Oh My Goddess!, Volume 9: Ninja Master

In this volume, Urd tries to encourage Keiichi to do something that's supposed to make Belldandy bound by love to him forever, Skuld might be falling for Keiichi, and a demon named Mara has sent a tiny ninja after Keiichi, Belldandy, and the rest. This volume is as beautifully drawn and sweet as the rest of the series. It's not one of my favorite volumes, but it's still quite good. However, as a pet rat lover, I though the one panel showing two rats politely sharing a cockroach to be amusing.

Ah, the ninjas have arrived. Those incredibly efficient, super fast, completely undetectable--oops, wrong ninjas. Kodama and her friends are out to get the goddesses, and their plans are not working. Well, some are; Urd and Skuld are at each others' throats (but what else is new?), but the plans to get Keiichi and Belldandy against each other are failing miserably. Instead, the lovebugs spout romantic nonsense at each other and Kodama makes a decision. As for the other ninjas--by the end of the story they have made a decision as well.And we learn that Keiichi can't swim when he and the girls and Banpei go to the beach and Skuld gets jealous.

Having only seen the Oh My Goddess movie & not being overly thrilled with it (enjoyable, pretty, but nothing really incredibly outstanding. Decent anime, but not a fav like Excel), I was very pleased with this manga, although it was a bit thin(page-count, not story.) The beach story was ok filler, but the ninja plot picked up the pace, was very funny & the little former-rat ninjas were adorable. Well worth the purchase. Ok for 10+, maybe very mature younger although I'm more liberal than many moms I know. My 11 1/2 yr-old daughter enjoyed it. I'm perhaps influenced by having picked up X-(Graphic Novel)#5 & Inu-Yashi #1(or whatever it is--veeeery funny) at the same time & Sorcerer Hunters #10 the week before. I think I prefer 3X3 Eyes to this Goddess series, although 3X3 is more action-oriented.

Not really too much to say here. This is another entertaining volume of Oh My Goddess, or if you prefer Aa Megami-sama! In this volume Keiichi goes to the beach with the three goddesses. Urd tells him that if he and the one he loves sit upon the rock and say that they love each other that the couple will be together forever, of course Keiichi wants to sit on the rock with Belldandy, problem is Keiichi can't swim, and Belldandy's little sister Skuld is bent on not letting Keiichi and Belldandy get together. Fun stuff. I guess the main attraction of this volume is the introduction of the Three Ninjas, not those three ninjas, Kodama, Hikari, and Senrigan. Of course the Ninjas are sent by Mara, whose full knowledge of ninjas is based on bad movies. Kodama is the first Ninja sent, and she is quite successful in disturbing Urd and Skuld, not that that takes much anyway. Good book.

This is the seventh collected edition of Oh My Goddess published in the US. Oh My Goddess is a sweet, innocent romance-comedy between a mortal named Keiichi and a goddess named Belldandy. Unfortunately for them, they are plagued by Belldandy's sisters Urd and Skuld, and by a demon named Mara. This book has two major stories. The first focuses on Skuld, Belldandy's younger sister, and her objection to Keiichi and Belldandy being in love. The second, from which the book takes its name, involves Mara sending out ninjas to break up the peaceful life of Keiichi and the goddesses. The first story is probably the better of the two, but they both live up to the standards of quality set by previous books. The artwork is gorgeous: Kosuke Fujishima's art generally features simple but attractive character designs with amazingly elaborate clothing. The difference between the early books and these later books is amazing; his style has grown quite a bit, and the polish and beauty of his art has really developed. Finally, the English translation is handled with skill here, and the humor really comes through. If you haven't read the earlier books, I'd recommend you start there, but the stories are largely episodic (there appears to be no overarching plot). Once you have a handle on the relationships between the characters, you will be able to enjoy this book, too.