Kamikaze Kaito Jeanne, Vol. 1 [Paperback]

Arina Tanemura (Author)

Book Description

Series: Kamikaze Kaito Jeanne | Publication Date: November 1, 2005

By day, Kusakabe Maron is an ordinary high school girl with more than her share of problems. But by night, she is Kamikaze Kaitou Jeannereincarnation of Joan of Arc! Her mission? Hunt down demonpossessed paintings and exorcise the evil spirits! But accomplishing this mission puts her in conflict with the authorities who only see her as a mysterious stranger vandalizing works of art. With only the help of angel-in-training Finn, she must survive high school during the day and fight evil by night!

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Kusajabe Maron, the heroine of this manga series, will remind Americans of television's "Buffy the Vampire Slayer": both are high school students who secretly combat supernatural evil by night. But the concept behind Tanemura's series is more convoluted and downright wacky. As Kamikaze Kaito Jeanne, Maron is the reincarnation of Joan of Arc, a historical version of the warrior woman archetype that is now widespread in pop culture. Just how reincarnation can fit Joan of Arc's Catholicism goes unexplained. The devil has dispatched demons to enter into paintings, whose beauty "enslaves" onlookers' hearts, enabling demons to possess them. As God's agent Jeanne must exorcise these demons despite opposition from the police, who think she is vandalizing art. Further complicating matters are Maron's supposed best friend Miyako, who helps her detective father hunt Jeanne, and Maron's handsome classmate Chiaki, who, unsurprisingly, turns out to be Jeanne's masked rival Kaito Sinbad. What the stories lack in suspense they make up in energy with Tanemura's busy art style and stereotypically cute characters. The story of Maron's learning how to balance her two sides—confident Jeanne and emotionally vulnerable Maron—is what makes this book work.
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Product Details

• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: CMX (November 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1401205550
• ISBN-13: 978-1401205553
• Product Dimensions: 5.1 x 0.5 x 7.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #200,475 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Silly premise, wonderful story, January 17, 2006

By 

Alice (Schenectady, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Kamikaze Kaito Jeanne, Vol. 1 (Paperback)

On the surface, the premise of this manga seems silly and dismissable; Maron is the reincarnation of Joan of Arc, and charged with the responsibility of sealing the demons who inhabit paintings to corrupt people's souls. But it's so much more than that.

For one, Maron's relationships with her friends and absent family prove a key point to the plot of this beautifully drawn manga. Her parents have been abroad for many years, and she awaits just one letter from them, to show her they're still thinking of her. Also, a rival is introduced early on in the story: Kaitou Sinbad, who has the same power to seal demons. At the same time as he shows up, a student transfers to her school, and, despite herself, she develops a crush on him.

I recommend this title for anyone who likes the magical girl genre of manga, or who has enjoyed Arina Tanemura's other works.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Jeanne d'arc makes quite an appearance!, March 2, 2006

By 

Mirialiah "Ruzena" (New York, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Kamikaze Kaito Jeanne, Vol. 1 (Paperback)

I love the fact that Arina Tanemura chose Jeanne d'arc as the heroine in which to reincarnate as Maron. Using such a powerful and moving person of the past was a good start.

The only reason I didn't give this 5 stars is because the very beginning of the volume was fairly confusing. I had to read it several times to get the gist of it. Later on though it slows down a little bit and is a little easier to understand; not so hectic.

Jeanne d'arc is a God-send who's job is to trap demons that conceal themselves in works of art using her powers. After finding them with the help of her fairy friend, Jeanne traps them in a chess piece and replaces the picture with something that suits her; more often than not, a picture that resembles her slightly.

Later in the volume, Kaito Sinbad shows up and tries to steal her job. What is his real intention? We don't get to find out until volume 2. =P

Anyway, the art in this is fairly upbeat and very pretty. I liked it a lot. =)

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Kamikaze Kaitou Jeanne, February 13, 2007

By 

anonymous - See all my reviews

This review is from: Kamikaze Kaito Jeanne, Vol. 1 (Paperback)

I greatly adore this manga. Jeanne is not your typical shojo heroine. She's much stronger and I greatly care about her character. This is a wonderful manga.
However, I do feel I need to put two slight warnings with this for anyone.
1. Although Jeanne is supposed to be the reincarnation of Joan of Arc and this is a plot point. The religion is very screwy. If you're picking this up expecting an accurate example of Christianity you won't see that here (the author does state that she's more interested in telling Jeanne's story in one of the later volumes, and Jeanne's story is quite moving, good and worth reading)
2. My second warning is actually the ratings on this manga. The series is well rated and very accurate, for each volume. While other manga publishers seem to give their series one complete rating, despite what is portrayed from volume to volume. CMX, at least with KKJ, rates each volume seperately. So while volumes 1,2 & 3 are rated E for everyone. Volume 4 all of a sudden jumps to a T for teen (and with good reason!)
As I type this the last 2 volumes of this 7 volume series have come out, and I have every intention of buying them!
I hope what I've written doesn't put anyone off from buying this wonderful series. I first ran across a webpage dedicated to the manga and anime years ago, before there was even much manga on the market. I've been hoping since then that it would one day be translated into English. Now that it has been, I have not been disappointed with it at all. I hope many other people come to enjoy it as well.