[MANGA REVIEW] Sakura Taisen

July 19, 2008 by Dennis Amith

In a recent manga review by Tom Baker for the Daily Yomiuri, Baker reviews the manga “Sakura Taisen”.

Baker wrote, “Read any good Taisho era, steampunk, demon-fighting, comedy-action manga series lately? Allow me to suggest Sakura Taisen, which is probably the best–and possibly the only–example of that genre.”

“According to a note in Volume 2, the setting is an alternate-reality Tokyo during a “Taisho era” whose name is written with characters meaning “Broad Truth,” while those of the real Taisho era (1912-1926) meant “Great Truth.”

“The story is told mostly from the viewpoint of ambitious Imperial Navy Ensign Ichiro Ogami, who is baffled and crestfallen at the career setback of being assigned to work as a lowly ticket-taker at a musical theater. But it turns out that the resident performers, a Takarazuka-style all-female acting troupe, lead double lives as the Imperial Fighting Troupe, psychic warriors who protect Tokyo from marauding demons and steam-powered robots.”