What scares some can be a thrilling adventure to others. That concept is the crux of one of the newest manga adventures to come out of Viz Media, Dark Gathering. Created by Kenichi Kondo, Dark Gathering Volume 1 fun romp from beginning to end about a boy who can see spirits and a little girl who drags him along to help exorcise them.
Living as a human is hard, but it's even worse when you're a magnet for malicious spirits. Keitaro Gentoga is one such person and due to a dangerous encounter with an evil spirit, he's sworn off the supernatural and has become a shut-in. This changes when he becomes reacquainted with society and his first task is to become the tutor of a young girl named Yayoi Hozuki. All seems reasonable at first, Keitaro is on the road to recovery after all. Except there's one problem -- Yayoi is obsessed with ghosts and ghouls, and drags Keitaro into the world of the supernatural. Her mission is to capture every rogue spirit to get closer to the one who killed her mother. It looks like Keitaro is in some serious trouble.
Dark Gathering is increidbly stylish. The entire look and spirit have a post-emo visual design that looks like a cross between Goth trappings and cutesy tones that makes for what can be called "spooky cute." Dark Gathering radiates this cute vibe but never forsakes its horror roots. There are some genuine spine-tingling moments where gruesome art takes the stage, followed by impressive fight scenes where Yayoi struts her spirit-hunting prowess. However, mangaka Kenichi Kondo lets his artistic aspirations get the better when he puts too much into one panel. Double-takes to grasp what is going on in some of the messier panels are required for reading this manga.
Thankfully, this isn't always the case, so the visuals are still enjoyable enough. Yayoi, on the technical side of things, is the strongest point of this manga regarding her character design; Yayoi perfectly embodies the series' macabre roots, and her double-pupil eyes that are shaped as skulls act as a nice bit of symbolism in Yayoi straddling the line between two worlds.
Most of the humor in the series lies in Yayoi's deadpan delivery of what would otherwise be out-of-this-world events. Keitaro, on the other hand, is the type who always plays situations straight by trying -- and failing -- to bring logic into the situation. Dark Gathering isn't always a comedy, though. There are some moments in Dark Gathering which are dramatic with a series of sad tales and tense moments. Then it is back to wacky and wild ghost adventures, never lingering too long on either drama or comedy.
The only problem that can be seen with its story delivery, especially with regard to the comedy, is that it relies a little too much on some tired tropes and fans will be able to point them out quickly. There is even some suggestive comedy that will raise a few eyebrows, but the good news is that it passes quickly enough and is done in sparse doses that it does not leave too much of a stain on the overall work. All in all, Dark Gathering is a worthwhile romp through the world of the dead dancing dangerously with the living. Fans of moe anime and supernatural themes will get a kick out of this manga.