I.O.N

February 18, 2008
Ion Tsuburagi was born with the ability to influence events by chanting her first name as a spell. Ion discovers that her psychic abilities increase when she holds a piece of experimental metal developed by her classmate Mikado the “boy genius.” Her powers—which allow her to fly and rescue classmates—soon take a backseat to a love story involving Mikado, who also happens to be president of the school's Psychic Power Research Society. Ion worries that Mikado is more interested in her as a psychic than a girlfriend. This manga is Tanemura's debut—her later Full Moon
and Gentlemen's Alliance Cross
are popular and more assured. Her author's notes in the sidebars are sometimes more interesting than the plot, revealing the story's muddled origins and providing valuable insight into the career path of a manga artist. A few pages of almost magical-girl–style psychic action are very well-drawn, but even Tanemura admits her early artwork contains too many decorative patterns based on strawberries, irises, lace and newsprint. Humor, ESP and romance coalesce well in this satisfying yet poorly paced early work by a talented author.