You know him; you love him; he’s everyone’s favourite con-artist: Master Reigen! This new manga by ONE focuses on the fan-favourite character from the Mob Psycho 100 series and examines what makes him so great, despite that fact that he’s a fake and a liar!
Synopsis:
Tome Kurata has always been fascinated with anything supernatural or strange and she’s recently started volunteering part-time at the office of a local exorcist: Arataka Reigen. Reigen doesn’t exactly project the aura of a cool and powerful spirit medium, but his agency has apparently solved many cases related to spirits and hauntings and Tome is eager to observe these phenomena herself. Despite the fact that she’s offering to work for free, Reigen seems hesitant to have her hanging around the office, since Tome doesn’t possess any spiritual powers, herself. Can Tome prove her worth to Reigen and be accepted as a part of his team? Or is he actually correct about an exorcist’s line of work being too dangerous for someone without psychic abilities?
Review:
Mob Psycho 100: Reigen appears to take place after the end of the main Mob Psycho 100 manga series (and after the events of the second season of the anime) and follows the exploits of Reigen and crew while Mob is absent from the agency for a spell while he studies for exams. With Mob – whose immense psychic powers Reigen is used to depending on, since he’s a fraud who lacks any real powers of his own – temporarily out of the picture, Reigen needs to rely on his wits, skill at fast-talking and some plain old luck to keep his business going. Thankfully, he also has help from a few assistants who he’s picked up over the course of his adventures and, of course, Tome.
Tome was fun side-character who tried to get Mob to join her Telepathy Club in Mob Psycho 100, but she didn’t get a lot to do in the main series, so I really enjoyed seeing her get her moment in the spotlight in this manga. Tome is a bit socially awkward and has trouble fitting in with her friend group at school, since the other girls have very different interests then her and she doesn’t always feel comfortable discussing her love of ghosts, aliens and all thing weird with them. Despite this, Tome doesn’t ever consider giving up her hobbies and instead goes after what she wants with gusto, basically walking into the Spirts & Things Consultation Office and starting to act as their secretary without actually ever being hired. She also doesn’t hesitate to throw herself into the fray when she tags along with Reigen on missions, tackling civilians who are getting in the way and throwing bags of salt at mysterious spirits when the situation calls for it. Tome’s eagerness make her very entertaining and I’m kind of sad that this manga is only a single volume long, as I’d have loved to have seen more of her adventures with Reigen and the rest of the Spirts & Things staff.
The other main character in this manga is the titular Reigen. Reigen is my favourite part of Mob Psycho 100 and he’s just as funny in this manga as he is in the main series. It’s always hilarious to watch him sweat, flail and just generally fly by the seat of his pants through situations where he has no real idea what’s actually happening.
Mob Psycho 100: Reigen also highlights the qualities that redeem Reigen, despite all of his deceptions: he’s actually quite responsible and takes his duties to the young people he’s taken under his wing very seriously. This, in my opinion, is what make Reigen such a loveable character, despite his flaws. He may be a liar, but he’d never abandon someone, and this is demonstrated quite dramatically towards the end of this manga when an unfortunate encounter with a very dangerous spirit ratchets up the stakes. I don’t want to spoil anything, so I won’t go into any details, but, suffice it to say, it’s an exciting conclusion and I found myself really moved by Reigen’s actions.
Since there may be readers who know of Mob Psycho 100 strictly through the anime, I feel like I should briefly discuss ONE’s art style. While the art in this manga looks more polished then what we saw in the early volumes of Mob Psycho 100, ONE still has a very rough and simple style that some readers might find off-putting. It lacks detail, proportions frequently look off and the characters have a blocky and awkward appearance. It’s also hilarious-looking and, rather then being a detriment, I personally think that the art style greatly contributes to the manga’s humor. If you’re new to ONE’s manga, I urge you to go into this with an open mind and willingness to embrace the art for the comedy that it offers.
I really enjoyed Mob Psycho 100: Reigen and I’d consider it a must read for fans of the Mob Psycho 100 anime and manga, alike. I would recommend being caught up on the anime before picking this series up though, as there is one character whose presence could be considered a minor spoiler, if you haven’t seen the full series.
Final Score: 8.5 out of 10.
What did you think of this manga? Does anyone else want to see this turned into an anime movie or OVA series? Let me know in the comments!
For more information on this series, visit Dark Horse Comics’ website.
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