Kodocha—Sana’s Stage

    (Tokyopop, 2002-2003)
™ and ©2002 Tokyopop
printed in Japanese format

Aimed squarely at adolescent girls, Kodocha revolves around the teen-age travails of Sana Kurata, a 12-year-old celebrity who discovers that school in real life is a bit trickier than in her TV show. She’s managed to overcome an infatuation with her manager Rei, insecurity over the school bully Hayama, and the controversy over her mom’s “tell-all” book. But can she cope with a romance triangle that gets more complicated by the moment?

Tables have turned, now that Sana has befriended Fuka, who seemingly was Hayama’s childhood sweetheart. That throws a wrench into Sana’s mutual attraction with Hayama. Having endured the goo-goo eyes of her other friend, Tsuyoshi, Sana now has to squelch the gossip that she’s involved with her new co-star Naozumi or risk being beaten by his jealous fans.

Who said growing up was easy? Chock-full of close-ups of big eyes and big heads, this series is packed with the rat-a-tat dialogue and thought balloons of kids who are young enough to be cartoon cute but old enough to be emotionally insecure. If secondary-school double-think isn’t your bag, Kodocha isn’t for you. But, if you’re willing to be drawn into a yearbook-like soap opera, you’ll find the tone true enough.

— Oliver Chin
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