Series Review: Honey Hunt by Miki Aihara

Series Description: The media is abuzz when word gets out that Yura's mega-famous parents are splitting up. Already accustomed to the daily pressure of being the child of celebrities, Yura's frustration explodes in a rant against her parents--and her heated words end up being broadcasted live on national TV! When a powerful talent scout hears her impassioned declaration, he offers to represent her. The door to showbiz is now flung open for this timid wallflower--will she try to become an actress in her own right?

Stats: Romance Manga, Volumes 1-6, English Publication: April 2009 to December 2010 by VIZ Media LLC.
Current Status: On Hiatus from Publication.
My Overall (1-6) Rating: 2 STARS

According to animenewsnetwork.com in this post, Honey Hunt Goes on Hiatus, Author Reveals New Manga, Honey Hunt was officially put on hiatus by Aihara back sometime in 2009. It's been over a year since the last complete volume (Volume 6) was published here in North America and with no news on the series continuation I think it's safe to mark this manga series as complete. To seal the deal, even if Volume 7 was to be published I don't think I would be interested in continuing with Honey Hunt.

When I first started reading, Honey Hunt was a random grab off the library shelf. I try to find first volumes of books I've never heard of before just to give something new a go. I've never read anything else by Aihara, but from what I've seen online she's has a very dedicated fan base. Even with the poor showing of Honey Hunt, I'm still considering reading her Hot Gimmick series.

Honey Hunt started off very well. I found myself instantly interested in the story and the main character, Yura, had me routing for her to succeed from volume one. The plot in itself had a lot of great promise, but then it kind of plateaued. Nothing was particularly bad about it, but nothing was really great either. I liked the series right through Volume 6, but it never hit that level that made it memorable or amazing. Overall, it was just okay.

However, there were a few things that really stood out. One of the things I liked about the series was the overall tone. Honey Hunt is written like a Japanese TV-drama and being a fan of Japanese TV-dramas I was loving it. It had the appropriate mix of romantic possibilities, (which includes a twin brother love triangle, see above right), and story elements with Yura trying to make a name for herself in acting while battling her lack of self-confidence, actual acting skills, and past family issues.

Yura's mother was probably one of my favourite characters. In the manga the comparison is made that she's very reminiscent of The Evil Queen in Snow White. She's vain, possessive, and views her daughter more as competition for attention then someone to nurture. I think it would have been interesting to see the story take on a bit of a Snow White retelling, it definitely had those elements brewing underneath the surface story lines.

Although I did have some problems initially with the chaotic panel design. I did enjoy the art and how each character looked and expressed themselves.

Honey Hunt just isn't something I would recommend to people, despite the good things I have to say, because it's continuation has been put so far on the back burner that it has been completely forgotten.

I just don't understand why a creator would start a series and then abandon it to work on something else without creating some sort of conclusion. I say this especially in light of the manga industry where so many people are trying to make a living. To get the opportunity to publish something and then just stopping after 6 volumes completely baffles me.