Because I'm the Goddess, Volume 1

I was in the bookstore and they had a sale bin. In there were a few manga not on regular shelves, and they were only a dollar, so I picked all the ones that were just the first volume- volume 1. I ended up with three. This was one of them. I'm not a liar and I will not lie to you now. The cover did not make me buy the book; the price did. In fact, I'm a girl. I just wanted to see if any of the sale books were worth it. I was pleasantly surprised. The story fits a lot into just one volume. I thought it was very acceptable that the main character- who is a boy- is appalled by Pandora (the goddess)'s appearance. It was funny, and I didn't expect it at all. It was cute how Pandora turned into a little girl whenever she used her powers. All of the characters are loveable, even if you detest this kind of disty woman who has more boobs than brains. I actually suggest you read it- I thought it was worth a little more than a dollar, but maybe I wouldn't have read it at full price if I had just seen it on the shelf. The story was good though. I liked it a lot.

Clearly, "Because I'm the Goddess" isn't going to win any points for original plot. You have a Goddess come to Earth, where she falls in love with a human (Oh My Goddess!) and then as a twist she is collecting missing objects of power (Cardcaptor Sakura). You get the general idea, and you have read it before. But originality isn't everything, and sometimes a hefty does of slapstick and fanservice can carry a book home. "Because I'm the Goddess" is over-the-top fun (and in the case of the Goddess in question, Pandora "over-the-top" takes on another meaning) that takes very little seriously. The comic is a lot more fun than it has any right to be, and I was surprised how much I enjoyed it. The story has the goddess Pandora (She of the Pandora's Box) sent to Earth in order to hunt down the "charms" that have escaped and are now enslaving humans susceptible to their particular lures. These aren't really the same vices from Greek mythology, and pretty much just suit the flow of the story, but that works just fine. Pandora can see people enslaved by the charms by the collar that appears around their necks. Pandora's human companion, Aoi, is the only one unmoved by Pandora's ample bust, which of course infuriates and interests Pandora. But Pandora needs Aoi desperately. When she expends all of her magical power, she transforms into a flat-chested young girl who can only regain her oomph by a kiss from Aoi. Of course, the proscribed animal sidekick in this case is Mattsun, a humorless cat. Get this one for the humor rather than the girls. Although Pandora is delightfully top-heavy and likes to show it off, the fanservice is nothing on the level of comics like Sundome, and is more PG rated than PG-13. The slapstick is good though, and my favorite scene was when Pandora transformed Aoi into a giant pair of nail clippers in order to cut the chain of a charm, to which Aoi was indignant. "Because I'm the Goddess" is also only a three-volume series, which is good because I don't think the joke would last long past that. Too many manga series continue long after the story has wound down, but this one knows just how far it can go.

This review is spoiler-free. I've read all 3 volumes of this series. If you are in the mood for cornball comedy mixed with healthy doses of fan-service then this series does the trick quite well. If you are OK with the broad JPN style of humor then some of the comedy is laugh-out loud funny. Although the events of each volume get a little more serious and dark as things rush on towards the story's nutty conclusion - it never loses its sense of fun. More goofy characters are introduced as the series progresses but the general premise remains pretty basic and things never become too hard to follow. Pandora is a naive goddess who refers to herself in third-person and her companion Aoi is a bold young man who gets caught up in her "mission". Together they go up against one crazy adversary after another, often to surprisingly comedic effect. The conflicts along the way offer a bit of comic-book action as well, though it is mainly played more for gags. One conceit of the plot even provides a cute little romantic element too. Though the premise and characters are goofy it is definitely intended for slightly older readers as the fan-service is heavy with the second and third volume even containing a few panels of light nudity. The third volume contains a bit of graphic blood too. It being a 16 years old and up title seems right on. This TokyoPop version of the manga is completely uncensored, its translation is good (even the tiniest background comments are translated for additional humor), and the artwork remains very attractive in a traditional way. The only complaint I would level at it is that bits of its style/plot are sort of cliche and that the third volume is hard to understand or interpret without knowing a good bit about Greek mythology. If you do, the conclusion will connect with you more since it is an aspect that was more subtle in the first two volumes and is a bit ackwardly thrust into the third. Still, it allows there to be quite a few surprising little plot twists in that volume that help to make the story more interesting. The fact that it is three volumes for a complete story is a positive too, I feel - since you don't have to read forever to get the full experience. The series concludes in a satisfying and clear way but it still leaves a little room for a sequel series. Certain aspects of the ending are a bit wacky and open to interpretation but they wrap up the lingering plot issues enough to keep you happy to be on board for the ride. Recommended for anyone who is not looking to read only masterpieces but rather has a taste for the content I described. Enjoy!

What to do when you prefer a Goddess powerless and cute but have to let her kiss you and get her powers back to save others from being consumed by the "gifts" she's come to collect? That's the dilemma that faces Aoi in this fan servicey manga. I found the main character Pandora is wonderfully easy to hate as a clueless yet buxomy and scantily-clad woman and goddess, and utterly adorable when she loses her powers and becomes a flat-chested young girl. My feelings were echoed in Aoi's reactions to her. Not the sort of thing I normally go for, but it was entertaining.

Since this is catering predominatly to guys via fanservice, I didn't expect to like it. Ok so it was a little amusing. Pandora is *every* guys dream. Kinda. I say *every* cos I know for a fact that not *all* men are cuckoo over big ta-tas. That's beside the point. So plot so far is that Pandora the goddess attaches herself to a unwilling minion Aoi with whom she uses her powers and goes about doing her thing with. Add a perverted cat and there you go. If the lack of plot won't get you then you still have Pandora's skimpy outfits that hardly contain her abundance of womanly flesh, and um...yeah that's about it. Although it is about a goddess she is not what you expect.