Ore ga Akuma de, Aitsu ga Yome de by Rumi Aruma

 Uhg, why won't summer end. I think its physically hurting me now. Sorry if this post is written a little spastically, I've had a migraine for three days.



Ore ga Akuma de, Aitsu ga Yome de by Rumi Aruma

Art and story (c) Rumi Aruma

Genre: Shojo, Fantasy
Length: 2 Volumes – 16 Chapters



           The art in this manga is good, but there is plenty of what I like to call “strangeness” to bother the eye. How I define that are times when, usually at profile or three-quarters angles, faces don't look entirely right and sometimes body shapes aren't right either in a pose. Things like this happen in this manga, but if you can ignore that aspect, there is also originality here. The lines are strong and clean, and the clothes have detail, if a little baggy. The expressions change and work well, though the eyes can seem a little less detailed. The character designs are interesting sometimes and some are fairly generic but it evens out. I had the feeling that it was almost familiar, truthfully, but I haven't read anything by this mangaka so I think its just a style familiarity. I guess the best way to describe it is that it has inconsistencies but it works well enough to be read.
           A young orphan wishes to God to send her a family, at the same time a demon gets sent to Earth to look for a contractor. Thinking himself lucky, Anzam the demon gets young Uika to agree to sign a contract with him, but the girl decides the terms will not be fame or fortune but marriage! Now Anzam is stuck with her until she uses up all her life force through wishes, only, she is much too kind hearted to actually do so. Will Anzam be stuck with her until her life runs out naturally or can he connive to end it much sooner?
           Well, this read was a bit of a mixed bag. First off, the title translates to 'I'm a Devil,

and That's My Bride' which is just as much of a mouthful as the Japanese. The humor of this manga was good, the demon “friends” that show up are literally the best part of it, but the story is a bit flat and predictable at times. Its cute but it also doesn't have enough substance to really stick. The premise is interesting enough to catch the attention but the actual story is just sort of shojo tropes that give no sense of continuing story. Anzam is a very silly demon, and Uika is so pure hearted, so the 'he is not really a bad guy' feeling is instantiations but the set up is sort of rushed into and the world is a little shaky as well. One chapter she has a school but most chapters just sort of float around a household where time isn't fully felt or explained. Also, and here are major spoilers which I usually avoid but need to be assessed so if you want to avoid them skip a few lines, the ending is a little iffy. Of course he would return to her, but he has stolen her life from her. Does she get it back? I'm not sure, its explained in flash back and then ends really abruptly. Not really satisfying, to say the least. Okay, and some non-spoiler complaints, such as the fact that Uika is really little, its never stated but they do say she is in fifth grade which puts her at around 10 years old. Everyone else in the story are adults making this is pretty much lolicon, but not ecchi type. Which I find a little off putting, but this manga is more cute than anything creepy, Anzam clearly doesn't have interest in her and therefore its more of a caring for type of situation. Speaking on Anzam, he has a habit of walking up walls and along ceilings and the like, which only reminded me of Neuro (which I plug every chance I get, so, go read it!) who is a much more amazing demon so that just made Anzam's weak personality even more obvious. Wow, this is a little all over the place. Lets see, the art and story are a little amateur at times, but the humor and emotion do come through well. Its worth a read if you aren't looking for anything too deep.




3/5 Predictable but fun.