Yamada-kun to 7-nin no Majo

Do you ever read a manga and think: "Wow... this was made for me." That is how I felt reading Yamada-Kun to 7-nin no Majo. It has all of my favorite tropes such as body-swap, love spells, telepathy, and time travel. I particularly love the women in the series (Which I don't say too often), such as Urara Shiraishi and Nene Odagiri. You can tell this was written by a woman (in the best way possible.)

I genuinely can not tell you the amount of serotonin I get from reading this manga. It is 100% my favorite and is underrated in my opinion. I wish they still sold it in stores near me, instead of me having to buy the series online.

Criticism: The art is amazing, but a lot of the character designs on the male characters look the same. If you look at Miyamura and Yamada without their hair, they look like the same character. Not to mention a few plot holes here and there, but nothing too noticeable.

If I could ever talk to Miki Yoshikawa, I would say thank you, this manga helped me through some tough times.

honestly i myself don't know why I'm rating this manga an 8. but one thing that i can tell you is, is that this manga came to me at just the right time. After reading many manga and watching many anime i was just tired of all the cliche's and wanted something new. Maybe its because i read Ranma 1/2 idk (shit manga btw).

the characters and story are pretty good. it does get old after a while, but atlas the romance and the plot actually go somewhere unlike most romance manga i read.

Literally every chapter in this manga is pretty good. during this series i never really felt board per say . the artwork looks really good for an ecchie manga and it has that fairy tail esc design (the artwork is the only thing i really like about that manga). The character designs do look good and they are fine and overly sexualized. Which is completely fine because want im looking for when im reading a manga like this is the entertainment value.

The main character isn't anything to ride home about, but i do decently like him and he has some great chemistry wtih the other characters.

If i would have to compare this manga to anything it would definitely be Kami nomi zo Shiru Sekai.

Now i do have to admit that this manga might not be for you. If your going in to this manga and expecting more ecchie action more on the side of high school dxd then thats not what your going to get. If you aren't used to the dumb protagonist trope than you might get tired of it.

but other than that I think this manga does deserve a 9. because in the end i think the thing that maters most is how much you enjoyed a series. the art, story, and characters might not be the best, but i think this manga is completely worth your time.

Yamada-kun to 7-nin no Majo is a repetitive story that relies on flat character traits, bland story beats, and a plot structure so bizarre I can't even begin to describe it. It is without a doubt a manga that extended far past its logical conclusion and kept doing the same thing over and over until it came to an awkward conclusion. Characters repeat the same dialogue so often that I feel like I was on a treadmill while reading it. And of course, the amount of plot contrivances and mediocre payoffs leave the reader feeling almost betrayed. With all of that being said this was without a doubt one of my favorite reading experiences in some time.

I won’t go into too many details, mostly just painting large strokes on the story and its quality.

Story: Author Miki Yoshikawa somehow managed to create a narrative so interesting and entertainingly written that I couldn’t help but stay invested and interested. The characters, while not all together original, are plenty engaging and written well enough that it can be more or less excused. I ended up being so invested in what they were doing and what they wanted that I could easily look past the questionable directions the plot was taking. In a way, this aspect reminds me a bit of Jitsu Wa Watashi Wa, another great RomCom manga.

I will admit that this good will was a little spent by the time I reached the awkward final 10ish chapters, but they by no means ruin the experiences I had before that. The ending goes for a real funky plot twist that tries to explain things, but ends up feeling contrived and muddy. It doesn’t help that it uses a time skip epilogue, one of my personal least favorite ending types. The more I think about it, the more I actively hate the way the manga chooses to build up to the end. The actual final chapter isn't awful, but the rest feels like the most uncomfortable form of padding that tries to answer the central mystery of the series while actually doing none of that and actively bringing it down. The ending doesn't ruin it, and I still think it's worth reading despite it, but you have been warned. In the end the story ends up feeling like it has too many unnecessary layers that are just over complicating things. That’s probably what makes the first 90 chapters one of the best parts.

If the premise sounds interesting to you, but the idea of reading 246 chapters of questionable quality doesn’t interest you, I recommend stopping at Chapter 90. It contains the most tightly written narrative in the whole series and gives a relatively satisfying ending if that interests you. It will probably provide you with the best the series has to offer, though I personally feel you’ll be missing out in the end.

The art is great, with a clear increase in quality from Yoshikawa’s previous large work Yankee-kun to Megane-chan. The characters are all well designed with decent character designs that does let them stand out. I was almost never confused with who was who despite the large cast by the end. On the subject of the ecchi I have basically nothing to say about it. It was pretty weak and didn't add much in any scene it was in. I could take it or leave it.

In the end Yamada-kun to 7-nin no Majo is not a perfect manga, but it is 100% worth a read. If it wasn’t obvious enough already I think the flaws it has actually end up making it more endearing in the end. It may not be perfect, but please give it a try.

"Yamada-kun and the seven witches" was one of the first mangas I ever read back in the day, and because of it, I was mostly up to date and waiting for chapters weekly just became a chore along the way. Three to four years have passed since then and I recently found out that it was finished. Out of a recommendation from a friend I decided to pick it up again from the start and finish it until the end.

All I can say about this manga is that it really understands how high school stories should be done. When I was first reading it, my main problems of the series is that it felt like it was going to fall into the endless trap of being a generic slice of life gag story that relied on the gimmick of the "Witches".

Instead, this "gimmick" was used to bring out some of the aspects I yearn for in manga such as, immense character development, and bringing out a story of a life I can look back to with bittersweet memories. In other mangas, high school life seems more of just a convenient setting for easy situations. However, in this manga, high school felt like it was a story of change, and making relationships with people you will still remember 11 years into the future. To conclude, Yamada-kun and the seven witches is about a delinquent who enrolls into a high school that will change his life. But after reading this manga, I feel like this synopsis doesn't do the manga any justice:

Yamada-kun and the seven witches is about a delinquent who changed the lives of others. The story brings upon the casual comedy, intricate romantic and bromantic relationships to create a dramatic yet fulfilling ride through an extraordinary take on a coming of age story set in high school. After a satisfying conclusion to a series that has been nurtured for five years, I almost teared up a bit after realizing that there would be no more. Thank you Yamada, it was fun to be with you along your stupid antics along the years you spent in this manga.

I look forward to the day I take the time to reread this series again!

P.S. I wrote all of this right after finishing the manga. Most of the things I said may be glorified and I can't say for sure if you should trust me or not. Looking back at the manga, I do not regret any second of reading it because of the enjoyment it brings and I think this is enough of a motive to make this manga recommendation.

The power of a kiss can do many wonders.

For Sleeping beauty, it can revive her from an enternal sleep.
For a child, it can heal wounds
For Yamada however, he can copy the power of the witches from his school.

It all started when Yamada, a bored delinquent, accidentally kiss the smartest girl in school and switched each other's bodies. As a guy, a "certain" reaction is to be expected. After some exploring in other's bodies and learning of different perspectives, they made a pact to explore more into it.

Join him as he discover about the witches, gathering allies and learning about the power's uses and side effect. Will the powers prove useful for the people or will it lead their downfall.

This is an awesome manga, its being a while seen i read something so good and funny at the same time. This manga caught me by surprise i never expected to be this good, at first i thought that this was a generic comedy based romance with a lot of cliches that gets old really fast, but this story its a little different it has really good pace with the story and the jokes. Its really cool how the author makes the characters to act like "normal" high school students in were the do and talk crazy stuff, they never act boring students like some others mangas. The art of this manga is great, it has a lot influences with another great mangaka that has a lot of magical stuff and lot of tales, that has lot of Kodansha greatness*wink* wink* and yet it looks original in his own way with the characters and the environment looking really good. Not gonna go with a lot of details of this story because this is something that you must experience yourself and enjoy every moment this manga offers you, i found that the first chapter has to be one of the best first chapter i had ever read in my life.Therefore i giving this manga 10/10 for being one of the best experience and enjoyment that i haven't felt from a long time, this its an install classic in my book.

--The review contains spoilers--


Yamada-kun and the Seven Witches are one of a kind story alright, the very VERY good kind.

Story : (9/10)

You have Yamada, a delinquent without a single friend because that's how almost how every protaganist have to be okay, who had an accident kiss with Shiraishi, one of the smartest and beautiful girl in school.

Both woke up with each other bodies and hilarity ensued and in the end their relationship also blossomed, allowing them to grow as a person and experience things they never knew, since both are friendless and loners.

The school that they goes to are able to give troubled students "witches" powers and Yamada, though he is not a witch, possessed an unique power, the copy magic. Being able to copy the witches power if he is to kiss them, Yamada decide to started up the dying Supernatural club with Shiraishi and his new friends to explore and understand more of the witches power.

Pretty interesting if you ask me

Characters: (10/10)

Yamada, the delinquent, obviously grows as a person with the new experience he gains every day in school. He is stubborn with no shame and will do anything for his friends, or really Shiraishi.

Shiraishi, in my opinion is still under developed and stagnant compared to Yamada and Nene, one of the girl character, but she is given a pretty cute personality and is hard to hate her.

The rest of the crew are hilarious and are given the opportunity to grow up also.

What I really like the most about these characters are their sexuality. This manga is all about the KISSES and Yamada doesn't just kiss the girls, he also kiss the boys.

This might be my fangirl inside me that is liking it, but we see how these characters really don't care about the gender of the person they are kissing but the person themselves and I like how the mangaka plays around with their sexuality. I like how these teenagers are portrayed as teenagers these days, as someone who is trying to figure him or herself out and that includes his or her sexuality.

Art: (8/10)

Totally normal and nothing that special, so most people will have no trouble reading it.

Enjoyment: (10/10)

Hilarious with stories that some of us might even relate to.

Overall: (9/10)

The relationship Yamada makes with his friends are adorable and strong, constructed up by event given to only them. With relatable stories and feelings, because we are given one sided love and crushes that will never work and for some us, we could understand how horrible those feelings are. Yamada's and Shiraishi's relationship are pure and strong with lots of love, seeing that both of them save each other from loneliness and that pureness, not just from the relationship but also from the characters themselves, are worth the read.

I really enjoyed reading Yamada and the seven witches, I read it back when it was still airing, I didn't finish back then.

After some years I rewatched its anime series and reread the manga, and finally, I could finish this awesome manga.
I really wished it could last forever just like I wish my youth can last forever.

Story:
Objectively, the author should have thought of a better way to introduce some plots, I mean there are some plots that feel like plot devices in order to extend the story, and also, there are plots that introduce plot holes, as I said, I liked the idea of extending the story but the introduction of the plots could have been better if the author had planned it beforehand.
The second thing, this story has a lot of plot twists which are impressive and keep you entertained and hooked, but some plot twists add plot holes.
Even with those bad things, the story gave great motivational messages through the characters.
Those are the reason why I gave it an 8/10.

Art:
The art is very good, it gives a lot of emphasis on the character faces, their body shape, and the background, also the way they are drawn for comedic purposes it archives it.
It has ecchi well introduced and not overused.

Character:
This is the best element of the series, there are a lot of characters, leading to a great variety of characters and developments but this also means there is no enough screen time for some characters.
That is not the best thing, the best thing is their comedy, the author really did her best to bring some of the most creative and funniest character antics and jokes, seriously I felt so happy due to their comedy.
My favorite characters are Yamada, Miyamura, Noah, Nancy, and Himekawa.

Enjoyment:
I finished the manga in one week, which means I read 246 chapters in one week, that's how hooked I was, and as I said, wish it could last forever and enjoy those little funny things the series gave me.

I picked this manga up because ive heard good things from it and i can confirm that it true and its very worth the read.

Story: 9
The story flowed really well and I kept wanting more and more as the plot kept moving and each arc was different from the previous and they kept on adding more mystery for the characters to solve. But I feel like at certain times the story was kinda grasping for straws but it still managed to fit withen the story.

Art: 9
I really liked the art through out the series but there are times when it felt off so i cant give it a 10

Characters: 9
If it was just about main characters then it would be a 10/10 as all the main characters a fully fleshed out and enjoyable to read and the main character is very relatable in certain parts but there are some side characters that after theyre arc they are forgotten like the sewing club girl Himakawa i think was her name was suppose to have deep feeling for Ryu but after a wile i completely forgot about her til the ending.

Enjoyment: 9
Not much to say here i really enjoyed the sereis as it is but there are like a couple parts which i didnt like so again i cant give it a perfect score but its still worthy of a 9/10

Lives up to the hype worth the read

After reading 80 chapters in under 24 hours, I feel that I should write a review on this great manga.

Story: Yamada and the Seven Witches.... The story plot is really sticking to the manga title well. It almost feels like a spoiler actually.

The story and plot is good with nice suspense and twists but occasionally is too straightforward.

Oh there's one more thing you should be mentally prepared before you read this manga. Do NOT be too shocked at a few same-sex kisses. Cos those kinda put me off a bit==.

Art: The art and design is quite good. Quite detailed actually, maybe except where it is Yamada's drawings. Somehow though, some of the character designs look quite similar to some other mangas.

Character: Most of the personalities are consistent within a certain sequence of manga panels. The characters are quite interesting and most of them have depth, since their some history was explored and personalities developed.

However, sometimes there were also huge changes in personalities (although these are explained through events).

Overall, the characters (good and bad) were mostly developed well although there were some inconsistencies at times.

Enjoyment: Lots of comedy, moving moments, romance, suspense etc. etc. I love every moment of reading the manga although sometimes the technicalities of the powers confused me a bit.

Overall: One of the best shounen manga I've read, it has good shounen material and good progression.

I first watched the anime like 2 times and dropped it because I got bored. I just recently completed and enjoyed so I went ahead and read the manga to see what it had in store. And what did it do? It delivered something fantastic.

The manga was such an enjoyable read and loved every second of it. Yamada is a student who causes trouble and nobody likes him. However as the story progresses, he discovers more about the school and the seven witches which helps him confront many problems thanks to other people who want to do the same. The problems change overtime and are really never static which makes it more enjoyable to continue reading.

The characters are just amazing in here. All the characters are different and their appearances are different enough so you can identify them easily. They all different personalities and even goals. How the characters interact with each other makes me laugh and just increases my enjoyment for this manga.

The art is great and in environments that aren't in the school. You can appreciate what has been drawn.

In the end, the story is great, contains likeable and a memorable cast of characters and a satisfying ending and overall it's just fun. My only complaint is that because many characters show up into the story, some of them get involved into the story then forgotten for the rest of the story or the ending but only for a select few. Otherwise I highly recommend this manga and if you want something fun, enjoyable and just good, then this manga is definitely recommended.

Yamada-kun to 7-nin no Majo is one of those mangas you pick up and can't put back down. At first I was not expecting a lot from it; the storyline seemed overplayed and the overall feeling was that I would be reading something cute and nice enough to keep me entertained for a while.

But Yamada-kun to 7-nin no Majo is a lot more than that. Sure, the story is not extremely original, but if there's something that I've learned from life is that it doesn't matter if you're the first to come up with an idea - what matters is if you're the best at portraying that idea. And while Yoshikawa Miki might not be the best out of all the authors, she sure knew what she was doing.

She created lovable characters with very distinct personalities, most of which you will very likely start caring for by the end of the first few chapters. I found myself really living their situations, their achievements and their disappointments, found myself rooting for them like they were great friends of mine. And one great thing about them is that they're not cookie-cutter either. You will get seriously angered by some of them, too, because they will mess up terribly. All of them are given equal screen time, more or less, although of course Yamada is considered the main character and everything revolves around him. What I mean is that all the other characters go through their hardships and own mini stories and Yamada's own life sometimes takes the backstage in such cases.

The story is engaging. Like I said, I couldn't put the manga down because I couldn't wait to find out what was happening next. It has some plot twists that will leave you flabberghasted and others not so much, as they are a bit predictable. But overall, I think the author was very creative and played her cards well. She could have transformed this manga into something very unidimensional and boring. Yet it's clear that she really gave herself to her work. You can feel her dedication in every sentence and every stroke. She also mixed a lot of genres together and didn't really give a preference to just one.

The art is flawless, as far as I can tell, and very emotional. It transpires the mood of the characters completely. I could hear them screaming, feel their tension and the butterflies in their stomach, smile whenever they smiled, feel sad whenever they cried. It's ecchi, of course, so beware if you're not into that kind of thing. I usually am not so seeing as I love this manga, that's something to consider. Maybe because it's not something blatant and overplayed. It's more of an accessory and usually acts like a comic relief more than anything else. It's not gratuitous like in some other mangas, which I enjoy.

Definitely recommend it to anyone wanting a good laugh and looking for a refreshing manga. Ignore the fact that there are storylines like these. Ignore the cheesiness that sometimes takes place. I guarantee you will fall in love with Yamada and the gang in no time.

Beware also of the harem feel in this manga. If you don't like that sort of thing, it will put you off. There is some romance, but not in extreme. So what will happen is that you will be so excited about it everytime it happens, your enjoyment will be off the chart. There will be some yaoi vibes too, although not in the way you'd think. I would approach this manga in a very open-minded way since it is so worth the reading, regardless of these elements.

If you have watched the anime & is thinking of reading the manga, then you probably should give it a go. There are 200+ chapters and only the first 90 chapters cover the content in the anime.
This anime arc ends nicely and on its own creates a wholesome romcom story. The twists and turns are enjoyable; Satisfying like a nice clean game of chess.

The next 100+ chapters feels like playing 4D chess...
Although sometimes it can get a little complicated, and quite a number of characters are introduced, the story's constant development manages to hook the reader. The twists and turns from the first 90 chapters are amplified exponentially later on.

With more characters, some original members end up neglected for brief periods. Although it may initially cause loss of interest to some readers, the plot wraps around such that those members are eventually involved again.

Transitioning from the first 90 chapters to the next "arcs" of the story may cause some shock or loss in interest (depending on your tastes). But if you go with the flow and get onboard the train without resisting, then you might like the scenery on the way.

Overall an enjoyable romcom.

This harem manga is great. It has good characters you can probably compare yourself with, it has good plot and character development. It has that right amount of comedy and drama in it, equal of everything.

Not only the plot is good, the plot twists are good too. And sometimes, it's so confusing that you get hyped and wanting to read more. And once you understand the situation, all the confusion only leads to one conclusion. And once you know the conclusion, you get the satisfaction. If I'm gonna tell you how confusing it was, it was confusing as the watch order of Monogatari Series.

Anyways, this is a great manga and worth the read.

I really love the original concept about this manga and up to the end of first arc, I thought it was perfect. The characters are interesting and full of life, and their relationships give colours to the story. The plot is full of twists and turns and kept me hooked.

However, I guess it was just so good that the manga became too popular. Because of that, it had to continue, with new sets of witches and plot twists. More characters are introduced, and because there are too many of them, sometimes the original characters get suppressed and do not appear for months. And because of too many plot twists, I think even the manga-ka got confused and left plot holes here and there.

I can still forgive that, however. It got dull at some points but overall, it was entertaining. But what I cannot forgive is very near the end (fewer than ten chapters left) they decided to give a plot twist so absurd, it created a plot hole so big, even a Boeing 747 could go through it. My assumption is, the popularity of the manga must have gone down quite significantly so they decided to end it as soon as possible. Because of that they actually abandoned the plot line about Takuma and moved on to this new, totally unexpected plot that is supposed to lead to the grand finale of the manga. I call bullshit on that.

It is such a pity that a concept and story so good should meet with such a messy and disappointing ending. In the end, the biggest question about Yamada's power is never even answered.

Ok my first review for this manga.

Story: 7

Story at the start looks promising and had its plot twists through the story as it continues. Introducing the witches in Yamada's journey together with the Supernatural Club was fine. But as it continues, the story repeats itself as the arc ends right-after introducing new characters.

Characters: 8

Each character is unique even though some of them are one-dimensional. Yamada is an alright character together with the rest of them.

Art: 9

Not that shabby art either. Fine art imo.

Enjoyment: 7

Well tbh, I only enjoyed some parts with regards to Yamada's idiocy. Other parts were not that funny but still I enjoy the progress as the story goes on.

Overall: 8

Well, the lost points had it since it had 200+ chapters and we STILL didn't
know why Yamada had that COPY ability. I still rate it good as I find the story great and the characters itself. PS. I'm a Shiraishi x Yamada fan. Lol.

I would still recommend it to everyone to read this since you'll have fun reading this. :)

This manga is very special to me, it was so much fun and the story changed quickly in unexpected ways that always kept me engaged. However, after 238 chapters, over 100 of them being the same story copied in a slightly different way, I feel that the creatures have lost what made this manga good in the first place.

At 237 chapters I am dropping what was one of my favorite manga of all time. I really wish they would try something new or just stop making more chapters. They are in serious danger of repeating what happened to Bleach in my opinion.

At the start of reading this series, I believed that the premise of this story was incredibly juvenile. A rom-com/harem series set in high-school where the main character can switch bodies with anyone by kissing... I wouldn't fault the reader into thinking that this would be just another harem series, and to be fair there are times it does get immature. However, looking deeper and you can find a genuinely competent, well thought out story with many likable characters and a serious passion for the work by the author, Miki Yoshikawa.

This shouldn't come as any surprise when you look at her past work, Yankee-kun to Megane-chan. Both of these stories actually have some similarities, with a delinquent male protagonist who is not well-liked throughout the school, a high school setting, and themes of trying to find your place and be happy with who you are. I would absolutely say that if you liked her previous work then you will enjoy this work as well, but that doesn't mean they are carbon copies of one another. I will touch on this later, but first...

Let's get this out of the way, the story of Yamada & the 7 Witches is good. I would even say very good at times. The reason I say this is because of the care Yoshikawa-sensei takes with crafting the world of Suzaku High. Let's start with the summary of the plot: Yamada & Shiraishi discover one day that they have the ability to switch bodies with anyone. Spurred on by their own intrigue as well as the student council vice-president Miyamura, they re-establish the Supernatural Studies Club and start investigating their powers. Along the way, they discover more witches, with their own set of problems, and different groups of students who wish to use these powers for their own reasons.

With the above summary, we can see that the story is, for all intents and purposes, an amalgamation of Comedy, Romance, Slice of Life, Supernatural, and Mystery. Each category I have mentioned is an important part of this story, so looking at each individually can help determine whether the story will be a good read for you (the reader of this review). To start things off, the Comedy portion of this story has always fallen flat.

In my opinion, the comedy was the absolute worst part of this story. That isn't to say I didn't find some moment's to chuckle at, as the characters are very intriguing, however, there was always a heavy reliance on "ecchi" humour, dirty jokes, and accidental situations. These are all tropes used in typical harem manga, like To-Love-Ru or Love Hina, though I must stress that it never gets as gratuitous as those series. That doesn't make it any less groan-worthy and your mileage may vary. If you like that sort of humour then this won't matter as much, but I do believe it was worth pointing out.

Many "harem" tropes utilized within the comedy aspect of this series, also appear within the romance side as well. In contrast, the romance of the story fares a lot better. I believe that this is because the characters in the series are likeable and, to an extent, believable human beings. Unlike in harems, not every single woman in the show falls head over heels for the Yamada, which is nice. Of course, there are still a number of girls who want to be with him but that is not a problem given the context of the story. Yamada helps a lot of people out throughout the story, and so it is inevitable for at least a few of them to fall for him (there are 5 to be exact, out of the 15+ people he helps out all over). So the problem here is not that there are girls that like him, the problem is that the end couple had been decided on since the first chapter.

The appeal of the Harem genre comes down to the appeal of the women in the series. You read those types of series to cheer for the best girl, the girl you want the main character to end up with. Another problem is this series is that they try to appeal to these types of readers even though it is dictated from the very beginning who the main love interest is going to be. Due to this, I found that there were many pointless or boring chapters since the plot was never progressing. Those moments were the most boring to me, however, that also depended on the "rival" the series was focusing on at that time. If you like the character they are focusing on, then you will not find the chapter boring. In a way, Yoshikawa-sensei did her job properly but I don't think it was a good move.

What about the main couple though? Together, I thought the chemistry was really good. Yamada has a lot of charisma with his character, so playing off the more stoic yet playful Shiraishi was a delight. Here is where we get into one of the biggest issues of the series: except for the first arc & the very last arc, Shiraishi is completely sidelined. I have no idea why this was done, maybe it was because Yoshikawa-sensei didn't know what to do with her, however, this was a massive detriment to the story. Personally, I would have liked to see more of their relationship together, so it was a huge shame to see them sideline her and do other things to Yamada.

Individually, I think the main characters were... fine? Yamada is as dumb as an ox, but with a heart of gold. He can be very emotional but is also stubborn and with a penchant for being too forward. He does go through a lot of growth, especially because of Shiraishi and his friends, but the traits stay the same. That isn't a bad thing though, as he has a lot of charisma and it made me want to see what he would do next. Shiraishi was also fun to read about, seeing her cold demeanour turn into a more stoic and playful one. She absolutely had some of the best character growth in the series, which makes it more painful that she was done away with after the first arc.

Where this series really shines is with the side characters. Almost every single one of them is a great addition to the story, and every single one of them has had a purpose to either the story, the protagonist or to the world of the series. It's hard to go over all of them in detail without rambling or spoiling anything, but there are a couple I wanted to mention. Miyamura is Yamada's closest friend in the series and is pivotal to Yamada's growth. He is the one that pushes him to pursue the other witches and constantly supports Yamada through his endeavours. Tamaki, one of the Student Council President candidates, had the greatest growth of the series. While his personality at the beginning is incredibly grating, he grows into a confident and outspoken person who will fight for what he thinks is right. Finally Noa, the best girl in the series. She steals every scene she is in because of her childish nature and overall nonchalant attitude. She does what she wants in the story and is always open and honest which is a great foil for Yamada.

It's characters like that that make the Slice of Life aspect engaging. Seeing the characters deal with day to day aspects of high school, while a bit glamorous and melodramatic, was also fun and uplifting. It even made me a bit nostalgic for high school and the friends I made along the way. The flaw here is that this series didn't give a good enough balance between this portion and the Mystery/Supernatural portion. There were many times I forgot that they were even in school since you never really see them in class or studying (except at the very beginning and at the very end). It isn't a huge issue, but it was definitely prevalent throughout.

It also doesn't help that the art of the series is pretty generic. Yoshikawa-sensei used to be an assistant to Hiro Mashima, of Fairy Tail & Rave Master fame, and you can see a lot of similarities in the way they design their characters and worlds. I do enjoy Yoshikawa-sensei's artwork though, as unlike Mashima-sensei the characters are fairly distinct from her other series and from one another. Backgrounds are not very prevalent either early on, neither is the shading though the linework is done well. This changes as you go through the story, but expect many panels of blank backgrounds or bland/generic. The exception to this is the area where a lot of the supernatural rituals occur, which is very distinct, as well as the student council room and some more "exotic" areas they go to sparingly. Speaking about the supernatural...

Honestly, I'm very mixed on this portion. On one hand, there is a lot of creativity in terms of what the powers do and how the characters utilize them. I would argue it was one of the biggest draws of the series, "Who are the 7 witches?", "What are their powers?", "How is this going to affect their high-school life?". Overall I think the powers and the utilization/effect on the story was done very well, however near the end it got to a point where plot points and abilities were being re-used in a very similar manner. Having had to read those moments again and go through similar experiences again was not just boring, but also insulting to the reader. I won't mention the biggest offender of this problem, but you'll know exactly what I mean when or if you decide to read it. The most I can say is that I will not forget those moments.

Everything above leads into the biggest portion of the story: the Mystery. By far the best aspect of the series, shining just as much as the side characters. I cannot tell you how much I enjoyed learning about the witches and all the other secrets of this high school, it is incredibly well thought out and well written. With the exception of some filler chapters about the other girls I mentioned earlier, every single moment spent within this story is used to unravel another mystery of the witches. I can tell that the story was meticulously constructed in a way to keep the mystery at the forefront, and I wholeheartedly enjoyed that... but this is where the biggest issue occurs.

At the very end of the series, everything gets bungled and the Slice of Life aspect takes over completely. I am unsure as to why Yoshikawa-sensei went in this direction but it was a major blow. Firstly, some of the plot points are wrapped up in exposition dumps, which is one of the worst things a mystery can do. There was no putting the pieces together to figure it out, it was instead just flat out explained to us. Secondly, some of the mysteries or twists came completely out of left-field, with no foreshadowing or hints. There is one very specific case of this that really offended me, involving a character named Takuma, that I specifically can't get out of my head. Finally, there are some questions that are introduced in the last 30ish chapters but then never explained again. There is no reason for this to have happened unless Yoshikawa-sensei just didn't want to work on the series anymore.

It is pretty disappointing to see the story get rushed like that near the end, but it still doesn't take away from the overall core of the series. There is a lot good about this manga, as I have highlighted above, but the issues with the ending makes this a little difficult to recommend. So let me put it like this: If you have read the work of this author before and enjoyed it, I would definitely recommend that you read it. I would also recommend this to you if you want a decent high school story or fun characters, though I also caution viewers that they may end up disappointed with how the mystery ends up if that is the reason they wish to read it.

Overall, Yamada & The 7 Witches is a good read. There is a lot of creativity, a lot of fun and engaging characters, and a genuinely good mystery. But that bungled ending for the mystery leaves a bit of a sour taste in my mouth. That, coupled with some of the ecchi parts that are thrown in, it's hard for me to say that it's a great or spectacular manga. I guess in this case it's more about the journey rather than the destination, so if you want a simple but fun ride I would definitely climb on board.

Story: 7/10 - Good but the ending missed the mark for me.
Art: 5/10 - Nothing bad, but generic. Once or twice has a beautiful image or spread though.
Character: 8/10 - The side characters make this way more enjoyable than it has any right to be.
Enjoyment/Engagement: 7/10 - I wanted to know what happened next, and while there was some disappointment I still loved it all.
Overall: 7/10 - It is a good read, but it can be juvenile and the ending leaves a sour spot. I recommend with caution.

Yamada-kun is in a word; frustrating. I’ll preface this by saying that I did enjoy reading this manga, there are a lot of good points that make it a fun read. However there are also some things that – to me – made reading this a frustrating experience. There will be a few spoilers in this review, I’ll try to keep them light though.

First, I’ll start with the good – the characters. Most of what makes this a fun read is the characters. Yamada-kun has a diverse range of interesting, funny personalities, and some of the best parts are simple interactions between the characters. The manga also portrays realistic relationships between a lot of them, something I can appreciate when compared to other school life/ harem manga. Some highlights would be Miyamura and Itou who are downright hilarious. The manga also has some good character development for a lot of side characters, but struggles when it comes to the mains, particularly Shiraishi. Now I will say that she receives good development at the start of the manga, but for most of it remains as a blank slate who just acts as a love interest for Yamada – the main character. She is particularly bad in the second half the manga, but this is the case for a lot of the characters, as the writing went downhill after the first arc. A lot of characters struggle, and I think this is because there is such a wide range of characters.

The art in Yamada-kun is decent, but nothing too special. What I liked about it was character expressions, which were unique and really well portrayed. The other thing, which the author took special note of, is the character traits between different bodies. As body-switching is a main part of the story, the author did a good job of showing how different a person acts when in another’s body, like how they walk, talk, and act around certain people. While it was exaggerated at times it was a good approach and was often beneficial to the comedy or story.

In terms of story, this manga is a mixed bag. In my opinion it starts off strong, there are a lot of interesting things to be found out with the mystery of the witches at the school. However after the first arc the story is massively downgraded, and it skips over plot hole after plot hole, rushing through random arcs. It lost a lot of direction around 100 chapters in, and only ‘sort of’ found its way back some time later. The ending was incredibly frustrating as there were tons of loose ends that were just sort of left open. It was very rushed. One of these cases was also detrimental to Yamada’s character development. Sometime early on the mystery of the witches is a big thing, and Yamada wishes to find out why he got his power to copy other witches’ powers. When I saw this I thought it would be a big point to his character, but it was brought up one other time 200 chapters in, and then left at that. The writing and the pacing were simply frustrating as a reader who wanted to see these characters develop and mysteries solved. Many story arcs were also underwhelming, as many mysteries had been hyped up but then never solved. The story couldn’t seem to find its footing.

So what are my final thoughts, and should you read this manga? Yamada-kun is a fickle story, the story is all over the place, and it struggles to find its place in terms of what it wants to do. In saying that, the characters are funny, interesting, and realistic. If you are going to read this you would be best focusing on the comedy and characters rather than the plot, which is frustrating to think about. I enjoyed reading this the most when I wasn’t concerned with the innumerable plot holes and crappy ending, and when I focused on the characters and relationships portraryed. Overall – a 6/10

TL;DR: Characters really funny and unique, good cast. Story has no direction and is often times frustrating to read, plot holes common, and rushed ending. 6/10

OK. Let's sum up my current situation : I started watching the anime exactly 5 days ago ; once I fnished it, there was no time left to not start the manga. So did I. Now it's exactly 04:10am, when University starts at 8:00 and exams start in no longer than 7 days. But still, as always I gotta have to write my review just right after I finished the anime / game / manga / book etc, so that everything is 'warm' and 'clear' in my minds.

I won't sum up the plot, but just make a quick and easy plan : things I loved about Yamada-kun to 7-nin no Majo and things I disliked. Easiest possible plan.

Whatever, the story itself is really great : at first, I'd advise you to watch the anime, which kinda takes 70-80% of everything that happens in the first 90 chapters. As always, a portion is taken out 'cause it wouldn't fit in the animated version, but anyway, it ain't the matter. Indeed, considering there will be no more season, it is much better to get introduced to the serie by watching it, instead of reading it.

Going back to the story's greatness : it basically has 3 major acts, with 3 pairs of 7 witches. Even though, the main characters (count 5 to 10 of them at the end, I'll precise this part in the 'things I disliked') remained and will actually experience great changes. The manga is all about an ordinary high-school life, with a lot of romance, harem, drama and funny moments. Nevertheless, if you think about the story with attention, you can easily guess that every event could be happening anywhere at anytime.

I mean, all the witches acquired their powers by being placed in a nasty / sad / dramatic situation, which lead them to be magically able to solve their issues. In a certain way, you can think - as I did - that this kind of situation happens everyday, but the victims don't have any power to back 'em up... Anyway, it is the only sad part of the review.

I really appreciated how the main characters but also the seconday characters were developped : from the start to the end, you really enter their minds and understand how everyone thinks & acts in his / her daily routine. Really interesting to follow everyone's story, which could be really ordinary and realistic.

Plus, the amount of characters makes it refreshing all the time : you don't really get bored seeing just a few characters walking around. A good and bad point is that most characters will appear again, despite they are secondary. Also, if you appreciate the happy endings, this manga has a good one (a bit rushed to my opinion, but great).

About the points I didn't : well, as usual with series containing a huge amount of characters, the authors cuts some off (totally understantable). So for example, if we take first group of witches (seen in the anime), only 3 will have a decent amount of 'screen time' (sorry, I don't know if I should write the term 'paper time' ?). I'm not even gonna talk about the 2nd arc, where the 7 witches will basically have a bigger or smaller appearance time (4 of them are concerned) but they will all be flushed out by the end.

Also, I found the way some major characters in the first and / or the second arc are just threw to the very-very secondary characters (more like the quaternary or even the quinary ones...). To those who read it a while ago or are just looking for names, here is a sample of the characters I'm thinking about : Nene, important in the first arc but crucial in the second gets thrown away in the third, due to a memory loss ; Tsubaki & Ito, the 2 main characters as shown in the anime + by reading the 1st arc, are being totally left over later (hum, well the main characters will fortunately come back to them sometimes) the 2 vice-presidents from the second arc, who are really active become forgotten in the third ; Noa, who has a secondary role in the first arc but an important role in the second is lowered into a 'not very important character but hell, let's not forget who she is', alongside with Ushio in the third arc, etc....

I totally understand the fact you can't make all the characters having a equal amount of appeareance time but... I just don't appreciate the fact the 1st set of witches remains pretty pointless for at least 2 of them (c'mon, it means 28% of the characters who are supposed to be important considering the title are kinda unused). I won't even talk about the 2nd set of witches, whom I happen to only remember 4 of them (well, Nancy the Punk of course, Kotori 'cause she's small, Konno 'cause she was the first introduced and Sora who had a quite turnover role). Third set of witches was however more interesting.

Well, to sum up my minds : great manga with a heart-catching story, having a lot of funny moments so that it doesn't look like a full drama / romance manga but more like a fantasy-magic drama-romance-harem manga. Most of the characters will get your empathy and you'll end up appreciating everyone (perhaps not, but a majority). I can't say I would like to incarnate one of the characters but they surely had a good time back there, with a life learning lesson ! I just wished it had at the end, a kind of 'who became what, who does what, etc'. You have it with the main characters but a lot remain unknown.

I wished for a season two while I read the whole manga, but it is not hard to figure out this will never happen, eh (sorry to extinguish your hopes). Even though I would still have an heart attack if I learnt it was on plans, eh. So thanks for reading, and remember : Noa's best girl (ok I admitt Nene's best girl as well).