Author: Kakinouchi Narumi
Copyright:©1994, 1996, 1997, 1999 Kakinouchi Narumi

Many people probably know Kakinouchi Narumi for her manga VAMPIRE PRINCESS MIYU. This spawned the OVA series that was to set a new milestone for the horror genre. GOGO SANJI NO MAHOU definitely has Kakinouchi's distinctive touch, however it is not at all dark. In this story she explores the lighter side of a sort of haunting. By light I do not mean humorous, but light/goodness, the desire to help others in emotional or physical distress.
The manga is broken up into chapters—each for a specific character. Even though the story may seem episodic, all of the characters are related. The story of the Nightingale-nurse spreads from one family member to another, from one boyfriend to another girlfriend. There is a solitary house in the middle of a small grove of trees that, although it appears abandoned, is kept-up well. An old doctor used to live there, but he is gone now. His hands and his voice were all the medicine anyone who came to see him ever needed.
The first chapter revolves around Tsugawa Kouki. It is shortly before 3 p.m. in the afternoon and three high school students are talking on their way home from school. One comments on the house and how there are stories of a nurse who has been seen around it. One of them wonders if it she is a ghost because she remains so young looking over time and is only rarely actually seen. One of the students notices his older brother, Kouki, walking towards them. It turns out that Kouki is returning home from the pharmacist with some medicine. He has been ill for a while now and even though it is not a grave illness, it is not getting any better.
The younger brother jokingly suggests Kouki should go see the nurse in the house yonder. Kouki suddenly decides to go, surprising his brother. As Kouki heads off to the mysterious house one of his brother's friends remarks that Kouki seems to be acting a bit strangely.
As Kouki approaches the house he wonders if there really is anyone, much less a nurse, here. The door opens easily and he seems to hear a voice welcoming him in. When he enters a bird alights on his shoulder. He again hears a voice saying "Follow me." The bird abruptly flies upstairs as the voice continues: "Come up to the second floor." He wonders if this nurse could be a ghost.
However, as Kouki enters the room on the second floor, he sees a real person and is startled. She asks what is wrong and feels his forehead, which seems to snap him out of his pause. She comments that he does not seem to have a fever. The nurse convinces Kouki to sit down, have some tea and talk. He asks her about the small bird he saw. She turns away from the window and Kouki has a vision of her with wings—"That was me," she replies. Kouki is stunned, but she breaks the spell again by laughing and saying she was joking.
The nurse begins asking him questions about himself, about what he is studying, about his family. It turns out that Kouki's father is a lawyer and he is attempting to follow in his footsteps. Unfortunately, the more he tries to do this the harder it becomes for him to follow that path. As the nurse skillfully steers Kouki verbally around, and perhaps mystically, he realizes that he needs to have the strength to chart his own course in life and not do himself ill by just blindly trying to imitate his father for his parents' sake.
This is a typical setting in the story. You get a little setup for a character or a relationship with some sort of internal problem. The affected people have reasons to go by the Nightingale's house and she affects a cure. Interleaved between these are bits of her history and how she came to be.
The art is exemplary of Kakinouchi's work. Very fine lines sketching out the minutest details of faces and form. A lot of attention is paid especially to the hair and eyes of her characters. The backgrounds are extremely sparse and serve mainly as props for the characters. All of the people in her story are characteristically beautiful.
This story is rather simple and easy to read. There are no great adventures, no fantastic acts of courage, no plots that affect the fate of all humanity. Just a set of little secrets all tied together and simple healings of the heart around a 3 p.m. tea ritual. If you like Kakinouchi's artwork, then you will probably enjoy this manga. If you are after something that ties the lives of a whole bunch of characters together while being easy on the eyes and on the heart, then you will enjoy this manga.

Published by Afternoon KC
Run: 4 volumes, completed
216 ~ 220 pages, b/w, ¥505
Vol. 1: ISBN4-06-314102-0
Vol. 2: ISBN4-06-314130-6
Vol. 3: ISBN4-06-314164-0
Vol. 4: ISBN4-06-314204-3
Available now in Japan
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