono continues on Crunchyroll, it’s time to take another look at the original manga as the series catches up.
Once more Satsuki, An and Sakurako of the cinephoto study group continue to embark on more travels, partly to help local manga artist Haruno, who is creating a title based on their passion for photography. This second volume begins with a visit from motorbiker vlogger Kako using Satsuki’s action camera to film Haruno at work. However, when looking back at the footage the gang appear to spot a ghostly form. Haruno gets advice from a fellow manga artist to sort out what is going on. This artist is Torayo Kurokuma, a horror manga writer and lover of gothic Lolita fashion and cats. Torayo tells them that the only way to get rid of this ghost is for Haruno to make a return trip to a tunnel visited in the previous volume, which then results in a long journey for her.
Elsewhere in this volume, the group take part in a competition to photograph round sacred stones in the hope of winning a trip to Costa Rica; Haruno and Kako embark on a trip to try some curry, only for just about every establishment they visit to be shut; and Kako attempts to film a vlog while going downhill on a skateboard, with the help of Sakurako, but also with the hindrance of Haruno and Torayo’s pet cats.
The section about the skateboard video is in my view the highlight of this second volume, primarily because of the humour. For starters there is a scene in which Satsuki and An doubt Sakurako’s skateboarding abilities, only for her to demonstrate just how brilliant she really is. Then there is the chaos that the cats add to the mix, resulting in a sudden change as to what the vlog is going to be. The other big element in this edition is the introduction of Torayo as a character, whose darker fashion and interest in the supernatural adds new elements to the story, but still also helps with the humorous side of things too.
Fans of Afro’s previous work Laid-Back Camp are also in for a treat, as there are character cameos from the series in this edition. Don’t worry if you’re not familiar with that series, as the translation notes make everything clear.
Speaking of translation, I for one wish to commend translator Amber Tamosaitis on her work. Primarily, when it comes to dealing with temperature, which appears frequently in this volume as the characters (especially Haruno) complain about the heat, she sticks with Celsius, which is what appears in the strip, and doesn’t translate it into Fahrenheit in the body of the text just for the benefit of American readers. The fact that they stick to Celsius, and only display Fahrenheit in the translation notes, shows that Amber and indeed Yen Press are caring for their international clientele. Letterer Chiho Christie and editor Carl Li also continue to do great work.
With these chapters soon to appear in the anime series, it will be good to see how the introduction of all of these new elements is handled.
Our review copy was provided by Yen Press.
