:REverSAL

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I randomly found this manga and didn't had high expectations from the start, but it was actually better than i thought it would be.

Concept of the story is quite original, even a little funny: geisha dreaming of becoming a hero of justice (quite different from which would person expect when seeing those elegant women). Plot starts when geisha in the question accidentally, not knowing, registers for the survival game in a parallel Kyoto, and has to kill zombie like inhabitants.

Action and art were fairly good executed, but due to so little chapters story and characterisation of characters were lacking, even not considering the lenght of ... this series, i must say that the story developed from concept is a bit plain. This is fine work for easy afternoon light read that doesn't require any of the mental endavour, not waste of time, but also not something you would remember reading after a year or so.

One Line Summary:
:Reversal is good manga if you want one with a strong female lead and a survival-horror story with an interesting set up.

What is it about?
There is a real world and a secret world which is the "reverse" of the real world. In this world, a survival game is occuring and our girl Ayame has been sucked into it.

It's another survival game with thrown in supernatural horror. It's unique due to the setting (Kyoto) and we get a sneak peek of the lives of geisha. Not many mangas feature geisha and not really in this modern setting or genre. There are not ... a lot of twists but the story draws you in enough to make you want to find out the cause of all this (and if a certain character gets their comeuppance).

Who is in it?
Ayame Matsuyuki, a geisha in training is our main character. She is an optimistic and happy which is supposed to contrast this dark scenario. She gets serious when she needs to and is not annoying with her optimism. If anything, you can see why others find her so likeable - she breaks down people's walls easily.

As for other characters, we get a back story on Ayame Koizumi, another player in the game but not a full back story on anyone else really. The other characters compliment Ayame and the story but they are just stock really: Koizumi is the cold loner girl, Takayaki is the coward with a heart of gold, etc.

Is it pretty?:
The artwork is clean. I can follow easily what's going on in the fight scenes. The characters are attractive (as in nice to the eye).

Would you recommend it?
Yes, I would. The art is crisp and well done, the story changes up the survival game genre a bit and Ayame is a good lead.

I randomly stumbled upon this manga and the art style, female main character and horror theme peaked my interest.

Story: 7/10
On the one hand, the story is quite original. It takes elements from quite a number of universes and create a "coherent" one with it (real life zombies, video game, parallel world etc...). Moreover it takes places in a world not often linked with such themes (modern world but with dissonant elements: geisha etc...).
On the other hand, this work is quite short and I think the story does not get enough time to be developped and even with the twists I had some difficulties to stay ... focused on it.

Art: 9.5/10
I am not really objective on this point, but this is the exact art style I love: perfectly clean, not too much details or too few. Actually some elements are really detailed and some others are just simple clean shapes. Maybe a little bit too focused on the characters and not often enough on the environnement. Nevertheless it creates a great atmosphere.

Characters: 7/10
Good points: strong female lead, which is not that frequent, and, linked to the previous part, really good characters design in my opinion.
Bad point: since the story is quite short the characters do not get enough de development, it's harder to relate to them.

Enjoyment: 6.5/10
I liked this universe but I found it a little empty (as stated twice before, maybe due to the story lenght I think). That is the kind of creating I will remember as something I liked and found artistic but that will not leave a deep souvenir.

Overall: 8/10
I recommend it as I really liked it: it has a decent story and characters but especially a good athmosphere and a great art design even if not really original (problem is: art style appreciation is really dependant on the person)