Black Bird (manga)

Black Bird (ブラックバード) is a Japanese supernatural shojo manga written and illustrated by Kanoko Sakurakoji. It has been serialized by Shogakukan in their Betsucomi magazine since 2007. It depicts the life of a high school girl who can see supernatural beings. Black Bird received the 2009 Shogakukan Manga Award for shōjo manga.

In 2008, Viz Media announced they had licensed the series for an English release of the series in North America. The first chapter was previewed in their now-defunct Shojo Beat magazine and the first volume of their version was released on August 4, 2009.

The series has been adapted into a drama CD as well as a light novel.

Plot
From Viz:

There is a world of myth and magic that intersects ours, and only a special few can see it. Misao Harada can see these magical realms and frankly, she wants nothing to do with it. She'd just as soon ignore her special gift in favor of having a normal high school life and maybe getting a boyfriend. One day, Misao is attacked by a demon, and her childhood friend Kyo suddenly re-appears to save her and tend to her cuts - with his tongue! It turns out Misao is the bride of prophecy, whose blood gives power to the demon clan who claims her. But most demons want to keep her power for themselves - by eating her! Now Misao is just trying to stay alive... and decide if she likes it when Kyo licks her wounds

Protagonists

 * Misao Harada (原田 実沙緒)
 * The daughter of a housewife and a scholar, Misao is an energetic and very straight-forward girl, often asking embarrassing questions, only realizing their frankness too late. Misao has been plagued with the ability to see monsters ever since birth. Because of her ability, she was never able to make any friends until she met Kyō. Misao became extremely attached to Kyō, but because she is the "Immortal Fruit", she can only be the bride to the head of the family, Kyō's brother. In hopes of making her his bride, Kyō left Misao's side in order to become the head of the family. Ten years later, Misao, now in high school, ignores the monsters she sees in order to live a normal high school life. The monsters were harmless until her sixteenth birthday; on the day she turned sixteen, a monster disguised as her senpai attacked her. Before she was injured any further, Kyō came to save her and healed her wound by licking it.


 * Misao is referred to as "Princess" by The Eight Great Tengu because she will eventually become Kyō's bride. Ever since Kyō started training to become the head of the family, he has told them countless stories about Misao. As a result, The Eight Great Tengu saw her as a younger sister and treated her like family right from the start.


 * Misao has very little memory of what happened in her past because Kyō's brother sealed her memories away. She had originally wanted to recover her memories because the time she and Kyō spent together as children was very important. However, she soon came to realize that, even without those memories, she had fallen hopelessly in love with Kyō. She is very grateful that Kyō never gave up on her and continued to love her during the time they were apart. It is because Kyō put in enormous effort that they are able to be together now.


 * However, as the story progresses, Misao slowly starts to realize what it takes for them to remain together. Because Misao is the "Immortal Fruit", monsters will never stop coming after her. After Kyō kills off the Youko heir, Misao, although terrified, quickly understood that this was just the beginning. In order for them to be together, Kyō would have to continue to dirty his hands. This inadvertently means she cannot get close to anyone. Misao would inevitably have to leave her family and friends behind. Although she cares deeply for her family and friends, she is also very much in love with Kyō and this dilemma has caused her much frustration.


 * Kyo Usui (烏水 匡)
 * A perverted but powerful Tengu with black wings. Kyo met Misao during their childhood. His older brother, Sojo, was supposed to be clan leader, but Kyo surpassed him for Misao's sake (as only a clan leader may seek her as their bride). In order to stay close to Misao, he moved back to his house next door to her's and took a job as a math teacher at her school. He is always protecting her and healing her wounds. In his demon form, his hair grows longer and he wears a mask that looks like a crow's beak. Kyo took Taro under his wings to train him and make him stronger after Taro was abused by Sojo. He is about 20 years old.

The Eight Great Tengu

 * Taro (太郎)
 * A six year old Tengu who helps keep house and trains under Kyo. Taro has two younger brothers. He is constantly bullied by Kyo, however he has an undying devotion to Kyo and thinks nothing of his cruelty. He frequently sobs when Misao rejects his food or Kyo tells him Misao hates his food. Taro has a tendency to walk in on moments when Kyo and Misao are either kissing or about to have sex, irritating Kyo severely. He does his best to make Kyo happy. He calls Misao "My Lady" anticipating her marriage to Kyo one day.


 * Jirou


 * Saburou


 * Sagami

The youngest of the tengu and the younger brother of Sagami
 * Houki


 * Buizen

The oldest of all the vassels. He's the most mature out of the group.


 * Zenki

Is the only tengu with glasses.The second youngest of all eight of them.


 * Soujou

Youko

 * Tadanobu Kuzunoha


 * Shuuhei Kuzunoha

Shirohebi

 * Kensuke Doujouji


 * Kiyo Doujouji

Other

 * Renko Jounouchi

Manga
Shogakukan released the first of the series' bound volumes on January 26, 2007. As of March 26, 2010 there are 10 volumes and the series is still running in Betsucomi. The manga is licensed in North America by Viz Media as part of their Shojo Beat imprint. It is also licensed in Taiwan by Tong Li Publishing.

Drama CD
Columbia Music Entertainment released Black Bird drama CD on the January 21, 2009. Artists on the drama CD include Kouki Miyata, Kishō Taniyama, Akira Ishida, Hiroyuki Yoshino, Takahiro Sakurai, Yuko Kagata, Takehito Koyasu, Kyoko Hikami and Mikako Takahashi.

Light Novel
The series was also adapted as a light novel, titled Black Bird - Missing- (BLACK BIRD ―MISSING―), released on March 26, 2010 (ISBN 9784091332707).

Reception
The sixth volume of Black Bird was ranked 12th on the Japanese Comic Rankings between October 28 and November 3, 2008. The seventh volume was ranked 4th in its first week, selling 75,689 copies. The eighth volume was ranked in 3rd place during its first week and then fell to 27th in the second week of publication. Volume 9 of Black Bird sold a total of 100,014 it its first two weeks of publication, debuting at 11th place on the charts, then falling to 20th place in its second week. The tenth volume of the series debuted on the Oricon charts in 14th place, selling a total of 51,172 copies. The first volume was ranked 4th on the manga section of the New York Times Best Seller list on September 3, 2009. The second volume was ranked 7th on November 26, 2009, 9th on December 3, 2009 and 8th on January 7, 2010. Black Bird was awarded the 2009 Shogakukan Manga Award for shōjo manga.

Anime News Network's Casey Brienza commends the English edition of the manga for being "amusing and sexy. Good if you want to put your critical sensibilities into neutral with something trashy" however she criticises the manga with the comment "its creative horizons are that of a bodice ripper. Don't expect the next modern manga masterpiece." Katherine Dacey, writing for The Manga Critic, criticises Misao for not defending herself even as "demons slash her throat, poison her, push her off rooftops, and slam her against walls." Dacey comments that "younger readers may find [Kyo] sexy, but older readers will see him for what he is: a wolf in knight’s clothing, posing as Misao’s savior while manipulating her for his own selfish interests."