Phantom Seer has been running in Weekly Shonen Jump for only a few months now, and it's had a somewhat quiet run so far. It's another shaman-type story, which makes it easy to overlook considering the abundance of series of that type already available, such as Chainsaw Man and Jujutsu Kaisen. However, like any overused tropes, it all boils down to the execution, which Phantom Seer nails.
Written by Togo Goto and illustrated by Kento Matsuura, the story takes place in modern-day Japan and follows a high schooler named Riku Aibetsu who has an unfortunate ability that draws vicious spirits, or Phantoms, to her. Another student, Iori Katanagi, is a shaman who ends up helping Riku deal with a Phantom that's haunting her, and also makes her aware of the other spiritual battles taking place around her. As Riku dives deeper into the world of shamans, she learns the nature of her power and how dangerous Phantoms can be.
Because of her unique ability, she is used by the shamans to draw out Phantoms so that they can be exorcised. What follows are somewhat episodic scenarios where Riku, Iori and company learn about a Phantom, draw it out of hiding, and exorcise it.
If that little synopsis sounds bland, it's because, frankly, it is. Phantom Seer has a pretty unremarkable start, but it does get better in its storytelling as the chapters progress, especially when it gets into developing Riku and following up on Iori's personal objectives. In the meantime, what really carries this manga forward is its strong art.
Since this story deals with the supernatural, readers are spoiled with striking panels from Matsuura of grotesquely detailed Phantoms that seem to consume the pages that they're featured in. The buildup to a Phantom reveal is appropriately tense, as characters are drawn with intense expressions and dark backgrounds to make them pop from the panel. Phantoms are dealt with rather quickly so the action can be short, but the reader is rewarded with epic single and double-page spreads that add to the sense of scale and strength behind each attack.
Iori has dark magic that he creates shadow-like weapons with, and while that's not a new concept, the way the tendrils of darkness fly across the page is a sight to behold. It gets even better when Iori summons his own personal Phantoms that he controls -- similar to what's seen in series like Persona or JoJo's Bizarre Adventure.
Outside of the action, the characters themselves have sharp designs, which are also reminiscent of the modern, "hip" style of Persona's world. The main cast is attractive and fashionable. One character, Kurose, sports a sleek suit with an undershirt that has very intricate patterns on it. This attention to detail can be seen across the board, from the Phantom designs to even some otherworldly architecture, like Iori's home.
The dialogue in the series flows naturally and the comedy is effective in breaking up the darker parts of the manga from time to time. Iori is a bit of a reluctant hero, so a lot of the time he's griping about his job, but it comes across as silly teasing rather than meanspirited. Riku is like the straight man of the group and most of the comedy comes from her reacting to Iori and Co.'s eccentricities. She's great at calling out Iori when he blatantly lies or contradicts himself.
As for Riku herself, she's more of a P.O.V character at the start, but as she learns more about shamans, she becomes interested in being one herself. Without getting into spoilers, she starts to play a more active role as the story progresses, which is awesome, because she's a very likable protagonist. It feels like the writer, Goto, is aware of some of the areas the manga was lacking at the start and is now addressing them -- Riku's development being one of those examples.
The first compiled volume of Phantom Seer has sold decently in Japan, so there's a good chance that it has a promising future in Jump. It may not reach the heights of some of its sister series, but it has enough going for it to put its unique stamp on the Shonen Jump roster nonetheless.