VIZ MEDIA – @VIZMedia
CARTOONIST: Meca Tanaka
TRANSLATION: Tetsuichiro Miyaki
LETTERS: Deron Bennett
EDITOR: Nancy Thislethwaite
ISBN: 978-1-4215-7909-2; paperback (April 2015); Rated “T” for “Teen”
200pp, B&W, $9.99 U.S., $12.99 CAN, £6.99 UK
Meteor Prince is a shojo fantasy romance from mangaka, Meca Tanaka (creator of Pearl Pink). Originally published in the Japanese manga magazine, LaLa, the series focuses on an unlucky teen girl and the handsome alien prince who is totally in love with her. VIZ Media published Meteor Prince in North America as a two-graphic novel series, with the second volume just recently being released.
Hako Natsune, the “Queen of Bad Luck,” has yet another experience of bad luck. The President of the school's Occult Research Club draws a spell circle, hoping a ritual will help rid Hako of her bad luck. Instead, the spell summons a naked teen boy, who seems to fall from Heaven. He is Io, an alien prince from the planet, Yupita, and he declares that Hako is destined to be his mate! Does this mean that Hako's luck has changed?
As Meteor Prince, Vol. 2 (Chapters 6 to 10 to Final Chapter) opens, Io is determined to be a normal boyfriend, but Hako's bad luck is falling on him. Suddenly, a naked teen girl appears, as if dropped from heaven. Her name is Tania, and she is from the planet, Ciel. Tania declares that she is the one destined to be Io's mate, and she won't let Hako stand in her way.
After reading the first volume, I thought that the Meteor Prince manga seemed like a natural comic for me. As I wrote in my review of that volume, I have loved comedies featuring aliens who come to Earth (and also comedies featuring humans whisked into space). I was a fan of “My Favorite Martian” (1973-1975), a short-lived, Saturday morning animated series that was a follow-up of the live-action, “My Favorite Martian” (1963-1966).
Still, I was not too crazy about the first volume, but I really like Meteor Prince Volume 2, which turns out to be the final volume of the series. That's a shame. The story got stronger the more alien characters creator Meca Tanaka added and the more she showed readers of the wider universe. Ultimately, Meteor Prince, as a short shojo manga, won't be memorable to many readers (relatively speaking, of course), but judging by the second and final volume, it could have been.
B+
Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux
The text is copyright © 2015 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for syndication rights and fees.
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