About.com Rating

The Bottom Line

Toto! The Wonderful Adventure lives up to its title and then some. In the tradition of great shonen manga like One Piece and fantasy adventures like the Wizard of Oz, Toto! takes us on a globe-trotting tour in a world that's somehow more magical and less grim than our everyday reality – and that's what makes it such a entertaining read.

Osada's expressive artwork and skillful storytelling delivers action, drama, humor and rapid-fire plot twists in a tightly woven adventure story that's just pure fun from cover to cover.

Highly recommended for younger teens and the young at heart.



Pros

• Expressive, extremely likeable characters that win you over immediately
• Conveys earnest optimism and the sheer joy of discovery and adventure
• Full of fast-paced action, slapstick humor and surprising plot twists, but it's never confusing
• Wonderful artwork that's full of action, emotion and energy
• Makes several allusions to the Wizard of Oz without being a rehash of the beloved fantasy story

Cons

• "Man Chicken Family" is an awfully lame name for a gang of bandits

Description

• Original Title:Toto! The Wonderful Adventure (Japan)
• Author & Artist: Yuko Osada
• Publishers:Del Rey Manga (US) Kodansha (Japan)
• ISBN: 978-0345501479
• Cover Price: $10.95 US / $12.50 CANADA
• Age Rating:T – Teens Age 13+ for guns and mild martial arts violence
  More about content ratings.
• Manga Genres:
  • Shonen (Boys') Manga
  • Action / Adventure
  • Fantasy
  • Comedy
• US Publication Date: May 2008
  Japan Publication Date: April 2005
• Book Description: 208 pages, black and white illustrations

Guide Review - Toto! The Wonderful Adventure Volume 1

Kakashi lives in a small town on a small island. He's never been away from his island home, but thanks to the journals left by his globe-trotting (and now missing) father, Kakashi burns with the desire to see the world. Propelled by his father's words, "The world is vast… go on an adventure," Kakashi stows away on a giant dirigible, gets taken hostage by a pack of bandits and from there, his journey begins.

In some ways, Toto! is classic shonen manga -- Kakashi is a plucky hero, complete with spikey hair, never-say-die attitude and comically exaggerated, elastic facial expressions. Sometimes he has more guts than brains, but his sense of honor and his willingness to risk his life for his friends makes him likeable. Much like One Piece, Toto! is a rollicking tour in a vaguely European version of the world, without nasty stuff like traffic, smog and school.

The fun twist that Osada brings to this story are the numerous allusions to another classic adventure tale, The Wizard of Oz. Kakashi (whose name means "scarecrow" in Japanese), befriends a little dog who is later named "Toto," then meets a spunky girl named Dorothy who's on her way to "Emerald." Sound familiar? It should, but don't expect a re-imagining of L. Frank Baum's Oz, ala The Wiz. Osada wants to keep readers guessing, and cleverly pays tribute to the spirit of the Oz adventures without allowing readers the luxury of predicting what comes next.

Toto! The Wonderful Adventure delivers on the promise of its title and then some. It's a fabulously fun, fast-paced adventure that sweeps readers away almost immediately and doesn't let up until the very last page. Osada injects her story with expressive artwork, infectious optimism and more than a few surprising plot twists that make this a truly satisfying page-turner for younger teens and the young at heart.



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