Mieruko-chan, Vol. 1

見える子ちゃん [Mieruko-chan] #1

by Tomoki Izumi

A normal girl was living a normal life—until she wasn’t.

One day, she could see…everything. What’s a girl to do when hideous monsters appear no matter which way she turns?

And on top of that, nobody else can see them!
Obviously, there’s only one thing that makes sense—ignore them.

Kinda hard to put theory into practice, though, when
the ghosts know she’s watching…

Genres: Manga, Horror, Graphic Novels, Humor, Supernatural, Fiction, Comics

150 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 22, 2019

Reviews

[Tim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mieruko- Chan is a funny little slice of life comedy, filled with silly antics and grotesque ghosts... wait, no, I'm not joking. You see Mieruko can see ghosts. She tries her best never to acknowledge them (if she ignores them, sooner or later they go away), but sometimes that is extremely difficult.

This first volume gets three things majorly right. First off, it is funny. I genuinely laughed several times while reading it as Mieruko sees something and does her absolute best to ignore it... which leads me to the second. The ghosts are horrific. I mean seriously... wow. In a way this adds to the comedy as she has to look at these things and just keep moving on as if nothing is happening, but seriously, some of these are the things of nightmares.


(This is one of the easier going images from the first book. In other words, expect an emphasis on the horror side of this horror comedy)

Final thing it gets right is that extra chapter. I won't spoil it, but I will say it added a sentimental touch that was pulled off well, and didn't feel like a cheat.

My only real complaint is that I felt like the volume had a bit too much in terms of fan service, some of which was creepy in not just a a horror sort of way and was not particularly appreciated.

Still, all in all this has been a fun ride and never boring. I'll give the second volume a shot as well. 4/5 stars.

[The Artisan Geek]

27/10/20
I had high hopes for this manga, but unfortunately those weren't met. That's not to see that this is a bad series -- in fact, I actually really like the artwork as well as the main character. I am however not too sure what this manga exactly is aiming to be. At the moment it's looking to be a slice of life type with the twist being that Mieruko can see yokai. If that's the case, then I don't expect this gag to hold up for a long time. I'm really hoping though that the plot will develop, although I fear that that won't be the case.

A small note was that there is quite some fanservice in the first two chapters or so, which I felt was kind of overkill, but after that, it definitely (and thankfully) died down.

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[Rue · Rating 3 out of 5]

This wasn't scary per say but rather a funny take on cryptic tales that we have seen often in movies and books. The artwork was impressive. All of the ghosts here were well drawn out which really makes you think how the MC can keep her composure during the jump-scare moments or to endure and swallow her screams is quite admirable 😂 I just wish the plot wasn't repatative. It uses the same concept over and over which is underwhelming to read. Another thing that you might want to know is how MC got her powers to see ghosts. Well, That isn't answer in this book. If you are looking for weekly comedic Horror then give it a go.

[James DeSantis · Rating 4 out of 5]

What could have been a silly dumb premises turned out to be a rather funny, and by the end, heartfelt supernatural tale.

Mieruko-Chain can see the dead. She just chooses to ignore them. She doesn't want them knowing that she can see them. Mostly because she doesn't want them following her around everywhere. But when she goes to school and notices a lot of spirits following her best friend around she tries to find a solution to stop them from showing up so much. Hence we get plenty of funny situations and a rather sad and tender moment by the very end that made me want to read more.

It helps the art is great. The spirits are disgusting and scary looking, making for both a spooky and funny story to tell. The story has some fanservice moments but nothing over the top. Panty/bra shots but it goes in context with what the girls are doing and it leads to, again, funny situations I don't want to spoil. I also really enjoyed the ending and gave me the feels all in 3 pages.

Overall, def want to see more from this series. A 4 out of 5.

[TheLesserReader · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.75

Unique plot, liked the characters but too much fan service. And the girls are a little sexualized in a way that as a girl it makes me uncomfortable.

[Mir · Rating 3 out of 5]

The unseen monster elements are pretty horrific, if you like gross horror. I like the concept, the kid suddenly able to see all these spirits(?) that were formerly invisible. So far no explanation or even much plot, just her being terrified and disgusted and trying to hide her reactions so they don't know she can see them.

I may or may not pick up the next volume -- based solely on premise I'd give the series more time to prove itself, but it was also way, waaay too fanservice for me. Like, not just the usual skirt-flip bs, but teen girls getting felt up by hideous monsters. Not my thing.

[Shannon · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5

Kinda dumb and a bit annoying with the fanservice and her always crying about seeing the monsters, but the monster designs are pretty creepy. I just hope she finds a way to either get rid of them or interact in some way other than crying and being scared all the time because that'll get old real quick.

[Ali Ebrahimi · Rating 3 out of 5]

خیلی یهویی میکو شروع به دیدن هیولا ها میکنه و اینکه اصلا پیش زمینه ای براش نذاشتن عجیبه ولی در کل داستان روند خوبی پیدا کرد حالا برم بقیه ولوم ها رو بخونم ببینم چی میشه

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is another manga that started as a web serial on twitter, which at first sounded very odd to me, but apparently a number of amateur Japanese creators have made their way into pro publishing this way. Our story: Miko is a high school girl who can see weird horror monsters. She desperately tries to not respond to them so that she can come across as an ordinary girl to others, and that can be quite difficult at times. This setup sounds somewhat like Natsume's Book of Friends but is definitely its own thing.

It's quite cool to see how this story's conception evolved from its first episode to the end of this first volume. It starts off rather fanservice-y with lots of panels featuring Miko and other girls in their underwear, etc. By the end of the volume the stories (and the "camera") have become much more sympathetic, both to Miko herself and the characters around her. The comedy got better, too. My partner has the next two volumes, and I will definitely be checking them out to see where things go from here.

[Rereader · Rating 2 out of 5]

While I appreciate the concept of making yokai scary again rather than the cutesy iterations seen in most yokai manga, this first volume falls flat for two reasons. One, the completely unnecessary fan service and two, the repetitive structure. The fan service in this volume is the kind that makes me think, "I bet if the main character was a boy there would be no fan service". Not too offensive (at least by manga/ anime standards), but unnecessary and again makes me question whether this would be happening if the protagonist was a boy. With regards to the repetitive structure, while the last two chapters took different paths with the same formula, every other chapter was exactly the same: Miko is doing something mundane, she discovers there's a yokai, she tries to avoid it, shenanigans ensue. I understand that manga like these are going to be a tad repetitive, the fan service and the fact that I didn't find ANY of the punch lines funny made the repetition worse.


I borrowed the second volume so I'm going to at least read that one, but I doubt I'll continue with this series. It's just not for me.

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

Miko sees dead people - although not her therapist, which is unfortunate because they might have helped - and some other stuff that Freud would have had a field day with. Nobody else does, however, so she does her best to ignore them, which is kind of difficult when spirits keep showing up in the most unfortunate places.

Only that Sadako book keeps this from being the weirdest thing I read all week. I think this is meant to be a comedy, given most endings of the various chapters, and it’s amusing at points, but it’s also really bizarre. The stories follow a basic pattern of Miko hoping something doesn’t show up and then being discomfited when it inevitably does.

And it veers hard into some weird ecchi vibes at points, leaning into male gaze and posing and such. To my own surprise, I really liked Miko’s friend Hana, who overcomes her introduction as a giant pair of boobs to turn, if not into a fully realized character, then at least a clearly good friend. The two provide a cute contrast to one another.

It gets better as it goes. I didn’t love the initial chapters - I can go another lifetime without seeing spirits made entirely of hands copping a feel on somebody and them not noticing. As I alluded to, there’s a lot of odd sexual moments in the depiction of the spirits - there’s a story about a couple who clearly deserve one another that is... phew... yep. That’s sure a design.

Once Hana gets more invested in trying to get a little peace and quiet, it improves - there’s a story with a fortune teller that’s pretty predictable but I still liked a lot. The comedic timing in that one is pretty sharp.

Then there’s the last story, which takes what was done before this and uses it in a unique and genuinely surprising way. It continues the vein of discomfort but also injects some warmth and drama into it that I appreciated, while still being amusing. If the book maintains that vibe it’ll do okay.

3 stars - it has some rough patches but there’s a potential here that, if it can lay off fetishizing its characters as much, could lead to better things. And hey, a good surprise out of that last chapter counts for a lot. Definitely worth a second volume.

[Mehsi · Rating 4 out of 5]

A girl can see the most gruesome things in the world.... no one else can though. We see our girl try to manoeuvre through life and ignoring all the creepy things, because she knows (and we know) that acknowledging them is going to be even worse for her. Still, I felt so sorry for her as she does attract all sorts of creepy spooky gruesome stuff. *shivers* I wonder how long she can hold it up though, we do see her on the verge of a few breakdowns and I was just cheering for her to keep it up, not much longer, you can do it.
The contrast between her and her best friend is huge, but they are still the best friends, and I love how our girl is, despite being swamped by creepies, still making sure her friend is also safe and happy. And she can help out in a way.
Oh, and one chapter broke my heart. :(
The art is fabulous though, especially the creepy monsters are drawn very very very well, nightmare fuel.

Maybe I will write a longer review tomorrow/soon, for now this will do!

[Rod Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

An initially cool take on the "I see dead people" genre has Miko "Mieruko-chan" Yotsuya suddenly begin seeing monsters, demons, and spirits that are invisible to everyone else. The only way she can cope and keep from attracting their attention is to pretend she doesn't see them. And most of the book is just her seeing a new gross monster and ignoring it. Over and over. One search for a totem to ward them off doesn't really go anywhere, and then we're back to ignoring.

In addition to the repetition, there's some low-key fan service of the high school girls.

I was ready to two-star this and put it aside, but a cutting little twist at the end has me curious to see if the creator is actually ready to pick a direction for the story.

[Amber · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was alright.

A little too ecchi for my taste, but I will probably check out more of the series. The plot also became super repetitive after awhile. I mean we get it you hate this gift/curse (however you want to see it), its the same thing with avoiding eye contact and internal screaming. It got old and this was a short manga, so I am hoping I don't get burnt out too quickly from this series.

What I did like were the instances where Mieruko uses her ability to help out in particular situations. If the story evolves into more of that, then I will probably continue.

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

This begins very differently than it ends and it's neat to watch the creator's idea of what he wants the story to be evolve over the course of the book. Definitely worth a second volume.

[david Wood · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading this as a book of the month. And I really like the concept of if I ignore it then it will go away my only worry is where dose the story go from here but I want to find out.

[Dandy ˙ᵕ˙ · Rating 3 out of 5]

so much sexualization shoved into one short little volume. kind of astounding. anyway, interested and will pick up later volumes

[Tatiana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh I quite enjoyed this.

It's about a high school girl who can see ghosts but the spirits are very frightening and show up everywhere. They dont seem to want anything but I could feel the main character's stress from all these encounters!

She just tries to ignore them but it's so hard when they're everywhere! Looking forward to the next volume.

And the art style is really nice too.

[Ladz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Content warnings: Ghosts, body horror, groping, disturbing imagery

This manga might be my new favorite thing. It follows a girl, Miko, as she goes about her daily life with one major problem: she can see ghosts. They are not friendly, and no one else around her can interact with them. Sometimes it’s funny, other times it’s horrifying, and I am so interested in where this story is going.

The ghost designs are so excellent. The art style really balances the slice-of-life and the ghostly terrors. They’re so inventive, and each one has me both terrified and unable to look away. The page-by-page jump scares are exquisite. I really enjoy Miko and Hana’s friendship, they do every day girl things that leave me convinced they are girlfriends.

There is a brief introduction of rules and lore, with the breaking spirit beads and visits to mediums. It’s light in this first volume, and I really hope it gets explored.

[Adam Bogert · Rating 2 out of 5]

Goodreads says 2 stars means "it was ok," and that seems a fair review here. I was hooked into checking this out for a fun premise and good art. The book is well-drawn but the first 40% or so is distractingly fanservicey (given that the two main characters are underage girls).

The monster designs are appropriately creepy, selling the "what if you opened your locker and something straight out of Junji Ito was sitting there staring back at you" vibe pretty well. Miko's largely successful efforts to feign apathy are entertaining, occasionally eliciting a genuine laugh.

Strictly speaking, the book delivers on its premise: deadpan comedy with injections of horror. There's just not a whole lot else going on here. The book saves its most interesting moment of genuine characterization for a final bonus chapter, but otherwise Miko feels less like a character than an obligatory vehicle for the author's concept. Ultimately I'm not sure I got much more joy from actually reading the book than I got from just reading its description. So, yeah: it was ok.

[Mercedez · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mieruko-chan Vol. 1 is a mildly comedic look at one high school girl’s battle to stop seeing horrific monsters everywhere. While the premise is funny, the comedy is average. Additionally, the prominent amount of fan service may not suit every reader’s tastes, and the lack of genuine horror may not give horror fans thrills and chills. Still, there’s an audience for this series: here’s to new readers finding it!

Full Review: https://bit.ly/2JEpALR

[connie]

is it necessary? the over-sexualisation of teenage girls and their friendships? just because you want to play off a girl getting groped and assaulted by a fucked up ghost as a joke?

if men are so desperate to make boob jokes just age-up characters and make them actual grown women instead of 14-18 year old school girls whose position in the narrative helps them get their rocks off.

[Nore · Rating 4 out of 5]

I could do without the panties and lacy bras visible through the clothes (it gets slightly better by the end of the first volume), but other than that, this is a fun series with some truly spooky monster designs. I keep thinking the next one can't be as gruesome, right? I'll get used to them, right? But much like Mieruko herself, I find myself just as startled by the next one.

[Cee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not entirely what I was hoping for, and much more fan-service than I anticipated, but it is promising. This is a comedy about a girl who see scary/gross-looking ghosts and has to pretend she doesn't.

[J. Fyodorovna · Rating 2 out of 5]

Idea buena, pero por algún motivo el autor decide sexualizar a menores de edad. Además, las chicas son inverosímiles, hablan de sí mismas como lo haría un p4j3ro de mediana edad.

[Olivia · Rating 2 out of 5]

Could’ve been interesting if it was so weirdly sexualized. Like literally would’ve been an interesting creepy story with out the weirdo sexual shit

[Rafia Rahman · Rating 5 out of 5]

অতিপ্রাকৃত সত্ত্বা নিয়ে মশকরার দরুন যদি শাস্তি হিসেবে প্রতিদিন তাদের মুখোমুখি হতে হয় তাহলে কেমন হবে?

মিকো প্রায়ই তার ছোট ভাইয়ের সাথে টিভিতে হরর সিরিজ দেখে যদিও তার এসব ভুতপ্রেত ভালো লাগে না। একদিন স্কুল থেকে ফেরার পথে বুঝতে পারে তার কীচেইন ব্যাগের সাথে নেই। খুঁজতে স্কুলে চলে যায় সে এবং হারিয়ে যাওয়া কীচেইন পেয়েও যায়। হঠাৎ মনে হয় কেউ ছিল আশেপাশে! বাড়ি ফেরার পথে বান্ধবী হ্যানার সাথে কথা বলার সময় ফোনে নিজের বিকৃত ছবি দেখে চমকে ওঠে। কিছু বুঝে ওঠার আগেই হাজির হয় বিভৎস এক প্রেতাত্মা! এই ঘটনার পর থেকেই বদলে যায় মিকোর জীবন। প্রতিদিনই আশেপাশে প্রচুর অতৃপ্ত আত্মা দেখাতে থাকে। কিন্তু সিদ্ধান্ত নেয় প্রেতাত্মাদের বুঝতে দিবে না যে সে তাদের দেখতে পাচ্ছে। সারাজীবন কি মিকো প্রেতাত্মাদের পাশ কাটিয়ে যেতে পারবে? যদি কোনোদিন অতৃপ্ত আত্মাদের সাথে বিবাদ বাঁধে তখন?

অ্যানিমে সিরিজ দেখে শেষ করার পর মনে হলো "আদোও শেষ হয়েছে?" তাই জবাব খুঁজতে যেয়ে পেয়ে যাই মাঙ্গা। পুরো মাঙ্গা নিয়ে অ্যানিমে বানানো হয়নি। ১২ এপিসোডের শেষে জেন আর খুনির রহস্য আরও জটিল হয়ে গেছে মনে হয়েছে। সেকেন্ড সিজন কবে আসবে জানি না তাই মাঙ্গার শরণাপন্ন হয়েছি।

অদ্ভুতুরে আকৃতির ছোট-বড় প্রেতাত্মারা মিকোর আশেপাশে হানা দেয়। কিছু ভুত তো বারবার প্রশ্ন করে যে সে তাদের দেখতে পায় কিনা। দেখতে পাচ্ছে জানলেই ধরবে জাপ্টে তাই না দেখার অভিনয় করতে থাকে মিকো। ইউরিয়া যখন মিকোকে তার ক্ষমতা সম্পর্কে এনকাউন্টার করে এই অংশটা অনেক মজার। ইউরিয়া বারবার মিকোকে ভুল বুঝে মজার সব কান্ড করতে থাকে। কিছু মজার ভুতও আছে। সবচেয়ে বেশি হেসেছি মিকোর জন্য। প্রতিবার ভুতদের এড়িয়ে যাওয়ার জন্য নিত্য নতুন ফন্দি আঁটে। মিকো-হ্যানা-ইউরিয়ার ফ্রেন্ডশিপ বন্ডিং অনেক মিষ্টি। ওভারঅল মজার এক হরর সিরিজ।

[Agung Wicaksono · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bagaimana ya rasanya tiba-tiba bisa melihat makhluk halus dan menyaksikan mereka muncul di berbagai tempat yang kita lalui?

Itulah yang dirasakan gadis bernama Miko di manga ini. Ia tiba-tiba bisa melihat sosok makhluk halus di sekitarnya yang kebanyakan memiliki wujud mengerikan. Ia belum bisa mengatakan hal itu kepada orang-orang terdekatnya karena khawatir mereka tidak bisa menemukan jalan keluar dan malah menambah rumit keadaan. Selain itu, Miko masih berusaha untuk menyembunyikan kemampuan anehnya ini supaya para mahkluk halus tidak tahu bahwa ia bisa melihat mereka. Dari kejadian itu, Miko sering terlihat pucat ketika tiba-tiba saja ada makhluk halus muncul atau menempel di badan orang-orang yang ia temui. Cukup mengerikan ketika saya memposisikan diri sebagai Miko .

Meskipun begitu, di volume ini belum dijelaskan penyebab kenapa Miko tiba-tiba bisa melihat makhluk halus. Jadi, usaha yang ia bisa lakukan adalah dengan membeli benda yang dianggap sebagai pengusir hantu, seperti "prayer beads" berbentuk gelang.

[Sandra Girard-Demontigny · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️

Quelle série étrange. Je suis confuse, intriguée et j'ai peur à la fois. Je ne pourrais pas vivre dans la peau de Miko dix minutes sans craquer. J'ai hâte de voir comment elle va gérer la situation dans le future. Elle ne peut pas vivre ainsi toute sa vie...

What a strange series. I'm confused, intrigued and scared all at the same time. I couldn't live in Miko's shoes for ten minutes without cracking up. I can't wait to see how she handles the situation in the future. She can't live like this all her life...

[Greg · Rating 4 out of 5]

4/5 This a fun horror manga. It’s different and very weird. A horror and slice of life manga wrapped in one. Mieruko-chan is a high school girl who can see apparitions. Not friendly Casper ghosts but Junji Ito hellscape apparitions.

Mieruko goes through her life ignoring the beasties out of fear that if she lets on that she can see them they will follow her or interact with her.

Creepy ghosts, cute girls, and a dash of comedy make this a fun light hearted horror tale. Some people will mention the fan service but it’s not over abundant though honestly I’m the wrong person to comment since I love it.

Our cute haunted Mieruko-chan on the cover of volume 1.

Read for The Manga Squad. Manga of the Month October 2021

Read 10/1/21