Before I picked up Kaze Hikaru, the only japanese history I knew was post WWII, so my first introduction to the Shinsegumi was Kaze Hikura. Only after I read every published chapter did I go on Wikipedia and investigate the historical accounts. My suspicions were confirmed when they lined up perfectly. Kaze Hakaru isn’t romance with a historical setting, its Historical fiction that has some romance.

Most of the characters in Kaze Hikaru are based off accounts of historical figures. She does a good job with making the characters assessable but Watanabe Sensei never lets her characters diverge from facts. This can mean that characters you like can die in unsatisfying, but historical accurate, ways.

Kaze Hikaru artwork is ascetically pleasing without being distracting

While the story overall is about the Shinsegumi, Sei, as the main character and POV, has her own personal struggles inside the larger events. They are handled realistically, and occasionally hilariously, but they are at the mercy of history, so they never rule the story.

As you can see from what I’ve already written, Kaze Hikaru is about taking the reader back in time to the Tokugawa era. Characterization and plot are forced to line up with history, and in my opinion, it was worth it. Watanabe sensei is able to show us both the glory and the harsh realities of the movement, and she makes us care.

Overall, I give Kaze Hikaru and 8. It tone is half way between a normal Shoujo Manga and the Coen brother’s “True Grit”. Read it if you’re a history buff, avoid it if you’re looking for a sweat romance

One other note. I’m not sure if the story was ever completed. There are 30 volumes released in Japan and 19 released in English by VIZ Media but no completely translated version on the internet. Believe me, I’ve looked.