Self-Published 2017
Written by Mikel Miles
Illustrated by Sukma Agustriyana
Manga Illusrated by Digitkame
Sadie Hiroshi, an African-Japanese woman, who took over her father's legacy in boxing. She's a single mother and having a hard time in life with her profession. With these things currently going on in her life, what will be the impact of boxing on her?
I liked this because for me it was kind of completely unexpected. This showed up in my email with a review request and upon opening it up and giving it a read through I was pretty impressed. Mikel brings us a nice kind of slice of life story that involves some action through boxing and plenty of personal drama, growth and character development.
The opening is both narrated and with dialogue and it showcases Japan’s most famous, or celebrated, boxer Hiroshi. It provides background information and sets the stage for our main character nicely. I got the distinct impression that the man may have been an essential part of her coming into being but as a man of the house to teach her the ways of life not so much. So we think we have the father/daughter dynamic down and I say think because this is a story and there’s no telling how Mikel intends to weave this.
Sadie’s official introduction is done nicely. Having that “type” of boss isn’t uncommon in life and they are the most frustrating kind of people to ever have to deal with. Still it also shows us how she feels about her job and the frustration of having to work at a job you don’t like to support not yourself, because being single you always find a way, but for a child. I have to say that the structure of the story is nicely done and we get a lot of naturally flowing story, see information, in a short amount of time. So yeah I’m kind of extremely impressed.
Now I will admit that usually I’m not that big of a fan of Manga, there’s something about those eyes that take me to the horror genre and creep me out plus they do tend to be more overly sexualised. So that this is a fusion of styles is really nice to see. The use of page layouts through their angles and perspective are well done and show a nice solid eye for storytelling. There is also a very nice attention to detail happening here at times that really makes an impact, the office building or the book store for example are fantastic. So yeah the utilisation of backgrounds is solid for this type of illustration.
I do like the relationship we see between Sadie and Mr. Sano is cute as well. He may just be a clerk but I have that sneaky suspicion that he’s got a crush on her. Also this is Japan and non-violent or censored Manga and it’s existence surprised me. So the banter the two have is wonderfully done and again Mikel’s demonstration of how conversation and dialogue should be used is nice to see.
The pacing here is great as well as Sadie’s day continues to move forward giving the reader a chance to see her life and decide if they like what they see and if there’s potential in her. Which I’m happy to say there definitely is. All of this of course is leading up to the encounter that will change her life forever. First at what age is being called Ma’am acceptable? Personally I see it as a sign of respect and not something to be offended by though I tend to be more old fashioned in that regard. Still it does make Sadie stop and have a conversation with a young man and it’s that conversation that is key to what is going to happen next.
This is fun, interesting and incredibly well done all around. It would be a shame if you missed this and hopefully now that you know about it you’ll seek it out. If the link still works use it, if not then you can find them on Facebook and Twitter just search for Her Impact! Download Free: https://payhip.com/b/TrNq