Writer, Artist & Cover Artist: Nebukuro
Translators: Motoko Tamamuro & Jonathan Clements
Letterer: Ayoub Bensidi
Publisher: Titan Manga
Price: $12.99
Release Date: January 29, 2025
Kaori Shinonome spent her youth supporting her parents. She
didn't have time for friends or money for hobbies. Now, Kaori wants to make a
life for herself. So, when she finds an affordable apartment building, Kaori buys
it. It's a fixer-upper, but she can rent the best units while repairing the rest.
Will apartment ownership help Kaori enjoy life more? Or will her dream become a
nightmare? Let's grab a bottle of sake, strap on our proton packs, leap into
Welcome To Ghost Mansion Vol 1, and find out!
Story
Trouble threatens her dream when someone calls from
Jellyfish Estate Agents. The prospective renters claim a ghost reached out and
touched them. They can even show Kaori a photo of the ghost on their phone.
Shocked, Kaori thinks of the sixteen apartments she hopes to rent and her 35-year
mortgage. Suddenly, instead of rental income flooding in, Kaori wonders how
many jobs she must undertake to avoid going bankrupt.
Unlike Peter, Ray, and Egon, Kaori Shinonome doesn’t know
how to capture and remove ghosts. Might a butterfly net and insecticide
eradicate her ectoplasmic squatters? Desperate for help, she visits a nearby
shrine for help in Welcome To Ghost Mansion Vol 1.
Like her apartment complex, the shrine has fallen into
disrepair. As she prays, Kaori notices children playing. But when they try to
leave, one chases and transforms them into monsters. Perhaps Kaori identifies
with the children forced to play, as circumstances forced her to work while
growing up. Still, she grabs the net she purchased and races after the ghost
pursuing a child.
In Welcome To Ghost Mansion Vol 1, Kaori captures the ghost.
As she talks with Kamikiri, Kaori realizes the ghost is lonely. No one cares
about Kamikiri anymore. Few visit the shrine, and no one maintains it. Like any
successful businessperson, Kaori transforms a problem into an opportunity. If
Humans don't want to live in Shinonome Mansion, Kaori will fill it with ghosts,
demons, and monsters. Kaori can help them find jobs so they can pay her rent.
While the ghosts discover what they enjoy doing, Kaori can restore her
apartment building and discover the life her busy childhood denied her.
Art
Nebukuro’s ghosts resemble the possessed souls from horror
movies. Their mouths enlarge and fill with sharpened teeth. Mouths sprout from
other parts of their bodies. One even wears his head upside down. Then, there
is the ghost that sits before a computer and slips on headphones. As he
operates a call center, a mouth on his chest stretches into an open mouth
smile.
Ghosts and humans often spring into action in Welcome To
Ghost Mansion Vol 1. But Nebukuro never obscures the action with direction
lines, explosive power, or sound effects. The action can be heartbreaking, such
as when a ghost tortures itself by reliving its moment of death every day. Then
there is the angry artist who never found an audience for her work.
Amid all the action, characters shine as they struggle to
solve their problems. Perhaps the most troubled is Tsuzumi Kusakabe. The High
Schooler comes from a family of exorcists and is anxious to prove herself. Yet
Shinonome Mansion is in her territory. Instead of discouraging ghosts from
haunting her apartments, Kaori keeps making friends with them!
Ayoub Bensidi writes large, uppercase letters into narrative
boxes, dialogue balloons, and empty panel space. Off-panel dialogue appears in
balloons with thick borders. Thoughts appear inside jagged ones. Sound effects
may demand concentration, but it's worth slowing the pace to enjoy Welcome To
Ghost Mansion Vol 1 a little longer. Thanks to Motoko Tamamuro and Jonathan
Clements for translating Nebukuro’s story and Titan Manga for providing a copy
for review.
Final Thoughts
When Kaori Shinonome pins her hopes on renovating an
apartment building, she dreams of a carefree life sustained by investment
income. Instead, Kaori discovers a life filled with hard work and friendships
she didn't have time for in her youth. So what if they are ghosts? Whether
living or dead, everyone gets a shot at happiness in Welcome To Ghost Mansion
Vol 1.
Rating 9.8/10
To look inside see my preview of Welcome To Ghost Mansion Vol 1.
To check out the next installment see my Welcome To Ghost Mansion Vol 2 Solicit.
