Oh yes, Musashi #9. One of the few reverse gender-role mangas actually done right. Yes, it is indeed a shoujo --despite how shounen it can be-- but it’s far more reminiscent of older spy movies. Musashi #9 isn’t perfect, but it’s certainly a very rare gem to read, especially when compared to the newer mangas. And in my honest opinion, far superior to them too.
(For the sake of this review, I’m not going to touch on the first volume, or the majority of the second, which is a series of one-shots involving the female lead. The real story begins in chapter 7, which is in volume two. Believe it or not, you could -probably- just start there if you wanted to, since none of those side characters of vol. 1 or 2 come back).
From the summary, we’re introduced to #9 (codename Musashi, aka. Shinozuka Kou). She’s cold, calculating, and cruel when she needs to be. And she definitely won’t be like all other strong, female protagonists. Whether or not she’s involved with a guy will never interrupt her missions. Her missions -always- come first.
And then in the second volume, we meet a pretty boy (not a god-like bishounen with sparkles and fluff, but he is supposed to be attractive) named Tachibana Shingo, who is heavily mourning over the death of his best-friend, and is being harassed to the point where he simply gets dozens of threats per day. No one understands what he’s going through, and recently, he’s begun to feel so out of place in his all-boys school. Musashi #9 almost immediately transfers in (of course, for a mission involving Shingo, a typical shoujo set-up), which probably changes the sour boy’s life forever. The manga then chronicles both of their lives for the next 5 years or so from their mid teens to early twenties, and, of course, lots of development happens. The two, although completely opposite and raised in different worlds, are completely stuck on one another as they face tragedies and hardships head on. Even their speech patterns are characterized (Shingo using a lot of slang and slurs, while Kou using very formal speech and big words), which only goes to show that the character’s personalities are so detailed oriented. Both leads, Shinozuka Kou and Tachibana Shingo are great, simply because they are very fleshed-out individuals.
But it’s not always about them. Despite the little arcs, it’s mostly episodic; following Kou around on her missions. Shingo does make appearances here and there, but he is hardly ever in the limelight (which then goes back to the action>romance I mentioned before). The narration is something that needs getting used to: they purposefully hold back information as to the reason why most of the missions are...well, missions. Sometimes, it makes you feel as if you missed something very important. Depending on how long some of the episodes/arcs are, then that feeling can drag on. It’s not a pleasant feeling, but keep in mind that it’s supposed to be suspenseful as it holds back useful info.
And this is a manga that actually uses it’s setting correctly. It’s not overpowering to the point where it takes away from the reading experience, but you -always- know where characters are situated in a room. It never fails to forget to inform the reader what is happening in the setting, compared to the characters in it. It’s not like CLAMP’s style where it’s gorgeous and artistic, but it’s more technical and practical (which is kinda what the story of Musashi #9 is about). And just like it’s characters, it’s very detail-oriented.
This manga is not thought-provoking or beautiful, but it has a very solid story (that sadly, occasionally pulls a deus ex machina). Though it can be sometimes repetitive, this is probably the shounen portion of it: we know that good will always beat evil, and yet, we keep on reading just to find out -how- they will defeat the bad guys. It is above average. If there are cliches, then they will be done just like the role-reversal subgenre: exceptionally well. There are also some small plot holes and some discrepancies in here, which most likely won’t be noticed until the second time around. The flaws actually do have a considerable weight on my scoring, which then brings it to a 8.0 / 10.0.
Musashi #9 is a very good, fast-paced episodic story, with a nice setting, a badass, genderbending heroine and a mismatched couple. Though it does feature a girl, it will (as Shingo says) remind you of a “Jane” Bond.
★★★★★★★★☆☆
