Thank you to NetGalley and Viz Media for my arc in exchange for my unbiased opinion.

Sekka Iwata's Magilumiere Magical Girls Inc., Vol. 1 is such a fun and fresh take on the magical girl genre! Instead of being chosen to be a magical girl, you can apply for it! In this mangaverse, being a magical girl is a lucrative job that anybody can apply and interview for. We follow Kana Sakuragi, a recent college grad (I think!), with no job prospects...until she spontaneously helps a magical girl contractor. Now, she's got prospects!

Having grown up with Sailor Moon, CardCaptor Sakura, Revolutionary Girl Utena, Shugo Chara, Tokyo Mew Mew, and other magical girl stories, I knew I needed to read this. It's such a hopeful and fun reimagining of the genre and it's something we sorely need after the likes of Madoka Magica, which I do like, but I mean, come on. At some point it's not deep if we're just continuously watching young girls suffer before viciously being killed. I have a lot more to say about it, but that's not the point here. The point is that Magilumiere is uplifting, funny, serious, and wonderfully illustrated. If you need a positive boost to survive in our capitalist society, this is the one for you!

THIS IS SO GOOD it's going to be the next big hit!! I cannot wait to read more and watch this as an anime!!

A very interesting take on the magical girl genre! It reminds me a lot of the book I recently read by Park Seolyeon. The book being A Magical Girl Retires.
Like in the book, the manga follows our main character who is broke and looking for a job but just can't seem to catch a break. Until, she has a random encounter with a magical girl who is looking to hire her.
This was pretty good! I'll probably read the next volume when it is released

This is a series I have been hoping would get a western release, so i'm really excited to see it's finally coming to the states. Most everyone has some familiarity with magical girls, the genre itself has been around for decades and while not much have changed, it's still a well loved and popular story type. Magilumiere takes magical girls and makes a lot of changes to the genre, namely by making magical girls an industry, with everyone from tech giants to small start ups hiring magical girls, all of whom are young adults, not teens. Here, technology is what gives magical girls their powers, they still transform and perform magic, but it's all based on the tech their company employs and how they use it. Kana is a recent grad that's struggling to find a job, until a magical girl is called to eradicate a monster during her job interview. Kana's penchant for retaining knowledge of everything she's studied helps the magical girl win and wins her a job offer. The plot currently revolves around the startup Kana works for and their employees as they learn to work together and expand their business. The story is engaging, the characters are great, the art is lovely, and the plot is going places that will be fun to read.