Unico: Awakening (Volume 1): An Original Manga by Samuel Sattin

Unico: Awakening (Volume 1): An Original Manga Reviews

• 
  Jennifer

  I picked this ARC up at ALA, and I was so excited to do so! Unico was my childhood. I knew the movies front and back, and could still quote a good chunk to this day! This new series is such a beautiful reimagining of my favorite franchise. It’s familiar enough and retains the heart of the original, but still so fresh! I cannot wait for the rest of this series.
• 
  Mary Shyne

  Peerless artwork, and a narrative that is so faithful to Tezuka’s writing style (while being updated for modern readers) that I’m speechless.
• 
  Kelsey Doll

  I seldom write reviews these days but Unico: Awakening absolutely ATE. I work in the children’s dept of my local library and the brand new copies of Unico arrived today. I’m pretty 50/50 about whether I enjoy books that are for children, and I tend to like the ones that are for older kids.
  
  This book explores many different nuances of Good and Evil. Jealousy also plays a massive role, and so does Justice (in particular, what do we decide is just?). My only qualm about the book is the *borderline excessive* violence/abuse directed towards animals. It didn’t strip away from my enjoyment of the book, but it made me so sad seeing these poor creatures suffer by the hands of the heartless girlfriend, the cruel hunter, the angry goddess, etc.
  
  I’d say this book could be a Snow White retelling (which I really enjoyed because of how loosely connected it was). Unico, of course, represents Snow White. Venus is the Evil Queen, Zephyrus the merciful Huntsman. I loved the side characters so much too—Chloe, the Sphinx, Granny, Toast, and even Byron (for being a pure, unredeemable villain).
  
  Other than that the art style and color palette is ravishing. The story was emotional and maybe I cried during a couple scenes. Next volume can’t come soon enough. This was so much fun I highly, highly recommend!
• 
  Shelli

  I've been a big fan of Unico since the 80's, so I was very much looking forward to this new Western graphic novel, and finally it's here!
  
  I absolutely adore the art. I think Gurihiru did a wonderful job modernizing the simple forms and lines that were Tezuka's calling card.
  
  The storyline I found a little simple. Yes, that is in keeping with the simple original stories of the classic Unico, but I was hoping for something I could sink my teeth into a little more. (I also found some parts a little confusing, like Venus appearing to possess Byron twice for some reason. Why possess him again if she's already in control of him?) And why did the story start by establishing Unico already had adventures with other characters that were skipped over before we arrived at this one? It almost felt to me like this wasn't the first volume of the story, that there were other stories that I'm missing, despite there being a number 1 on the spine of the book.
  
  But all in all, I really loved this volume as a good start to a fun series, and I look forward to the next!
• 
  Amber

  Yay! It's here! I kickstarted this!!
  
  This Unico: Awakening is a reimagined retelling to Master Osamu Tezuka's 1976 original Unico about a cute little unicorn who is pure and kind, his beauty angers the jealous Venus. By the protection of the West Wind, Unico is moved throughout time and place, always helping the people around him.
  
  I thought it was really interesting to make Venus so villainous and I was actually surprised how emotionally invested I got into this story, with Chloe and Granny in particular.
  
  The art is spectacular, very Studio Ghibli inspired, and a perfectly formatted comic - never too much text, easy to follow speech bubbles, natural progression of action. No notes, great comic.
• 
  Jennifer Dawes

  Read the ARC, and will be excited to see the full color edition when published. Re-imagination (or revival retelling) of the character, Unico, from Tezuka's classic manga. This is Volume 1 with more planned. As the first volume, it tells the origin story and sets up future volumes against the villain, Venus. Venus, the goddess of love, is jealous and threatened by Unico's power. Venus sends Zephyrus, the West Wind, to dispose of Unico but Zephyrus instead tries to save Unico.
  In the next volumes, I look forward to more Sphynx and Marusu as that is left as a teaser for more to come. The cats, Chloe and Toast, were just adorably brave that will have a great appeal for kids (especially mine).
• 
  2Due

  I randomly found it just yesterday (as I'm writing this review) recognizing the character since his movie is on my watchlist and immediately had a tingling sensation of "This is going to be good"
  
  Holy shit I wasn't ready for it, I absolutely loved it, the art, the writing, the characters, the whole package and I was holding back tears for most of the time because I can't stand to see animals in danger, especially cats.
  This comic doesn't hold punches, there are themes I wasn't expecting and the villain is brutal.
  
  I cannot wait for next volumes and now excuse me, I go watch the original movie.
• 
  Katie Reilley

  Coming soon…an incredible adventure across space & time! Meet Unico, a young unicorn who’s enraged the evil goddess Venus and been banished from the heavens. Enter the kind-hearted West Wind, who saves Unico by bringing him to a faraway land, though Unico has no memory of who is he. Once befriended by Chloe, a protective cat, they begin to help others, including an old woman in the forest. But Unico’s helpfulness has consequences, and soon evil Venus is back on his tail. The first in a new manga series, Unico is going to be a hit with middle grade readers come August.
• 
  Rebecca

  Unico gives me cute aggression!! This refreshed adaptation of the 1970s manga by Tezuka (it's Scholastic's first foray into manga, I think) is a fun romp with excellent art by Japanese illustration team Gurihuru. Content warning for animal abuse: small animals are kicked, a kitten is abandoned, and several woodland animals are shot or wounded with visible blood. But good triumphs over evil, and the stage is set for many more episodes. Although I never saw the original manga or cartoons, this will have nostalgia appeal for those who did, and has a fun 1980s cartoons/Studio Ghibli vibe.
• 
  Emmy

  So, apparently this is a retelling of
  Unico by Osamu Tezuka, and since I'm a fan of Tezuka, I thought I'd check it out. Cute, but did not wow me. The art was excellent, but the characters felt a little two-dimensional at times and the dialogue was a bit stiff. Also, I felt like despite being the title character, Unico didn't really have much of a presence. I intend to read the original work, as well, to see if I'm missing something.
• 
  Margaret

  This is a cute middle grade manga for fantasy readers, the first in a series. It's like a cross between Studio Ghibli and Western fairytales and myth. It's about a young unicorn, Unico, befriending a cat named Chloe and an older woman. Venus wants him dead because he disrupts her power.
  
  This is a Japanese classic that's been updated for new readers. It does lean into a few stereotypes, but I think readers will really enjoy it.
• 
  Frank Chillura (OhYouRead)

  Okay! Now this brought me back. I remember being obsessed with unicorns when I was younger and while I don’t know what spawned that obsession, I know that Unico was a character I loved.
  
  The new artwork heightens the characters bringing depth and brightening the story up even more than what I remember.
• 
  Jules

  3.5 stars
  
  Beautiful art, heartwarming moments but it may not be as suitable for kids as it initially would seem
  
  But... also TWs for animal cruelty/abuse, torture, and abandonment, attempted murder, hunting and murder of animals for sport, kidnapping and caging of animals, shooting with guns, blood
• 
  Starr ❇✌❇

  TW: animal death & injury (hunting), animal cruelty, dementia
  
  Unico is an action packed little story of mythology and small animals- a great combo for a young graphic novel or manga. I appreciate that the danger and the casual cruelties weren't overly softened for the intended audience age, but felt real without reveling in any of it. I'm really interested to see how Unico's powers will continue growing, and what's going to happen with Chloe and Toast!
• 
  Tara

  I love the character of Unico but I’m so tired of the only depictions of fat bodied people being villains or the butt of jokes. Sure, the rest of the series might have a non villainous fat person somewhere down the line, but I’m reviewing this issue and I find relying on that troupe/imagery to be outdated and harmful. Do better.
• 
  Steph

  Completely and utterly obsessed with Unico! This fantastical graphic novel stars both evil and heroic goddesses and cats and - of course - dear little Unico the “horse-cat.” :-)
  I am already desperate for book two and book one doesn’t even release til August - however will I wait?!
• 
  Pam Page

  I fell in love with this book on page 1! This is a graphic novel adapted from Manga for younger readers about a young unicorn who is banished from the heavens and befriends a kitten named Chloe. The two friends help others while putting themselves in danger. The start of a great new series!
• 
  Rabbit

  Got this for free comic book day. It's cute and very pretty and colorful. I look forward to the rest of the series :)
• 
  Annie

  A nice retelling of the story, enjoyable read, nice illustration. Look forward to reading more
• 
  Jen

  So excited to see Unico get rebooted! Loved the art and the story was fun. Looking forward to the next volume
• 
  Alyssa Marie

  A great and heart warming graphic novel. Definitely going to recommend this at work.
• 
  Carissa

  I don't know what the heck I just read, but the 8 year old in me that was obsessed with Sailor Moon and Rainbow Brite is rejoicing.