St. Dragon Girl

St. ♥ Dragon Girl
聖[セイント] ♡ ドラゴンガール
(Kiyoshi Seinto Doragon Gaaru)
Genre Romantic comedy, Magical Girl, Martial Arts, Fantasy
Manga
Written by Natsumi Matsumoto
Published by Shueisha
English publisher Canada United States Viz Media
Demographic Shōjo
Magazine Ribon
Original run October 1999 – April 2003
Volumes 8
Manga
St. ♥ Dragon Girl Miracle
Written by Natsumi Matsumoto
Published by Shueisha
Demographic Shōjo
Magazine Ribon
Original run June 2003 – 2006
Volumes 5

St. ♥ Dragon Girl (聖[セイント] ♡ ドラゴンガール Kiyoshi Seinto Doragon Gaaru) is a Japanese manga by Natsumi Matsumoto. It was serialized in Ribon from October 1999 through April 2003. The individual chapters were collected and published in eight volumes by Shueisha. The series focuses on childhood friends Momoka and Ryuga, after Momoka is possessed by a dragon while protecting Ryuga. It is followed by a sequel series titled St. ♥ Dragon Girl Miracle (聖[セイント] ♡ ドラゴンガール みらくる Kiyoshi [Seinto] Doragon Gaaru Mirakuru ) which focuses on Momoko and Ryuga's daughter, Anjuu Sendou.

The series is licensed for English language release in North America by Viz Media, who released the first volume on December 2, 2008.[1] As of December 2009, five of the eight volumes have been published.[2]

Characters

Momoka Sendou (桃華千堂 Sendou Momoka), is the main character of the manga. At the beginning of the story, she got possessed by a very powerful dragon which was supposed to be possessed by her childhood friend, Ryuga.

Release

While both of the series were published by Shueisha in Japan and Tokyopop in Germany, St. Dragon Girl was also published in North America by Viz Media.

Volume list

St. Dragon Girl

No.Japanese release dateJapanese ISBNNorth American release dateNorth American ISBN
01 September 19, 2000—December 2, 2008ISBN 978-1-4215-2010-0
  • Chapters 1-4
02 April 18, 2001—March 3, 2009ISBN 978-1-4215-2011-7
  • Chapters 5-8
  • Extra: Far East Working Girl
03 August 12, 2001—June 2, 2009ISBN 978-1-4215-2012-4
  • Chapter 9-12
  • Extras: Little Dragon Special, Trouble on a Snowy Night
04 January 20, 2002—September 1, 2009ISBN 978-1-4215-2013-1
  • Chapters 13-17
05 May 20, 2002—December 1, 2009ISBN 978-1-4215-2014-8
  • Chapters 18-21
  • Extras: Natural Thunder Girl, The Seven Mysteries of the School Special
06 December 20, 2002—March 3, 2010ISBN 978-1-4215-2015-5
  • Chapters 22-27
  • Extra: Magical Ron-Ron
07 March 19, 2003—June 1, 2010ISBN 978-1-4215-2016-2
  • Chapters 28-32
  • Extra: Midsummer Shaolin Mermaid
08 September 12, 2003—September 7, 2010ISBN 978-1-4215-2017-9
  • Chapters 33-34
  • Extras: Bonus Story #1, Bonus Story #2: Xi Chen's Dangerous Games, Bonus Story #3

St. Dragon Girl Miracle

No.Japanese release dateJapanese ISBN
01 ——
  • Chapters 1-4
02 ——
  • Chapters 5-8
  • Extra: Momoka and Ryuga's Idiot Parent Diary
03 ——
  • Chapters 9-13
  • Extras: Secret Midnight Snapshot, Momoka and Ryuga: Diary of the Doting Parents
04 April 20, 2005—
  • Chapters 14-19
  • Extra: Momoka and Ryuga's Diary of Parenthood
05 ——
  • Chapters 20-25

Reception

Leroy Douresseaux of the Comic Book Bin claims that the use of magic in the series "energizes what could have been standard fare". He also claims that the mixture of "typically super-pretty shojo manga art with demon-fighting" is a "fun read". He also likens the series to a root beer float, "At some point, you might be too old to have such a really sweet treat in an extra-large size, but it is still sooooo good". Several times, he said that although the series was intended for younger girls, it would also appeal older readers.[3][4][5] Deb Aoki of About.com considered this as a perfect series for tweens with "charming art, simple stories and chaste romance."[6] Ed Sizemore of Manga Worth Reading felt that Matsumoto managed to create a cast of wholesome people that aren't boring", but was frustrated by the main characters' refusal to admit their mutual attraction to each another.[7] Anime News Network's Carlo Santos disliked the first volume, considering it episodic and formulaic nature, similar to other high school romances, and having ordinary art work.[8]

References

  1. ↑ "St. Dragon Girl, Vol. 1". Viz Media. Retrieved December 13, 2009.
  2. ↑ "St. Dragon Girl Volume 5". Viz Media. Retrieved December 12, 2009.
  3. ↑ Douresseaux, Leroy (November 29, 2008). "St. Dragon Girl: Volume 1". Comic Book Bin. Retrieved June 10, 2009.
  4. ↑ Douresseaux, Leroy (April 27, 2009). "St. Dragon Girl: Volume 2". Comic Book Bin. Retrieved June 10, 2009.
  5. ↑ Douresseaux, Leroy (June 4, 2009). "St. Dragon Girl: Volume 3". Comic Book Bin. Retrieved June 10, 2009.
  6. ↑ Aoki, Deb. "St. Dragon Girl Volume 1". About.com. Retrieved December 13, 2009.
  7. ↑ Sizemore, Ed (June 3, 2009). "St. Dragon Girl Books 1-3". Manga Worth Reading. Comics Worth Reading. Retrieved December 13, 2009.
  8. ↑ Santos, Carlo (December 12, 2008). "St. Dragon Girl GN 1". Anime News Network. Retrieved December 13, 2009.

External links