Initially, I thought that the manga depicted several shounen elements, even though the human protagonist, Jinka, wasn't necessarily the most hotheaded hero. Heck, he even hates humans! And yet, he is partnered with a female youko or demon named Tama who loves humans, so he is coerced (and sometimes out of his free will) into saving them as part of the "savior siblings." Sometime on their journey, a couple of other people join them, which reminds me of Avatar: the Last Airbender in some ways.
My absolute favorite part of this manga is the strong variety of both humans and demons alike. In most of the manga involving demons that I've read, demons are portrayed as either monstrous or innocent -- there are no in-betweens. And yet, Sengoku Youko manages to provide us with CUTE, adorable demons (think of the villagers from Animal Crossing), and at the same time describe very intimidating demons who are both good and bad. I also appreciated how this manga toyed with the question of duality: Are we humans? Or are we demons? It is not necessarily dark or dramatic, but it can be at times when the story necessitates it.
As mentioned above, Sengoku Youko is wonderfully driven by characters, whose choices they make impact the outcomes that continue to resonate with the remaining characters and what ultimately happens in the end. Because of their choices, the story makes use of a rare narrative technique to further surprise the readers and push the manga to new dimensions. Just because the Final Goal of one character may have been accomplished does not mean that the manga is completely over; in fact, it is this completion of the goal that creates a new Final Goal.
Much like Mushishi, Sengoku Youko is primarily a journey with no conclusive arcs -- no battling, training, or battling. Technically, there is at least one training session, but they are not tedious to read about at all! I enjoy the creatures that the group meets and their little stories, and I also enjoy the seemingly flawless integration of the plot with the episodic adventures at the beginning. All of the characters have a personality that later grows, recedes, and develops as the series continues, which is truly phenomenal.
Ah, the art? I have not mentioned that, but suffice it to say that the art of all characters evolves to reflect their growth and the passing of time, which allows them to escape the Same Face Syndrome that occasionally plagues manga and anime. Overall, I must highly recommend Sengoku Youko based on current chapters, the overarching storyline, and variety of characters with their unique motivations. After all, there is an eight-year-old boy with a thousand demons.
