Manga Review: J-Pop Idol's Musical Melodrama

Now that we, as a nation, have survived another season of American Idol, I thought it might be a good time to look at J-Pop Idol, a shojo manga series that taps into the teen fantasy that Idol spawned: the dream of becoming an overnight pop star.

J-Pop Idol starts off with a girl group trio that wins a nationwide singing contest, only to find that the record company only wants to sign one of them as a solo artist. Jealousy and resentment from her former best friend Kay make Mika almost regret the opportunity in front of her as she tries in vain to keep their friendship alive. Add in conniving rivals, an ex-boy band star who becomes Mika's mentor / love interest and a life-threatening disease, and you've got melodrama up the yin-yang.

But like American Idol contestants who try to sing songs that are out of their vocal range, J-Pop Idol tries to do too much with too little. Check out my review of J-Pop Idol Volume 1, by Millenni+M and Toko Yashiro from TokyoPop and see if you can figure out what made it a "a #1 mobile manga hit" in Japan or if it hits more than a few flat notes with you too.

Image credit: © 2007 Toko Yashiro and TOKYOPOP Inc.