I am rather keen on fantasy manga and after reading Crimson Spell I thought I’d give Saihoshi a go. It is beautiful to look at and I do enjoy their artwork. The books itself is nicely bound and was not hugely expensive, as I managed to get it in a shop here and did not have to import, which is always a bonus.The characters were beautifully drawn and I loved the elaborate costuming. In the back there are several pages of mock ups of attire for Sastre and Kaleth. So pretty! And I admit to a little bit of a girlish moment admiring all of the different looks they’d created. heh. Paper dolls Kosen style? (Took me a long time to give up my Daisy) The weaponry was also incredibly cool and chibi, cute!I really liked Sastre, he had the whole moody and alpha down pat, with a faint hint of knight in shining. He was rather honorable while the Prince is throwing himself at him and yet at a total loss when it came to Kaleth. I think Kaleth was also a great character. He had a bit of a shitty deal being thrown over by the Prince, but picks himself up and fights. Fiesty, with a purple behind of steel. (would you look at that picture, his butt = tight like a tiger. heh).I am not convinced however, that the story line was as tight as it could have been. There were a lot of extraneous threads and characters that seemed to detract a little from the central story. Don’t get me wrong, I am all for the odd subplot and tangent, but not at the expense of the main characters. In saying that, the extras were VERY pretty.http://sharrow.wordpress.com/2009/03/29/saihoshi-the-guardian-omnibus-by-kosen/