Bride of Deimos Vol. 2

Akuma no Hanayome #2

by Etsuko Ikeda (Story), Yuuho Ashibe (Artist)

Continuing his search for a bride, Deimos stumbles across an underground palace whose female sovereign is also a demon. This new demon takes an immediate liking to Deimos and presents him with an ultimatum; if he doesn’t marry her she will indiscriminately kill the surface-dwellers. Has Deimos reluctantly found his new bride? Find out in Bride of Deimos #2.

Genres: Manga, Horror, Shojo, Komik, Comics, Demons

200 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1996

Reviews

[Hot Mess Sommelière ~ Caro]

We're still at the point in the story where he's just messing with her in the human world and she keeps getting drawn into bat shit crazy situations involving ghosts, demons, shape-shifters etc while adamant that he can never have her.

Not sure what he's doing can be called "trying" though. My pet theory is that he's just watching her grow up and making sure nobody gets close to her and whenever he shows himself it's mostly because he's bored and not because he's actively trying to seduce her.

[Kathleen]

Deimos' former lover returns...but will she win him back, or does Minako own his heart now? Does he even have a heart at all?

[Vex]

When I read this, I have to remind myself that it was written in the 70s, marketed as a horror drama for teenage girls, and was being printed in a magazine. There was only so much they could do with the stories.
With that being said, some of the stories feel rushed and silly, and also REALLY gruesome. The shojo lovers deserved to have the macabre stuff too though, so I’m happy to see Ikeda delivered. It always leaves me wondering what her and Ashibe’s mangaka and other inspirations were.
Deimos is a cold hearted ass but he looks like the VampireFreaks boi of my dreams.

[Mr Puddy]

I have read this series more than dozens of times ! Love it !

[Lynna]

The Bride of Deimos is one of my favorite manga series of all time. It's a shojo horror series from the 1970's so the art and the format may take a little getting used to for fans of newer stuff. The manga similar to other shojo horror series like the Petshop of Horrors and Dolls in that it really doesn't have an ongoing story. Shojo horrors tend to use a device that provides a framework for a bunch of more-or-less unrelated short stories. The Petshop of Horrors and Dolls use the creepy store setup so they can focus on the horrific fates of their various patrons. The Bride of Deimos is unique in that it uses the relationship between main characters, Minako and Deimos, to give its stories some coherency. The stories revolve around Minako, the people around her, and occasionally Deimos. Because of the nature of the genre, once you know the basic premise it isn't necessary to read the stories in order. In fact, as far as I can tell, the stories are in a different order in the original/bunko-ban Japanese version anyway. Take note that this series was never completed (it just stops at volume 17) and only the first seven volumes were translated.
The basic premise: Minako is an average school girl who is constantly visited by a demon/god named Deimos (the Greek god of terror). Deimos claims that Minako is the reincarnation of his imprisoned lover/sister, Venus. He threatens to drag Minako down to Hades/Hell so that her soul can be replaced with Venus. Then he develops feelings for Minako and so he, naturally, decides to terrorize her and her friends instead of killing her like he's supposed to. Venus is not pleased.

[Nina]

One of the most horror manga I've ever read. The scenes sound real and scary. The characterizations are great. I don't ship Demos/Venus, though.