Created by Ushio Shirotori, Ghostly Things was a manga I quickly flipped through at the bookstore. I liked the art so decided to give volume one a read. I'm going to be completely honest here and say that volume one was kinda boring to me but, there was something about the story that made me want to keep reading the continuation even after I had chose to drop the series. I soon found myself look for new translated volumes during my frequent visits to the bookstore. Thank God this manga was only three volumes because I can only imagine how tiring the story would have been after eight or ten volumes.
A girl goes to stay in a house said to be haunted in order to look for an item that will help her find her missing mother......
Ghostly Things constructs a storyline that might seem very deep at first. That is until you realize nothing ever happens in most chapters except introductions to ghost like creatures called Yokai. You might call the story like a collectable trading card game where you try to find out about as many Yokai as you can. These creatures appear as the main character transverses that house with a Yokai that knows her father. The story takes a bit of an exciting turn when villains join in the search for the same item our main character. Too bad many readers won't make it that far due to the story's over bogged down information driven first volume. There's certain parts of Ghostly Things that was very cute, then there were moments in the last volume that were very sentimental to the villain's background. All the while still giving a story that shoves may different Yokai down the reader's throat. I actually believe that story suffered a tiny bit from this. For example, the ending felt very rushed in solving the overall conflict and the mother was just left wondering in the spirit world with the belief that she should would eventually find her way home...... WHAT THE FUCK? Still, Volume three was the best volume out of the whole series.
The art is up to par with all the other fantasy related manga on bookshelves currently. The Yokai's designs take up most of the detail effort in the panels, while the characters all look vibrant with youth. Japanese folklore fans will appreciate the visuals of this manga as a whole.
Just think "Pokemon got to catch(in this case learn about them) all" only with Yokai and you got the gist of Ghostly Things in a nut shell. I didn't love nor hate this manga. I'm in the middle of both emotions. I'm just happy the series was short..... A spin off could work out though.
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