Cautious recommendation: Himegami no Miko by Kaishaku

[leahandillyana]

Remember Kannazuki no Miko from 2004? This is a partial remake and partial spiritual successor of the manga, completed by the original authors this year. Wanna see how the years changed the story? Do Himeko and Chikane finally get a happy ending? Let’s dive in!


Kannazuki no Miko was a wild mix of genres – partially a school life/teen romance with the obligatory love triangle (somewhat deconstructed that the heroine is loved by both a male and a female character), partially a super robot action series with over the top antagonists typical of the genre, and partially a dark supernatural drama inspired by shinto traditions. It was a weird love it or hate it series, drastically different in its manga and anime incarnations. Regardless of which version of the story you prefer, it must be admitted that the art in the manga was not very good. Along the years characters named Himeko and Chikane appeared in a few Kaishaku series, perhaps most famous of them being Kyoshiro and Sora (which got a short anime!). However, in 2020 the creators decided to write a series that would be a proper remake of Kannazuki no Miko.

Himegami no Miko is 100% a dark supernatural romance. To appease a local god, two girls born on the same day must battle to death on their 16th birthday. Of course, this time our unlucky priestesses are Himeko and Chikane. Chikane has been preparing hard for the day her whole life, however a year before the fateful battle of the priestesses Himeko goes missing. Furious, Chikane hunts her down and easily finds her in Tokyo. Shockingly, the other girl agrees to be killed by Chikane – as long as Chikane becomes her girlfriend for the remaining year. From the get go the series cuts away the weirdest elements of the original and makes the fated battle of the priestesses something the readers know from the beginning rather than a shocking mid-story surprise, instead giving it a brand new shocking revelation. In my opinion, this works for the series’ advantage, letting the plot focus fully on the two heroines. The art is so pretty, with some panels being downright goregeous – however, it is also very, very horny 100% of the time. If you enjoyed Kannazuki no Miko, I recommend this series, it’s improved in every aspect and gives a satisfying conclusion to the story of the two characters. If you are a new reader, well, ymmv.

Comments

[iamrman]

It is difficult to tell just how pretty the art is supposed to be from the cover. I take it the cover art matches the interior art?

[leahandillyana]

Yes? In manga, the covers are always done by the artists of the manga proper. I couldn't post anything else because the manga was not released outside Japan to my knowledge and there's a ban on scanlations on Scans Daily.

[mastermahan]

I liked the anime of Kannazuki no Miko to a point. The fanservice was absurd, but it was interesting and weird and the romance had potential.

Then that happened.

Please tell me that doesn't happen again.

[leahandillyana]

No, there's no sexual assault in Himegami no Miko.