Monkey High 8

Shouko Akira – Viz – 2009 – 8 volumes

Man, this series has some great characters. Good enough that I keep coming back for more, even though the plot is simply a parade of common shoujo plot devices (entrance exam troubles and school festival make a re-appearance here). The main couple is adorable though, and although there’s some family-oriented melodrama here, neither Haruna nor Macharu ever really express doubt in one another. It’s nice.

The volume starts off, shockingly enough, with a very spicy romance scene. This type of series so rarely has a scene like this that I was really taken aback, but I’m glad it’s here. Haruna and Macharu are the type of couple that deserve a scene like that. They were 100% faithful to each other from the beginning (or at least where I came in at volume 4), and it feels like they worked hard to get to that level in their relationship, no rushing in or hot-under-the-collar nonsense.

The bigger issues here are entrance exams (Macharu tries hard, but isn’t getting very far) and the fact that Haruna’s powerful father still disapproves of Macharu and has other plans for her daughter. Melodramatic, and territory that has been claimed by a thousand shoujo manga before, but again, Haruna is such a good stand-in for a down-to-earth, very serious and realistic female student (a kind of self-insertion character, I guess), and Macharu is so much fun, and so good at helping her out of her serious funks and letting her know everything is all right, that it really is very sweet and a treat to read in the end.

The resolution is quite dramatic, too. Lots of final things are said, and Macharu takes things a step farther than these types of series usually do, too. It ends more-or-less at high school, so there’s no “ten years later” story or anything, but I love the way all the loose ends were tied up between Macharu and Haruna. It all worked out, and there was a happy ending. I couldn’t imagine such an upbeat series ending any other way.

There isn’t a lot that would lure in anybody but shoujo manga fans, but it is a cute and very sweet story, with a lot of romance and an adorable and very likable main couple. And a good group of friends to hold them up and ridicule them in all they do too, which is important. It doesn’t have much plot to speak of, but I would highly recommend it if you’re looking for a lighthearted romance.