Title: Mieruko-chan Vol. 7
Author: Tomoki Izumi
Publisher: Yen Press
Language: English
Format: Paperback
Pages: 146
Genre: Sci-Fi, Supernatural, Horror
Publication Date: April 18, 2023
The Story
The seventh volume of Mieruko-chan wraps up the story with the shrine and brings us into a new story arc!
First, with the shrine, we end up getting the identity of one of the guardians that told Miko that she had three saves. Mitsue and Rom also get some closure on things when they discover who one of the spirits truly is. Miko ends up defeating the spirit at the shrine and everything returns to semi-normal.
When Miko returns to school, there is a spirit walking right toward her. She remarks that it’s nothing compared to what she faced at the shrine but then it suddenly bumps into her and apologizes!! Miko can’t believe that a spirit was solid and speaking to her! That’s when Hana notes that Miko bumped into a new student. Turns out the spirit is actually human and her name is Michiru Ichijou. Miko doesn’t know how to feel about her because she looks like she’s completely taken over by a spirit.
Things get even weirder when Michiru is the subject for an art class and everyone has to draw her! Miko doesn’t even know what she looks like until another student does a remarkable job of drawing her portrait. Meanwhile, there seems to be more to Michiru other than her spirit!
The Characters
Mitsue and Rom got some great development in the first half of the manga. After learning the identity of one of the guardian spirits, as I mentioned, they received some closure but the residual effect from that involved Rom and Mitsue seeing eye to eye and patching things up a bit. In fact, Mitsue even goes so far as to state that Rom is still her disciple. The whole ordeal also makes Mitsue realize that even though she is aging, her power is still needed in this world!
Next, we move on to our brand-new transfer student, Michiru. Come to find out, she’s a fashion model for a popular magazine. Everyone in class fawns over her but not Miko. In fact, when someone tries to touch her hair, she yells at them to stop because she thinks that the student is going to touch her octopus-like tentacles. Miko plays it off as Michiru still being new and people shouldn’t try to hog her to themselves like that all at once. Thankfully, everyone buys it and backs off of Michiru for now.
This becomes the catalyst for Michiru’s infatuation with Miko. Being a model is a tough job. The eyes of the world are on you even when you’re not on a magazine page and it’s no different at school. The fact that Miko treats her like a normal human being and doesn’t look at her in the ways that other students do (all because of the spirit attached to her), she finds something special about Miko. She considers Miko a friend but that notion of friendship soon turns into obsession. Michiru seems a bit crazed; however, there is one big hint in this volume that suggests her infatuation could be due to her spirit. I’ll let you guys see if you can discover what that hint is.
Final Thoughts
This new story arc is off to a great start! We have a new, interesting character with Michiru. At times she seems in control of herself… other times she seems possessed. I wonder if it’s the effect of her spirit and if that means she’s been “taken over” for a long time. It’s definitely a bit tricky to tell if it is her spirit or if Michiru is just a whack job. Then again, living the life of a model and coming across someone who doesn’t treat you like one is like finding a diamond in the rough. Nevertheless, the fact that there’s a spirit attached is going to make it really hard for Miko to interact with her. This is going to set up a really awkward relationship. Makes me wonder if Miko is going to confide her secret to her or if she’ll enlist Mitsue and/or Rom’s help to solve this indirectly.
In any event, I’m glad we just went right into the next story arc without any filler in between. Oftentimes, a series will take a chapter or two to breathe before thrusting the reader into the next big story plot but not here! From one story to the next! I think this goes back to what I said before about Miko seeing and ignoring ghosts can only take this series so far. Now that the luster has worn off from that aspect, keeping the foot on the gas is the right decision to make here.
I’m looking forward to seeing how Michiru plays out and whether or not she becomes a permanent member of the cast when all things are said and done!
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This item was provided for review by Yen Press
