manga review

It’s been a while since I read this series but when I did, I remember enjoying it greatly to the point that a bunch of my friends joined me in reading it too. Unlike some mangas that (although still good) tend to be more focused on the fighting and battle aspects of a story, Tegami Bachi focuses more on the mystery of the world and the adventures taken by Lag, the main character.

Lag is what is known as a ‘Letter Bee’, he delivers mail to people across the three cities and, once, was a piece of mail himself being delivered to his aunt by an older Letter Bee. The cities are separated into classes and lit by an artificial sun that stands in the wealthiest and so brightest city, leaving the lowest class citizens in almost complete darkness.

Although being a rather serious series, there is plenty of humorous moments to keep the book alive, especially through the character Niche (who was my favourite when I was reading the series). Niche is Lag’s ‘Dingo’ and accompanies him of his missions to deliver messages, protecting him from the bug-like insects called Gaichuu that attack Letter Bees.

Being a manga, the visuals of the book are equally important as the story itself. Hiroyuki Asada’s art compliments the story perfectly and really presents it as a part of the fantasy genre. He has a very detailed and distinctive style of drawing which he uses to showcase the world. The story is presented rather effectively, even though it is very different to our own.

Overall, this series would probably make it to my top ten favourite mangas, and even though in some parts the story does drag on a little, it is still a great read!

-E Sibbald, Year 12