I've been diving back into my manga collection. A million years ago (it seems) an illustrator friend and I brainstormed a YA horror graphic novel idea and I said I'd take care of writing the pitch. Now that #NineTenths is out #queryinglitagents, time to remind myself what thrilling YA horror-lite feels like. I picked up this series on the recommendation of someone on the internet back when I was in uni. It's a 70s tale about Minako who is told one night in a dream that she is the reincarnation of an destined bride of a demon named Deimos. She rejects his suit (solely because it seems he's vaugly ugly in his demon form, though he's still awfully 70s manga-pretty.) What follows is an unending parade of episodes where Deimos tries to prove to Minako first that he really is a dark creature (the narrative never clarifies if he is THE devil or just A devil) and then second that he has her best interests at heart. Poor defensless, pretty, passive Minako is forced to witness trauma, horror, murder and the worst of humanity as Deimos tries to convince her of his twisted devotion and that going to Hades with him will be better than staying on earth among the horrible, violent, cruel humans (that he manipulates into being horrid and cruel.) I read the first three volumes and then lost interest. I'm sure when this was serialized as a weekly or monthly manga, it must have been thrilling to have a little taste of terror with each episode but reading it all together It suffers from binge fatigue. Minako never finds her agency, never pushes back, never sits down and has a conversation with this demon about why he chose her and what they meant to one another in past lives. And Deimos , well he does seem to soften in some of the later episodes, he never seems to figure out that everything he's doing to woo his bride is just pushing her away. They both seem particularly dense. It's a fascinating series but it didn't really have the character arc or World building that I really love in manga. But gosh is it pretty. #amreading #amreadingmanga #thebrideofdeimos #manga #amreadingcomics #amwriting #inspiration #horrorcomics #Horrormanga #yahorror #lighthorror #horrorlite https://www.instagram.com/p/CQtIBT8tA0N/?utm_medium=tumblr
