Manga Review – Crown of Thorns

When a story starts off by stating that they side with the villain over the hero you know it’s going to be good and Crown of Thorns is good to the last panel. Boys Over Flowers creator Yoko Kamio scores a major hit with Crown of Thrones and it’s protagonist Nobara Fukami, the sarcastic anti-hero you never knew you were missing from your life.

Crown of Thorns Cover Art

Fukami is joined by a slew of other well designed characters who put the creep in creepy and the weird in weirdo including her co-star the beautiful Lucio who is a bonafide demon who sucks at being evil and is more interested in looking pretty.

Anyway so Fukami ends up “partnered” with Lucio who is pretty weird for a demon, which is good because she is a special human who can she sees things that no one else can but she’s also a loner with only one friend because not only does she not care what anyone thinks of her but her mouth has no filter.

 

CotIn a complete departure from Boys Over Flowers, there are few romantic overtures in Vol 1 with Fukami’s relationship with Lucio being purely professional.

The main artwork is meticulously drawn, with round curves and soft angles that add lifelike qualities to the characters. The attention to detail in the drawings enhances the story being told. Also, throughout the main story, you will find pixelated artwork that is reminiscent of retro games. In addition, the author includes random side stories, where she tells short tales about herself and her vacations

The character development in this manga is superb, Yoko Kamio does an amazing job of ensuring we get a feel for every character. Even minor characters weigh heavily, which lends credence to her plan to sympathize with the “bad guys”. Yoko Kamio forces the reader to give thought to each character, and their reasoning for their choices and actions.

This story flows seamlessly giving readers an in-depth understanding of the world Fukami lives in. Readers appreciate the bond she has with Lucio, however, as the manga begins to explore the developing relationships, it ends with a cliffhanger. This cliffhanger lends just enough to leave readers curious and wanting Volume 2.

 Final Verdict

Crown of Thorns is a surprising new favourite for me, Fukami is a little crazy and sarcastic and it’s hard not to like a character who successfully pulls off both. This manga is wonderfully done with developed characters, an original story-line and amazingly quirky artwork. I also loved that, while the manga ended with a cliffhanger, it answered a lot of the questions we had as we read. I can guarantee that I will definitely be picking up Vol 2 when it comes out.

You can get Vol 1 here.

Kaleigh John

Manga Editor | Podcaster : She offers a different prospective on nerd culture that you may not expect.