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One word which absolutely defines and encompasses 'Amazing Agent Luna Vol 1' is: Cute.
This manga is so cute that it could bring down any evil organisation and corrupt nation just through the collective reading of it. I want to hug and squeeze this thing to my heart while lying in a valley of fresh, dewy green grass, and willowy ponds, and lily petals. I never thought before that a story about secret agents and espionage could be this freaking adorable, but here we are.
'Amazing Agent Luna Vol 1' is like a funny yet thrilling and action packed Saturday morning cartoon in manga form. It's mainly set in a high school, yes, but it doesn't feel stale, dry, or aggravating. Its premise is simple yet shows promise. Each character is distinguishable, memorable, and likeable. And because of this, some cliches still manage to come across as fresh, if that makes sense. The cliches are understated, at the least. The pacing is just right - its action scenes and character moments happen at the appropriate times.
And did I mention that this American-made manga is cute? 'Cause it is! It is a doll!
Luna is a teenage girl who from the test tube has been trained her entire life to be the world's greatest secret agent. US government funded, she's a biological weapon. But for all of her skills and intelligence, she is an adolescent girl in need of other, more normal experiences. Experiences like her new mission, which assigns her to Nobel High School.
For the first time this brilliant yet cute and naive girl will make friends, and social rivals; plus get to know new clothes and brands, plus modern slang, and game rules (like in netball). And since this is mid-2000s high school writing, Luna will have her first crush on a boy at Nobel High. And waddiya know, this crush and fellow new kid Jonah happens to be the son of Luna's agency's arch nemesis, Count Von Brucken! (Good old American xenophobia which I hope is subverted in later volumes).
But as naive as Luna can be, she has her priorities straight, and she won't let her feelings for a typical mysterious bishonen get in the way of her mission.
How can a spy girl be like a Magical Girl and yet not? That's what 'Amazing Agent Luna' presents to us, and I commend it.
Luna is serious, smart, determined and action orientated as an agent - particularly in her ninja gear - and also rather a crybaby when off duty, and uncertain, shy and self-conscious as a school girl being social for the first time in her life. She's as messy and complex as any teenager, no matter how she was raised. She really is adorable, and relatable (as can be, given all of her bizarre circumstances, and who hasn't felt like a lonely outsider alien in high school?) and worth idolising.
As well as her "Control"/Agent Jennifer Kajiwara (the serious one with the defrosting heart), and Dr. Andy Collins (the understanding house dad one) posing as her parents, other people in Luna's life now include her school friends: Francesca, who is pretty, kind and friendly, but is also friends with the school's popular mean girl Elizabeth, and Francesca will be forced to choose between her and Luna - she will realise who her true friends are, and she's a loyal cream puff; then there's Oliver, a loser skateboarder who always stumbles into trouble, and has a crush on Luna, but for all his moodiness and foibles he is genuinely nice and his heart is in the right place. Jonah is hardly worth mentioning at this time; the love subplot pales in comparison to the main espionage plot. Friendship is more interesting anyway.
Luna also makes friends with Aristotle, an owl, who is the school's mascot. Principle Ohlinger is hilarious, and so is Count Von Brucken, which I definitely did not expect from his serious first appearance. This manga contains great comedic timing.
How sweet, funny and entertaining 'Amazing Agent Luna Vol 1' is. I am actually thinking about reading more of this series, which almost never happens to me with manga nowadays. At least this is a finished series. Recommended for a wholesome and darling good time.
There is certainly more to this mystery - and to Luna - than meets the eye.
Final Score: 4/5
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