And this World makes its debut with a bang! More specifically, with Franken Fran, a manga that deserves getting first review. Why? You'll see below, if you have a stomach hard enough for gore.
UPDATE 29th of March, 2012: and on the 6th of February, the last chapter of Franken Fran (61) was officially scanlated. It's been a long and awesome journey, with some chapters stranger than others, but the manga has finally ended. And oh boy, was it a good ride!
English title: Franken Fran
Author: KIGITSU Katsuhisa
Genres: action, comedy, horror, science fiction, seinen, supernatural
Length // Status: 8 volumes // complete
Scanlated by: SnoopyCool, Hamurox
Warnings: a lot of gore, some nudity (breasts)
Synopsis
Fran Madaraki is the "daughter" of the world's most famous biologist, professor Naomitsu Madaraki. So far, she has managed to live up to her "family"'s reputation: whether it be cosmetic surgery, fixing someone's broken limbs or resurrecting the dead, she can do it. Fran lives by her own set of rules, which state that life is the most important and therefore must be preserved at all costs, often to the chagrin of her patients who end up suffering a fate worse than death.
Plot and character development
Franken Fran is very easy to follow, since it's made up of episodes. The chapters rarely have common storylines and those that do are usually published with breaks between them. This is particularly useful since the manga doesn't have a periodic release date and you don't have to worry about forgetting what was going on and having to re-read the previous chapter. The only thing common to all chapters is the main cast, composed of Fran, her "sisters" and the others living at the Madaraki estate.
As a side note, some characters' fates are revealed in later chapters or extras, often by Fran mentioning them briefly during a discussion.
The plot isn't that common, but it's ultimately the characters that make this manga worthwhile. There's this permanent uncertainty regarding Fran: what's she really like? Most of the time we see her as a kind scientist who only wants to help others, but there are also chapters where Fran proves she can unleash hell upon the people who try to harm or con her. Her mindset certainly doesn't help, since she will do absolutely anything necessary to keep her patients alive, even if that means scarring them for life.
The main cast (from left to right): Fran, Veronica, Okita, Gavrill.
The other characters are stereotypical at first but start developing more as the story progresses. Veronica, Fran's younger "sister" (was created after Fran), arrives at the estate with contempt for the peace-loving Fran but gradually changes her "black & white world" beliefs after witnessing some of her "sister"'s operations. The other inhabitants of the Madaraki estate are mostly people that have been helped by professor Madaraki and now, because of their monster-like appearance, are forced to live outside of civilization (one example is Okita, a young man with a cat's body attached to his head in place of his own body).
Art style
The contents are nothing like what you'd expect judging by the covers. There's little nudity and it's never sexualized, or at least not in a way that you'd get pleasure from. Generally the mangaka adopts a pseudo-shoujo style, with young people having big eyes and "cute" features (small noses and mouths, slim bodies etc.); this contrasts with the subject of the manga, as we're almost immediately treated with a detailed image of Fran poking around in someone's insides (to up the effect, scenes like this are almost always two-page spreads).
The main characters are easily recognizable, sporting different clothes or hairstyles or other defining marks, such as scars. As opposed to this, minor characters are drawn with generic clothes and hairstyles and are easily forgettable (aside from the ones living at the Madaraki estate, of course).
Final verdict
If the gore doesn't put you off, then it's a must-read. The plots are witty and you'll discover that they're mostly variations of "what if" or wishes gone terribly wrong. Fran is delightful when naive and absolutely scary when her true moral code shines. And you'll most likely feel chills when you discover that some of Fran's clients can even be you.
Where to read it: MangaFox
