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This is more of a first reaction, rather than a full review. I will update it as the story progresses.

Red Sprite is a manga that started in SJ right after Bleach ended, yet it received close to zero hype, thus not many people have heard of it. The author, Yagi Tomohiro, is also relatively new to the manga industry, having only drawn one more series for SJ, which never took off and ended after 20 chapters. It's safe to assume that the expectations for this series are not set too high.

STORY: I was pleasantly surprised by the story. The mangaka has managed to create ... a unique setting, which is a huge plus in today's saturated shounen industry. In only 11 chapters he has managed to create a solid world and has given the reader enough information, so as to prevent confusion, while also not giving out too much. The ordeals thundercore humans face are also very realistic, hence the main cast's troubles stick with the reader.

The progression of the plot is also a potential selling point for this series: this series is quite fast paced. For example, the main character doesn't start off as a total weakling as in other popular shounen. Instead, the first arc begins after a time skip, during which the MC has acquired enough strength to be able to protect himself and his crewmates.

The first arc is both unique and standard. That sounds contradictory at first, but while the premise of the arc is the search for the protagonist's childhood friends, the way the mangaka goes about developing it is different to what we've seen in most other manga so far.

As for complaints I have with the story, I guess I'm not entirely sure where exactly it is headed at this point. Sure, the protagonist has set a goal for himself, but since it's different to the goals of other shounen protagonists, I can't see where this is going. That might be a huge advantage to this series, but the mangaka is treading on new ground, which means that there isn't a set recipe he can follow. Instead, everything depends on his skills as a writer, something which he hasn't proved yet.

CHARACTERS: There is not much to say about the characters at this point, since it's too early. The main character is a classic shounen protagonist, somewhat similar to Luffy in my opinion, since he is quite strong, confident and immature, yet has those few moments where he exhibits unexpected maturity. There is a relatively large cast of characters, but most of them haven't got enough time yet, so I can't comment on them. Two people that stand out are his two childhood friends. They have been fleshed out quite well for the time being.

ART: In the beginning the art was average. It wasn't bad, but it left no impression on me. I'm happy to say that lately I have seen steady improvement and certain panels, where the mangaka "flexes his muscles", were very impressive. I can see this turning in a very good looking manga in the future.

(I'm not in the position to write a paragraph about enjoyment yet. This is too early to judge)

OVERALL: I think this series shows a lot of promise and I hope it turns into something great. However, I can't be sure about it for two reasons: First of all, it hasn't got much attention. That's very scary, since this could indicate a premature cancelling of this series, which would be a huge shame. Secondly, I feel that, while it has the potential to become a relatively popular series in SJ, there is also a high chance of the author making a mistake developing the story, due to not following any paved path. This means that there is a high risk of it crashing and burning.

Ultimately, I feel this deserves more attention and would definitely recommend that you check it out.

Edit: Well, it got axed. Sad, but expected I guess.

This review is Spoiler Free. Some minor spoilers that couldn't be avoided have been marked accordingly.

So, where to start with this. I seriously wonder. You see, this happens to be my favourite manga so I have to provide sufficient reasoning as to why this is a 10/10 not only from my point of view but from any other reader's (or rather it should be). But first I have to provide you with some context on how I was introduced to the TG franchise and to be honest the start was rough. I was made aware of the anime by some friends, who dubbed it ... as "one of the best anime in existence", therefore it was only natural that I came to have unrealistically high expectations. Naturally I was let down... The anime was flawed. The first season was only the introduction to the TG universe so it couldn't possibly suffice just by itself and the second was bland and boring and ultimately failed to complement the first one. That's when I was informed that root(A) heavily diverged from the manga, hence I elected to give this franchise a second chance. Indeed it was the correct choice. So let me walk you through my experience of reading this manga.

SETTING: Most people reading this will already be familiar with it, but for those who aren't here is the gist of it: The story unravels in an alternative earth, where a species called Ghouls exist. They survive by feeding on humans and have superhuman strength, speed and regeneration and worst of all no human can distinguish a human from a Ghoul, so they naturally blend into society. Humanity has established an organisation named the CCG, that hunts and exterminates such threats. A young adult named Kaneki Ken is suddenly involved in an accident along with a Ghoul and receives its organs as transplants in order to survive. He then acquires all of their abilities and characteristics yet retains his human mindset, thus he finds himself lost in a world where he is neither Human nor Ghoul. The story follows him as he gets entangled in the Ghoul society and gradually learns more about their everyday life, ideologies, problems and views on humans.

This doesn't seem too original at first. There have been countless books/movies/manga/anime handling a similar setting. One could argue other similar stories have been set up better (for example Shiki). This makes it only harder for TG to stand out from the others, since what matters is not the setting itself but rather how well it handles this setting. Which brings me to my next point:

PLOT DEVELOPMENT: Tokyo Ghoul starts slowly at first (compared to the rest of the manga). Kaneki is introduced to the Ghoul society and is involved with its members, making new friends and naturally enemies as well. Furthermore he gets to clear up his misconceptions about Ghouls, which he previously viewed as mere monsters and experiences their soft and friendly side. Additionally he supports them in their encounters with the CCG, since he has also become their prey. This sums up the first half (or about 2/5) of the manga, which was adapted into the first season of the anime. Up to this point one could call TG rather uneventful. It's not that it doesn't contain action. This first half has its fair share of encounters with antagonists but all of this mostly serves an introductory role, it helps familiarise the reader with the world of TG and the characters and sheds light on the relationships between humans and Ghouls. Therefore this first part of the manga can't do it justice just by itself (This is the same problem I had with the first season of the anime). Whether it should be appreciated or not entirely depends on how the second part does.

Somewhere around the middle of TG, the story suddenly blows up, the action escalates, the characters undergo major changes and Kaneki gets even more involved with Ghouls, while also setting concrete goals for himself. That's when the seemingly mainstream so far plot of TG makes a complete turn and decides to do away with convention. Gore, drama and violence all go up a notch and TG adopts a darker style than usual. The second half focuses on Kaneki's attempts to protect the people around him and to find out more about himself. That's when the pieces start falling into place and many previously unanswered questions are resolved. All of this development finally leads up to:

THE ENDING(minor spoilers): As you would expect from a person who considers some of his favourite anime to be Fate/Zero, Psycho Pass and NGE I like/adore dark endings. I like when the whole world of the main character collapses and they take a deep dive into a sea of despair. In a world where happy endings are the norm I just find such dark endings refreshing and realistic. Such is the case with TG. After an insane second half the story comes to a close (or does it?) with an epic battle that shakes the foundation of the entire TG cast. Words can't describe how well this was handled. TG's ending was an incredible climax with heavy symbolism and an impressive monologue. Well, actually this isn't really the ending of TG as a franchise but rather marks the end to a certain chapter in Kaneki's life. The story continues in the sequel Tokyo Ghoul:re.

THE CHARACTERS: The main character, Ken Kaneki is a shy introverted college student. He is empathetic and wishes for his and his friends' well-being. (Minor spoilers following) Or that is how he appears to be in the first half (and in root(A)). However, in contrast to most mainstream shows' main characters he has depth, real depth. Kaneki errs to the side of borderline(?) psychopathy, he doesn't just have a dark past in order for the reader to sympathise with him. As the story progresses we get to learn how his problems are rooted deeply within his psyche. He turns from the usual dull protagonist we have got sick of encountering into a multi-dimensional tragic character with complexity. (You can safely keep on reading from this point onward)

While I could spend a long time characterising the rest of the TG cast I opted not to; many people would argue that they also read/(watch) TG for certain characters aside from Kaneki such as Hide or Touka, the truth is however that he is the main driving force of the show. Sure, the cast of supporting characters is stellar but most of them follow an archetype and don't deviate considerably from it so I will just concisely describe them in short sentences. Hide is the usual cheerful companion of the main character with the only difference being that he is really intelligent. Touka is a tsundere with a rough childhood lacking the usual romantic element that we encounter in male protagonist-tsundere relationships ([Spoiler]I know people will get flustered over this but there haven't been almost any indications of a romantic relationship between the two), Hinami is a kind, younger sister-type character just with a really tragic past and Amon is a righteous, kind hearted character but with an actual fully functional brain (in contrast to many kind hearted characters in other series, who are depicted as retarded for some reason)

THE ART: Overall the art of Tokyo Ghoul is praiseworthy. I am by no means a manga art expert but in most manga I've read so far you can spot patterns when it comes to characters' faces that are similar (that becomes apparent in less popular manga like Gokuku No Brynhildr or Katekyo Hitman Reborn) That is not the case in this manga. Characters' faces have unique characteristics and shapes, which makes it so much easier to distinguish between them. Additionally the author has a good perception of perspective and how to work with it. It is a common occurrence in TG for drawings in one panel to overlap with another panel, which gives the drawings motion. A possible problem for some people would be the fact that occasionally some panels require some interpretation for the reader to fully comprehend. This might have to do with some scenes being drawn in a complicated or oftentimes ambiguous manner but also due to symbolism (or both). This ties in with the next segment.

SYMBOLISM: TG as a manga is full of hidden symbols. As previously stated one might need to reread certain pages/chapters in order to understand what exactly is going on and they might still miss hidden clues. This could be either imagery or even how certain people act or behave on certain occasions. It is commendable how far ahead the author plans some of these. There have been many cases, where things foreshadowed multiple chapters ago were addressed, which had totally slipped my mind on my first read. (SPOILER: An example would be Kaneki's mannerisms when lying) Moreover, as in many works of Asian culture one can trace a lot of references to the Yin-Yang. Indeed after having read the first three volumes of TG one could picture the human side as Yin, comprised mostly of good but also of some bad people (yeah I know this is a really generic term but you'll get the point if you read up to the third volume) while ghouls represent Yang, mostly evil beings feeding on humans but with exceptions. One could talk all day about the hidden symbols in Tokyo Ghoul so I'll stop here.

CONCLUSION: One would ask me at this point: “But, you had complaints with this one. How come you award it with a 10? Isn't it meant for the best of the best?” I would like to address this before wrapping up my review. First of all, nothing is perfect. Everything is allowed to have flaws, or rather it must have flaws. This is all due to perspective. (Such a wonderful word indeed!) A merit from one's point of view is a flaw from the opposite. Managing to do something one way means failing to do it the other way. Therefore some of its flaws can be forgiven according to that logic. I didn't mind that some side characters didn't get enough time or complexity because that allowed the manga to delve deeper into others' personalities and back-stories. One could also argue that the slow start of TG constitutes a problem, however I have reached the conclusion that it's necessary. One could not appreciate the second half of TG if it weren't for the first because it establishes a solid foundation for the rest of the story to base itself on. A work without foundation will ultimately fall apart. Thus I deem it necessary. And also I've grown quite fond of it after rereading it a couple of times, especially after having noticed several cases of foreshadowing of events to come.

To sum it all up: This is certainly one of the best manga or pieces of storytelling in general I've encountered. Therefore I award it with a 10/10. I would recommend it to almost anyone. I am of the opinion that TG can be appreciated by most people, even if you aren't particularly fond of symbolism, psychology or sociology you can still appreciate the Horror or Action elements of the series. I think everyone can find some form of enjoyment in TG. In any case, I hope you enjoy reading the manga as much as I did if you elect to do so and thank you for reading my review up to the very end. I hope to see you for Tokyo Ghoul;re.

PS: Please stay away from the anime. Really...