Review: The Concierge at Hokkyoku Department Store Vol. 1

Review: The Concierge at Hokkyoku Department Store Vol. 1

The Concierge at Hokkyoku Department Store Vol. 1 by Tsuchika Nishimura, Girl looking at a mammoth while other animals pass byI received this manga from Edelweiss/publisher in exchange of an honest review.

I have heard SO MUCH about this one. Or well, mostly the movie that is out for this one (which I hope to watch as well). So when I saw this one on Edelweiss of course I had to get it! And I am happy I did, this was an interesting read.

In this gorgeous manga we meet a girl named Akino, she just started her job working in the biggest and awesomest (is that a word, it is now) department store, Hokkyoku Department Store! This isn’t just any department store. Sure, it got all the stores, the restaurants, the shiny glittery fanciness that you get with such department stores, but there is something special about this one. In this one the humans are the personnel, and the clientele is animals.  Yep, you read that one right. We see animals big and small, ones that may have been extinct but are still here in this one, come by and shop, eat, and have a wonderful day. Akino mostly caters the VIA, very important animals, animals that are extinct/the last ones of their kind. From mammoths to the laughing owl. It was always interesting to see which animals we would meet in each chapter and what their story was. Some were sad, some were more humorous, it was a nice blend. BTW, even though as a human I wouldn’t be able to shop there, I would so love to actually do that, discover all the floors, oh and ah at the gorgeous items, eat at the restaurant.

Plus, it was great fun to see Akino try her very best to cater to them, get used to her job, make sure everyone was happy, and more. I was really rooting for her, because it wasn’t always the easiest. Some clients were such characters, there are all sorts of unspoken rules she has to understand, she has to know the whole layout, and there is more. It is a lot for her, but I knew she would be fantastic at it, even though she blunders you can see her honesty and that she is super kind.

The art was really gorgeous and I love the style. The way everything was drawn was very pretty. OK, sometimes a bit odd, but in general I really enjoyed it.

I wasn’t such a fan of her boss (??) who just kept popping up and being terribly rude towards Akino, oh and violent as well. It was really off-putting to see him constantly popping up out of random pieces of furniture/walls/hidden compartments and get angry and be violent. I do hope that as the story continues this element disappears.

But I have to say that I am a bit confused by the setting. So humans and animals live side by side in this one? Is it just in the department store that the humans cater to the animals every whim or is it like that in the outside world as well? Is this, like another reviewer says in their review, the afterlife? Is it something else? I do hope that we get some sort of answers as the story progresses, because I would love that. Now it feels very surreal and strange and I just kept being pulled out of the story to wonder about it. Not to mention that there are apparently parts of the department store made for smaller animals which felt a bit odd because you would go from normal to tiny.

Oh, and the whole seeing Akino constantly on her knees without so much as a sock or a pillow protecting her knees. LORD, after a whole day of crawling/moving like that I can only imagine how bruised they are.

But all in all, I enjoyed this one and I am happy I had the chance to read this one, finally. I would recommend it!

Star rating, 4 stars

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