That groom is living the dream of every boy who goes through puberty.
The startling age difference is just the start of the historical romance manga Otoyomegatari. Translated as “A Young Bride’s Story”, this delectable period piece is another offering from the highly skilled Kaoru Mori of Emma fame. It started its serialization run in the magazine fellows! in October 2009, published by Enterbrain. Since then, the series has also been published in two tankobon volumes with a third one in the works.
As stated before, Otoyomegatari follows the life of Amiru Harugaru and Karuruku Eihon as they adjust to the newlywed life. The basic plot of a character being placed into a new life is given an interesting flare in Otoyomegatari by not only placing the setting in the 19th century, but also making the marriage between the two seem like such a long shot. The union of Amiru and Karuruku is peculiar because of the sheer amount of differences that lie between them: their ages, lifestyles, cultural roles, traditions, etc…. One would think that getting into a marriage with a complete stranger is bad idea – even more so when you have so many different views. Not for these two – I’ve never seen a more mature and straight-laced couple before. For two people that never have spoken with each other beforehand, they sure have the system down. Or maybe it’s just because people from the 19th century are hardcore like that.
Who here has read Emma? I sure haven’t but I’m going to make the time to. Why, you ask? Because the artwork in Otoyomegatari is just beautiful. I talked about Sonoda and his attention to detail in Gunsmith Cats, and I’ve found another mangaka that has the same attention to detail, possibly even more so. Kaoru Mori has the skill and flair in her artwork that makes you wonder how long it takes her to draw such beautiful pages. Everything from the characters, to the living spaces, to the animals and environment – all of it is lovingly drawn and detailed. The majority of her art is done by hand, so imagine the amount of skill and experience she has when she’s drawing stuff like the header of this article or this:
Or this lovely picture of Emma in her wedding dress from Emma?
I tell you reader, if I’m getting this happy in Otoyomegatari, then Emma should blow me away. Still, this shouldn’t stop you from giving Otoyomegatari a view. It’ll be worth your time, readers.
Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!
