Swan (CMX)

    (CMX, 2004-2008)
™ and © 1976 Kuoko Ariyoshi
Series reads right to left; b&w

In a Japanese backwater, 16–year–old Masumi desperately wants to be a dancer. She unexpectedly gets tossed into the deep end of the cutthroat world of international ballet competition and endlessly trains to be the very best. She’s some kind of phenomenon, because she doesn’t merely endure the relentless training regimen, she positively wallows in it—with only fleeting moments of self–doubt and without a single debilitating injury or hint of an eating disorder. As is the case with the other initial entries in DC’s CMX manga line, this seems rather old–fashioned in comparison to the more contemporary Tokyopop titles. Yet, half the fun of reading it comes from its unabashedly stereotypical girlishness, even if it means enduring characters who have eyelashes the size of tarantulas. It’s a genuine romance in spite of the total lack of any amorous encounters, because it’s the sincerely sentimental story of the love story between a girl and her all–consuming obsession: something members of the target audience are likely to understand.

— S.A. Bennett
Jump to issue:
  NotesWriterArtist
#8


Cover Price: $9.99
1 copy available for $94.99 		Kyoko AriyoshiKyoko Ariyoshi
#11


Cover Price: $9.99
1 copy available for $49.99 		Kyoko AriyoshiKyoko Ariyoshi