Demon Sacred Volumes 1 & 2

There's no shortage of bland, un-imaginative shojo manga out there — but Demon Sacred isn’t one of them. Where do I begin to explain the dizzying array of plot twists in this fantasy series? A demon unicorn, a "beast of the Apocalypse" who likes junk food, a conflicted pop idol, a handsome scientist working for a secret government lab, twin sisters battling a disease that turns back the hands of time — and that's just for starters.

It's not high art, nor is it great literature, but Demon Sacred is cracktastic fun for teen shojo manga readers, and maybe for not-so-teen readers too.

On one end of the shojo manga spectrum, there's the (ostensibly) reality-based "does he love me / love me not?" school girl romances. Then on the other end, there are fantasy stories where almost anything goes. With a green-eyed unicorn demon, a Biblical beast who turns into a bad boy pop idol and twin sisters who are battling a mysterious disease that turns back the hands of time, Demon Sacred is definitely in the OMG / WTF shojo fantasy manga category — and that's kind of a good thing.

Natsumi Itsuki should be familiar to shojo manga readers – she's the creator of Jyu-Oh-Sei, an epic sci-fi drama about two brothers who get sent to a prison colony on a planet where the wild life is really wild and the only rule is kill or be killed. Demon Sacred has a somewhat lighter tone, but it's definitely got lots more imaginative plot twists up its sleeve than just "What should I give Takumi-kun for Valentine's Day?"

The story opens as newlyweds Ryo and Rena venture to Finland to view the northern lights, and end up face-to-face with a herd of unicorns (Yes, I said unicorns). This magical encounter takes a turn for the worst, and Rena's destiny is bound to Mika, a demon who takes the form of the man of her dreams.

Fast forward 15 years, and we meet Mona and Rina, Rena's twin daughters – but they don't look as much like twins as they should. That's because Rina suffers from "Return Syndrome," a mysterious disease that is causing her to age backwards. So while Mona looks like a 14-year old teen, her twin Rina looks five years younger.

In order to save her sister, Mona must allow Mika (the demon who been like a surrogate parent) to summon another demon, so Mona can bind it to do her bidding. But much like her mother, Mona ends up with a supernatural being who looks exactly like the man she most desires — a pop idol named Keito.

In the first two volumes of Demon Sacred alone, Itsuki weaves an intricate but entertaining tapestry of bizarre plot threads, interesting characters and strange circumstances, including a handsome scientist, a secret government conspiracy, a menagerie of demons, and a pop idol who's conflicted about his life in the spotlight.

On top of all that, Demon Sacred has its humorous moments too. You gotta love a shojo fantasy series that can laugh at itself enough to have a scene where a character comes home and screeches, "Why is there a demon eating cookies in my living room?!" Okay, maybe you had to be there.

To their credit, TokyoPop released the first two volumes together so you can get a double dose of Demon Sacred from the get-go. They're also offering them at a lower-than-usual cover price to make it extra tempting.

If you're looking for your next crack-tastic shojo manga escape, Demon Sacred is probably just what you didn't know you wanted to read. And did I mention that there's unicorns and hot guys? I rest my case.

Disclosure: A review copy was provided by the publisher. For more information, please see our Ethics Policy.