I wasn't really planning to review this, but I came across my Mitsukazu Mihara folder while sorting out mangas and -naturally- began reading ^_^" One thing led to another and I said to myself "hey, why not give it a shot?" This proved to be a challenge as well, as it's one of the shorter oneshots out there (only 8 pages long!) and quite an emotional one at that - not bawl-your-eyes-out emotional, though!
English title: Deserted Place
Author: MIHARA Mitsukazu
Genres: drama, supernatural
Length // Status: oneshot // complete
Scanlated by: ShoujoMagic
Warnings: gothic atmosphere, 8 pages long
Synopsis
"I am the one who crosses over debris. Just as people have feelings, things have thoughts." Unbeknownst to others, a mysterious boy walks the earth, with the ability to see the memories of things...
Plot and character development
This little piece is like a glimpse of a corner of the world: you don't get a lot of context, just enough for you to be able to understand what's going on. However, there's quite a lot of information for 8 pages and it's very easy to understand (part of) the characters' backgrounds. Another thing I loved was the fact that, despite the quite restrictive number of pages, none of the characters are one-dimensional- and this is a truly impressive feat, considering it's achieved through the artwork and not the dialogue/narration!
Art style
The style's not your typical shoujo one, it leans more towards shounen: angular faces on both genders, neutral backgrounds and heavy focus on shadows and contrast. However, the strong point of the artwork is, like I said in the above section, its ability to convey emotions through the characters' facial expressions, poses etc. better than the dialogue/narration.
This time I won't provide any page samples since the preview would literally give the entire story away ^_^"
Final verdict
It's only 8 pages long, so what are you waiting for? As long as you're here, be sure to check out the author's other works as well; they are all short but unique pieces of writing that will leave you pondering long after you've read them.
Originality + creativity: 1 / 1 points - both original and very creative
Characters: 2 / 2 points - well-developed and, most importantly, devoid of the clichés you'd expect of them
Realism/believability: 1 / 1 points - just enough backstory to understand and keep you guessing at the same time
Art: 2 / 2 points - because it does more than typical manga art does
Flow: 1 / 1 points - no fillers, just what you need, how you need it
How much I enjoyed it: 3 / 3 points - did it leave me thinking about it long after finishing it? hell yes!
My final rating: 
(10 out of 10)
Where to read it: MangaFox
Where to download it: MangaTraders
