Let’s not belabour the point - this remains as fan service forward and as utterly ridiculous as the last volume and the reason I’m giving it 3 stars is basically because the odd newness of it has worn off, but it hasn’t really changed course.
I feel like the mangaka’s personal mission is to assume you think you’ve seen fanservice and then just laugh and prove you wrong. From naughty nurses to Chloé’s absolutely ridiculous cat-girl fusion with Noel, this is just waiting for the next chance to flash some skin. This volume definitely skews a lot more towards Rosario+Vampire than the first.
But, whatever, this is silly fun action with all the trimmings. Kai has a tortured secret, a magical girl version of Shoggoth turns up (HP Lovecraft would roll in his grave at all of this and the story is all the better for it), Noel and Chloé’s fusion leads to him literally talking from their tail like a puppet and that form is incredibly cat-like, so Chloé can move fast for a brief period and then just collapses.
Chloé is what makes this series really work, along with her interactions with Kai and Noel. Having been a struggling actress for so many years, the promise of big rewards for her service to Arkham Bullet, which frames everything in video game terms for some isekai shorthand, turns her into a lunatic who chases after every dangerous assignment just for the promise of more cash.
Toss in some casual bisexuality, the appearance of the Reanimator, an incredibly expensive dinner party, and a tentacle fight that turns out to be probably the most chaste one in the history of all Japan, and you have a fun little ride.
We might not be seeing the birth of the shonen Lovecraft magical girl genre here, but that’s fine - this book is more than enough to give you all you’d want from such a ridiculous concept. Trashy, but certainly not in the bad way.
This volume was so good! We got to see our lovely trio work together more and start to mesh with each other. I always enjoy Noel and his cat antics. We do see a new person that works for the same institution, Arkham Bullet, that Cloe works for called the Reanimatorwho wants to make her into a zombie. They end up working together along with the Reanimator's latest creation, Shoggoth, to defeat a large black blob enemy. Overall, this was a really fun volume and I really enjoyed getting to see all the new characters in this volume. I'm looking forward to volume 3!
I enjoyed the first novel, so when the second volume was available on NetGalley - I had to read it! Since volume one left off on a cliffhanger, it made the start of this one even better. Chloe is the perfect vessel and two familiars have become super attached to her. When they possess her, she becomes Ghost Reaper Girl. She becomes a badass. She helps send ghosts back and even the director seems to have taken a shine to her. And... in this volume.. there's a hint at romantic entanglement! The intrigue. I love the art work - it's always tastefully rendered and well thought out.
I like how Chloe is this sought after/fought for being, yet she just shares whatever she has and remains blissfully happy despite all that happens. Action packed from start to end.
It's good. But it's to the point where I don't think I need to read any farther. Maybe I will... Idk. I just seems really simple and formulaic. Like I can predict where the story is headed. But we'll see.
I can see the growth of the author in their art style compared to Rosario+Vampire. I’m curious to follow the adventures of Chloe and her group of misfits 😂
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
The Story So Far.... When evil spirits escape from their jail in Hades, they return to the real world and plunge it into chaos. Meanwhile, unknown actress Chloé has hit a wall at age 28, until an encounter with ghost reaper Kai finds her falling into a role practically written for her-battling evil spirits! Chloé, Kai, and Noel visit Arkham Bullet to make the new job official, only to find out Chloé is wanted thanks to the video of her first fight going viral. After Noel takes a fatal attack from Nyarlathotep, Chloé orders him to possess her...
I'd heard very good things about Ghost Reaper Girl and have been patiently waiting for it to be translated into English. Interestingly, rather than the usual Manga reading style, the artist stated that it should read in the normal Western style of Left to Right.
Chloé Love is a struggling actress and has mostly portrayed corpses and murder victims. Whilst being eyed up by another lecherous producer, she suddenly finds herself being attached by mysterious ghouls. Brushing it off as fancy special effects, she leaves the producer wishing he hadn't tried it on and leaves the studio.
However, on her way home she is attacked again and realises something strange is going on. When a strange man turns up and saves her, Chloé finds herself being ogled once again. However, Kai Iod isn't your usual guy, he's come from Hades to bring back the escaped ghosts.
Needing a vessel to possess to be able to use his full powers, Kai explains to Chloé that she is very special and that is why the ghouls are after her. He also reveals he is a massive fan of her only significant film role in a flop called "Ghost Reaper Girl".
Having befriended another spirit, Noel, Chloé is introduced to Nyarlathotep, who heads the Arkham Bullet, an agency for all those who want to hunt stray spirits. When Nyarlathotep attacks, Chloé allows Noel to posses her in order to save him. Surviving the attacks, Chloé passes Nyarlathotep's test and becomes a certified ghost hunter for Arkham.
The H.P. Lovecraft themes ramp up in this volume. We are introduced to Herbert West: Reanimator, Shoggoth, and get hints of a possible arrival of Cthulhu.
I love this book just like I loved the first one. I am really enjoying this series. I love Chloe and how she will defend and fight for her familiars because she loves them and considers them like her family. Most importantly, I love how she does not give up easily like she will keep fighting for what she wants. So the Director says she wants to bring her on board the Arkham bullet and have her work for her. I do not trust the Director, Nyarla at all. She’s using Chloe to draw out the leader of all these evil spirits. Because the evil spirits are just puppets being used so in order to bring out the ones in charge she’s using Chloe as bait. She is sending her on the most dangerous missions so she can be even more desirable to the darkness. And meanwhile she’s working an assignment she meets this doll killer assassin and she’s dead but brought back to life by Dr West and he wants to kill Chloe to operate on her but Chloe ends up being so nice to Shogoth that the assassin doesn’t want to kill Chloe instead she works with Chloe and Chloe wants to be friends with her. And Chloe officially becomes Ghost Reaper Girl and they all have dinner on the director and Kai knows that the director is using Chloe he just doesn’t know why exactly. And Dr West warned the director that if she tries to hurt Chloe him and shogoth will turn against her in favor of Chloe. As the missions get more dangerous, Chloe becomes more skillful, so I am really excited to see where the series keeps going. My favorite character is Kai and I really love the fact that he’s so confident and cocky and just really sure of himself and his capabilities. I also love how protective him and Noel are over Chloe. I am so obsessed with the series and I love now that they have an assassin working with them so it’s like their group keeps getting bigger. Because Chloe is just that awesome and lovable. I have a bad feeling that the Director is going to regret using her because everybody is going to come to Chloe’s side and turn against the Director or so I think.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
With the cliff hanger at the end of last volume we get to see more on how Chloe's natural affinity of bonding with ghosts allows her to gain enhanced abilities and skills as she takes the critically injured Noel within herself. With the organization that she wanted to join wanting to arrest her for getting caught as Ghost Reaper Girl it is a test with her mewly acquired feline pawers to see if she can handle the threat facing the world at present.
Of course not everyone you work with is going to be nice to you as Chloe discovers on her first mission when reanimated human corpses attack Chloe, Noel, and Kai. It turns out we continue to see H.P. Lovecraft's universe step up in this series as we are intruded to Dr. West the Reanimator who enjoys enhancing and bringing the dead back to life. Sadly Chloe's unique body is high on the good(?) doctor's list of potential experiments and his favorite corpse Shoggoth is all to willing to help him and the organization has no problem with infighting. Thus when a powerful threat faces them all they will have to put aside their differences before they can bond in any meaningful way.
Certainly the artwork is quite nice and there is all sorts of fanservice for those that are seeking it out but after reading volume two I can with confidence say that Chloe is not just the main protagonist but also the heart of those that find themselves around her. Another thing I find fun about this series is even though it is not technically a magical girl manga that both Chloe and Shoggoth have the ability to transform for combat mode (though Shoggoth being a cold blooded killer transforms her arms into blades and can only say Tekeli no matter what she wants to express.) All in all fanservice aside (though honestly I have seen far worse) this is turning out to be a real fun series where everyone is a little villainous in one way or another (perhaps with the exception of Chloe unless you consider her keen motivation for money) but in the end of the day as bad as everyone can be they are fighting for a better day...most of the time. :)
I'm still not sure what to think of this manga. So much seems to lifted from Bleach that I keep expecting a story like Bleach, which I don't get, so I'm disappointed... Even though I know this isn't Bleach or Bleach related. (Can you tell I love Bleach??) Anyway, I digress.
The whole "we'll start as enemies but end up friends" thing plays out twice in a row essentially the same way - I like the theme of Chloe's heart and charm winning people over, but I hope this plays out with more variety in the future. The beautiful art and good parts of the story are dragged down by overt silliness and too-cartoony drawing or character goofing. The action sequences are amazing. Shoggoth's backstory is clearly, cleanly, and cleverly shown in art panels, and there's a subtle Lovecraft reference dropped that gives us a window into where the story is going. I also love the addition/homage to magical girls/transforming heroes. So all in all, I like it and don't like it at the same time. It took me longer to pay attention to read this (and I actually multiple read other manga and comics between the time I started and ended this volume), but I'm still curious to see what volume 3 will bring, especially with the Cult of Cthulhu making a likely entrance soon. It'd be cool to see Chloe gain another ally that she can transform with, too.
*I received an eARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
4/5
Here we go again. Ghost Reaper Girl, Vol 2. continues the story of Chloé Love, a minor actress who was down on her luck when she became entangled in an evil-spirit fighting world. It continues right where we left off in Vol. 1.
This series continues to be so fun in a ridiculous way. The new characters introduced were interesting and it’s fun to see Chloé staying true to herself in this cruel world.
The art is bonkers amazing. The action sequences? Amazing. The artist also draws Chloé in really cool poses, and the anatomy stays perfect. Insane. Even during the calm parts the art is absolutely beautiful. The character designs are great. I especially like how detailed Chloé is depending on the different forms she takes (ie. her cat eyes).
I’m still super down to continue reading this series. It seems like we’re really ramping up to a big showdown sometime in the future and I’m excited to see if there’ll be new characters and forms as well.
Reminder that this manga reads left to right (as per the authors request).
Volume two gets so much more into the action of Chloe Love being a ghost reaper. She needs another friend or acquaintance and learns more about her powers and how ghost reaping is like a video game. The more things she completes the more points she earns the more things she can afford. While this volume is not as heavy as the first one, you still have very sexual characters that are sexualized for no reason. And I just don’t really find myself enjoying it. This is more to do with the sexualization of the characters and less to do with the action sequences. There is actually a great story, but it is hidden under sexism and toxic masculinity. Therefore, I shall end this series with volume two.
After reading volume one of 'Ghost Reaper Girl' I was a little hesitant to continue this series simply because of Kai's weirdo "lolicon" bs... but thankfully this volume is way less creepy 😅 The art is gorgeous and this volume definitely takes a more action filled route where we get to see Chloe be a lil badass and I am here for it 🙌🏼
Totally obsessed with the director btw she could step on me and I'd ask her to do it again 🥰
Did it work? Did they pick you? Welcome to volume 2 of pick me fanservice girl er I mean Ghost Reaper Girl!
Listen its ridiculous, a little vapid and trying it's damndest to be a video game..wait is it a video game? Or did it get one? It wants one. However, the art is solid, I like a Reaper reverse harem and Chloé is kind of likeable so I bumped this to 3 stars.
I will continue? Hmm...yes ok I will.
3 hesitant continuations out of 5 magical girl Shoggoths
I think I actually liked this one better than the first volume! Chloe is beginning to take strides as the real-life Ghost Reaper Girl and has all the cool tech that comes with being a member of Arkham.
This volume really highlighted Chloe's incredible ability to read and understand people and spirits and to meet them where they are to draw out their full potential. I love that aspect of her character.
3.5 rounded up because of Akissa's art! Something about their use of those spots, dots, and splatters as well as white hatching screentones just gives GRG this HD quality feel. It's all the little flourishes that make the art pop. And when Akissa switches up his style for a panel or two. Omg. Its peak. With this volume we get West and his creation Shoggoth. The volume is still fairly monster of the week, even with a more firm arc/storyline with West, though it's moving to larger narratives which I'm happy for as once GRG leaves the monster of the week stuff it gets super good. The power system gets a bit more fleshed out here. It's a bit weird how game-y it is but it helps familiarize the reader with what's going on and it doesn't ruin or take you out of the immersion.
I received an eARC of this title through NetGalley in return for an honest review.
I thought this continued to be a fun read. Chloe begins her journey as a certified ghost reaper with her two spirit companions. It all starts off fun, but grows toward a greater plot line in this volume. I like that there is more to this story now than just a girl with an extraordinary gift. There are characters who are looking to use her either for experimentation or for something more nefarious.
I'm glad the story hinted at a greater plot than a simple slash and dash manga. (Not sure if that's a term but that's how I think of them). There seems to be more brewing behind the agency Chloe is now a part of. However, whatever seems to happen, Chloe continues to remain true to herself and make friends along the way. I think the first volume had a bit of a slow start to the main story, but the character development of Chloe was well worth the wait. I'm excited to see where this series goes.
Content Warnings: Violence, blood, gore, body horror, and injury.
A cute second volume where we get to see Chloe learn more about her new responsibilities as a ghost reaper. Action-packed and full of silly moments with the companions she met in volume one along with some new characters that I look forward to getting to know as the series continues.
Love this series to death. Bringing in the Great Old Ones did seem like a possibility with the director named nyarlathotep so I can imagine the story getting pretty crazy. I love Shoggoth and her teaming up with Chloe they make a great team. But the story that was the best in the book was the final one where they are eating out. I laughed my ass off lol.
So far, the story has gone along nicely, seeing a lot of chloe and how she is developing, with also slowly showing what might be coming along as potential antagonists. I'm still fully on board so far with this series! Curious at what will happen next!
Chloe really shines as the group leader, and so this volume is just really fun and cute! It was definitely a training volume, with (hopefully) the promise of more cool battles to go!
The feel and art style of this manga is radiant. The story is compelling where all you want is more. The characters are unique and complex as well as very attractive. I can't wait to read more.
Chloe fuses with Noel and becomes a cat-girl to out maneuver Arkham's Egyptian dommy-mommy Nyarlathotep. But it was just a test, she passed, Chloe is officially an Arkham agent with the code name "Ghost Reaper Girl" and we're moving on.
Time to hunt some evil spirits and meet some fellow operatives... who immediately want to kill her and we take a sharp left turn into Lovecraftian horror cameos. (Apologies, I did a little more digging and found out there's a lot of Lovecraft references in this series)
Also, I could not for the life of me figure out why this art looked so familiar. Then I saw the little bat in the afterward and remembered a friend of a friend who said he was looking for a complete set of Rosario+Vampire and also this series. So I finally looked at the author page and connected the dots. It all makes sense now.