Ranked #263

Magi - Labyrinth of Magic (Manga)

When I first read Magi, I assumed from the cover that it was of a cute little boy doing cute things, something to read to pass the time between weekly updates of other manga. However, Magi has been a charming surprise with the depth of its storyline and the efforts it puts into its setting. While it is, to some extent, a manga of a cute little boy doing cute things, Magi ambitiously tries to reach out on social issues such as politics and slavery while maintaining some humanity on every side of the issue.

=Story (9)=

Magi begins as an episodic story of the individuals affected or touched by Aladdin, an enigmatic child with a headless djinn/genie and an omnipresent childlike innocence. Yet author Ohtaka Shinobu's ambitiously aims to weave the characters of these short stories together on a setting that ranges from the Middle Eastern Coast of what is clearly an allegory of the Roman Empire to Arabia, the Central Asian Steppe and as far East as the Chinese Kou/Huang empire. Characters present in each story remain present, returning to later relevance far later into the story. The main focus of the story, though, is on Aladdin and Ali Baba, a boy who starts out as a low-ranked merchant but slowly discovers his potential as Aladdin's candidate for the Heir to King Solomon. Based loosely on the Thousand and One Arabian Nights, Magi's story is primarily based in Arabia and Persia, but explores locales such as Balbadd (an allegory for India), the nomads of Central Asia and hints to later inroads into Africa and the Chinese Huang Empire, exploring issues such as imperialism, internal politics, economics and slavery. The strange thing about Magi is that many of the issues are not in fact resolved through fighting. Though many of the plot resolutions can be shounen-esque, there have only been one or two truly Shounen fight scenes, with many conflicts resolved through politics, mediation or economics, all of which play a role in the many nations of the continent. Plot strings seemingly left behind are in fact picked up later, and Magi's narrative flows smoothly and logically while providing an ample amount of humor. If there were any problem to the story, it would be simply that the mangaka seems to be either too afraid or unwilling to sometimes let go of characters, even when their death would be expedient for the plot. Overall, Magi's plot, while stereotypical in one or two instances, is gently surprising and shows a shounen manga that nevertheless does not always try to resolve every insurmountable problem with hot bloodedness and fighting.

=Art (10)=

Magi's artwork comes off as deceptively cute on the onset. The characters are drawn gently in a style that comes closer to that of a slice of life manga than an anime that seeks to confront serious issues. Yet Mangaka Shinobu has demonstrated the ability to draw out a darker tone while preserving the overall artistic integrity of the text. While Aladdin always retains his usual adorableness, the increasing grimness of characters such as Ali Baba serve to show not only their increasing maturity but also the results of the crises that they have been forced to confront. Magi's Art is endearing and charming when it wants to, but serious and grim when it needs to.

=Characters (10)=

Based loosely on tales from A Thousand and One Arabian Nights, the characters of Magi are, while outwardly similar, quite different in execution. Aladdin, the cherubic "magi," comes off not as either the confused boy of the original narrative or the mildly immature man-boy of the Disney adaptation, but a talented boy whose initial lack of skill never affects his immovable faith in the goodness of humanity. Ali Baba, meanwhile, changes from a greedy boy who exploits Aladdin for his gifts to a tortured individual both haunted by the past he has left behind and inspired to improve the futures of those around him. Other characters, such as legendary hero Sinbad, stick slightly closer to their original counterparts, with Sinbad's tendency to lose whatever he gained in his last adventure sometime before his next illustrated in a comedic light. Author Ohtaka, however, bolsters her story with a host of original characters, all of which have their pasts and motivations, from Balbaddian street urchin (and Ali Baba's childhood friend) Kassim to the two aesthetically similar but ideologically divergent princesses (the highborn, idealistic pacifist Hakuei and the politically unsteady and pragmatic Kougyoku) of the Huang Empire. Furthermore, the mangaka makes an effort to humanize even those who are clearly in the wrong, keeping them from simply becoming caricatures--a slave trader is revealed to once have been a slave him/herself (I really couldn't tell); a cruel master whose innocence was once subverted by his master; the Dual Salujas, kings of the oppressed citizenry of Balbadd. Each individual in Magi's narrative comes off as their own character, with stories that the average reader can sympathize with, even a little bit.

=Enjoyment and Overall=

I was absolutely surprised by the depth of Magi's narrative and characters and liked it immensely. After reading realistic seinin manga full of grimdark suffering and gore and reading idealistic shounen stories of hotblooded (but improbable) problem resolutions, Magi's idealistic tone but realistic mindset was a welcome alternative that really allowed me to keep smiling from chapter to chapter. I do not often rate 10s for enjoyment, but Magi definitely deserves this praise. An underrated manga that is willing to confront real issues without giving up its optimism. read more

This is my first review ever, so don't expect something big. Oh well, let's go...

"The mysteries hidden in the unknown world, uncountable, meetings and partings, the ultimate treasure that grants one's every wish..."
You can find this quote in almost every book about 'Aladdin and the Magic Lamp' or 'Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves'. Magi - Labyrinth of Magic is just another story about hidden treasures, but it's not just ordinary tale. The thing that fascinates me the most in this manga is that the mangaka mixed up popular characters from popular tales - Aladdin, Alibaba, even Sinbad and Ja'far.


Story - 8/10
The only reason why I didn't give 9/10 to this series, is because if the cliche story. "A pure hearted little boy travels around the country, gathers friends and together they'll find the greatest treasure in the world" Familiar...?

Art - 7/10
As expected from Ohtaka Shinobu (Sumomomo Momomo). The art is okay, but I wouldn't mind if she make it a little more shounen-is, after all this is adventure manga. The art would be fine if the manga was romance one...

Characters - 7/10
A carefree main character, a thief and a slave. Good, but not enough...

Enjoyment - 8/10
Something is special about this series to me... It may be a cliche, or whatever, but I'm not going not drop it soon. I wouldn't mind if this manga gets an anime adaptation.


Overall - 8/10
Read it. Now. Go! read more