The plot is nothing that hasn’t been done similarly before (ie. Inuyasha); however, even with that being said it’s still compelling and interesting. Unlike in other shoujo manga where the romance is practically shoved into your face in the beginning, or a few chapters there’s epiphanies of feelings going on, this takes its sweet time to develop the characters and their feelings. While Nanami falls for Tomoe at a regular interval, as expected, however the feelings aren’t immediately reciprocated. Which brings freshness to the story, instead we’re given banter between the two main protagonists (border-lining hateful resentment from Tomoe in the beginning), and a slightly one-sided pairing, we see the relationship of two characters unfolding slowly in front of our eyes which is great to read. There is very much a master-servant relationship and the idea is how to breach such confines, especially concerning a human god and a fox yokai, a relationship that would be taboo.
The romance is a slow build-up interweaved with the character development. Little by little the past is unravelled and we learn more of each character. There’s a lot of hesitance and unwillingness coming from Tomoe while Nanami completely accepts her feelings and respects Tomoe’s decision in the matter. She isn’t afraid to show affection yet doesn’t expect Tomoe to jump into the bandwagon. Tomoe’s feelings are very much implied and slowly shown (acts of kindness or jealousy).
The plot itself has a slice-of-life feel, while there is an over arcing story it isn’t fully detailed or explained yet (so an antagonist is revealed but his motives concerning Nanami isn’t clear as of yet) . As of now we see the protagonists in a sort of event-by-event manner, sometimes it’s simply school drama or personal issues, others it revolves around demons or spiritual manners. The story doesn’t completely revolve around deities and demons, while it is a significant and predominant aspect, we are given more issues about each characters.
Characters:
The character growth is at a good pace alongside the romance. Tomoe is regarded as a cynical, spiteful and distrustful fox that slowly softens as he spends more time with Nanami; however, his quick tongue is always maintained in the story and he never loses his cynical view on life.
Nanami is very interesting; she’s a poor girl who happens to stumble upon a man who makes
her a deity. From the get-go you know she hasn’t much fortune in life but she fights her heart out to do what is best. She has an independent attitude but because of her naivety of her duty she has to rely on Tomoe a lot. While she is not physically strong she has a strong will which is shown brilliantly in the manga. Her certainty in her feelings is what drives the manga, in the beginning she’s confused but as the story progressed she became confident in her own heart.
For the two main characters they might not be unique in originality but they are presented in a dynamic way which makes the reading all the much better. We get to know them more and more as the story progress and we see them grow – and they don't simply maintain the same outlook or personality that they had from the beginning.
Overall: 9/10
The art is gorgeously drawn, each character’s emotions are conveyed beautifully on page and we’re given many locations and not simply one backdrop. Enjoyment wise it’s easy to get sucked into the story, it does lull at some chapters, but overall it’s worth the slow pace. There’s a good amount of hilarity and drama to keep anyone going. This manga skips the melodrama and it gives us two individuals coming from two very different backgrounds trying to figure each other out. That’s really the crux of the story: two people getting to know each other and making sense of it all.
