“Midnight Secretary” is a delightful tale about a young woman wanting to be the perfect secretary for a cold, corporate boss who happens to be a vampire. But will this young woman and this vampire find love? If you are into romance manga especially vampire tales, then Tomu Ohmi’s “Midnight Secretary” is for you!
Image courtesy of © 2007 by Tomu Ohmi. All Rights Reserved.
MANGA TITLE: Midnight Secretary Vol. 1 (ミッドナイト·セクレタリ)
STORY AND ART BY: Tomu Ohmi (大海 ã¨ã‚€)
FIRST PUBLISHED IN JAPAN: Shogakukan
PUBLISHED IN USA BY: Shojo Beat/VIZ Media, LLC
RATED: M for Mature
Available on September 3, 2013
Kaya Satozuka prides herself on being an excellent secretary and a consummate professional, so she doesn’t even bat an eye when she’s reassigned to the office of her company’s difficult director, Kyohei Touma. He’s as prickly—and hot—as rumors paint him, but Kaya is unfazed…until she discovers that he’s a vampire!!
Kaya quickly accustoms herself to scheduling his “dinner dates†and working odd hours, but can she handle it when Kyohei’s smoldering gaze starts turning her way?!
From Tomu Ohmi, the creator of the vampire manga series “Kindan no Koi wo Shiyou”, comes her latest vampire manga series “Midnight Secretary”.
The manga series was first serialized in Petit Comic back in 2006 and was completed in 2009. With a total of seven volumes, the first volume has been released in the U.S. courtesy of Viz Media.
“Midnight Secretary” revolves around a corporate secretary named Kaya Satozuka. Uncomfortable with her babyface looks, she wears old-fashioned school glasses, pulls her long hair tight and despite her old-fashioned looks to make her look more professional and older, she is an excellent secretary who gives her 100%.
And Kaya is about to start her new job with Kyouhei Touma, the Director of the Touma Company. In fact, on her first day, she gets nothing but the wrong impression of him because the first thing he sees of him is Kyouhei making out with another woman and he criticizing of how she looks and wants a better looking secretary.
But Kaya convinces him to take her on the job and see her secretary skills put into work. So, he agrees to give her a try.
While her perception of Kyouhei is a bit negative, she notices that he is great at his job, despite being with a different woman all the time. But having worked for his brother, Masaki, a handsome, more kinder and caring man, she also notices that Kyouhei treats him a bit negatively.
One day, while trying to figure him out and sneaking into his office, he sees him with another woman. As she watches him, he’s not having sex with her but biting into her neck.
And she finds out that Kyouhei Touma is actually a vampire.
But unlike other vampires, the things they show in moves have no effect on him. He can go out in the sunlight, he has no fear of crosses and he can be seen in mirrors. As Kyouhei thinks that perhaps Kaya is trying to kill him, she tells him that as her secretary, it’s her duty to know everything about him as it is a secretary’s job.
But as she finds out that the women he is with are there for nourishment, what happens when she finds out that one day, he needs blood and she offers her blood.
While there are many vampire romantic dramas, may they be in film, on television or novel format, there is no doubt that many people are drawn to it.
And for those who enjoy that type of entertainment will no doubt find “Midnight Secretary” to be an easily accessible manga to get into.
While this is only the first volume, the storyline of a young woman who is the perfect secretary, making herself look older because of her babyface looks and yet working for the Director of Touma Company who happens to be a vampire is actually quite interesting.
Interesting because Tomu Ohmi ditches typical and banal vampire lore and weaknesses out of her manga and tries to capture a more romantic side that bishojo manga fans will enjoy.
While anyone who has watched many of the vampire romance films will find “Midnight Secretary” possibly predictable between the protagonist and her vampire boss, “Midnight Secretary” is rather fun because at first, the two are very different. Kyouhei is a man who is always with a beautiful woman and he is often criticizing Kaya’s looks. And is not even remotely attractive to her.
But for some reason, once he tastes her blood, she tells him that she’s an “Edo delicacy” that is “extremely rare” and sure enough, her dedication to serve boss and to be the perfect secretary for him, may lead to more than just a boss and secretary working relationship.
The character designs are definitely Bishonen style, all male characters look handsome, the women look beautiful and Kaya has beautiful eyes, Kyouhei has awesome hair. Everyone looks good in the manga series. While backgrounds are limited, the focus with most panels are dialogue or closeups of a character.
Overall, “Midnight Secretary” is a delightful tale about a young woman wanting to be the perfect secretary for a cold, corporate boss who happens to be a vampire. But will this young woman and this vampire find love? If you are into romance manga especially vampire tales, then Tomu Ohmi’s “Midnight Secretary” is for you!