Yuyu Hakasho (Manga)

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Name: Yuyu Hakasho
Type: Manga

Author: Soshihiro Togashi

Books: 19
Genre: Action, supernatural, martial arts, mystery
Age Rating: 16+

Review:
Yusuke Uremeshi is a brawling 8th grader who gets into fights and is known as a troublemaker until he dies saving a young child from a car accident. As a ghost, Yusuke is guided by Boton who tells him he gets a second chance at life if he does good deeds. 

Because of extreme violence and some language, I recommend this series to more mature kids. There were also some mild sexual references as well, but the rating is mostly for violence. The series started off kind of sketchy, and I wasn't sure that I was going to like it. But I did end up reading it despite its mediocrity, and was disappointed that I was unable to finish it due to limited books at my local library and licensing to reading online. It wasn't very memorable or overly interesting to me personally, which is why I gave it 1 star.

The main character experienced positive development-going from bully, to defender, and I liked his frenemy-type relationship to his "arch rival," Kuwabara. The romance was a little odd; I didn't feel too much chemistry between Yusuke and Keiko at first, but I ended up rooting for them. Most of the plot was focused around fighting, which was fine, but I would have liked to see a bit more story and get more background on the characters. Still, it is a pretty good fighting manga, which seems to be popular with young readers (especially boys).

If you aren't comfortable with talk of "psychic" or "ghosts" or "spiritual abilities," and the battling against spirits and demons, that is a main theme in the book so it might not be for you. The reader should understand God's truth in regarding these things as well as true spiritual warfare. It is important for them to be able to differentiate between fact and fiction. Again, it wasn't really spiking my interest too deeply, but it was a pretty good manga for boys of the appropriate age.

Mature Content: 

• Profanity- "Damn," "hell," ass," and "bitch"
• Sexual References- Yusuke (and once Kuwabara) grabs Keiko's boobs, butt, and pulls up her skirt and comments on her underwear
• Spiritual- Talk of battling demons and spirits as well as "spiritual powers" and the "spirit world"
• Later on, characters use "spiritual powers" to fight against enemies
• Violence- Battles and fight scenes both in school and against evil spirits

Personal Note:
This was the second manga series I read after Fruits Basket.