Grimm’s Manga Tales by Kei Ishiyama lives up to its Manga status. While some of the titles might be familiar, the stories themselves only have a nod to the original Grimm. In Little Red Riding Hood there is a romantic interest between the handsome wolf and Little Red. Grandma was never in danger and the dear grand daughter has to intercede to save her true love’s life from the woodcutter’s axe. There’s a happily ever after for the wolf and his savior. In Hansel and Gretel, the handsome Hansel finds true love with the witch and poor Gretel fears that the beautiful woman who is keeping her brother “captive” wants to fatten him up to eat, while the two lovebirds have something else in mind. Hansel finally realizes that he owes Gretel a better life, so he guides her home via those convenient shiny stones he dropped, their pockets filled with gems from their generous benefactor. The evil stepmother is gone and their dad, who had been searching for them in vain, tearfully welcomes them home overwhelmed by their new found wealth. Additional stories feature Rapunzel, The Two Brothers, The Twelve Hunters, Snow White, The Frog King, Puss in Boots, and the Singing, Springing Lark – all containing Manga style twists. For example, Rapunzel’s companion in the tower appears to be female, although there must have been some male contact because the formerly long haired beauty ends up pregnant.
I found this ebook physically difficult to read. One reason was the online format which cut off the ends of panels leaving off important parts of the story, plus it was hard to make out the rich illustrative details. In addition, the condensed story lines were complex and even the well known fairy tales were changed just enough to be barely recognizable. Without any narratives, the dialogue and art work had to be interpreted to determine the plot. Sometimes this was so challenging it took away from the normal enjoyment found in a fantasy world where anything is possible. This volume would definitely be better purchased in paper format. Perhaps an expanded plotline for a few selected stories would have been a wiser choice instead of tackling such a broad inventory.
Three and a half stars and a thank you to Netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review. This review also appears on Goodreads.
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