Bride of Deimos, Vol. 1

Rating:
Summary: Nice to finally be able to properly read the pages!
Review: I was introduced to the first volume of DEIMOS NO HANAYOME [Bride of Deimos] in 1983. Since then I've acquired all the volumes through #17. I've got the video, the record [a mixture of drama and song], and I've read fan translations of some of the stories. Still, I was pleased to find out that there are English language volumes because my Japanese language skills have never been more than rudimentary. I could make out the basics of the stories, but it's nice to get the details.

This volume does have all the stories from volume one: 1. Minako meets her stalker, Deimos, and discovers he considers her to be his bride. 2. Deimos' chosen victim is Minako's own cousin. Is there anything that can be done to save Ryou? 3. This one opens up on a boy locking his mother in the basement. Now it's 5 years later and he's attracted to Minako. Deimos warns her away from Natsuhiko. Should she listen? 4. Deimos says there's a frightening truth behind a familiar Japanese legend. If this isn't one of his tricks, one of the teachers at Minako's school is in grave danger. 5. Why are people developing a shadow in the shape of the Devil Lily of Ghost Fire Island on their bodies? Now Minako is one of the victims and must seek the answer if she is ever to be cured. 6. This is Deimos' origin. It's not the same as the Greek/Roman myths, as you can tell from the back of the book. Venus is tired of waiting to take over Minako's body. She wants that body *now*! 7. In this we meet a crying Noh mask. Why does it cry? Yes, it's another tragic love story. 8. The disfigured racer and his blind beloved are the subject of the last tale and it shows what Deimos is willing to do to prove his point.

The copyright date is 1975. Those fans familiar with Ms.Ashibe's art in "Crystal Dragon" will find this earlier work more "cartoony", but it's still quite effective.

That should be "Ms.", not "Mr." Tsukiko's Secret for the title of the third story. [In the original, it's Tsukiko Sensei, "Sensei" being a suffix used with the surnames of teachers, doctors, scholars, etc. My old grammar notes text says it implies more respect than "san". Also, the kanji used for her name are "moon" (tsuki) and "child" (ko).

For the curious, I'll provide the meanings for the kanji in the little ovals on p. 177 are [starting from the tree and moving closer to elderly Mr. Kogorou]. I looked most of them up in my little READING AND WRITING JAPANESE book. The others I had to find in my Nelson's JAPANESE-ENGLISH CHARACTER DICTIONARY: "E - To depend on", "Han - generally; to carry, to turn; to enjoy", "Nya - if" (I know the hiragana are "ni ya," but Nelson's "nya"), "Ha - wave [as in sea or ocean]", "Ra - silk gauze, thin silk", "Mitsu [not just "mi", according to my Nelson's] - secrecy; denseness (of population); minuteness, carefulness, fineness", "Ta - many, much, abundant", "Ko - old, former times; reason", "Toku - virtue, power of comanding love and respect", "A - flatter, fawn upon".

Personally, I think they should have used "terror", the other meaning of Deimos, because it's more frightening than "fear".

The pictorial cover is actually from volume 14. The original dustjacket shows Minako from the hips up. She's wearing a pink plouse with a frill around the collar and cuffs, and a red jumper (in the American sense of the word). She's looking to the left and seems more puzzled than distressed. The background is black except for a couple of bare, grey tree branches, and Deimos' face (colored a pale blue) and part of one of his horns (white).
His eyes are green in this picture. They're blue in later dustjackets. The back of my dustjacket has a gold oval with the face and hair of Venus (blue eyes, strawberry blond hair) and four versions of her butterfly form coming toward her, the last partially in front of her hair. I'm pretty sure that the image on the back of this cover is on my record, but I'd have to finish moving some boxes that I have in front of the record player at the moment to get to it.

Rating:
Summary: Nice to finally be able to properly read the pages!
Review: I was introduced to the first volume of DEIMOS NO HANAYOME [Bride of Deimos] in 1983. Since then I've acquired all the volumes through #17. I've got the video, the record [a mixture of drama and song], and I've read fan translations of some of the stories. Still, I was pleased to find out that there are English language volumes because my Japanese language skills have never been more than rudimentary. I could make out the basics of the stories, but it's nice to get the details.

This volume does have all the stories from volume one: 1. Minako meets her stalker, Deimos, and discovers he considers her to be his bride. 2. Deimos' chosen victim is Minako's own cousin. Is there anything that can be done to save Ryou? 3. This one opens up on a boy locking his mother in the basement. Now it's 5 years later and he's attracted to Minako. Deimos warns her away from Natsuhiko. Should she listen? 4. Deimos says there's a frightening truth behind a familiar Japanese legend. If this isn't one of his tricks, one of the teachers at Minako's school is in grave danger. 5. Why are people developing a shadow in the shape of the Devil Lily of Ghost Fire Island on their bodies? Now Minako is one of the victims and must seek the answer if she is ever to be cured. 6. This is Deimos' origin. It's not the same as the Greek/Roman myths, as you can tell from the back of the book. Venus is tired of waiting to take over Minako's body. She wants that body *now*! 7. In this we meet a crying Noh mask. Why does it cry? Yes, it's another tragic love story. 8. The disfigured racer and his blind beloved are the subject of the last tale and it shows what Deimos is willing to do to prove his point.

The copyright date is 1975. Those fans familiar with Ms.Ashibe's art in "Crystal Dragon" will find this earlier work more "cartoony", but it's still quite effective.

That should be "Ms.", not "Mr." Tsukiko's Secret for the title of the third story. [In the original, it's Tsukiko Sensei, "Sensei" being a suffix used with the surnames of teachers, doctors, scholars, etc. My old grammar notes text says it implies more respect than "san". Also, the kanji used for her name are "moon" (tsuki) and "child" (ko).

For the curious, I'll provide the meanings for the kanji in the little ovals on p. 177 are [starting from the tree and moving closer to elderly Mr. Kogorou]. I looked most of them up in my little READING AND WRITING JAPANESE book. The others I had to find in my Nelson's JAPANESE-ENGLISH CHARACTER DICTIONARY: "E - To depend on", "Han - generally; to carry, to turn; to enjoy", "Nya - if" (I know the hiragana are "ni ya," but Nelson's "nya"), "Ha - wave [as in sea or ocean]", "Ra - silk gauze, thin silk", "Mitsu [not just "mi", according to my Nelson's] - secrecy; denseness (of population); minuteness, carefulness, fineness", "Ta - many, much, abundant", "Ko - old, former times; reason", "Toku - virtue, power of comanding love and respect", "A - flatter, fawn upon".

Personally, I think they should have used "terror", the other meaning of Deimos, because it's more frightening than "fear".

The pictorial cover is actually from volume 14. The original dustjacket shows Minako from the hips up. She's wearing a pink plouse with a frill around the collar and cuffs, and a red jumper (in the American sense of the word). She's looking to the left and seems more puzzled than distressed. The background is black except for a couple of bare, grey tree branches, and Deimos' face (colored a pale blue) and part of one of his horns (white).
His eyes are green in this picture. They're blue in later dustjackets. The back of my dustjacket has a gold oval with the face and hair of Venus (blue eyes, strawberry blond hair) and four versions of her butterfly form coming toward her, the last partially in front of her hair. I'm pretty sure that the image on the back of this cover is on my record, but I'd have to finish moving some boxes that I have in front of the record player at the moment to get to it.

Rating:
Summary: Very interesting older horror manga
Review: This series is from the '70's explaining the clothes & hair, but it's worth it. The set-up--sibling gods Deimos & Venus love one another, thus are punished--Venus's beauty destroyed, her body rotting in the underworld, & Deimos turned into a devil. He seeks the reincarnation of Venus to revive her, finding it in Minako who is very resistant to Deimos's advances. He's persistant & as the story advances, seems to be falling for Minako as he is repulsed by some of his former lover's tricks on the girl.
In Volume 4, Venus plays more games with Minako in the 1st story, Myth of the Red Nails, drawing her back to the Roman god world full of romantic twists & cursed lovers as Juno nails another female pursued by her husband. Deimos is almost unseen in this & the 2nd tale--only a few frames questioning his ex's actions.
In The Haunted Mansion a girl is betrothed to a rich man, but she doesn't love him & is killed by him. Minako escapes a rainy night at this mansion, but of course it's not a quiet night.
Sorrowful Vampire--a hit & run leads to an apparent series of vampire deaths. A suspicious girl smelling of lilies is at the center of it all, but even Deimos is mislead on this one, although he does save Minako.
Dolls Do Not Die--more typical deal with the devil for immortality with the usual twist. Deimos seems to enjoy his work.
In Fruit of the Black Mass the story echoes our devil's own with a sister in love with her brother gives herself to evil, but dies in the effort so of course Minako stumbles into the house, becoming possessed by the sister's spirit.
In A Burying Beetle's Requiem Deimos gets his own story & once more questions his goal of saving his sister by taking Minako to Hades. A father blaming his daughter for his wife's death is killed by the daughter.