As cute as cute does (Strawberry Marshmallow: Vol. 1 - Barasui)

Member Name: chaobreeder16

Product:	Strawberry Marshmallow: Vol. 1 - Barasui
Date:	07/02/09 (116 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: very funny, contains real life situations

Disadvantages: maybe not for the guys, but still pretty funny

I am not entirely sure how to describe this manga/graphic novel in one sentence...maybe because it is pretty much about absolutely nothing but it is still pretty dam hilarious!

First Impressions

Well initially because it was really pink and cutesy looking on the cover I had my doubts about it. I thought it would be overly girlie and the little girls in it would be all into makeup and barbies as they are aged between 11-16 but upon further inspection I was pleasantly surprised and impressed with the level of sophistication and slap stick comedy.

Plot/Characters
The plot follows the daily lives of a chain smoking 16 year old teenager Noboe who takes great pride in being able to consume six beers in one session and distracting her little sister from her homework.

Chika (12) who is probably the most sensible of the group, she usually acts as a buffer and is constantly tortured by her older sister Noboe and her school friend Miu. However she can usually give as much as she gets.

Miu (12)the most annoying and energetic of the group, is excessively competitive and constantly looks for new and daft ways to show off and capture Noboe's attention, though her actions usually make Matsuri (11) cry, which accordingly results in Miu being booted in the bum by Noboe ironicly.

Matsuri the youngest and baby of the group who is usually the brunt of Miu's practical jokes even if they were intended for Chika or Noboe. Matsuri is a walking disaster area but short sighted with super cute giant glasses, so despite Miu's efforts Matsuri is always the one to capture most of Noboe's attention.

There is a fifth girl called Ana (11) but she doesn't appear until the second volume.

As previously stated this manga isn't really about anything, it just follows the lives of this group of girls and demonstrates how cruel, silly and cute little girls can be. The plot is really very innocent compared to other manga and even western novels which are released nowadays. The slap stick and ironic comedy is genuinely funny and it doesn't need sex, violence, nudity, action or bad language to make it interesting.

The plot also deals with realistic problems that young girls may have, for instance in the first volume there is a chapter on Noboe trying to go cold turkey and trying to give up her cigarettes. One featuring Noboe and the other girls heading to the beach over summer break and teaching Matsuri to swim and another where the younger girls stay up all night in order to make Noboe a birthday present. You also never see anybody's parents which give it a very Charlie Brownish theme.

Structure

There are maybe 10-15 chapters per volume each lasting on average around ten pages. Each of these chapters begins a new short story usually which keeps things fresh and easy to read. A few of the other manga I reviewed were maybe a bit intense and if you missed a volume you would miss a vital part of the story, but I didn't have that problem with this manga, which I liked as it can be difficult to find certain volumes of manga (volumes 4 and 5 in particular).

There was an anime or animated cartoon version of this produced also but I found it too compressed and the timing for some of the jokes was off so I would definitely recommend the manga over the anime.

The drawing style does look a little generic but it definitely has a unique quirk to it and in the first few chapters the artist can't seem to decide on what hair style and colour to give the girls. By chapter three however Noboe and Chika have dark hair, Miu ginger and Matsuri a kind of weird mixture of black and white which is apparently natural and genetic. I do know a few guys that have this condition also but I still find it pretty funny that the artist picked out such a unique characteristic.

Other stuff

In between chapters the girls are drawn in different outfits depending on the season which is pretty unusual as in other anime and manga the characters rarely change their outfits at all, for instance take a look at pokemon, tenchi muyo, naruto, dragon ballz and practically every other anime/manga which is popular at the moment. This is pretty cute though and made me appreciate the artists work all the more.

The back also contains advertisements for other manga by the producer Tokyo pop and a warning that the manga reads backwards just like traditional manga. There are maybe 180 pages, it is given a 13+ rating due to alcohol and cigarette consumption but there generally isn't anything objectionable. I actually bought my copy in America for $9.99 but you could maybe pick it up in the UK for £6.99 or cheaper depending if you buy online or not. I think if you were trying to get you girl friends into anime or manga this would be a good one to start on.

Apologies if this review is a little disconnected but I am a bit sick with severe tonsillitis and have been banned from real work until I finish my medication.

Summary: A genuinely original manga!