Ranked #2017

Ageha 100% (Manga)

‘Mediocre’ shoujo at its best, Ageha 100% gives us nothing innovative, nor is the plot or characters anything for you to scream in ecstasy over.
Story
The manga has (from up to the beginning of volume two) followed the same format of Ageha basically helping other girls get what they so desire through the use of beauty and makeup. Emphasising the importance of makeup in producing any average looking girl to become a beauty. From what I’ve read so far, ‘conflicts’ arise mainly due to disbelievers in the “Legend of Ageha”, and imitators of Ageha’s work. While these conflicts serve to extend the storyline, and perhaps a lesson in learnt between the leading characters after these conflicts conclude, there is not much else pulling the plot, nothing to give the reader a reason to flip each page in excitement.

Art
The art ranges from so-called ‘good’ to ‘bad’. Standard shoujo elements appear in the artwork, big eyes, blushes, interesting hair styles. There is quite a huge contrast between Rin and her ‘secret’ persona in terms of appearance. In the end, I could easily say that the art is not anything special, nor is it poorly done that it detracts from a reader’s experience. As the manga emphasises physical ‘beauty’, the artist completes and a satisfactory performance in showing how makeup can ‘transform’ normal looking girls into beautiful women.

Character
One of Ageha’s poorest elements arguably, the characters are rather flat and only serve to continue the initial role in the story they are given, so far not even appearing to detract from their chosen path. As the only common returning characters are Rin and Riku, other appearing characters receive not development or interesting characterisation. While Rin’s objectives are explained, there is nothing else behind what she initially believes. Riku’s decisions in assisting Rin are a muddle of confusion, although perhaps this may be explored in later chapters.

Enjoyment
I picked Ageha 100% up out of boredom. There is nothing behind it that could ever put this title onto my favourite’s list however it served to entertain me for the hour I spent reading this title. Any shoujo fan may like to pick this up for a short read, but don’t expect any mind blowing artwork or plotline.

Overall

Summarising Ageha 100% strongest points:

A straightforward plotline that follows the story outline initially set and explained in the first chapter.
Artwork ranging from good to bad, but satisfactory in supporting this title.
There is not much else to say besides the fact that I would recommend shoujo fans to pick this up if they have nothing else to find. While I would not specifically recommend this to people looking for recommendations of shoujo manga, it is not per se the worst thing I’ve ever read. read more