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Yaya is a shy, introverted sixteen year
old girl, who, having lost her mother at a young age, lives
with her over protective and emotionally invalidating father.
School isn't much better as Yaya is the butt of her so-called
friend's jokes. Although very aware of this Yaya is too timid
to fight back. Only on the weekend, when she dresses in emulation
of her favourite band Juliet and hangs around with similar
people, does she get respite from the horror that is her week.
All this is about to change when Nana hits town, self assured
and unafraid she watches Yaya's back and rights the wrongs
done to her. They should be the best of friend, if only they
could meet. The problem with that is that via a child's magic
compact it is Yaya who, unbeknownst to her, transforms into
Nana...
So
finally we have Volume Two of Othello by Satomi
Ikezawa, a tale of teenage angst and body swapping. This goes
someway to explaining the title of the book, which is named
after the board game and not the Shakespeare play. Volume
Two contains four more chapters as well as translation
notes.
Volume
Two opens with a new school year, which for Yaya means
that both good and bad things are about to happen. On the
good side Yaya discovers that she is in the same class as
the boy who she secretly fancies. But, this being Othello,
there is always a balance, so poor old Yaya is still in the
same class as her nemeses, the bitchy Moe and Seri.
The
book opens quite darkly with A Void of Time. Finally
the effect of changing into Nana is having an effect on Yaya.
There are events that she cannot remember and, like any changeling,
keeps coming too with no idea how she got there. The cumulative
effect of this is that Yaya is starting to question her sanity.
Not even the revenge that Nana reaps upon Yaya's enemies brings
any solace, as she has no memory of feeling so empowered.
Unable
to cope by Yaya's True Self, Yaya is avoiding going
to school all together, though she changes into her alter
ego, Mimi, to meet her Juliet friends on the weekend - who
are also aware of her doing extraordinary things, for which
she has no memory. Strangely enough it is Moe who comes to
bring her to school and admits for the first time that she
likes Yaya. But that will not stop the humiliation that awaits
her at school, luckily for her Moriyama comes to her rescue.
Happening
Rain and things at school have settled a bit which allows
Yaya and Moriyama to get a little closer when he asks her
to help out with his band's next concert. When Moriyama looses
his voice Nana steps in to rescue the concert.
The
last story, Who is this Person, and having passed out
at the concert in front of Moriyama, even he is beginning
to suspect there is something happening with Yaya.
The
art continues to be pin sharp clean. To be honest, given that
the book is aimed at a sixteen plus female's audience I was
surprised how much I liked the manga. This is because it plays
out recognisable experiences of fear and alienation that are
universal to many people's memories of those awful teenage
years.
Ultimately
the book comes over as a well drawn and intelligent work.
Charles
Packer
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