Categories
Manga Review

Kon Kon Kokon Vol. 1 – Manga Review

kon-kon-kokon-1-cover.jpg

Nothing in life is certain except death, taxes, and that Koge-Donbo will draw cute manga. Proof of the last one is Kon Kon Kokon. It’s freakin’ cute!!!

kon-kon-kokon-1-cover.jpg

Nothing in life is certain except death, taxes, and that Koge-Donbo will draw cute manga. Proof of the last one is Kon Kon Kokon. It’s freakin’ cute!!!

Story:
Ren is a Yokai Otaku. This means he’s totally into traditional Japanese ghosts and folk monsters. One day at school, a random kid named Kokon glomps Ren into the nurse’s office. It turns out she’s a Yokai! Thus begins Ren’s strange adventures, which he totally digs since he’s a Yokai Otaku.

Along the way, he picks up a few more (almost a harem). But what will Himeka, his crush, think about all these chicks staying with Ren? And why is Himeka even in this manga!? She should be in Kamichama Karin!

kon-kon-kokon-1-1.gif

Analysis:
So yeah, for some reason Ren goes to the same school as Himeka and Kazune. Maybe this is pre-Kamichama? Or maybe it’s just an alternate universe. It doesn’t really matter since they’re mainly secondary characters to Ren.

The manga follows a pretty standard plotline. Ren allows Kokon to stay with him, some mysterious person shows up, mysterious person happens to be trying to get Kokon to return, mysterious person ends up joining Ren, etc. Ren continues to grow his harem, but there are surprises along the way…

In typical Koge-Donbo fashion (I think…) I’m expecting this setup to be really cute, and then later things’ll get really sad or tragic. Isn’t that how Koge-Donbo works? For now, the cuteness and random humor works for me.

The subject matter is also pretty cool. I took a “Supernatural Japan” class last Summer, and I read a bit about Yokai. Most of the ones that were in the manga were new to me, though. I know about the Umi Bozu and there’s one I remember about the baby that gets heavier when you pick it up. The baby wasn’t in this manga though, just something I remember. Anyway, if you’re interested in Japanese folk tales and legends, this manga should also interest you.

kon-kon-kokon-1-2.gif

Character Designs and Art:
For some reason, the ultra deformed stuff that was in Kamichama Karin bugged me a whole lot more than it did in Kon Kon Kokon… Maybe it’s just because I got used to it? Or maybe it has to do with how the plot is progressing (there were more mixed messages in Kamichama than in Kokon).

The Actual Book:
When I think of Broccoli Books, I think of the vegetable. But I also think of super high production values. I think they seriously keep upping the quality. Kon Kon Kokon has a unique textured cover that’s really sweet! I haven’t seen anything like it before. I guess it fits the mood of the manga better than a glossy cover would. Or maybe I’m just reading too much into it.

The book itself also has a freakin’ sweet print job. No surprise there.

Conclusion:
Kon Kon Kokon is way cute. It also contains characters from Kamichama Karin for no apparent reason (sellability?). If you’re a fan of Koge-Donbo, chances are you’ll like this. If not, the mega cuteness and SD might turn you off from it.

Many thanks to Broccoli Books for sending me a review copy of Kon Kon Kokon Volume 1!

5 replies on “Kon Kon Kokon Vol. 1 – Manga Review”

I admit, I’ve never really read the Kamichama Karin franchise but based on what I know, wouldn’t Kon Kon Kokon take place after the events of those books? I mean, Kamichama Karin and it’s spin off Chu takes place in middle school and Kon Kon Kokon doesn’t look like it takes place in Elementary school… So maybe the characters of Kamichama Karin went their seperate ways after middle school?

Also, the promo for book 2 vaguely suggests Kazune might get more involved later on, and assuming that this isn’t an alternant universe where the two characters don’t keep their back stories, Kazune and his cousin (with the knowledge they carry) would be the only two people in school who could possibly understand what he’s going through.

Then again, this is all a guess and I’m going off very little at this point, so I could be completly off the mark with this. Oh, and sorry for me coming out of no where and posting long otaku-esque rants on your blog.

i think this manga will be really cute! I love how there are Kamichama Karin characters in it, too! It’ll be awesome!

i thought this manga was cute and i cant wait till the next one it is so funny and sweet that this boy puts up with *them* i love this manga and would recomend it to people with time on there hands and need some cute *puppy love*

Hee, I actually like this manga a lot ^_^ Tankororin has become one of my favorite Youkai, I learned a lot, it was ultra-cute, there was a romantic undertone, and it had a foxgirl. All this equals good for Cinna-chan ^_^

Leave a Reply to kazzy Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *