Kamisama Gakuen@Armeria

Okay, I am writing this review because this manga deserves one, and not for the conventional reasons, either. So, here we go. Let's hop on this divine ride together: Art: You must be thinking: "Why is this person reviewing the art first?" Well, let me tell you, the art was what caught my attention in the first place, and the reason I kept up with it for 8 volumes. The art is a m a z i n g. I am not kidding when I tell you that every panel looks like a CG art straight out of an otome gal game. The art may looka little weird sometimes, with their skinny proportions and too-long-legs, but 9/10 times, they look absolutely stunning. Yes, even the side characters who don't even get a name look great. The backdrops are alright too. Nothing too out there compared to other shoujo manga, but nothing bad either and fairly detailed. Art : 9/10 Story: This story has an interesting premise with potential. But, it's an isekai that focuses on shoujo more than the actual plot. In fact, here, I'll give you a spoiler-free summary of the storyline: We are hit with the plot straight away; on the first page of chapter one, in fact. Good. Waste no time in gathering a reader's interest. But at the end of chapter one, we will be thrown into the story's real plot (shoujo-fall-in-love). And then, that's basically it. There will be mentions of the other plot every few chapters or so, but that's all. The rest is shoujo manga fanservice and the main girl saying how she loves all the gods. I will be giving this a 5/10, which might seem generous after I've just bashed the plotline. But, I'm including the fact that it has potential as well as the fact that in the end of the day, this is a shoujo manga. While many people who loves a good storyline may get turned off by the lack of a meaningful story in this manga, others may enjoy it for just the shoujo isekai element. Story: 5/10 Character: Oh boy. I don't know who to start with. Okay. Let's just start with the obvious, the main character. Our heroine, Yanagawa Rikka is your typical Mary-Sue. She's optimistic, beautiful and loved by all the gods & people. She has a superpower where whenever a classmate/God or anyone who 'holds a god' touches her in any way, they are instantly at peace. Also, apparently if any mortal shall see her, they instantly fall in love or some crazy sh-t. Because in a span of 8 volumes, it seems like no one has any conflicts with her. Like, I'm sorry, I know she's God's blessed child or whatever, but please be real. Her one character flaw turned out to be not even a character flaw by chapter 3, so she's now an above-perfect person for the rest of the story. Our target love interest & hero is introduced in the first chapter as a super OP (lone) fighter, Mr. Hiba Chiaki. His rank is off-the-charts high and a mystery to all because for some reason, he was not scouted by Armeria Academy already despite being so trained in combat and having so many appearances in defeating the bad gods already. He is cool and aloof, but only because the god he holds is the God of Death, and that's why everyone keeps their distance. So, really, he's just looking out for everyone around him. Also, he always has one hand in his pant pocket for some reason. Huh. Yeah. This is your Gary-Stu. What's more, to feed into the fanservice, he goes from cool and aloof to always-teasing-the-heroine when (spoiler!) he finds out he likes her. !? Because it totally not obvious right...? Just like in every shoujo manga, everyone around the main couple knows that one of them has fallen hard for the other even if the former believes no one can tell. If you're wondering whether there are any good and less characters in your average TV trope, then worry not. There are. The supporting main characters and cast are actually more interesting in my opinion. While they may seem like your average stereotypes at first, further along the story, they actually have more to them personality wise than a genius playboy extraordinaire and genius ojousama class president. But like, in the end, the main characters are gary-stus and mary-sues. so- Character: 4/10 Enjoyment: This could be very controversial and it's also why I mentioned in the beginning of this review that I'm not compelled to review this for the normal reasons of it being super good or super bad. If I was the only opinion that mattered, I would rate this an 11/10 despite the terrible story and main characters. Why? because I hate myself and love reading cringe. Reading this was a ride for me. I laughed at all the author's attempt to make the reader's heart beat with racy fanservice and overused plot devices. The main heroine is also an avid imaginer, so there will be a lot. And I end up crying at it because the author seems to be doing this unironically. I don't know. Maybe it was all supposed to be a joke and I missed it and called it unironic. Don't know. Doesn't change the fact that I find it hilarious. But not everyone hates themselves and find cringe enjoyable so, if you're not into that, I can give you a general feel of what to expect. For those who love twists and a storyline: There won't be many twists if you've been reading manga for a long time. The main couple is a pair of mary/gary sues, so it's pretty predictable. For those who just want shoujo: You want those kisses? You want the teasing? You want angst? You want jealousy? You want--- don't worry it's all here. Enjoyment: 6/10 Overall: averages to a 6/10 The art plays a lot into such a high score from me.